Do you want to return to your pre-pregnancy size quickly and without giving up breastfeeding? For you, little tricks from Dr. Komarovsky and Elena Malysheva, as well as an easy way to speed up weight loss!
Author: Kristina Lobanovskaya, doctor, practicing nutritionist Article updated: 02/22/2021
Weight gain during pregnancy is determined by the sex hormones estrogen. They smoothly change a woman’s body, “depositing” fat on the waist, hips, buttocks and back. Soon after a natural birth, about 5 kg of excess weight is lost, and a couple more over the next 2 weeks.
According to statistics, 10% of young mothers return to their usual shape within a month after giving birth. The remaining 90% are forced to use diets.
It is not recommended to launch a weight loss campaign in the first few months after the birth of a child for several reasons: hormonal levels have not yet returned to normal, the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract has not been fully restored, and the child’s body is sensitive to any changes in breast milk. In the future, you can turn to special nutrition systems for nursing mothers, which help in smooth figure correction.
Why is it important to lose weight after childbirth?
The weight gained during pregnancy is bad not only for aesthetic reasons: if you don’t get rid of all the excess weight within six months after giving birth, it will not be a temporary gain, but a long-term problem. New kilograms begin to pile on the weight that is not lost on time. In the future, the situation may result in back pain, endocrine disorders, and varicose veins. Sometimes we are talking about “metabolic syndrome,” which includes diabetes, high triglycerides in the blood, critically low levels of lipoproteins and high blood pressure.
More often than others, the need to lose weight through a special regime is faced by women who became pregnant using IVF, took hormonal maintenance therapy while carrying a child, or suffer from diabetes mellitus with changes in hormonal levels.
Features of losing weight after childbirth
Pregnancy and childbirth place enormous stress on the female body. Restoration after childbirth is subject to not only the woman’s reproductive system (uterus, vagina), but also other organs and systems that have undergone changes during pregnancy (cardiovascular, digestive, nervous, urinary, endocrine and others).
In addition, lactation begins during this period. The duration of the recovery period is individual and depends on the woman’s age, health status on the eve of pregnancy, and the presence of chronic diseases.
Proper weight loss after childbirth while breastfeeding should take into account the natural physiological processes that occur in a woman’s body during this period. Exhausting physical activity and strict diets can provoke a lactation crisis and lead to a deterioration in the mother’s health.
The main effective ways to lose weight after childbirth are a balanced diet and dosed physical activity.
The process of losing weight after childbirth should be smooth and gradual: optimal weight loss is about 250–400 g per week. Reducing weight to the desired parameters for a nursing mother, on average, lasts about the same time as she gained it during pregnancy - from six months to 8-9 months.
Features of the diet during breastfeeding
A strict diet, which significantly reduces the caloric content of the diet and makes it unbalanced, is prohibited during breastfeeding. Experts offer alternative nutrition systems based on permitted foods. They demonstrate a powerful effect in weight loss without harming the child's health.
The menu of a nursing mother should consist of products that do not cause gas formation or other negative reactions in the child. This rule is the most important, but not the only one:
Meals are small and frequent
Main meals should occur about 5-6 times a day, the amount eaten should be 300-350 g per meal. A few snacks are welcome. In general, the daily amount of food should not exceed 1.5 kg. The main thing is to stop eating four hours before bedtime. Such a diet will speed up metabolism and have a positive effect on lactation.
Sufficient drinking regime
You need to drink a lot (about three liters of still water per day) and often, preferably before each feeding. There is an opinion that a nursing woman should drink tea with condensed milk or cream instead of water. It is a myth.
Adequate protein intake
Experts recommend that breastfeeding women consume at least 100 grams of protein per day. Most of it should be of animal origin.
Avoid overeating
Eating “for two” is a big mistake. The body made the reserves of microelements and nutrients necessary for full lactation during pregnancy, so during the feeding period it is important to focus not on the volume of the diet, but on its quality.
