The Breastfeeding Diet

You're not finished eating for two quite yet — here's how to get the right nutrition to provide your baby with a liquid lunch (and breakfast, and dinner, and snacks…)

It's the couch potato's dream — burning up the calories of a five-mile run without leaving your lounge chair. And guess what? That dream is your reality now that you're breastfeeding your little tater tot. It's true — milk production burns 500 calories a day, which means that when you're breastfeeding, you'll get to eat an extra 500 calories a day (up from your pre-pregnancy numbers) to meet that need — just one of the many benefits of breastfeeding. 

  

Hello, potato chips? Not exactly. Quality matters as much as quantity, especially if you expect to stay vertical during those long postpartum days (and even longer nights). The good news is that you're an old pro at eating well — what with all the practice you've had for the past nine months during your pregnancy. The even better news is that eating well while breastfeeding is very much like eating well while expecting (see The Pregnancy Diet), with (best news of all) slightly more relaxed rules. You'll still be aiming for plenty of healthy foods and steering clear of the less healthy ones (though there's more leeway for indulgences). Plus, while calories definitely count, you still won't need to count them — just follow the Breastfeeding Diet as best you can: 

  

What to eat. Like eating well during pregnancy, eating well while breastfeeding entails getting the right balance of good (and good for you) food. Try to get the following each day:

• Protein: three servings
• Calcium: five servings (that's an increase from your pregnancy requirement of four)
• Iron-rich foods: one or more servings
• Vitamin C: two servings
• Green leafy and yellow vegetables, yellow fruits: three to four servings
• Other fruits and veggies: one or more servings
• Whole-grain and other concentrated complex carbohydrates: three or more servings
• High-fat foods: small amounts — you don't need as much as you did during pregnancy
• Eight cups of water, juice, or other noncaffeinated, nonalcoholic beverages
• DHA-rich foods to promote baby's brain growth (look for it in wild salmon and sardines, as well as DHA-enriched eggs)
• Prenatal vitamin daily 

What not to eat. Here's the great news: When you're breastfeeding, there's a lot more that can be on the menu than off. But (and here's the less great news), with caveats. It's fine to pop open the cork on that pinot noir you've been pining for (or flip the top on that ale you've been aching for) — but within limits (a couple of glasses a week, preferably taken right after you nurse, rather than before, to allow a couple of hours for the alcohol to metabolize and for far less to reach your baby — use Milkscreen to check the alcohol levels in your milk). Time to pick up your coffee habit where you left off? Depends on how hefty your habit was — more than a cup or two of joe can make junior jittery (and keep you both from getting any sleep). As for safe foods after pregnancy, it's okay to reel in the sushi again, although you should continue to avoid high-mercury fish such as shark, tilefish, and mackerel, and to limit those that may contain moderate amounts of that heavy metal. (See Pregnancy and Fish.) 

  

What to watch out for. If you have a family history of allergies, it's probably wise to avoid peanuts and foods that contain them (and possibly other highly allergic foods, such as tree nuts — check with the doctor). Also watch out for herbs — even some seemingly innocuous herbal teas. (Stick to reliable brands and choose flavors that are considered safe during lactation, including orange spice, peppermint, raspberry, red bush, chamomile, and rosehip.) Read labels carefully to make sure other herbs haven't been added to the brew, and drink them only in moderation.And when it comes to sugar substitutes, aspartame is probably a better bet than saccharine (only tiny amounts of aspartame pass into breast milk), but Sucralose (Splenda) is considered safe and a good all-round, low-calorie sugar substitute.

What to watch your baby for. A few moms find that their own diet affects their babies' tummies and temperaments. While what you eat does indeed change the taste and smell of your milk (that happens for all mothers), that's actually a good thing, since it exposes your baby to many different flavors. But some babies can be sensitive to certain foods. If you suspect that something in your diet is turning baby off his or her feed (or turning his or her tummy), try eliminating the food for a few days to gauge the response. Some of the more common troublemakers are cow's milk, eggs, fish, citrus fruits, nuts, and wheat.

