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Why You Shouldn’t Worry About Your Weight After Childbirth
Gaining weight after childbirth is a common postpartum body change that most new mothers experience. Your body has just undergone a vigorous process in bringing your little bundle of joy into this world, and it is still adjusting itself for this major change. Hence, don’t be too hard on yourself if you do find yourself not at your desirable weight range. Plus, there are a few more good reasons why you should not be too concerned with the extra weight you have gained post-delivery. Let’s dive right into them!
Postpartum Recovery
The primary reason why you shouldn’t worry about your weight after birth is down to the fact that you need the nutrition to heal and breastfeed during this period. Skipping meals to lose weight would be counterproductive in helping you achieve your postpartum recovery. Hence, you should always keep yourself properly nourished during your postpartum period. Having a balanced diet would also keep you properly energised throughout the day so you would be too easily tired.
What are the foods that will boost your postpartum recovery, you may ask. For example, you can have more foods that are rich in protein, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B6, Vitamin C, and Vitamin E. Protein-rich foods help in providing building blocks to repair and encourage wound healing. Moreover, foods that are high in protein are important for developing antibodies that are part of setting up a good immune system.
On the other hand, foods that are high in Vitamin B1 are important for keeping you energised to support your nerve, muscles, and heart function. Vitamin B1 foods are not only good for aiding your postpartum recovery but they are also great for helping you and your newborn to have a good immune system as well. It is also worth noting that keeping yourself well-fed is a healthy way of achieving a good postnatal weight loss. What’s not to like?
Lactation
At some point after childbirth, you might find yourself asking the question: “after pregnancy how to lose weight?” Losing weight right after birth is not recommended because you would need the nutrition for your lactation. Your little darling’s main nutrition depends on the quality and quantity of your breast milk. Therefore, you are highly encouraged to have the right nutrition to keep your baby healthy and nourished.
To achieve such a goal, you might need to familiarise yourself with a number of lactogenic ingredients in your daily meals. Lactogenic ingredients such as ginger, garlic, fenugreek and papaya are key in helping you improve on your lactation. Ginger helps in boosting your breast milk supply through improved blood flow while papaya encourages breast milk production by stimulating the smooth muscles that work to express milk better. The fact that they are rather easy to cook and can be incorporated into any type of dishes is a big plus too!
Speaking of lactation, MumChecked holds plenty of options when it comes to breastfeeding and pumping essentials, you may consider getting one for yourself to improve your nursing experience!
Proper Rest & Postpartum Mental Health
After childbirth, it is essential to look after your mental health on top of your physical health. The first few weeks after labour is the most important period for your body to adapt to these new changes as it will need all the rest it can get. Also, you are likely to experience baby blues, so you should be focusing on getting as much rest as possible instead of feeling stressed out about your weight. After all, a proper rest and recovery would help you to get back to your active lifestyle sooner. Not to mention with a well recovered body, you would also be more efficient in your postpartum workouts.
To help lift your mood during postpartum, start by emphasising on your diet. A well-balanced diet does not only help relax your mood but it can also prepare your body to rest better. Common types of foods that promote relaxation include bananas, dark chocolates, fatty fish, oats, berries, nuts and seeds! Dark chocolates contain multiple mood-boosting compounds. Chocolates are also rich in flavonoids, a property which helps in increasing blood flow to your brain, reduce inflammation and improve your brain health. Furthermore, mood-boosting foods such as bananas are high in Vitamin B6 which is important for the production of serotonin (happy chemicals) and dopamine (chemicals that help us feel pleasure). When your mind is in a better state, you are able to recover well and better prepared for losing weight postpartum when it’s the time.
Gradual Weight Loss
Last but not least, you shouldn’t be too upset or surprised about gaining weight because at the end of the day, you will gradually lose most of them! With proper rest and nutrition, your postpartum discomforts would eventually improve. This will also help with your water retention and lead to a better postpartum weight loss. As your body recovers, you would be more able to live a more active lifestyle and gradually start exercising, hence helping with weight loss!
In conclusion, postpartum weight gain is a normal body change that happens to almost all mothers after labour. With proper rest and nutritious, as well as a positive mindset and helpful support around you, you would be able to live an active lifestyle before you know it. Meanwhile, give your body the time it needs to bring you to a new beginning in life.
