You have your beautiful bundle of joy and you wouldn't trade him/her for anything, but now you are left with the lovely pregnancy "pouch", ugh. Like you, I was once left wondering how to lose a baby belly after the births of my 2 wonderful kids and it is frustrating when the belly weight/fat isn't coming off. Sound about right? Yep, I hear you! So, here are 4 musts that you'll want to commit to if you want to lose your baby belly:
1. Healthy Diet. Committing to a healthy diet is extremely important in getting rid of that post pregnancy tummy. You'll want to focus on eating foods such as fruits, vegetables, legumes, lean meats and whole grain foods. This probably goes without saying, but you'll want to stay away from foods and drinks that are high in calories, fat and sugar. If you are breastfeeding, it's best to stick to a healthy diet anyway, plus breastfeeding for many women will help burn some extra calories which is a great bonus for you!
2. Portion Control. When wondering how to lose a baby belly, many women may not consider portion control. Many may think that because they are eating healthy, they can eat large portions, but unfortunately, that's not the case. You want to eat until you are just full, not stuffed. Remember: It takes your stomach approximately 20 minutes after you start eating to tell your brain that it's full. When considering portions, try to keep this in mind; fill your plate half full with vegetables/salad, 1/4 full with a starch (potato, etc.) and 1/4 full with a lean meat. Keep in mind that if you are breastfeeding, you need more calories than those who aren't so you may need to eat a bit more. Be sure to find out how many calories you should be eating a day (typically about 400-500 more calories than you would eat if you were not breastfeeding), and go by that until you are no longer breastfeeding.
3. Exercise. Yes, I know the word exercise is almost like a swear word to many of you but to lose a baby belly, or any fat on the body for that matter, it must be done. First of all, make sure you have permission from your doctor to exercise. Once you start working out, start slowly and gradually increase intensity as you gain your strength back. Second, you are probably not going to want to workout if it's not fun, so think of any kind of physical activity that you enjoy doing. It could be taking a walk with your little one(s), skiing, swimming, skating, tennis, dancing, etc. I, myself, like a variety and I like to buy workout DVDs and exercise at home so whatever type of workout I feel like doing on a certain day, that's what I do! Some examples of exercise DVDs that I have are belly-dancing, yoga, kickboxing, etc. Trust me, the list goes on and on. So, figure out what interests you and take action! Note: A cardio workout is going to be the best type of workout for you to burn fat.
4. Abdominals. Time to work that tummy! Now, keep in mind that working your abdominals alone is not going to get you a trim tummy. If you are just doing abdominal exercises without any cardio, healthy diet, etc., the extra fat on your body will still be there so you won't even see your toned tummy muscles. You have to get rid of the fat on top first, so make sure you are combining cardio exercise in with the ab workouts and you will eventually see great results! Some great ab exercises are the bicycle, plank, crunches and reverse crunches.
When going about how to lose a baby belly, you have to be committed to doing it. Having a positive mindset is going to be key, so have faith in yourself and be forgiving to yourself if you mess up one day and just get "back on the horse" the next day and start fresh. It happens to the best of us, don't worry! Also, you will need some patience. Give yourself some time to lose the weight, after all it took 9 months to put it on.
When you want to lose a baby belly, just remember these 4 what I like to call "staples", and you will lose your post-baby "pooch" for good! For more valuable information on how to lose post pregnancy weight, please visit http://www.losepostpregnancyweight.com.
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