Source: http://www.whattoexpect.com/first-year/breastfeeding/breastfeeding-diet.aspx

Postpartum Diet

Nutrition After Pregnancy: Too Busy with the Baby to Eat?

With your amazing — and exhausting — new 24-hour job (feed baby, change baby, burp baby, rock baby, and repeat), you barely have time to change your clothes, shower, or think about anything that's not baby-related. It's natural to be completely focused on your new little bundle, and completely unfocused on your own needs — like your diet after delivery. The problem with forgetting to eat, though, is that skipping meals deprives you of energy. And as you've certainly figured out by now, parenting takes lots of energy — even more energy if you're fueling a milk-making factory and need a solid breastfeeding diet. Here's how to get the best nutrition after pregnancy when eating's the last thing on your mind (or your to-do list)

Postpartum Diet Trick 1: Snack when your baby snacks.

Your little one is eating every two to four hours now — and so should you. Sneak in small bites of fruit, yogurt, low-fat cheese, or whole-grain bread or muffins whenever you prepare to feed your baby — or, if you've mastered the one-handed feed already, while you're feeding your baby (talk about multitasking!). Stash healthy snacks within arm's reach (almonds and raisins next to your favorite nursing chair, a banana and a bag of crackers in your stroller bag) so your diet after delivery keeps you satisfied. (Get more clever diet after pregnancy tips.)

Postpartum Diet Trick 2: Just say yes!

When friends ask if there's anything they can do to help, suggest they pick up a roast chicken, a tray of lasagna, prewashed bags of salad greens, a giant carton of fruit salad, a platter of veggies and dip, or a dozen whole-wheat bagels (melt a slice of cheese on top of one of those babies, and you have yourself a healthy mini-meal staple for your diet after delivery). Try to keep your kitchen stocked with easy-to-prepare foods you like, so that thinking about what to eat takes no thought at all.

Postpartum Diet Trick 3: Befriend your freezer.

If you cooked in quantity while you were pregnant, now's the time to defrost those homemade goodies and enjoy them. If you never actually got around to following through on your make-ahead plans, stock up on frozen dinners and snacks (look for healthy ones — your store should carry plenty) for your diet after delivery. More nutrition after pregnancy shortcuts: Frozen vegetables are as nutritious as fresh, and a lot faster to prepare, and frozen fruit makes a quick smoothie when blended with yogurt.

Postpartum Diet Trick 4: Dial up a delivery.

Nobody deserves deliveries as much as someone who's just made one (a significant one). Tap into every delivery option available to you — groceries (sure, you won't get to squeeze the peaches, but at least you'll end up with some), delis, restaurants of every kind from sushi, now that you can, to pizza. (In fact, getting good nutrition after pregnancy should be a breeze compared to your taboo-ridden pregnancy diet!) Consider ordering ahead a few meals, so that you'll have something to reheat tomorrow (or tonight, when that midnight feeding leaves you starving).

Postpartum Diet Trick 5: Plan ahead.

If you're boiling an egg for lunch, boil six so they're ready and waiting for you tomorrow. If it's salmon salad you crave today, crack open a large can so that you'll be able to fish for an easy snack the next day. Bake a half-dozen potatoes at once — it's quick and easy to warm them later (with some pre-shredded Cheddar and leftover broccoli). Ditto brown rice — make a box, and reheat it all week. And if you actually manage to get to the market, linger where the prepared foods hang out (bag a rotisserie chicken, sliced roast turkey, turkey meatloaf, ready-to-eat veggie and fruit salads). And don't forget to visit the salad bar — heap a few dishes high with your favorites (but keep the dressings on the side so you don't end up with limp lettuce tomorrow).

Postpartum Diet Trick 6: Drink, drink, drink.

Keep bottles of water in every room of the house, so no matter where you and baby are, you can grab a quick drink. To keep yourself hydrated (dehydration leads to postpartum fatigue — something you've got plenty of already, thank you), make sure you have a drink every time baby does.

