Diet for healthy post-baby weight loss
Reviewed by the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Eager to get back into shape now that you're no longer pregnant? For
long-term success – and to keep yourself feeling good along the way –
keep these tips in mind.
Don't start dieting too soon
Your body needs time to recover from labor and delivery. Give yourself until your six-week postpartum checkup
before you start watching your calorie intake and actively trying to
slim down. And if you're breastfeeding, experts recommend that you wait
until your baby is at least 2 months old before you try to lose weight.
(If you're a nursing mom, you may also want to read our article on a healthy breastfeeding diet.)
Starting
a diet too soon after giving birth can delay your recovery and make you
feel more tired – and you need all the energy you can muster to adjust
to life with your newborn. In addition, if you're nursing, dieting can affect your milk supply. If you're patient and give your body a chance to do its work, you may be surprised at how much weight you lose naturally, especially if you're breastfeeding.
Be realistic about weight loss
Keep in mind that you may not be able to return to your exact pre-pregnancy weight or shape. For many women, pregnancy causes permanent changes such as a softer belly,
slightly wider hips, and a larger waistline. With this in mind, you
might want to adjust your goals a bit.
Embrace exercise
There's
no magic pill to help you lose weight: A healthy diet combined with
regular exercise is the best way to shed the pounds – and to keep them
off. And it's important to exercise while trying to lose weight to
ensure you're losing fat instead of muscle.
Once you're ready to begin losing weight, start by eating a little less and being more active – even if you're just taking a quick walk around the block with your baby in the stroller.
Find out whether your body is ready for exercise and visit our
postpartum fitness area for information on getting back into shape.
Lose weight slowly
Don't go on a strict, restrictive diet. Women need a minimum
of 1,200 calories a day to stay healthy, and most women need more than
that – between 1,500 and 2,200 calories a day – to keep up their energy
and prevent mood swings. And if you're nursing, you need a bare minimum
of 1,800 calories a day (most nursing moms need more like 2,000 to 2,700
calories) to nourish both yourself and your baby.
If you're
breastfeeding, you'll want to make sure to take it slow – losing weight
too quickly can cause a decrease in your milk supply.
Too-rapid
weight loss can also release toxins that are stored in your body fat
into the bloodstream – and into your milk supply. (Toxins that can make
it into your bloodstream include environmental contaminants like the
heavy metals lead and mercury, persistent organic pollutants like PCBs
and dioxins, and solvents.)
Weight loss of about a pound and a
half a week is safe and won't affect your milk supply if you're nursing.
To achieve this, cut out 500 calories a day from your current diet
(without dipping below the safe minimum) by either decreasing your food
intake or increasing your activity level.
Eat up – and take your time!
With
a new baby and schedule, it can be hard to find the time to eat. But
skipping meals can make energy levels lag – and it won't help you lose
weight. Many moms find that eating five to six small meals a day with
healthy snacks in between (rather than three larger meals) fits their
appetite and schedule better. (A small meal might be half a sandwich,
some carrot sticks, fruit, and a glass of milk.)
Don't skip meals
in an attempt to lose weight – it won't help, because you'll be more
likely to eat more at other meals. And you'll also probably feel tired
and grouchy.
Even if you've never been much of a breakfast person,
keep in mind that eating breakfast can help keep you from feeling
famished – and tired – later in the morning, and it can give you the
energy to be more active.
In addition, numerous studies show that
skipping breakfast can sabotage your weight loss efforts. According to
the National Weight Control Registry, which has tallied the successful
strategies of dieters who have lost an average of 66 pounds and kept it
off for 5.5 years, 78 percent of the dieters eat breakfast daily.Slow
your eating down, too, if possible. When you take your time eating,
you'll notice that it's easier to tell when you feel full – and you're
less likely to overeat.
Be choosy about foods and drinks
Research shows that
consuming low-fat milk and dairy products and choosing whole grain
products like whole wheat bread and whole grain cereal can help you lose
weight. Other good choices include low-fat, high-fiber foods such as
fruits (like apples, oranges, and berries) and raw vegetables (like
carrots, jicama, and red pepper strips) for healthy snacks.
Other
ways to squeeze in more fruits and veggies: Make fruit (or veggie)
smoothies, use fruit or vegetable salsas or vegetable reduction sauces
(sauces made from puréed vegetables) over fish or chicken, add shredded
carrots to your sandwich, try grilled vegetables, and try puréed
vegetable soups. (Puréeing your soup makes it creamy without having to
add cream, which is high in calories and saturated fat. It's also a
great way to eat veggies you might not ordinarily eat on their own.)
Fat
has twice as many calories as carbohydrates or proteins, so trimming
the extra fat from your diet is probably the easiest way to cut
calories. Look for low-fat or fat-free dairy products (you don't need to
drink whole milk
in order to make quality breast milk!), choose broiled or baked rather
than fried foods, and limit your intake of sweets, which have extra
calories from sugar and fat.
Keep in mind, though, that fat is an
important nutrient, so your goal isn't to eliminate it from your diet.
In fact, including some fat at each meal will help you stay full and
keep you from overeating carbohydrates. (Too many calories from any
source – fat, protein, or carbs – can lead to weight gain or keep you
from accomplishing weight loss.)
The trick is to choose "good"
fats rather than "bad" fats. The best fats are mono- and polyunsaturated
fats, like those in canola oil, olive oil, avocado, olives, nuts and
seeds, and fatty fish like salmon. The oils to avoid are saturated and
trans fats, which can contribute to heart disease and perhaps diabetes,
and can be transferred to breast milk, too.
Saturated fats are
found in meats and dairy products, and trans fats are typically found in
many fried foods, snack foods, and baked goods. (Food labels specify
which kinds of fats the products contain.)
Finally, although you
should be drinking about 8 or 9 cups of fluids each day, watch what you
drink – a surprising number of calories can be hidden in juice, soda,
and coffee drinks.
Source: http://www.babycenter.com/0_diet-for-healthy-post-baby-weight-loss_3566.bc
