Pregnancy and childbirth are an amazing and beautiful experience that the female body goes through.  We get to grow humans and bring them into this world.  But the postpartum period can also bring its own set of challenges, including the struggle to lose weight.   

For a lot of women, the extra weight gained during pregnancy can be hard to shed, but there are ways to make losing the “baby weight” a little more a achievable.

First and foremost, know this -- every woman’s postpartum journey is different and there is no one-size-fits-all approach to weight loss.  It’s also important to approach postpartum weight loss with patience and self-compassion, it can take time for our bodies to recover and adjust after pregnancy and childbirth.

One thing you can focus on in the beginning is nutrition. We get it, you’re tired and most likely don’t feel like your time is all yours right now. Keep it simple. Eat on a schedule and set reminders if you need to. For fat-loss results, it’s crucial to consume a healthy, balanced diet.  Lean proteins, fruits, vegetables, and limiting processed foods and added sugars is going to be key.  Also, drinking plenty of water and staying hydrated is key. Keep a water bottle near you at all times and try not to live on coffee :)

Exercise is also an essential part of postpartum weight loss.  It’s totally okay to start slowly and gradually increase intensity over time as your body recovers.  Any form of movement is going to be beneficial, such as walking, yoga or riding a bike until you feel comfortable doing more high impact exercises.

Whew, sleep — try to sleep when you can even if that means little naps during the day.  A disruption of hormones caused by lack of sleep can lead to increased appetite cravings and irritability as you may have already noticed.  We all know it’s hard to sleep when we have a newborn at home, but finding those moments where we can rest and recover our bodies is important.

Finally, remember to be kind to yourself during this process.  Your body just created something amazing, give it time to recover.  If you’re struggling with motivation to eat well and move your body, we can help you. Sometimes it can feel overwhelming and we offer you a true support system to get you feeling more like yourself.

Celebrate all of the small victories along the way, you’ve got this mama!