Source: http://www.whattoexpect.com/first-year/week-4/too-busy-to-eat.aspx#

How to Get A Flat Stomach After Pregnancy exercise video

Losing the Baby Weight: The Truth About Shedding Pounds After Birth

Many women wonder how long it takes to lose baby weight and bounce back to a pre-baby body. Get the real facts about how the body holds on to pounds after birth. 

It’s every woman’s dream to lose all the extra pregnancy pounds the moment baby finally arrives — but the fact is no one (not even celebs!) snaps back to her pre-baby body so quickly. It’s important to keep your expectations in check: Depending on the size of your newborn (usually between five and 10 pounds) and precise weight of your amniotic fluid and placenta (which you deliver at birth), most pregnant women can lose up to 12 pounds during delivery. Considering the average pregnancy weight gain is between 25 and 35 pounds, that’s a healthy start!

So where do the rest of those pounds come from? Your breast tissue, blood supply, fat stores and enlarged uterus. In fact, giving birth might not shrink your baby belly very much at all — at least for the first six weeks, until your uterus shrinks back to around its pre-pregnancy size.

There are lots of things you can do to get into shape again. But it’s really important to give yourself a break: Your body just birthed another being. Things moved around, stretched and grew to make that happen. Don’t focus on “getting your body back” (it actually didn’t go anywhere!) but on creating a healthy, happy, and — possibly slightly differently shaped — you.

Your Weekly Weight-Loss Goal

After you deliver, you will slowly lose weight. You may want to speed things along by working with your doctor to set a safe, reasonable goal. A good rule of thumb is to lose no more than one and a half pounds per week (that is, a calorie deficit of 3,500 to 5,250 calories per week, or 500 to 750 a day). While many new mothers ditch the bulk of their pregnancy pounds by baby’s 6-month birthday, everyone sheds weight at their own pace. Many factors have been proven to affect your weight loss journey — including your age (your metabolism slows down by about 2 percent every decade after age 25, so you burn fewer calories at rest as you age), your diet (when you eat more protein than carbs and eat larger meals earlier in the day, your body burns more calories and works more efficiently), activity level (the more you move, the more calories you burn), and your natural metabolism, which is determined by your genes. Keep in mind, too, if you gained more than 35 pounds during your pregnancy, it could take extra time (from 10 months to two years) to bounce back.

Breastfeeding and Weight Loss

Although shedding 10, 20 or more pounds post-baby might seem insurmountable, it may take less “work” — or at least hours pounding it out on the treadmill — than you might think. That’s because, as many new moms will attest, breastfeeding helps melt off the pounds in record time. In fact, depending on how much milk you produce, breastfeeding can burn up about 500 calories per day. What’s more, it stimulates the release of hormones that help shrink your uterus (and your post-baby belly). Unfortunately contrary to what you might have heard, you don’t need to hold on to an extra five pounds of weight as a reserve while you breastfeed (so those last few stubborn pounds might actually require some extra sweat sessions at the gym).

After you stop breastfeeding, your body has less work to do — which means it burns fewer calories than it did when you were nursing. However at the same time you may notice that weaning naturally decreases your appetite — your body’s natural way of putting you on the right kind of diet (so listen to it!). You’ll likely feel more free (and comfortable) to increase your activity level, too. So when you stop nursing, don’t worry too much about packing on the pounds you lost. Lifestyle changes can help keep your metabolism churning — and while you’ll need to scale back on food a bit, you can prevent those numbers on your bathroom scale from creeping back up.

Your Post-Baby Diet

Since your body needs ample rest and nutrition to recover from delivery, fend off infection and feed your baby, you shouldn’t even think about dieting until your baby is 6 weeks old — no matter how anxious you are to squeeze back into your pre-pregnancy clothes.

Once you feel ready to start a post-baby diet (and you’ve gotten the OK from your doctor), make sure you’re still eating enough calories. Crash dieting isn’t just risky for you: If you’re breastfeeding and don’t eat enough calories, your body ends up producing less milk — which means you're hungry, growing baby goes on a diet with you. What’s more, burning fat too quickly can trigger the release of toxins that end up in breast milk. Even if you’re not nursing, eating too few calories can make your body think you’re starving. This confusion can cause actually slow down your metabolism, making it harder to shed those extra pounds in the long run.