There is no need to finish your baby’s purees and porridge. As practice shows, excessive greed causes even more weight gain. It is also not recommended to try the dishes being prepared.
Taking vitamins
Vitamin complexes help enrich a woman’s body with nutrients. The pharmaceutical industry produces a wide range of vitamin and mineral complexes specially designed for the lactation period. Most Popular:
- Vitrum Prenatal Forte (12 vitamins, 9 micro- and macroelements). The drug is approved from the first day of feeding. Take one capsule per day.
- Elevit Pronatal (12 vitamins, 3 macroelements and 3 microelements). Take one tablet after breakfast.
- Pregnavit (vitamins A, B, PP, C, D3, calcium, iron). Take several times a day.
- Alphabet Mom's health (13 vitamins, 11 macro- and microelements, taurine). Take one tablet three times a day.
- Complements Mama (all necessary nutrients). Take one tablet per day during the first months of feeding.
A young mother can eat in a special way until the desired result is obtained. With natural weight loss, it takes about 8 months. A special diet regimen for a nursing mother speeds up this process.
Authorized Products
They should be present in the diet of a breastfeeding woman no matter what, as they help balance the diet, get the required vitamins and lose weight faster.
Meat
Preference should be given to fat-free varieties: chicken, rabbit, turkey, veal, beef.
Eggs and dairy products
Saturate the body with protein and vitamins. Milk contains calcium, which is necessary for a child’s growing body: it forms the skeletal system, strengthens the immune system, and prevents constipation. A complete lack of calcium is dangerous for a child and a woman.
Vegetables and fruits
They help saturate a woman’s body with fiber, which is important for normal digestion and quick satiety. Along with it comes microelements that are of great importance during this period.
Cereals
Only pea porridge should be avoided, while corn, buckwheat, wheat and rice are very healthy. Dishes based on them should be present in the diet at least several times a week.
Prohibited Products
This list includes everything that can harm the child's health. The following are subject to exclusion from the diet of a nursing mother:
- fatty, smoked and salty dishes;
- fruits from the tropics, including pineapple;
- strong allergens (chocolate, shrimp, strawberries);
- products that cause fermentation (sugar, confectionery, grapes);
- marinades, canned food and pickles;
- onion and garlic;
- spices that negatively affect the taste of breast milk;
- coffee.
Number of calories for weight loss
Each person has his own daily calorie intake, but there is a standard - 2000. For the purpose of losing weight, the figure is reduced to 1200-1600 kcal/day. You cannot go lower, otherwise your metabolism will slow down by 45%.
The calorie content of a woman's diet during the lactation period should not be less than 1500 kcal/day. Ideally – 1800 kcal. About a third should be fat. For example, maintaining a norm of 1500 kcal, you need to get about 40 g of fat. As complementary foods are introduced into the child’s diet, you need to tighten the diet, gradually (!) reducing the fat content to 30 g.
Eat like before
Throughout your pregnancy, your baby ate the same foods that you ate, and your eating habits have long been familiar to him. After giving birth, continue with your normal diet and eating habits - as long as you eat healthy overall. For others, pregnancy and the first years of a baby’s life are a good reason to reconsider your menu. If your family members are prone to allergies, starting at 20 weeks of pregnancy, limit your intake of dairy products, nuts, eggs, mushrooms and seafood.
Experts recommend eating fractionally, in small portions, 5-6 times a day. In this case, it is desirable that breakfast and lunch account for 1/3 of all daily calories, and the last third is divided between second breakfast and dinner. During the day, two additional light snacks are allowed - vegetables, fruits. The more varied your diet, the more benefits breastfeeding will bring to your baby and the lower the risk of your baby developing allergies. Foreign doctors generally recommend eating each product no more than 2-3 times a week.
