I’ve struggled with writing this post because, on one hand, I don’t feel like I’ve “snapped back.” Yes, I’m back in UK size 6/8 clothing. And I can comfortable tuck in my shirts without worrying about a paunch. But I’m still 2.5kg above my target weight of 53 kg and my muscles jiggle in the oddest places.
Despite my doubts, people ask me every other day, “How did you do it? How did you lose the weight?” In the last one week alone, someone asked me if I was a recent college grad. Another saw my kids and commented that I seem to have started childbearing at a very early age (because I look younger than 29). And yet another asked me how much exercise I’ve had to do since giving birth because I don’t look like I had a baby last year.
It does a lot for my vanity that people think such kind thoughts, I’ll have you know. Because there are days I wake up feeling absolutely crappy from the lack of sleep and the stress of attending to two little boys. I have the circles around my eyes, the greys in my hair and the lines on my face to show for it. Momming is hard work. Momming and wifing and a full-time job is hard, hard work. And like many moms, I simply don’t have the time (yet) for fancy diets and the gym.
Despite this, I have managed to lose 15kg of the 17 or so I gained while pregnant. Disclaimer: I’ve been blessed with decent genes. But don’t roll your eyes, and close the page yet. I also have a few tips that I’ve put to good use. Some of it is common sense. Some of it, I’ve learned from @9jafoodie’s “Lose It Nigerian” program. And some of it I learned from Mireille Giuliano’s “French Women Don’t Get Fat.”
Another disclaimer: These practices might not work for you. But they work for me. They are not secrets. You’ve probably seen them (or their variations) in popular weight loss regimes. There are probably more effective ways of losing weight. The thing is: these are the ones I can commit to at least 70% of the time. These are the ones I enjoy, that don’t make me feel like I’m “suffering”. They are choices that I have intentionally made and I think that “intention” is what has made the difference.
And so what I’ll ask is this: that you commit to the ones you can. Doesn’t have to be everything. Doesn’t even have to be anything on this list. It could be a totally different weight loss practice that works for you. Whatever you choose, make sure it doesn’t feel like a sacrifice or too much effort. If it’s too much effort, it will discourage you and then you’ll just back-slide when you get tired. How many times have you fallen off a wagon with a diet resolution?
So here they are. The practices that worked for me in losing the baby weight.
1. Manage the (pre) pregnancy weight and your body.
Why: The less weight you gain during pregnancy, the less you’ll have to lose postpartum. If you have abs pre-baby, they will eventually show up post-baby.
How: Walk a lot. Don’t eat if you aren’t hungry, and stop when you feel full. You don’t have to finish everything on your plate. Eat spicy food (see tip 6 below) and drink lots of water (even though it means more bathroom breaks. Sorry ma’am!). Above all, don’t “eat for two”. That line is a scam.
2. Ditch the scale.
Why: I don’t own one because I don’t want to weigh myself every day. I think it puts me under unnecessary pressure. It’s enough to check my weight every month or so when I go to the clinic. So how do I keep track of my weight? I use my mirror, a tape rule and the fit of my clothes. I find this more useful because some times, the scale says you’ve lost weight but your clothes are still tight. Some times, it says you’ve added weight but your clothes are looser. To me, the goal is not a number on the scale. The goal is a body I’m comfortable in. Makes sense?
3. Belly binding.
Why: As a child, I saw my mother and my aunts tie their bellies after childbirth but did not understand it. As part of my research during pregnancy, I found out that its common in many cultures around the world.
How: In our modern age, we now have velcro-strapped corsets to do the job! I found my corset incredibly useful in “teaching” my abdominal muscles where they should be after 9 months of stretching. When I lost enough weight to not call for the corset, I switched to Spanx (lycra shapeware) to hold my muscles in place. I’ve lost enough weight now, to not need the Spanx anymore either.
4. Breast feed the baby (but beware the Nigerian breastfeeding diet!)
Why: One key reason for pregnancy weight gain is to make sure that Mommy has enough fat reserves to take care of baby, even if there’s a famine. It makes sense to give the baby his due; the fat. Breastfeeding a baby exclusively burns up to 500 calories per day. You’d need to swim non-stop for an hour or walk for an hour and a half to burn the same amount of calories. So, as much as you can, breastfeed. It also triggers the uterus to shrink (thus shrinking your tummy), so that’s a win-win.
How: Drink lots of water to get your milk flowing. Let baby nurse often. The more she nurses, the more she triggers your body to produce more milk and the more you’ll produce. Get a good milk pump. One of my colleagues at work has 7 litres of frozen milk at home! She’s a super star, obviously but I’ve had up to 2 litres in storage and with some dedication, you can do even better. Yes, it’s a bit of work. But it’s work I enjoyed. (If you’d like me to share my tips on exclusive breastfeeding for busy moms, let me know in the comments!)
And beware the Nigerian breastfeeding diet. That pap, that oatmeal, that yam/plantain pepper soup that everyone swears will boost your milk supply? Hmm. It works, oh, don’t get me wrong. But if you can feed baby without resorting to those techniques, I highly recommend that you do. What will it profit you to lose 500 calories from breastfeeding and then replace it with 600 calories of yam, pap and plantain?
READ ALSO: Breast Pumps: A Working Mom’s Best Friend
5. Drink water, lots of water.
Why: Water boosts milk supply (see 4 above). Water fills your tummy (less room for over-eating). And water boosts your metabolism (the rate at which you burn calories). It also preserves your pregnancy glow for much longer 😀
How: Aim to drink at least 3 litres of water per day. Yes, it’s a lot but after a while you kinda get used to it. Get an app to track your water consumption. Make a habit of only drinking water when in public. No coke, no juice, no mojito. Just water.
