The average weight of a woman aged 20 and above is around 170 pounds. While this may vary according to a person’s height, age, and other factors, women normally weigh more when they are pregnant.This is because when a woman is expecting, her partner and family members shower her with love and care to make sure both the mom-to-be and her child are healthy. More often than not, this love and care is in the form of food, especially because you are going to be “eating for two.”
This also poses a challenge once you have walked out of the delivery room, because now you have to shed all that excess weight that was gained over the past nine months. While it is true that women can lose up to about 12 pounds soon after giving birth, for many, the wait is longer and requires quite a bit of effort. After all, it did take nine months to put on all that weight, but there are a few things that women can do to shed the post-partum weight. So, for those women who are wondering just how they can do that, you can use these tips for losing the baby bump.
Exercise
This is a no-brainer. Since you’ve spent the past nine months minimizing your movements, now’s the time to get your body back to its pre-pregnancy state. And the best way to do that is by regular exercise, either at the gym or at home. Although, hitting the gym is probably a better idea. You can also start by trying out light exercises, such as walking either at the park or on a treadmill. Women who are looking to lose weight after giving birth are also advised to try out some abdominal exercises which will target that baby bump.
Plan out your new daily exercise routine and stick to it. Another effective way of losing that post-pregnancy baby bump is to start doing pranayama, which is very effective for toning your stomach and abdominal muscles. Whatever exercise you choose to lose the weight that you’ve gained during the previous months, it is important not to overdo it and exert your body. A good rule of thumb is to start off slow and light, then pick up the pace as your body gets used to daily workouts.
Try to Stay Calm
This is a big one. While some stress is normal in our everyday lives and during pregnancy, too much of it can have an adverse effect on both you and your baby. Studies have shown that prolonged stress during pregnancy can increase the chances of having a low-birthweight baby and also raise the likelihood of having a premature baby. Other health complications that may arise due to high levels of stress include high blood pressure and heart disease. So, it’s easy to see that stress is nobody’s friend.
While many women and their loved ones focus on avoiding stress during pregnancy, keeping high levels of stress at bay is even more important post-pregnancy. This is mainly because high levels of stress cause the body to release a stress hormone called cortisol that shoots into the bloodstream. This leads to further stress and irritability, fatigue, and you guessed it…weight gain. In short, having high levels of stress post-pregnancy can hinder your efforts of losing the baby bump, while causing all sorts of other health complications. To avoid high levels of stress, try to get as much sleep as you can, which is going to be hard to do anyway. A good way of keeping your body rested is to sleep when your baby does. This will give your body the extra boost of energy it needs and will keep your body from producing the stress hormone cortisol due to high levels of stress and anxiety.
Have a Massage
Many women go to get manicures and pedicures because it’s beneficial for the health of our nails. A massage can do the same thing for your body, i.e. help you get rid of the belly fat you have gained during pregnancy. This is because a massage can specifically target certain cellulite laden areas in your belly and abdominal area where you need to lose the excess weight.
Getting a massage is also great for the overall health of your body since it improves the body’s metabolism, which in turn, helps in weight loss. Opting for a massage after your exercise routine can be especially beneficial since it will not only aid in increasing your metabolism to burn excess fat, but it will also help the body recover quickly after a grueling workout by tending to those sore muscles.
Watch Your Diet
You may have had given yourself the permission to munch on whatever you got your hands on during the past nine months because you were after all, feeding two people. However, you are now back down to one person again – you. This means you have to cut down on your diet and start eating small and smart. That being said, you should never wait until you’re famished to eat because you will only end up eating more food than usual.
The idea of watching your diet is to make sure you have a good balanced diet that gives your body the nutrition it needs without having to consume too many calories. This is one of the reasons why many women prefer to consult with a nutritionist post-partum to figure out the best diet plan for their needs. While you’re at it, you should also stay away from sugary treats, which will slow down the weight loss process. You can replace those sugary snacks with healthy fruits or dry fruits. Stock your kitchen cabinet up with low fat snacks that are high on fiber that you can go-to whenever you get the munchies. Some other things that you can do to get rid of that post-partum baby bump is to try yoga and aerobics, drink lots of water, and consult with your doctor or dietician.