Forced power systems during hot water
Sometimes a nursing woman cannot afford a nutritional system for weight loss that requires compliance with minimum requirements due to health problems in the baby. In these cases, she has to adhere to a special diet. Its scope is important to consider when choosing a weight loss method.
Hypoallergenic
The nutrition system is strict, but effective: in a couple of months you can lose about 10 kg on it. You can prepare dishes only from products approved for consumption. Indications for a hypoallergenic food system are as follows:
- various allergic manifestations in a child (from mild diathesis to atopic dermatitis);
- diseases of the digestive tract in a baby (congenital anomalies, hereditary pathologies, etc.);
- allergic burden of the child’s heredity (in the case of the presence of allergy sufferers in the family).
A woman’s diet should be free not only from the general list of prohibited foods, but also from a number of others:
- eggs;
- honey;
- fish caviar;
- raspberries;
- citrus fruits;
- nuts and seeds;
- cocoa;
- mushrooms;
- semolina porridge.
The following are subject to restrictions: beef, chicken, meat broths, wheat and products made from wheat flour, orange and red vegetables, berries and fruits.
The daily menu might look something like this:
- Breakfast: green tea, cottage cheese casserole without sugar.
- Snack: green tea, a piece of low-fat cheese.
- Lunch: salad with peas, low-fat soup with meatballs and cauliflower.
- Afternoon snack: kefir without sugar.
- Dinner: baked or boiled potatoes, unsweetened kefir.
Dairy-free
Dairy-free is any regimen that includes an approved list of foods and excludes dairy. It is useful for children intolerant to cow's milk. It is temporary, usually up to 4 months of the baby’s life. Afterwards, a nursing mother can introduce dairy products into her diet.
Indicative menu for the day
- Breakfast: oatmeal porridge with dried fruits, cranberry jelly.
- Snack: green tea, boiled egg.
- Lunch: light soup, boiled chicken, mashed potatoes, dried fruit compote.
- Afternoon snack: dried green tea, a couple of walnuts.
- Dinner: buckwheat porridge with steamed meatballs, dried fruit compote.
It is necessary to distinguish between dairy-free and lactose-free diets. The latter is recommended for mothers whose babies suffer from lactase deficiency. Lactase is an enzyme necessary for the digestion of milk sugar. Limiting dairy products in this case will be justified only if you have a food allergy.
Useful tips
Allergens tend to gradually accumulate in the body. Thus, the baby may react to foods that have been present in the mother's diet over the past two weeks. For this reason, experts recommend that nursing mothers keep a food diary in which all meals must be recorded. In this case, if a child exhibits allergy symptoms, it will be possible to look at the diary entries and guess which product the body reacted to. Such notes are especially relevant in the first months of a baby’s life.
Gluten-free diet for nursing mothers
Gained popularity all over the world. It is considered a safe way to lose weight. Does not cause harm caused by gluten. The latter refers to protein that, due to individual characteristics, is not absorbed by the body. Many experts call gluten nothing more than a “gateway” to a toxic load: by enveloping the intestines, it reduces the ability to move food, which, when delayed, begins to ferment. Subsequently, increased gas formation is observed.
The advantages of a gluten-free food system are obvious:
- The diet remains balanced and varied, despite exceptions.
- Eating according to the rules helps the body get rid of toxins accumulated over the years.
- Fasting is excluded.
- The result is visible even with minimal effort.
Gluten can be hidden in confectionery, pasta and bakery products, ice cream, convenience foods, store-bought spices, canned meat and fish, sausages, and imitators of natural products. Wheat, oats, barley and rye are completely excluded from the diet.
Recommended for use:
- boiled, stewed or steamed low-fat meat;
- soups with weak meat broth;
- milk and dairy-free porridges made with millet, rice and buckwheat;
- boiled chicken eggs;
- dairy and fermented milk products;
- root vegetables, berries and fruits;
- vegetable and butter;
- bread and pasta substitutes;
- honey;
- berry drinks, fruit jelly, loose leaf tea.
