09 June 2009

Trimming Down After Pregnancy

Breastfeeding an infantImage via Wikipedia

By Jolene Castello

We've all had friends who got pregnant, and then never quite got back to their pre-pregnancy figure, and while it's shallow to judge someone on her looks, it's all part and parcel for how women feel about their bodies. Fortunately, it's not a given that pregnancy equals "getting a mom figure". If you start early on losing the pregnancy bulge, it can pay off.

Gaining weight is part and parcel with pregnancy. You're carrying a whole new baby inside of you, and in addition to that, you're gaining weight for all the support mechanisms that baby needs as well. And it's more than fat " there's nearly a pound and a half from the placenta, three pounds of retained fluid to feed the placenta and to cushion your system from the baby's demands, your uterus thickens with all the additional blood vessels needed to feed the placenta, and your boobs got bigger, to the tune of about two pounds for most women. On top of that, your body may store as much as seven or eight pounds of fat to support breastfeeding. Most mothers pick up 25 pound or more over the course of the entire pregnancy.

Weight gain is probably one of the reasons why so many women are reluctant to get pregnant. Theres actually no need to stress out on how to deal with the weight issues. Working out that added 25 pounds is easy as one-two-three. You may have heard this for a long time but it is true.

First, the dietary changes you made for the baby will need to adjust a bit after pregnancy. You don't need the extra 200 to 400 calories per day for the baby, though your body has probably gotten used to eating more. Cut down the calorie intake post haste.

The key to successfully shifting to a healthy weight loss diet is by stepping up your vegetable and fruit intake. Stay away from all white food (refined sugar, white bread, pastries, etc). Instead, replace them with browns (whole wheat grain breads or cereals) and greens (green leafy vegetables). Limit your fat intake. Also, you have to control your intake of your occasional treats such as ice cream and chocolates. If you are so driven to get back in shape, you need to keep your eye on your goal weight and watch what you eat.

As soon as you can, start walking. Walking is good for you, it builds muscle tone, and helps with the second part of losing the pregnancy fat: Burning extra calories. Get a workout buddy as soon as your doctor will let you do more than walk. Start out light and gradually build up to things. Set weekly and monthly goals and work towards them. As your body recovers from the stresses of child birth, this will get easier and easier for you.

Don't do 'burst exercises'. Make the exercise program part of your weekly routine. Run every other day; spend time lifting weights on the days off. Stretch. Make 30 minutes per day part of your routine, and it'll pay dividends down the road. You'll feel guilty at first, because you want to spend all your time with the baby, but trust us. Taking the time to exercise will mean you have more energy for dealing with the baby, and your exercise time is your time to be an adult, and indulge yourself.

Pregnancy weight loss is all about getting more exercise and running your metabolism at a higher rate. That's what the diet and exercise changes are for. A hidden secret to getting more out of it is to breastfeed; this will help burn those stocks of fat your body conveniently placed for you to feed the baby with. It will also trigger a number of the internal hormonal changes that cause other weight losses to happen.

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