Smart-Methods-to-Regain-Your-Energy-and-Figure-After-Baby-Birth

In the whirlwind of activity following the birth of a baby, it is easy to become so focused on taking care of your new little one that you forget to take care of yourself. As you count feedings and dirty diapers to ensure your baby is getting enough to eat, don’t neglect your own nutrition. Here are five tips to help.

1. Take a gradual approach to weight loss. Despite what one may see in movies and on television, new moms do not magically shrink down to their pre-pregnancy size as soon as the baby is delivered. Be patient and remember that it can take up to a year to get back to your pre-pregnancy weight. A crash diet can make baby blues and sleep deprivation feel even worse. Furthermore, if you are breastfeeding, you still need extra calories and nutrition for your little one. Making small changes, smarter nutrition choices, and including exercise will all help you return to the pre-pregnancy weight in a healthy way.

2. Portion size can matter more than what you eat. You don’t have to give up your favorite high-calorie foods, but maybe eat less of them and less often. A good general rule is to make half your plate vegetables, one quarter lean protein (poultry, fish or tofu), and one quarter starch (baked potato, brown rice or whole wheat bread). In addition, limit the amount of calorie-rich and fat-heavy “extras,” such as dressings and sauces made with cream, butter, mayonnaise and oils.

Accept help! If friends or family offer to prepare meals for you, let them. It’s a nice (and usually healthier) alternative to take-out or restaurant food.When you do have the time to cook, make extra batches and freeze for later, so that you have an alternative to processed instant foods that are typically higher in calories, salt, sugar and preservatives than food prepared at home with lower-fat cooking methods such as baking, broiling, grilling, roasting or steaming.

3. Try not to skip meals. If you do, you’re likely to become too hungry later and overeat or choose less healthy foods. One way to avoid skipping meals is to have your kitchen well-stocked with healthy convenience foods such as fruits and veggies (washed and ready to eat preferably).The most important meal of the day is breakfast, so make it a priority. Chances are you are tired from some interrupted sleep, so make it easy for yourself and have healthy, yet easy to prepare, choices in your kitchen, like high fiber cereal, whole wheat bread and hard-boiled eggs, or yogurt and fruit.Research has shown that people who have breakfast eat fewer calories throughout the day, and that’s good news if you are trying to lose weight. Including high-fiber foods and some protein such as whole-wheat toast with eggs and fruit or high-fiber cereal with fruit and skim milk will help you feel full longer.

4. Remember to exercise. A short walk is better than none at all. Not only will it help you burn more calories, which can help with weight loss, but it will give you and your baby some much needed fresh air.