Approximate daily menu
- Breakfast: rice milk porridge, fresh berries, loose leaf tea.
- Snack: dried fruit compote, cornbread.
- Lunch: soup in weak meat broth with rice, buckwheat pancakes, berry juice, baked fish, vegetable salad.
- Afternoon snack: fruit, still mineral water.
- Dinner: buckwheat porridge, stewed vegetables, kefir, a spoonful of honey.
In a week on a gluten-free diet you can lose from 2 to 4 kg.
Menu (Power Mode)
Eating five to six meals a day will not allow you to feel hungry, and a properly composed diet, subject to increased physical activity, will allow you to slowly lose weight. Make sure that dinner does not contain carbohydrates (even complex ones, in the form of porridges). Their intake should be taken in the first half of the day. If you feel hungry after dinner, you can drink kefir or eat an apple.
Monday
| Breakfast |
|
| Lunch |
|
| Dinner |
|
| Afternoon snack |
|
| Dinner |
|
| For the night |
|
Tuesday
| Breakfast |
|
| Lunch |
|
| Dinner |
|
| Afternoon snack |
|
| Dinner |
|
| For the night |
|
Wednesday
| Breakfast |
|
| Lunch |
|
| Dinner |
|
| Afternoon snack |
|
| Dinner |
|
| For the night |
|
Thursday
| Breakfast |
|
| Lunch |
|
| Dinner |
|
| Dinner |
|
| For the night |
|
Friday
| Breakfast |
|
| Lunch |
|
| Dinner |
|
| Dinner |
|
| For the night |
|
Saturday
| Breakfast |
|
| Lunch |
|
| Dinner |
|
| Dinner |
|
| For the night |
|
Sunday
| Breakfast |
|
| Lunch |
|
| Dinner |
|
| Dinner |
|
| For the night |
|
Protein
In honor of its creator, it is also called the Dukan diet. The essence of the technique is limited consumption of carbohydrates and the predominance of proteins in the diet. The latter are very satiating, so people who adhere to this food system are not overcome by painful attacks of hunger. Breakdowns and overeating are also kept to a minimum. Proteins spend about a third of their calorie content to burn themselves. The diet also has other advantages:
- Eating only natural food.
- Gentle effect on the body.
- No need to count calories.
- No restrictions on portion sizes.
- There is no need to eat food at a strictly designated time.
- Rule out depression.
- Fast and lasting results.
An effective diet requires adherence to the following principles:
- regardless of weather conditions, take walks for half an hour (necessary to improve metabolism);
- drink at least 2 liters of still water per day;
- consume oat bran in the amount of three spoons every day (this helps prevent constipation).
During breastfeeding, Dukan recommends losing weight according to his program, regardless of excess weight. The power system is based on several stages, following one after another:
- Attack (squirrels only).
- Cruise (proteins and vegetables).
- Consolidation (other products are added).
- Stabilization (saving the result in the future).
Pierre Dukan encourages mothers to skip the first two stages, starting with Consolidation (lasts 35 days). The weight loss effect will not be so immediate, but nothing will harm the baby’s health.
Products
There are quite a few products allowed at the “Fixing” stage:
- dairy products with fat content up to 2% (processed cheese, soft cottage cheese, curdled milk, milk, yogurt);
- meat (veal, chicken, turkey, beef, lean ham, fat-free jerky);
- kidneys and liver;
- Fish and seafood;
- eggs;
- pasta (from durum wheat);
- berries and fruits (with the exception of grapes, figs, bananas and cherries);
- bulgur, couscous, peas, rice, lentils, polenta;
- vegetables and herbs (potatoes are consumed in moderation);
- whole grain bread;
- healthy tea.
Fatty and spicy foods are completely excluded. The ban is imposed on canned food, sweets and smoked foods.
