8 easy rules to loose post pregnancy weight
Holding onto some extra kilos after pregnancy is normal. However, some study findings suggest that women after delivering baby do not go back to their pre pregnancy weight. The stress hormones in new mom increases easily which leads to weight gain.
To deal with stress, women in this situation eat more and the extra calories again lead to weight gain. Also, baby weight not only consists of extra fat stores but also water weight, placenta, breast tissue, amniotic fluid, blood and enlarged uterus. Some new studies also suggest that the increase in weight after pregnancy also majorly depends on one’s lifestyle choices.
So, all these reasons mean women can never go back to their pre pregnancy weight? Well, that’s not right. If lifestyle changes can increase your weight, some switch to those lifestyle changes can also help you loose weight. One can achieve pre baby weight if one understands the importance of habits or some easy rules that can actually help to maintain healthy weight after pregnancy.
Some of these easy rules to loose post pregnancy weight are as follows:-
1. Have a protein rich diet
Protein is not only crucial for baby’s growth throughout pregnancy but it also plays a major role in helping you manage a healthy weight after pregnancy. Protein has greater thermic effects than other nutrients. Including protein rich sources in your diet can help boost metabolism, decrease your calorie intake by decreasing your appetite. So a protein rich diet post pregnancy is a must!
2. Avoid processed foods
Highly processed foods such as fries, potato chips, white bread, sugary beverages, oven ready foods, tinned vegetables etc. must be given a big thumbs down by new moms. Not only these foods have low nutritional value but the chemicals, preservatives, salts, artificial flavors and sugars could really worsen your health especially in the long run.
3. Breastfeed
There is nothing more nutritious than mother’s milk for a new born baby. Apart from being the best diet for a baby, various researches have also shown that breastfeeding can actually help you go back to your pre baby weight. It increases the potential of a mother to loose weight more quickly after delivering the baby. Not only it has shown to help loosing weight but also helped lowering the risks of high blood pressure, diabetes and ovarian and breast cancer in some mothers.
4. Hydrate
Drinking enough water is often advised to anyone who is trying to loose weight. This is because of the reason that water consumption suppress appetite before meals, help burn more calories by boosting metabolism and so is the case when one tries to loose post pregnancy weight. Staying hydrated is also being considered important especially during the period of breastfeeding.
5. Exercise
Starving yourself to loose baby weight is no solution. The simple key is to eat just a little less and move a little more. Exercising, mild walking, any kind of mild intensity physical activity can help you loose weight. Apart from that, physical activities serves numerous benefits like reducing the risk of diabetes and improving your heart as well as overall health.
6. Keep a check on what you eat
Monitoring your calorie intake is not just for limiting yourself to how much you eat but to also maintain a check on what you eat. You can make health chart or keep a food diary to ensure that you are providing your body the necessary nutrition it requires and not binge eating.
7. Keep some healthy snacks around
One is more likely to eat what is kept nearby so what’s better than keeping healthy food options on the table or the places around you. One can cut buying packaged snacks or sugary foods and keep them away from house and as an alternative eat some healthy snacks. The healthy and handy snacks option could include mildly spiced nuts, hummus, greek yoghurt and dry fruits. As one is largely affected by the food one keeps around, putting healthy nutritious snacks in your containers or anywhere in your home around can really make a great impact on your weight.
8. A good sleep
You might have controlled binge eating, managed a healthy diet and an exercise routine along. But what can effect your weight loss efforts badly is a poor sleep. Now, having a good sleep might sound counter-intuitive to mothers who have recently started to manage life with a new born baby as the little one might not allow you to sleep properly. However, one should try level best to take proper sleep. Another thing you can do is manage you caffeine intake and can ask for support from your dear ones to help manage taking care of your baby.
Takeaway
Achieving a healthy weight after delivering baby might be very important but remember it should not load you with extra stress of loosing weight. In stressful situations, one might end up either overeating or starving oneself. Starving yourself can adversely affect your health by inducing weakness in your body so it’s better to say big no to starving or staying hungry for long hours. And to manage overeating or loose weight, making small changes and adopting little healthy habits could really prove to favor your overall health.
