1. Bundle of Joy, Bundle of Weight
Unfortunately, the happiness of a new baby leaves a woman's body with weight gain. Sleep deprivation from feedings and stress with learning how to care for your baby compounds the problem. Stress produces cortisol that increases body fat, especially in the mid section. Most women who gain more weight during pregnancy or start out heavier will have a difficult time losing baby weight. Losing baby weight with second pregnancies is often more difficult. A woman is likely to lose 10 to 20 lbs. immediately after giving birth but breast feeding, contrary to popular myth, actually encourages a larger appetite and the possibility of more weight gain.
2. Begin With Care
Don't think about baby weight loss for your first 6 weeks. Concentrate on breast feeding and caring for your child. At your visit to the doctor, ask questions about safe weight loss. Hormones, still active in the body, loosen ligaments and cause greater risk for strain and injury. Childbirth can cause the pelvic floor to weaken. Use great care when lifting weights to allow the vaginal wall, bladder and uterus to heal properly.
3. Time to Eat
New mothers are forced to eat on the go. As much as possible, make meal time purposeful rather than haphazard eating over the sink. Try to avoid pre-packaged snack and convenience foods. Decrease carbohydrates, except vegetables and fruit. Try to keep your protein intake high and eat monounsaturated fats to curb your appetite. Do not restrict your calorie intake in the first 4months but eat healthy, especially if you are breastfeeding. Remember to cut yourself some slack. When trying to lose baby weight, expect some setbacks and frustrations. Make it a priority but do not beat yourself up over your different body.
4. Time to Exercise
If you are fortunate enough to be able to go to the gym or on a hike during the day, you are lucky. A few props and tips make working out at home pleasurable. Buy resistance bands for some weight training to tone arms and legs. After your doctor gives the go ahead, do sit ups every day to flatten and tone the belly. Home workout aerobics and strength training DVDs are useful to get the intensity high enough for weight loss. Exercise medicine balls are also helpful.
5. Crank It Up With Interval Training
Interval training is great for losing baby weight because it does not take much time for fast results. Limit your cardiovascular sessions to 20 or 25 minutes when you are ready to start training at the gym or outside. Interval training on the treadmill provides a good workout. Warm up for 2 minutes and then alternate walking, jogging and fast running every other minute. The key is to not rest completely before another high intensity interval. Make sure to cool down and stretch before and after any exercise.
