We’ve decided to change up the “weekend posts” format a little bit. Most people don’t really click on link-only posts because they’re, well, boring. I think there are lots of awesome blog posts out there that you haven’t seen and you’re probably missing out (I always get excited as I’m adding the links!), but I understand. You want to read something valuable now, not go clicking around randomly.
So, in that light, we’re going to feature 1 – 2 reader questions in addition to sharing some fun links with you. We might even post cool tips or pictures of what we’ve been up to all week. You’ll have to read to find out!
Tip of the Week: Choose to be joyful and see the good in situations instead of feeling frustrated. If you’ll laugh about it later…just laugh about it now. 🙂
This Week’s Featured Question
This week’s question comes from an anonymous reader:
“I just gave birth 3 weeks ago, stayed healthy my entire pregnancy and only have about 18 lbs. to lose to be my pre-pregnancy weight. My husband and I have a TV interview that will be filmed in March/April and I need to be at my “tip top shape.” I know what to do nutritionally (my husband is a Certified Clinical Nutritionist and I eat about 75% raw.) However – I need to start working out (5th baby!!) but have heard that hard work outs will decrease my milk supply. I EBF for 2 years. Any advice on what to do in this situation?? The importance for me lies in the healthy breast milk … so if I need to just continue to eat healthy and NOT work out, then that is what I’ll do.”
Losing the baby weight is something many women struggle with, and almost all women at least wonder or worry about. We can’t help but gain weight while pregnant, and that leaves us in a position to need to lose it once we have our babies. It can sometimes be harder to lose the weight with later babies than with earlier babies, as well. So what’s the answer?
One reason that women sometimes struggle to lose the baby weight (and I wouldn’t call three weeks postpartum a time to worry too much about this!) is because they have nutritional deficiencies. Making a baby really takes a lot out of you, literally! One major and common deficiency is magnesium. If you are struggling with sleep troubles (and not just because your baby is keeping you up), fatigue, nausea, lack of appetite, constipation, and chocolate cravings, magnesium deficiency might be an issue for you. Another symptom is…the inability to lose weight!
Taking care of any nutritional deficiencies by supplementing with magnesium lotion, a liquid herbal multivitamin, and cod liver oil can go a long way to improving your health and helping you to safely and effectively lose the weight. Make sure that you are not limiting your food intake during this time and especially that you are getting enough fat, so that you continue to provide an abundance of milk for your baby. In fact, nourishing yourself will also nourish and benefit your baby!
But what about exercise?
Vigorous, hard-core exercise (1 – 2 hours per day, 5 – 7 days a week) is not a good idea. It can drop your metabolism because you can’t take in enough calories to sustain such a high activity level while breastfeeding. It can also get any “toxins” moving through your body, which will get dumped into your lymphatic system — which goes into your milk and to your baby. Heavy exercise like this is too much.
Mild to moderate exercise, however, is a good idea. Take a brisk 15 – 20 minute walk everyday (wear your baby or have your husband watch him/her if you prefer). Dance to some exercise videos. Head out to the backyard and play tag with older kids. Basically, stay active, but don’t push it. The physical activity will help you feel better and help your body work more efficiently, but the moderate nature means they shouldn’t hurt your milk supply.
Don’t push the exercise in the early weeks, though. Besides some very light walking, and only if you feel up to it, don’t try to start any exercise programs until your baby is at least 6 weeks old. If you’re still feeling tired or you’re having a rough recovery (after a difficult birth), waiting 12 weeks is even better. 12 weeks is long enough for most things to heal and also for your milk supply to be fully established.
If you are worried, try drinking herbal teas made from nettles, oatstraw, fenugreek, and fennel. These will nourish your body with important trace minerals as well as improving your milk supply.
Finally, give it some time! It took 9 months for you to gain the weight, and it can easily take a few to several months to take it all back off. Don’t rush your recovery; it will come in time.
(In my own personal experience, I had an undiscovered magnesium deficiency during my third pregnancy and postpartum period. This left me unable to lose the last 10 lbs. of baby weight — a first for me — as well as tired, irritable, anxious, and not sleeping well. When I got pregnant with my fourth, I was still over my pre-pregnancy weight. I had learned about magnesium and began supplementing it topically and also using the liquid herbal multivitamin. This not only got rid of nearly all my morning sickness — which had been rough in my third pregnancy — but I didn’t gain any weight until I was about 20 weeks along! Even now, at 30 weeks, I have only gained maybe 15 lbs. My proportions changed as more weight went to my baby belly and came away from my hips and face. Knowing this I anticipate losing the baby weight will be a lot easier next time!)
This Week’s Posts
Check out the cool posts from our sister sites and contributors!