Diet features
Pierre Dukan allows mothers who are breastfeeding to deviate slightly from the usual rules of the nutrition system:
- you can eat several servings of fruit (not 200 g, but 400);
- you can have a protein day less often or abandon it completely (Dukan recommends that his patients eat only proteins every Thursday);
- holiday food can be eaten a couple of times a week;
- at the end of the last day of the diet, you can switch to your usual diet, gradually replacing the light menu with the usual one;
- you can start the morning with porridge cooked in water;
- six weeks after the end of the diet, flour and rice can be introduced into the diet.
Menu
For the first seven days, a nursing mother is advised to consume cheeses, yogurt and eggs. The products are included in salads and various dishes, and consumed separately. The number of fruits is limited to three apples. If you feel great after a week, the woman can continue to eat in the same way, adding pasta and cereals.
The third week of a nursing mother’s diet involves the introduction of foods into the diet that work to increase its diversity: fish, chicken, beef. At the same time, cheeses and yogurt are slightly limited. The fourth and fifth weeks follow the same plan.
A possible daily menu looks like this:
- Breakfast: ham, omelette, bread, tea.
- Snack: fruit.
- Lunch: fish soup, lean baked meat, salad.
- Afternoon snack: cottage cheese casserole with berries, tea.
- Dinner: stew, turkey fillet, pasta.
A nursing mother can eat according to the Dukan system without restrictions on duration, that is, until the desired weight is reached.
Fashionable diets after childbirth
The media often talk about weight loss methods used by celebrities. Naturally, they arouse interest among ordinary women, including nursing mothers. The question arises: are “star” nutrition systems capable of causing harm during lactation?
Rational
The diet is based on oatmeal porridge with water, poultry, fish, vegetables and fruits. Drinks allowed are tea without sugar, grapefruit and carrot juices. Hot and spicy foods are strictly prohibited, as is eating after 6 pm. It is not recommended to consume carbohydrates and proteins at the same time, but vegetables can be eaten with anything. Apples are allowed between main meals.
The daily menu might look like this:
- In the morning - boiled egg, low-fat yogurt, bacon.
- In the afternoon – stewed vegetables, baked chicken.
- In the evening - vegetable salad, jacket potatoes.
According to experts, the diet can be used without fear during breastfeeding. Thanks to separate power elements, the deposition of toxins is reduced. The diet itself is balanced, as it contains proteins, fats and carbohydrates in a harmonious ratio. Juices saturate the body of a nursing mother with vitamins and microelements; malic acid helps normalize metabolic processes.
Grapefruit
This involves eating half a grapefruit before each meal. In this case, you can leave the usual menu, but the energy value of food eaten at a time should not exceed 800 kcal (this is how much a fruit can burn).
Experts say that grapefruit is a really good ally in the fight against excess weight. It ensures rapid passage of food through the intestines, which results in less absorption of food elements into its walls. However, when breastfeeding, the “trick” is not suitable, since the fruit is classified as a strong allergen. A woman can resort to such a diet only after finishing breastfeeding.
Vegetarian
The nutritional system allows you to eat whole grains, fruits, and vegetables. An important condition is sufficient drinking regime. The ban is imposed on meat and dairy, and alcohol. The diet is quick, as you can follow it for about two weeks. The daily menu could be like this:
- In the morning – juice from apples, celery and carrots, sunflower seeds and pumpkin.
- Lunch – raw vegetables and fruits, warm water with a few drops of lemon juice.
- Evening – salad with seeds and nuts.
You are allowed to snack on raw carrots.
Experts consider this method of losing weight to be a raw food diet, since the products are used only in their unprocessed, raw form. Despite the tangible effect (in 15 days you can actually lose a sufficient amount of extra pounds) and a balanced diet, the nutritional system has a number of contraindications. A nursing mother can use the diet menu as a fasting day, but consume vegetables boiled or steamed. Nuts and seeds are high in calories, so the energy value of the daily diet will be at least 1200 kcal.
