Weight Loss After Baby Delivery

You might not afford to think about losing weight for at least six weeks after the baby delivery. You should just eat healthy foods without thinking losing weight. After six months, you should start to lose weight gradually such as 1-2 pounds weekly. It may take more than one year to go back to the weight before pregnancy.

What are healthy foods you should take after the baby delivery? There are no special foods for it. You should eat foods containing high fibers (fruits, vegetables, whole grains), low-fat dairy products (skim milk, yogurt, low-fat cheeses), good protein (lean chicken, lean turkey, fish, beans). Avoid alcohol as much as you can. No fast foods. No fried foods. Eat small meats 5-6 times a day. Don't skip meals. Eat only when you are hungry. Don't eat to distract yourself from anxiety, worry, stress.

How many calories you should take depends on whether you are breastfeeding or not. If you are not breastfeeding, you should decrease the calories up to 500 calories. However, you should take at least 1,600 calories a day because you need a lot of energy to take care of your baby. If you are breastfeeding, you should not try to lose weight with diet at least for 6 months because you need to provide enough nutrition to your baby with breastfeeding. After then, you should decrease calories like women who are not breastfeeding. Weight Watchers has a good program for women who had baby delivery. Usually you don’t lose all the baby weight until you completely stop nursing.

Although women used to be instructed not to start exercising for at least 6 weeks after normal vaginal delivery, you may start to walk within days. If you have a C-section or a complicated vaginal delivery, you should ask your doctor when you can begin exercising. Usually around 4 weeks after a C-section you can start exercising. You should start to take your baby for 15 minutes twice a day. And then you should increase the activity level gradually to burn calories and increase your energy. If it doesn't work well, you should try aerobic exercise for mothers at home while your baby is sleeping. You should also do abdominal exercises to get the tone of your abdominal muscles and do Kegel exercises to help tone your pelvic floor muscles. For Kegel exercises, you should tighten your pelvic muscles as if you are stopping your stream of urine. Do it then relax for up to 10 seconds respectively up to 10 times at least three sets a day if possible.