6. Eat food with lots of pepper.
Why: Growing up with parents who were culturally Yoruba (if not ethnically – is that a word?), my pepper tolerance is quite high. Which is a good thing as far as weight loss is concerned because one, it means I drink lots of water as I eat (See 4 above). Two, you can’t eat a lot of food if it’s high on pepper so it helps portion control. Third, pepper also allegedly increases metabolism. Win-win.
How: I have home-made sweet pepper sauce in my fridge. I put it on everything.
7. Cut down on sugar.
Why: Sugar directly contributes to weight gain around your torso (where your abs should be). This one is difficult for me, but it’s also quite easy. I’ll explain. If you follow @BlazersandBaby on Instagram, you’ve seen that I love to bake. There’s the temptation to get high on my supply, if you know what I mean. So yeah, it’s hard to say no sugar. But precisely because I bake, I now have standards when it comes to baked goods. It makes it easy for me to say No to birthday cake, or store-bought muffins because I can do better ?. I balance my sugar craving by baking only in small quantities or immediately sharing what I bake. That way, I taste the good stuff but I don’t pig out on it.
How: Train your taste buds to eat cereal without sugar. Skip the sugar in your tea/cocoa. You might need to do this gradually so you could try halving your sugar portions one week, and then halving again the following week till you get to zero. Don’t stock a lot of sugary drinks at home. I love lemonade and so I make sure I buy only two small 50 cl bottles per month (instead of the giant 2 litre bottles I’d prefer). See, if you’re thirsty and you open your fridge and instead of cold water, you see cold Sprite, you will drink the Sprite. So help your ministry from the get-go.
8. Move your body. Dance. Walk. Stairs. Plank (not advisable if you have diastasis recti).
Why: Motion (in the correct posture) helps build your fitness level and this has a direct impact on your metabolism rate. If you exercise, you will burn more calories even when you’re sleeping than someone who doesn’t exercise. Exercise also tones your muscles.
How: I haven’t worked out much this year because it does feel like too much trouble to get into workout clothing and do burpees. ? But I love to dance. I just discovered the NotJustOk music app so all I need for my “dance workout” is my phone, my wireless headphones and semi-privacy ?. Another great workout I seriously recommend is using the stairs. See. I bought a size 8 dress that I had trouble zipping up. Within 3 weeks of using the stairs to my 11th floor office twice a day, I was zipping the dress up easily. It takes me 4 minutes to make the climb each time. I dare you to find any 8-minute workout that gives the same return on investment. It’s great for toning your lower abs and lower body, as long as you keep up a correct posture. If you’ve been blessed with a staircase at home or at work, ditch the lift and climb. It’s difficult the first few times, but stick with it for a week, and it’ll get easier. I like to play music as I climb so I’m kinda dance-climbing.
If you don’t have stairs, you could walk. If you can walk for 30 minutes every day, you’ll see results. It doesn’t have to be all at once. Park your car far from the entrance to work, or to the supermarket. It helps. If you can ditch your car completely, do it. The extra steps add up.
9. Be a food snob. Only eat the food you love.
Why: So that weight loss doesn’t seem like a bore/chore. So that you save your calorie allowance for the things that matter the most.
How: You don’t have to eat everything placed in front of you. Save that for your five-year old. For instance, I have a meh relationship with eggs. And so even if they can be delicious, I hardly eat eggs (once in three weeks, maybe?). I love white rice and stew. I love veggies. So I eat rice and stew in a 50:50 ratio with veggies. Because I think I make excellent stew, I hardly ever eat stew outside my home. I typically don’t eat fried rice. Do you understand the principle? If it’s not food I love that has been very, very well prepared, it’s not worth eating. Why would I waste my calorie allowance on food I don’t enjoy?
10. Bulk up your meals with high-fibre, low glycemic-index foods.
Why: They make you feel full faster and digest slower so you can go longer between meals.
How: This isn’t a sponsored ad for @9jafoodie’s Lose It Nigerian program but I can’t help but refer to it because she has excellent recipes that use a lot of low-GI foods. One practical way I bulk up is to eat lots of vegetables with my meals. For instance, in a particular week, I might saute a whole bunch of efo (spinach) with tomatoes and onions and add that to everything I eat that week. Rice & stew? Side of efo. Beans and Plantain? Side of efo. Moi-moi? Side of efo.
You made it to the end of this very long post! Well done. I think this is a good point to talk about “Happy Weight”. The weight you gain when life is good and you’re happy. Happy weight is a good thing, it’s the one where you laugh at the fact that your dress doesn’t zip up. Happy weight is being happy with your body, no matter what. So I’ll also ask that you love your body and love the journey. It might take you one month. It might take you 5 years. Enjoy the journey. I’m really keen on preaching joy because that’s what counts at the end of the day. Joy is what makes you reach for that slice of pizza when you’re with your friends because just how much lettuce can one girl eat?
One last thing. The jury’s still out in the medical field but some women report gaining weight when they start using hormonal contraceptives. I don’t use them. If you think that your contraceptive might have a role to play in your inability to lose weight, please consult with your ob/gyn on other options available.
If you have any questions, please let me know in the comments or on social media: @BlazersandBaby. What other tip would you share on weight loss for the busy mother?