Remember, if you’re nursing your calorie needs are even greater during the first six months after delivery than they were during the last trimester of pregnancy. Your doctor can help determine exactly how many calories you should be eating, since the number will vary depending on your BMI before pregnancy and your activity level. To put things in perspective, the average woman needs about 2,000 calories a day, and breastfeeding women should tack on an extra 500 calories to maintain their current weight. To lose one pound, though, you need to create a calorie deficit of 3,500 calories per week (or 500 calories less per day) by eating less or exercising more (which means the average breastfeeding woman would be back at 2,000 calories per day to lose about a pound a week). Make sure the foods you do eat are packed with the proper nutrients (for tips on what to eat, check out the postpartum diet and/or breastfeeding diet). Also remember that the less you weigh, the fewer calories your body needs — so you may need to adjust your calorie intake as you slim down.

Get Moving!

One other thing to keep in mind: Exercise does a body good, especially one that has a few too many love handles. And even though you're super busy, you can always find ways to start exercising with baby (it can be as simple as taking out the stroller or using a baby carrier). Just make sure you've gotten the green light from your practitioner before starting back on your exercise routine, and never exercise to the point of exhaustion (you're probably exhausted enough from the lack of sleep!). Find an activity you enjoy — jogging, yoga, cycling, swimming, walking — and plan it into your week. Besides helping you with your weight loss after delivery, a brisk walk with the baby in a nearby park or playground is a great way to meet other moms who are no doubt on the same weight loss mission as you are.

The Dreaded Weight-Loss Plateau

You might have heard that many new mothers reach a weight loss plateau. And while it’s hard to say exactly if and when weight loss slows, experts say that many women do retain 10 pounds for good. That said, it likely has nothing to do with being pregnant but is more related to changes in your diet and activity levels after baby is in the picture: Caring for a new baby leaves a lot less time to take care of yourself — especially as you struggle to cope with a lot more work and a lot less sleep! But while losing the last few pounds might be tough, diet and exercise really can get your body back to its pre-baby shape.

Tips to Shed Those Final Pounds

No matter where you are on your post-baby weight loss journey, patience is the key. Sticking to a diet can be tricky with a baby, but these tips can help you stay on track:

• Team up. You need all the support you can get — so get your partner on board. Take a walk instead of watching TV after dinner, and make a commitment to sticking to a post-baby diet together. Start by ridding your fridge and pantry of high-fat and processed foods, then stock up on fruits, veggies, whole grains, low-fat dairy products, lean meats, poultry and fish — and keep an eye out for each others' eating habits.
• Don't discount the small stuff. Squeeze even a little extra activity into your daily routine. Every step counts, so don't discount the little things: You'd be amazed by how many calories you'll burn from a number of everyday mommy activities.
• Stay positive. Focus on what you've accomplished so far and the weight you've already lost. If your skinny clothes are still too skinny, buy a couple of fun things that you'll enjoy wearing, get a new haircut or try new makeup to perk you up as you slim down.

The Bottom Line

Even mothers are bound to the standard rules of weight loss: less calories in than out. Remember that it took you nine months to gain the weight, and slimming down will likely be as challenging as it was before you began to pack on pregnancy pounds. And even when the scale hits a number you like, you may find your body’s shape is somewhat different than it was before birth. That’s OK — and a great reason to splurge on some new clothes that flatter the new you!

So no matter how long it takes you to retire your pregnancy jeans, try not to get frustrated. While pregnancy might leave you with permanent stretch marks on your belly and slightly less perky breasts, healthy habits can help you shape up otherwise. And keep motivated by reminding yourself that you have created a fabulous human being who adores you — all of you...so instead of staring at your tummy, take a peek at your beautiful baby and cut yourself some slack.

Source: http://www.whattoexpect.com/first-year/losing-baby-weight