Ready to Lose the Baby Weight? Here’s What to Eat!
You’ve reached a pivotal point in your parenthood journey: your baby is sleeping through the night! Your baby is eating well! Breastfeeding is becoming easier and it feels like you’re finding your rhythm as a mama.
Congrats! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
This is a big deal and something to be celebrated! What often happens next, is that Mamas want to find a way to lose that stubborn baby weight.
As a mom of 3 (now 4), I totally understand this feeling. And I understand how frustrating it can be when it seems like everyone around you has gone back to their pre-baby body while you’re still struggling to fit into your pre-baby jeans.
So here are my 3 tips to help you lose that baby weight!
Tip #1: Stick to the Fab 4
One of my fave nutrition tips is to focus on the Fab 4, a term made popular by nutritionist, Kelly LeVeque. If you’ve been following my healthy nutrition series here, you would have seen me mention the Fab 4 before. They are:
Protein: this is the essential amino acids making up all of our cells. It also helps us feel fuller for longer, and helps to repair and strengthen our muscle fibers. You can find it in animal products and plants e.g. beans, legumes, quinoa.
Healthy fats: slows digestion and is important for skin, hair and brain health. Examples of healthy fats are avocados, sugar free nut/seed butters, salmon, mackerel, olive oil etc.
Greens: dark leafy greens are a superfood! They contain a powerful antioxidant, glutathione, as well as loads of vitamins and minerals. They also help us to feel full by triggering a specific hunger hormone in the body when we eat greens.
Fiber: so important for gut health, digestive health and once again, helping us feel full. Fiber is in all plant foods such as nuts, seeds, fruits and vegetables. More on this later!
When we consistently eat the Fab 4, it helps us regulate our hormones, which can often be in a bit of disarray after having babies. When our hormones are regulated, this helps our blood sugar levels remain more constant, so that the body starts fat burning more consistently too.
Tip #2: Hydrate well
Did you know that we sometimes confuse being hungry with being thirsty? This is one of the many reasons why hydration is so important. Hydration also helps every single body organ function properly including your brain. Being hydrated will also help your gut health and help to move things through your digestive tract.
Tip #3: Get friendly with fiber
Speaking of digestive health, fiber is one of the ways that you can easily improve your gut health every single day. Specifically the fiber from cruciferous vegetables, like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale etc, can help to break down excess estrogen, a growth hormone, that can make belly fat get stored more easily. So stock up on those hearty veggies and aim to get at least 25 g of fiber each day, or 5-7 servings of fruits and veggies per day.
BONUS Tip: Reduce stress as much as you can
Being a mother has its share of stresses, but finding ways to reduce stress can actually help you lose weight. Sleep is one way to do this. When we sleep, the body processes the stress hormone, cortisol, which then reduces. When cortisol levels are low, fat storage reduces. We also know that stress can cause inflammation in the body, which can, over time, lead to long term health issues. So find some ways to reduce stress, such as exercise, meditation, journaling, breathwork or even having a good laugh with some friends! Every little bit helps!
Connect with Renata
If you’re looking for more personalised guidance to help you lose the baby weight, feel free to contact me on my website http://www.nourishwithrenata.com and book your FREE 20 minute consultation.