Avoid unhealthy foods and dishes
The following are prohibited when breastfeeding:
- fast food and convenience foods;
- sausages and canned food;
- carbonated drinks;
- anything that contains a large amount of food and chemical additives;
- mayonnaise and other products with trans fats;
- deep-fried, spicy, peppered, pickled, highly salted dishes (all this can cause colic in a baby).
You should be careful with foods and drinks that enhance fermentation processes: baked goods, fresh cabbage, legumes, peanuts, grapes, kvass, etc. They can provoke increased stomach colic in the baby.
What does Komarovsky think?
The advice of the people's doctor delights many mothers. Thanks to his practical and at the same time simple tricks, you can lose weight without harming your own body or the health of your baby. Evgeniy Olegovich developed a nutrition plan for breastfeeding women. According to him, he must be free from:
- preservatives;
- dyes;
- allergenic and fatty foods;
- chocolate and sugar;
- fast food.
Komarovsky does not impose strict prohibitions on the diet of a nursing mother, but recommends giving preference to:
- cereals;
- lean meat;
- fruits (non-allergenic);
- vegetables;
- dairy products;
- fats of vegetable origin.
As for drinks, the doctor allows:
- green tea;
- dried fruits compote;
- fermented milk and milk drinks with a fat content of no more than 2.5%.
Give preference to healthy foods
The diet of a pregnant woman is not much different from the diet of a nursing mother. You, as before, should choose only high-quality natural products:
- seasonal vegetables, fruits and berries (you can buy frozen ones during the off-season);
- whole grain cereals, bread and pasta;
- lean meat and fish (chicken, turkey, veal, rabbit, quail);
- freshly squeezed juices and smoothies;
- low-fat dairy and fermented milk products;
- eggs;
- legumes (if the baby is not prone to colic).
Advice from Elena Malysheva
Malysheva’s diets have gained credibility among those seeking weight loss. A nutritional system has not yet been developed for nursing mothers, but Elena offers practical advice for normalizing digestion and smoothly getting rid of extra pounds. Some of them can be used during lactation.
Not to starve
Suspecting that it is in danger of starvation, the body begins to make reserves even from meager food intake. You need to eat often, in small portions.
Count calories
The main ally of those losing weight is accurate “accounting”. At the same time, the menu should be varied.
Chew food thoroughly
Processing food with saliva and grinding it with teeth helps to enjoy the taste of food, avoid overeating and ease the work of the stomach in the future. Prepared food passes through the digestive tract more easily and is absorbed much faster.
Make water your ally
Water perfectly fills the stomach and fights hunger, having zero calories, it helps improve metabolism, removes toxins and normalizes intestinal function. Malysheva strongly recommends drinking at least 10 glasses of still water per day. It is especially important to drink 1 glass in the morning, on an empty stomach.
Do physical education
Moderate physical activity does not overload the cardiovascular system, increases alertness and helps in the fight against excess weight. Nursing mothers cannot do without them. The main thing is to choose the appropriate option.
Be physically active
You can return to active training 3 months after birth, when the uterus has completely contracted and the body has recovered from hard work. However, light exercises and short runs can be started a couple of weeks after discharge from the hospital.
Losing weight during breastfeeding will go at a much faster pace if you begin to devote 3-5 hours a week to physical activity. Choose what you like:
- yoga;
- fitness;
- Pilates (you can do it directly with your baby, as well as stretching, gymnastics, exercises on a fitball);
- swimming (infant swimming is also popular now, because it teaches the baby to confidently float on the water when he still has no fear of drowning, and the natural instinct to swim has not been forgotten).
If it’s convenient and comfortable for you, train with your baby - then you won’t have to decide who to leave him with during the lesson, how he is doing while you’re training, whether he’s crying without his mother. In addition, in this way you will show your little child an excellent example of a healthy lifestyle, because until adolescence, parents for him are an authority that is worth emulating.
