Without a shadow of a doubt, the changes to your body when you give birth are unrivalled to any other experience you go through in life. This is a fact.
However, some information that does get published about this time in life isn’t necessarily factual. Naturally, this means that new mothers, and mothers-to-be for that matter, have a whole host of questions on their mind.
Well, today’s article is going to try and tackle this situation. Let’s now take a look at four burning questions that tend to be asked around the postpartum stage.
Why do some new mothers find it harder to lose weight?
As it turns out, the answer to this first question doesn’t usually revolve around the bump itself. Many are under the impression that this is a direct cause for weight gain later down the line.
Of course, it can be difficult to shift some extra pounds that you might have collected, but the real reason a lot of women struggle is because of lifestyle. Now, it is much more difficult to spend time exercising and even sticking to a healthy diet.
Some women will even turn to breast revision surgery in a bid to help them but in truth, it’s the basic lifestyle choices which can do the most good here.
When can you start exercising again?
Following the previous section, it’s not until around six weeks after giving birth that you can consider turning to exercise either. This usually occurs after the postnatal check – meaning that in some cases it could be up to eight weeks after giving birth.
It’s worth pointing out that when you do turn to exercise, your expectations might need to be managed as well. Again, you don’t have the time that you once had available, and this means that results are going to be slow. Make sure you take this into account so that your motivational levels don’t drop.
How can you find time to exercise?
In terms of a more tongue-in-cheek question, there’s no doubt that it is a lot harder to exercise as soon as you give birth.
It means that you have to think outside the box somewhat. This might mean workout sessions at home when your little one is asleep, or even less structured sessions such as a brisk walk around the neighbourhood (with the pram, of course).
Either way, as we have already alluded to, don’t think that you have to match your previous exercise exploits.
Can you diet whilst breastfeeding?
There are a lot of mixed answers to this question, so let’s clarify it once and for all.
Firstly, you should not be dieting in the first month of pregnancy. Or, you should at least not be making significant changes to your diet.
In terms of the longer-term, the main rule to follow is that your intake cannot drop below 1800 calories per day. This is because breastfeeding can burn a lot of calories, and if you drop under this amount you are at risk of not providing yourself and your little one with sufficient nutrition.