Losing Baby Fat
If you have never had problems with excessive weight but
recently you have had a baby, welcome to the club of baby-fat losers. Many women
gain weight during pregnancy and while sometimes it happens that the excessive
weight you have put on during pregnancy disappears weeks after childbirth, not
all ladies are that lucky. And what is worse, very often the extra pounds will
stay with you forever, if you don’t make the efforts to get rid of them.
There is no universal prescription as of when it is best to
start regaining pre-pregnancy shape. Right after birth is not a great idea
because of a myriad of reasons. Well, you might have heard of topmodels who
regain their shape in two months but this is hardly the standard. And for many
women it is just not possible. For instance, if you have had a cesarian section,
exercising heavily is strictly prohibited for at least three months or even more
and only by dieting you will not be able to lose a lot.
Losing Baby Fat
Although it is not exactly a rule but if you have not lost most
of your baby fat up to one year after childbirth, you should take care of it.
Losing a pound or two a month is the optimal solution but if you have put a lot
of weight during pregnancy, for instance 20 pounds (excluding the other pounds
15-20 pounds that you lost right after the baby was born), with this tempo you
will not get far.
Many women manage to restore their shape three to six months
after birth but still this is pretty individual and depends on how many pounds
you have gained and how old are you. Generally women under 26 restore their
shape with less efforts but again, this is not a strict rule.
One of the recommendations for dealing with baby fat is to lead
a more active life during pregnancy. This way, even if you eat for two, you will
hardly gain 50 or 60 pounds. Besides, unless your pregnancy is not too
complicated and risky, leading a more active life (which however does not mean
endless nights in the disco or skiing in the mountains) is useful for the baby
as well.
Baby Fat Loss
Baby fat loss is not much different from any fat loss, except
that if you are breast feeding, you need more calories daily. If you totally
skip fats and carbs from your diet, this will directly affect your baby as well,
so some of the classical approaches to dieting are not applicable right away to
baby fat loss. However, if you have not kicked chips, candy and carbonated
drinks from your diet until now, consider that the moment to do it has come.
Eating fruit and vegetables only might not give you enough
energy to look after the baby, so not fat meat and dairy products are mandatory
for your diet. Also, if you happen to extract fruit juices for the baby, extract
a glass or two for you as well. This is good from any point of view and if you
have never done it, why not start now?
The second major component of every fat loss program – exercise
– also needs a slight adaptation for post-pregnancy women. Two or three months
after childbirth, you might still have stitches that you risk to tear, if you
practise a lot. The first three months after childbirth are not the time for
active exercise, but some light exercise is OK (especially if your doctor
recommends it).
Very soon you will see that you have a new form of physical
activity – weight carrying. When the baby becomes 10 or more pounds, which
generally happens in the first few months and you carry him or her in your arms
(or in a kangaroo bag) most of the time, you will discover that this is a new
way to burn calories. And when the baby grows a little and starts walking, you
will soon discover that you also run many miles a day.
If carrying the baby and running after him or her is not
enough, daily walks with the other babies (and their mothers) in the
neighborhood will also burn you a lot of calories. You can also exercise while
the baby is sleeping or somebody else is taking care of him or her.
More Losing Baby Fat Articles:
Fast Weight Loss After Pregnancy
After Pregnancy-Lose Baby Weight
Losing weight after giving birth