Modern Alternative Kitchen
- 5 Things to Do if you Overeat During the Holidays
- Vogelsberger Rolle: A Traditional New Year’s Dish with Ham and Sauerkraut
- Ingredient Spotlight: Arrowroot Powder
- Meal Plan Monday #25
Modern Alternative Pregnancy
Modern Alternative Health
Our Contributors
- Banish Post-Holiday Guilt by Real Whole Health
- Carrot Beet Juice by The Spinach Spot
- My Experience with Adrenal Fatigue by Vibrant Sexy Strong
- Christmas Traditions by Sharing My Simple Dreams
- Foods to Avoid While You Are Sick by The Holistic Mama
What were your favorite posts this week? How did you lose the baby weight?
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I love the idea of posting questions from readers! 😀
My baby weight is definitely coming off more slowly this time, not sure why. I’ll try to be better about supplementing and maybe that will help! I use the magnesium oil but only a couple times a week, and I take FCLO most days. With my first, when people asked how the weight came off so easily I just told them that I breastfed and ate a lot of butter! 🙂
My baby just turned 7 months. Not only have I had trouble losing the last 10 pounds, but now I’m back up to 12-13 pounds to be at my pre-baby weight. I have horrible cravings for sweets….and pretty much anything else unhealthy. I;m a pretty clean, real food eater too! I’ve never eaten/wanted to eat so terribly, and I feel guilty about it often. It doesn’t help that we are living with my in-laws right now until our house is finished and they always have junk around. Im’ definitely ordering some magnesium!
Thank you so much for posting my question! What a fantastic way to read it and receive answers! Thank you, thank you!!! I”m for sure NOT going to work out like I had originally planned. Instead I’ll bump up my magnesium (I’ve been taking it every day anyway…) and start with simple walking in my neighborhood and some dancing with baby! 🙂 Maybe in a bit I’ll include yoga when I’m feeling normal. Thank you again for this VERY helpful blog post!! xoxo
I’m intrigued by the idea of magnesium. I have never heard that it can help with weight loss (or that a deficiency can make weight loss a struggle). Is there a particular brand/kind that you like? I am very interested in trying some.
I am 36 and have five children. When my third baby was about 6 months old, I discovered real food, gave it a try and ended up losing weight like crazy! This was after I switched to whole, raw milk and began eating tremendously more (healthy!) fat than I ever had in my life. It was amazing! I felt so free and liberated.
After my fourth child was born, I only had 12 pounds to lose. I thought it would be no problem – but a year later I still couldn’t shake it. I even did the exact same regime (from Jordan Rubin’s “The Maker’s Diet” which had kicked off my weight loss before. I lost maybe 3-4 pounds, nothing more. Then I got pregnant again.
So, after my fifth child I found myself with 25 pounds to lose. He turned one year old a few weeks ago, and I cannot shuck the weight. I’ve tried everything I can think of (barring a low fat diet!) -going gluten-free, cutting out grains, exercising more- and I am at my wit’s end. My naturopath and I even checked my thyroid, and found that it was a little low-functioning. So I’ve been taking thyroid supplements and dessicated thyroid for the last 9 months or so and…nothing.
I am near despair. I know that weight isn’t everything, and my biggest physical priority is to be healthy – I believe that I am! But I am so sad about how I look, and am so tired of hating my body.
Decide to stop hating your body. A few extra pounds will work themselves off in the long run. Do what you need to do, follow your children and be their Mom, but also be a role model for them in that you love who you are and you love yourself in spite of anything that happens to your body..
What would you do – what would you teach them – were you to have a sudden allergy that resulted in MORE weight gain? Would you teach them that it’s okay for YOU to be upset about weight but they should not?
Would you rather teach them that there are things to look for – keeping balance in your life – and that all aspects need to be balanced, rather than focusing largely on one, single aspect?
Hugs, Good Luck on your Inner work – I am working on mine!
Not surprised that this blog advocates not exercising! Just eat lots of butter and it will all come off!
I see this is an old blog post. Did you really gain 15 lbs. in 10 weeks in pregnancy 4 ( weeks 20-30)? Is that amount healthy? Did you easily lose the weight after baby 4?
Interesting perspective!!
Hi Maegan,
I honestly don’t remember, but whatever I wrote at that time was probably accurate. I hadn’t gained anything prior to 20 weeks. Average is 1 lb. per week from 13 – 30 or 35 weeks, so 15 lbs. in 10 weeks basically “made up” for what I didn’t gain prior. All in all I gained around 20 or so lbs. in the whole pregnancy.
I did lose the weight easily, but later gained it back. I wrote about this on 1/6/14 and included a discussion of how hormonal imbalance can affect weight gain/loss. You might be interested in that.
This is my first baby and I had an unexpected required csection, needless to say it was traumatic. Recovery after I felt exhausted and of course with a newborn I wasn’t getting much rest. I continued to feel completely fatigued, practically drain up till he was 6 months. I had no idea what was normal as a first time mom, but I felt I couldn’t survive being so exhausted all the time and feeling guilty about not working out. Then I found out I was anemic and I started taking an iron supplement wow what a relief! I actually felt like a person again in just a few days and I was able to function and take care of things. I’ve still felt a bit tired and crave goodies so adding magnesium might be exactly what could help.