About Losing Weight After Childbirth

A woman only wants to hear: "When are you due?" prior to giving birth. When the baby arrives, some of those pregnancy pounds will drop but not all of them will instantly melt away. With weight gain of 20, 30, 40 pounds or more, shrinking back down to a pre-pregnancy size may take just as long as it did to gain the baby weight in the first place. Losing weight after childbirth requires goal setting, eating balanced meals and regularly performing calorie burning physical activity.

Time Frame

Although some lucky mothers may drop much of their pregnancy weight soon after delivery, many can take nine months to a year to lose what's left after the initial weight loss of their bundle of joy, placenta and amniotic fluid. Shortly after childbirth, the enlarged uterus will weigh less as it shrinks and other tissues will shed during the process of lochia, or postpartum bleeding (Verrilli, M.D., 2002). After this initial loss is when the real weight loss challenge needs to be addressed.

Warning

Determining when postpartum exercises and sensible dieting should occur is different for every new mother. Although there may be a strong desire to lose weight rapidly, neither crash dieting nor extreme fasting are recommended. After childbirth, a new mother needs to maintain her strength to remain healthy for both her baby and herself. Allowing adequate time for a woman's body to complete the healing process is essential to a mother's ability to care properly for her infant. This may take between four and five months (Birch, M.D., 1999).

Considerations

Approaching weight loss differs depending on whether a mother will breast or bottle-feed her baby. If breastfeeding, a higher caloric intake may be required to produce an adequate milk supply for the baby. Nursing mothers experience contracting in their uteruses because of a hormone associated with breastfeeding; this helps with the uterus returning to its pre-pregnancy state more quickly. Nursing mothers often notice a plateau with five to 10 pounds of unwanted weight that will not budge. The body instinctively holds onto these extra pounds as a reserve for milk production. Rapid weight loss can expose an infant to weight loss induced toxins released in breast milk (Iovine, 1995).

Reshaping

After a woman has consulted with her physician and feels comfortable with exercising, she should begin gradual emergence into a fitness plan consisting of healthy eating and calorie burning. Ridding the cabinets and fridge of fatty junk foods and sugary drinks will eliminate some of the temptation and likelihood of self-sabotaging weight loss progress.
Staying well hydrated while exercising by drinking 64 to 80 ounces of water a day will help flush the fat and fluids retained that a mother wants to lose after childbirth. According to the makers of Poland Spring, each 12 ounce can of soda replaced with water eliminates 3,650 teaspoons of sugar from a woman's diet in one year. Complete elimination of soda can result in weight loss of up to ten pounds in one year.

Get Moving

According to mother and certified Personal Trainer Becky Youman, incorporating basic heart healthy exercises such as walking, biking, rope jumping or dancing are physical activities that promote getting a postpartum body in shape. A new mother's ultimate weight loss goal may be more easily attained if the focus is on increasing physical activity and scheduling time dedicated to reshaping her body.

Potential

Set realistic goals that pertain directly to what physical activity is chosen for weight loss. Something as simple as continuing dance movements for 30 minutes before breakfast or taking a long walk around the neighborhood for an hour after dinner, are examples. According to Dr. Apovian, author of "The alli Diet Plan," simple walks, several times weekly for 30 to 60 minutes burns calories and promotes weight loss. Don't underestimate the small steps.

Effects

Determine inches lost with a tape measure rather than pounds dropped with a bathroom scale. Actual lost weight may not appear as significant as the amount of lost inches. A body's subtle changes and reshaping may otherwise go unnoticed. Celebrate the small feats while working toward larger weight loss goals.