Do you want your little one to have no problems with motivation and determination in the future? Then show him how you yourself work through these moments and fight laziness.
How to make your diet more effective
An effective way to regain your previous shape after childbirth is moderate physical activity. When combined with a nutritional system for weight loss, they demonstrate excellent results, having a beneficial effect on metabolism and mood. At the same time, any exercise interferes with the successful healing of the uterus, so it is recommended to start exercising only six weeks after the birth of the child. Early activity can harm lactation!
Do not underestimate the “physical education” that comes into a woman’s life with the birth of a baby. Caring for a newborn is already exercise that can burn calories.
Mind-Body practices such as meditation, yoga and Pilates are also permitted. With their help you can transform your body at any stage of life. They have no contraindications, minimize stress, and can be easily performed at home.
The choice of load six weeks after birth must be approached rationally. The best type of physical activity during pregnancy and lactation is a swimming pool. If a nursing mother decides to go to the gym, it is important to remember to exercise without weights. Aerobic exercise is best avoided, as it promotes loss of large amounts of fluid and poses a danger to the breasts.
Ways to lose weight
Losing weight after childbirth while breastfeeding will be most effective when using several methods. The most effective include:
- Rational, balanced, fractional menu - it is recommended to eat in small portions, at least 5 times a day. You can drink sweet tea between meals.
- Strict choice of foods - to quickly lose weight, you need to exclude or strictly limit fatty, high-calorie foods. The diet should consist of simple, easily digestible dishes.
- Physical exercise is very good if mommy has time to visit the fitness room or swimming pool. If you don’t have one, you can play sports on your own, at home.
How to quickly lose weight after childbirth for a nursing mother at home - the easiest and simplest way would be daily walks with a stroller. They train the muscles of the body, tighten the stomach, thighs, legs, and speed up metabolism.
Reviews and results of losing weight
Oksana, 32 years old
During pregnancy I gained 20 kg. A lot, I know. The gynecologist constantly discouraged me from eating buns, but my body insistently demanded junk food. After giving birth, I lost 7 kg. During the first month, breastfeeding became lighter by another 2 kg. Of course, she was unhappy. I decided to call a diet for help. I settled on gluten-free. I heard that it is really effective. I immediately had to give up not only my favorite buns, but also sausages. In 2 months I managed to lose 5.5 kg. Since I am already accustomed to a gluten-free diet, I will continue.
Olga, 24 years old
After the birth of my son, I realized that I was completely unhappy with my reflection in the mirror. Before giving birth, I weighed 56 kg, after - 64. Friends and my mother tried to prove that breastfeeding would soon help me get in shape. But can you convince me? I started looking for a suitable way to lose weight. I chose a rational diet for myself, allowing me to eat porridge, poultry, fish and fruits and vegetables. In principle, this diet suited me. After being unloaded for a month, I became only 2 kg lighter. It's a shame, but I continue to strive for the goal.
Myths about losing weight during breastfeeding
There are many persistent myths regarding the possibility of losing weight after childbirth while breastfeeding.
Genetics
The active formation of fat accumulations during pregnancy is physiologically justified and is protective in nature. Firstly, the fat layer serves as a shock absorber for bruises and falls, which reduces the risk of injury to the fetus; secondly, these are energy reserves in case of famine.
Often the number of kilograms gained is due to genetic predisposition. So, if close relatives on the maternal side (sisters, mothers, aunts) had problems with excess weight, then the risk of gaining weight during pregnancy increases several times.
Lactation
Lactation is an energy-consuming process. To produce the required amount of milk (assuming the baby is fed “on demand”, without complementary foods), the body spends up to 700 kcal per day. Thus, the energy consumption when feeding a child is comparable to the energy that is wasted in 2-3 hours of intense exercise in the gym.
The hormone prolactin, which regulates milk production, promotes the utilization of fat stored during pregnancy, so breastfeeding helps a woman lose weight.
