I would firstly like to point out that I am OKAY with the fact I gained weight during my pregnancy. It's normal and your body's way of naturally storing fat for feeding your little one when they arrive. I was so okay with it that I did an absolutely cracking job at it. I ate very healthy foods most of the time during my pregnancy and still did exercise, mostly in the form of walking and the occasional bit of antenatal yoga or swimming. But I was also napping a LOT, not moving around as much as I used to and was eating for two. Aaaaand the weight piled on...
At full term, I was actually 4 stone heavier than I am now. I'm pretty sure most medical practitioners would tell you this is excessive, but as long as you feel (and are) healthy, then who cares? Let the pregnant lady eat cake, I say!
 |
| 40 weeks pregnant / 6 weeks postpartum |
I didn't really weigh myself pre-pregnancy, but at 14 weeks I was 9st 4lbs and this crept up to 12st 7lbs at my largest when I was full term. I now fluctuate around the 8st 7lbs mark.
I don't actually think the weight gain was all that noticeable when I was pregnant, probably due to that lovely pregnant 'glow' you apparently get and the fact that you're still getting 8 hours sleep a night, albeit uncomfortably. I felt huge because of my baby bump, but not because of the rest of me.
Post-birth however, I felt like a whale. A big saggy whale with this weird spongy tummy and 1000 stretch marks and 7 chins. In fact, there are NO photos of me post birth. I was adamant about this... I'm regretting it now, as I would love to see how far I've come. The best photo I can find it me 6 weeks later, before the bulk of my weight loss.
I was by no means in amazing shape 6 months down the line, and I think it would be unrealistic to expect washboard abs to appear anytime soon, but I had managed to slim down substantially. My belly was still causing me a bit of grief, but I think about 10 months down the line it had slimmed down completely.
 |
| 6 months postpartum |
SO, back to the title of this post... how did I lose my baby weight?
1. GIVE BIRTH
The most obvious start to your weight loss is popping out a baby and all the other gunk that goes with it. This brought my weight down to somewhere in the region of 11st - 11st 7lbs.
2. BREASTFEEDING DIDN'T HELP!
I would firstly like to mention that whilst breastfeeding does burn calories, this doesn't necessarily mean you'll lose weight. I breastfed for 4 months and was back in the gym by 6 weeks post-partum. I lost hardly any weight despite the fact I was burning so many calories, because I was still eating for two! It is strongly advised that you don't diet whilst breastfeeding, as your little one needs to get the most nutrition they can from you, so whilst I was still eating healthy meals, I was still consuming a lot of calories.
3. THOSE CRAZY HORMONES MIGHT HELP...
I'm convinced that my hormones played a big role in my weight loss. When I stopped breastfeeding Archer, my body went into full on hormonal break-down. Cue more morning sickness, napping, crying etc. It was during this month that, alongside adjusting my diet to being more low-cal, that I dropped the bulk of my baby weight.
4. CUTTING OUT THE 'BAD STUFF'
I'll start off by saying I never followed a 'proper' diet. Instead I just cut some things out of my diet, and tried to eat less things that were obviously bad for me. I did still, however, treat myself to a bit of chocolate or pudding every evening and the occasional 'cheat' meal.
I did cut the following from my diet;
MILK
MEAT
COFFEE
'REGULAR' TEA
These are all things that don't really 'agree' with me, so it made sense for me to cut them out and it worked for me.
N.B. I have never cut carbs. I freaking love carbs.
5. KEEP BUSY!
I've always been a busy Mum. I went back to uni when Archer was 4 months old which meant I was always on the go. I've always been very into walking too, whether that be taking long walks with the pram or just walking my commute to and from Uni. I found being 'busy' helped me to regulate my meal times, stop me snacking and burnt off some extra calories.
6. THING'S GET BETTER WITH TIME
I'm glad I know now for when I have my next child, that I won't look 4 months pregnant forever, and that the hundreds of stretch marks I got will fade to be barely noticable eventually, and that eventually I'll probably even be in better shape than I was before. At the time it felt like an unbeatable mission to get myself back in shape, but stressing about it less really was key. It will all come together eventually, and no one is expecting a new Mum to bust out a bikini body anytime soon.
Everybody's different, and will lose weight in different ways and at different paces, this is just my experience of baby weight loss.
I'd love to know your thoughts on losing baby weight.
xxx
