You can expect to lose as much as 16 pounds within a week after giving birth, the BabyCenter website explains, because your body is suddenly free of a 7- to 8-lb. baby, 1 or 2 lbs. of placenta and as much as 6 lbs. of extra fluid. Though you're probably still eager to get rid of the rest of your pregnancy weight, losing too much baby weight too soon can actually be risky. Discuss healthy postpartum weight loss with your doctor.
When to Start
Because you're still healing from labor and delivery, you should wait until your six-week checkup before you cut calories and actively slim down, recommends BabyCenter --- and then only with your doctor's approval. Trying to lose weight too soon after you give birth can impede the healing process. If you're breastfeeding, you should wait around two months before you try losing weight.
Slow and Steady Exercise
Although you shouldn't try to lose weight right away, you may do some gentle aerobic exercise within a few days of giving birth as long as you feel up to it, you had an uncomplicated vaginal delivery and you exercised throughout your pregnancy, according to MayoClinic.com. Talk to your doctor before exercising if you had a C-section or any pregnancy complications; you might need to wait some six to eight weeks in these cases. Getting back on your feet and committing to a gradual increase in physical activity is the first step to losing the pregnancy weight and keeping it off for good. Gently walking on a treadmill or strolling around the block with your baby for 10 to 15 minutes a day is a great way to begin. Build up to 30 to 45 minutes per session and pick up the pace as you develop more stamina. You're probably overdoing it if you feel excessive fatigue, if you're in pain during exercise or if your vaginal flow turns pink or red.
Calorie Deprivation
Women typically need at least 1,500 calories per day to maintain their weight; nursing mothers need a minimum of 1,800 calories per day to adequately nourish themselves and their babies, according to BabyCenter. If your calorie intake falls too low, you are at higher risk of mood swings and low energy. If you're breastfeeding and try to cut too many calories at once, you may decrease your milk supply and you risk releasing toxins from your body fat into your milk supply.
Setting Healthy Goals
Bear in mind that you gained your pregnancy weight over a span of nine months, so getting back to your pre-pregnancy shape can't happen overnight. Set some healthy and attainable weight-loss goals as soon as you get the thumbs-up from your doctor. Depending on how many calories you're already taking in, you can reasonably plan to lose 1 lb. a week until you reach your goal weight, according to MayoClinic.com. Given that 1 lb. packs 3,500 calories, losing a pound a week requires you to burn off or trim 500 calories every day. At this rate you might not reach your goal weight for at least six months, but you'll be more likely to keep the weight off if you don't try too much too soon.
References
- La Leche League International; Postpartum Body Image and Weight Loss; Marie Zahorick and Valeri Webber; September-October 2000
- BabyCenter; Diet for Healthy Post-Baby Weight Loss; March 2010
- BabyCenter; Postpartum Exercise: Is Your Body Ready?; July 2006
- MayoClinic.com; Weight Loss After Pregnancy: Reclaiming Your Body; June 19, 2010
- BabyCenter; Body Changes After Childbirth; January 2009
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