Weight loss

[smjmekg]

Does anyone have any tips for losing baby weight? It's been 19 months since I had Elijah and I've got 30 lbs left. I gained about 40 and only lost 10 after I had him. Most of it I gained in the last two months and I thought it was from water weight because I swelled up so much. I've had back problems since my c-section with him, and actually had a doctors appointment today where I got told to set up physical therapy appointments because he can still tell on my back where they put the needle in. They tried 5 times and then someone else came in and got it on the first try, so I got poked 6 times total. I can't stand long or it hurts, I can't do more than ten sit ups in a row, and have now been told not to do them at all right now. I don't really eat junk food, I do drink milk, water, and juice. My lunch is usually a turkey sandwich on wheat bread or an everything bagel, and dinner is always some form of meat a carb and vegetable, unless I make something like spaghetti, lasagna, shrimp/chicken alfredo, etc. I don't eat a lot and I usually have coffee for breakfast. We're TTC number two, and I think losing more weight will help, and I've been trying to lose weight, I can't normally get to the gym due to DH's schedule, and lack of a sitter. Any advice? I did try hydroxycut and lost 3 lbs in 11 days, but TTC I don't want to take diet pills. I have read that the slim fast diet is ok even when you're pregnant.

[tiredbuthappy]

forgot to ask if you've had a physical or any bloodwork recently. You may want to rule out thyroid problems.

[cocacolapanda]

I gained about 30 + lb, and worked my butt off trying to loose it, but lost none!  It's hard, I know how you feel!  

I got pregnant and lost 10 lb (ended in a missed miscarriage), since then I've been better at keeping my eating under control.  I'm not pregnant again and to make sure I don't gain another 30 lb, I've been weighing myself every 2 days and keeping close tabs to help make sure I stop the problem before it's too late.  SO, my suggestion to you is when you do fall pregnant again please monitor your weight closely the entire pregnancy, and work with your dr if you find yourself gaining too much too quickly.

As for now, with the back pain, I suggest seeing a chiropractor as well as physical therapy.  A friend of mine has back problems and physical therapy is helpful, however if you also see a chiropractor it might help you heal quicker (and help you prevent more back issues).  With the history of back pain, I also suggest when you do become pregnant again, if your not still doing physical therapy to also see a chiropractor somewhat regularly, especially after the first trimester.  When your pregnant it causes issues with your bones, and seeing one can help make you feel more comfortable especially if your more prone to back pain now.

As for loosing weight now, cardio is a good place to start, walking will help you loose extra weight, and It's been found to help with back pain.  When walking try to walk for at least 30 min, if not longer if you can, the first 20 min doesn't do much good, but after 20 min of excersize you will start loosing your weight.  As long as it's nice out, you can take your child on a nice walk, bring a stroller or have them join you.  Since your having issues doing crunches and stuff, have you tried doing Yoga?  You can get some DVD's or stream off of netflex or even some free online sites.  Depending on how mobile your child is you might be able to try to get them to join you.  I've tried this with DS who's 21 months and he's not quite used to it yet, however DH said he saw DS doing some Yoga moves the days after I did it with him.  You want to do some cardio, and something that builds mussel.

If your coordinated and like dance, then get find some dance work outs on netflex, free online, or DVD's, if your child is a toddler and moving around I'm sure they'd love do dance and move around with you, the dance type of things usually are good with cardio and a lot of time work on your mussels.  I think belly dancing is something a friend of mine did to get her belly back in shape, the moves were nice because they were somewhat easy on her back to start shortly after giving birth.

Good luck!

[tiredbuthappy]

try cutting out the juice. Also, things like alfredo sauces are exceptionally fattening, so even if you put a lean meat into it, you may not realize how much fat/calories you are getting. Instead of a bagel, you should be putting your sandwiches on something with much less carbs, such as a thin wrap or pita.

Until you do get pregnant, I would suggest a diet such as weight watchers that actually teaches you how to look at food and portions, and not just how to replace a meal with a pill or a shake. Even if you don't continue it while pregnant, you will have learned what a reasonable portion truly is, and what types of things put the pounds on.

Also, be sure to have a healthy breakfast everyday, as that can get your metabolism going. I think you actually are more likely to lose weight if you eat a healthy breakfast than if you skip it.

Sorry I don't have more suggestions. Since I breastfed both, the pounds fell off within weeks. The recommendations I make are based on weightloss attempts prior to getting pregnant.

[tobbeyj]

I would start by cutting out all carbs. No more pastas and no more bread. Lunch should be salad - veggies and low fat dressing with maybe a few pieces of chicken. Dinner should be more thank 1/2 of your plate of veggies and then some lean meat or fish. Can you swim? Sounds like you are pretty sore so exercise is probably tough right now although to lose the weight it would be super important. Snacking? Veggies and rice cakes, yogurt and all those not so fun snacks. Drink water when you are hungry - I have heard that often times we are just thirsty and mistake it for being hungry. Also allow yoursefl a little cheat treat maybe 1x week. Look at the scale only once a week - not everyday. Hope this helps a little. For others who are reading this post, I have a freind who gained 100 lbs while preg with her daughter...im not kidding...she has been doing intense spinning about 4-5 x week and had now lost 130lbs in the last year. It takes motivation and dedication. We can all do it :)

[Victoria01]

I gained 40+ pounds with my first DS too and I know it can be a pain in the butt to get rid of! Since I live out in the country with nothing but dirt roads, walking was out and finding a baby sitter while I went to the gym didn't work for me either since everyone I trusted worked. What I ended up doing is buying a stationary bike, which I loved! I could exercise whenever I wanted (or whenever DS would let me) and I never had to worry about leaving the house.

I started slowly and worked my way up in time and resistance. I also used small hand weights to work my upper body while I was doing it. Drinking water also helps to lose weight, I was drinking 10-12 glasses a day. I dropped the weight fairly quickly, about 2 months. I never really did change the way I ate, just exercised and it seemed to work for me.

I don't know about the slim fast or what is okay while you are pregnant. Might want to ask dr about that. Good luck!