Hallo Darlings,
I know this is probably long overdue but I've decided to finally record how I lost my post pregnancy weight.
A quick disclaimer before I continue :-
I do not think that I am ultra slim or skinny. I am merely stating what I did to lose the post pregnancy weight. Hopefully it helps other mommies who have a similar body shape to mine.
I have a moderate metabolism and I usually gain weight during periods when I am inactive or before that time of month. Also, I bulk very easily with exercise so I got to be careful to avoid weight training or I start looking like a guy! I've always had hips and boobs and they are stuck for life! Pre pregnancy I weighed 51kg and on My delivery date I was 72-73kg. Yup, I gained a whopping 22kg during my pregnancy almost 3 years ago. I went back to 51-52kg almost 2 years after my pregnancy.
How I lost 22kg of baby weight :-
1) Firstly, I had a strict confinement.
I did post natal massages, ate a diet of fish, veggies and rice accompanied with strict portion control. The confinement diet lasted a good 6 weeks and I lost 7/8 kgs in that time.
2) I breastfed.
I was one of those obsessive new mommies who wanted my child to have the best of everything and since breast milk is the best milk, I was very hardworking for 18 months! You all know that breast feeding burns a lot calories.
3) My son is very very active.
He is one of those boys that can never sit still. So naturally I was on the move all the time and that was a drastic change from my dormant past. Haha..I was on my feet a lot and I noticed that even when I ate ALOT, I would not gain as much weight as I did in the past. Amazing!
If you have a more relaxed toddler or a young baby, than go on daily walks. I don’t exercise much but I walk a heck of a lot. Walking really helps in leaning out the body.
4) Loving & trusting your body.
I had very positive role models prior to giving birth. My sisters in law were slim after having children and that was the mental image that I had expected of myself even after having a child. I also felt very strongly that my body was amazing - to have grown a baby is a miracle and that inspired me to let go of all negative perceptions of my bodily flaws and embrace my amazing body.
The fact of the weight loss journey is that you will have periods of no weight loss and that is perfectly normal. It’s an indication that you just need to get more active or tweak your eating habits or simply take it easy for a while. At the end of the day, I had absolute trust that my body would adjust itself back to my original weight. It would do it at it’s own pace and I respected & trusted that.
5) Real weight lost takes place in your mind.
You are what you think you are. If you have a mental impression that mommies are fatties, than it’s most likely that you will retain the post pregnancy weight and it will be hard to shed. Also, there are many myths like your body will be flabby after your pregnancy and you’ll never look the same again.
What I did was that I had a strong belief that pregnant woman could look great after birth. Just look at J.LO and Gwen Stefani. They work their butts off to get into amazing shape and they never attributed it to just great genes. They had certain expectations of their post pregnancy bodies and they really work hard to achieve their fab bods.
My plan was much simpler. I didn’t hit the gym or do any vigorous exercise. I had a strong belief that I would lose the pregnancy weight and that I would be able to fit into all my old jeans. I never let my rounder post pregnancy body stress me into thinking that I would stay that way forever. Since I wasn’t burning calories in the gym, I would try to eat better and keep active!
6) You are what you eat.
Your body is made in the kitchen. I used to be a gym fanatic in my University days and I’m taking protein shakes, bulking up on weights ( because I thought it would help me gain muscle and burn fats – how wrong I was as this approach is wrong for people who bulk easily from lifting weights), eating tons of protein, starving myself of carbs but I wasn’t as slim as I was now ( on the scale and dress size). My hubby would always poke fun of my rounder days but I’ve come to realize that I was fat than because I was using the wrong type of exercise to make up for my huge appetite and poor food choice. I wasn’t burning enough hence the fatter younger self.
The one thing I was doing to lose the last bits of stubborn excess weight was to eat a very high fruit and vegetable diet. I never felt better, I had tons of energy and my body was at it’s leanest. Many of my friends started to notice and commented that I was much slimmer after going on a high fruit and veggie diet.
I consumed a lot of soy milk, almond milk, spinach, watermelon, strawberries and bananas. I’ve read a lot on the different diets such as the blood type diet and the salmon diet and what not but the one that changed my body the most was the RAW DIET. I did not go totally raw because it’s far too extreme for me but it inspired me to add a lot more iron rich vegetables and high water content fruits to my diet and the results were increased energy, great skin and a leaner body. The trick is to read more about the different types diets and incorporate those aspects that you feel can be easily integrated into your daily lifestyle and make it a habit. Habits lead to change and can lead to a great looking body. Mom or not!
7) I would not deprive myself of anything.
When you start depriving your body of things it craves, it will backfire on you. I know that every time I say NO to chocolate, I end up finishing the entire box. So, I’ve learnt that if you crave sinful food, make sure it taste really good and enjoy it. You’ll eat less and enjoy it more because you remove the guilt from food. FOOD is not the problem. It’s a persons attitude towards food. We often hear people saying: oh my god, I am so fat because I love to eat cheese and this and that. It’s basically blaming food for your shape which is the wrong approach. I remember being at my heaviest and blaming food for making me so.
Since than, I’ve gradually changed my mindset to understand that food is sustenance and it’s enjoyable. Forget what the media says about this diet or that diet. It’s changing one’s behavior that produces the most results.
Also, a tip is that when you start to consume high quality, nutritional foods on a regular basis, you’ll find your desires for unhealthy food start to decline because your nutritional needs are met.
8) Don’t obsess about it.
This point is very closely related to point 3. Why? Because I’ve found that when I obsess about my weight or my skin, it always becomes worse. When you focus too much on your skin, you start to pick at it or find faults with it. When you focus excessively on your weight and make it your central focus in life, you start to get overly conscious about your weight which can cause your weight lost plan to backfire.
For me, I would weight myself most mornings when I was trying to lose weight, to be mindful about my efforts for the day ahead. But I would not beat myself up if I happened to have gained a few pounds. I would just refocus my efforts on being more active or choosing healthier foods.
This point is especially important for individuals like myself who have OCD. The more active I was, the faster the weight came off, without even realising it. When I fussed and tried to eat much less to lose weight, the weight lost became very hard and in some cases, I would sabotage myself and eat more. Thankfully, keeping up with my son was a full time job and that helped take my entire focus off my weight and just enjoy life.
9) Be grateful.
I accepted my post pregnancy body, even though it was different from before. I’m truly grateful for my scars, my tummy and my bigger boobs. I have only appreciation for the human body and I never realized just how amazing my body’s self adjusting mechanism was.
10) Supplements.
I take fish oil, spirulina, Vit C, Iron and Vit E almost everyday when I was nursing. It helped tremendously in helping my body heal after my c section and it really benefits your skin and body. When your body is not getting enough nutrients and minerals, it leads to cravings and most of the time, you end up consuming foods that aren't that healthy.
Ok guys, I hope this helps you whether or not you are a mommy. I wish I had known these tips in my college years when I was FAT! These tips make me a happier and overall more contented person as well.
GOOD LUCK, BlovetBeauty
