Exercise, Diet and Weight Loss For The Breast Feeding Mom
It's normal for a woman to be concerned about such things as weight loss and fitness, particularly after a pregnancy and during the breast feeding period. However, many new moms also want to know how diet, exercise, and a weight loss program will affect their ability to effectively breast feed their baby. Here's a few basic bits of data on the subject. For specific advice concerning you, your baby, and your breast feeding program, talk to your doctor.
Diet
While your particular diet has less impact on the breast milk you provide your baby than you might think, it is important for YOU to be healthy during this period. There is going to be a lot of stress, a lot of lost sleep, and it will be a difficult time to add the burden of "going on a diet" to everything else. The last thing you need at this time is more stress, and trying to maintain your energy level and enjoy your new baby while you are cutting your own personal nutrition is not a good choice. Most "diets", particularly those of the fad sort, tend to shortchange the dieter in terms of necessary nutrition, and even if this does not directly affect your baby, it affects you, and what affects you can affect your child.
If you must "diet" as part of your personal weight loss plan, look into NutriSystem, the South Beach Diet, Weight Watchers, or similar weight loss programs as they stress proper nutrition, exercise, AND have a support mechanism which will put your in contact with others like yourself...often including new moms! If you don't want to get involved with such organized program, then at least make sure that you are following a healthy eating plan and getting regular moderate exercise.
Exercise
It is normally perfectly okay to exercise during the breast feeding period. Some research has indicated that regular moderate exercise may actually help milk production. As always, in the face of particular circumstances, check with your doctor first. Here's a few things you might want to think about.
One thing that is always a consideration but which is even more important at this time is to protect your breasts. Injury or stress to them can result in conditions such as infection or mastitis which could interfere with your ability to feed your baby and might even result in more extreme health problems. So, always start with a good fitting, comfortable, effective support bra. Avoid exercises which may cause stress to the breasts or pressure on, or impact to, the breasts. Here's where I make my usual plug that for many women, yoga is an excellent fitness choice.
If you were previously an exerciser, ease back into your routine. You may have to modify your routine, providing low-impact alternatives to your familiar high-impact exercises. Don't overdo it. Stick to your healthy eating plan, and drink lots of fluids. Nurse before exercising. It's no good to be hot and sweaty, or in the middle of your favorite exercise routine and have to stop everything to take care of a hungry baby.
Exercise does not have to be a scheduled rigid routine. That walk with your new baby in the stroller may be just the physical activity you both need at the moment. Of course, having to stop for all the compliments on your beautiful new child may interrupt the proceedings a bit.
Weight Loss
After your pregnancy, you will certainly be interested in losing the weight that seems to have appeared from nowhere. As always, the key to weight loss is going to hinge on two main points; physical activity and nutrition. If you are following some of the advice above, are getting some regular moderate exercise and have a healthy eating plan firmly in place, there is a good chance that most of that unwanted weight will disappear. However, if it is not going away fast enough, or that last little bit is sticking around, maybe you will need to ramp up your exercise a bit. However, stick with the plan, make your adjustments in bite-size increments, and don't overdo it.
After all, you're getting healthy for two.
Related Tags: fitness, health, weight loss, diet, baby, baby care, breast feeding
Donovan Baldwin is a Texas writer. He is a University of West Florida alumnus, a member of Mensa, and is retired from the U. S. Army after 21 years of service. His interests include health, fitness, yoga, and weight loss. You can find more tips and informaton on breast feeding a newborn baby at http://breast-feeding.web-home.ws/ Your Article Search Directory : Find in Articles
Recent articles in this category:
- Dental Insurance For Individual Can Be Of Help At Time
Dental problem may cost one a lot of money and pain. But, practicing a reasonable care could decreas - Personal Trainer For Perfect Health
There is a general misconception that need for a fitness trainer comes for novice or from those who - Varicose Veins - Causes, Symptoms, Treatment
The majority of people after thirty notice the changes that appear with the maturing. In this case t - Scenar Therapy - Self-treatment Or Healing Partnership
Do you want to learn about a device which will help you to ease your pain? If you get this kind of a - Scenar - 5 "no, Nos" Of Scenar
Are you fed up with the pain in your body? Various parts of our body seem to ache due to different r - Scenar Device - 5 Tips On Travelling With Your Scenar (skenar) Device
You might be aware of scenar which has become quite popular these days. This is actually the acronym - Scenar Therapy - How To Treat Your Pet With Scenar
There are many alternative methods of treatment that are being invented these days. Lots of people a - Your Options For The Treatment For Appendicitis
Appendicitis is considered to be a surgical illness. Due to its severe character, the treatment for - How To Choose The Right Copd Medication
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD does not have any cure. But with the help of medicines - Septic Arthritis: Infectious Agents Penetrate Joints' Spaces
Another major type of arthritis is septic arthritis, which is also known in various terms like: pyog
Most viewed articles in this category:
- Drugs - the Last Alternative for Adhd in Kids
Anyone over the age of thirty who has grown up with ADHD understands that there was not much help av - Foods To Eat To Gain Weight
Malnutrition has the same degree of problem as obesity. There are people who are too skinny, they fi - Understanding Postpartum Clothing
The same way most pregnant women dream of the day when they will begin showing for wearing maternity - Kegel Exercising for Bladder Control and Enhanced Sexual Pleasure
Kegel exercises strengthen the muscles of the pelvic floor, thereby improving the urethra and/or rec - The Use Of Weight Loss Herbs
Nothing has garnered more attention in today's world than the success or failures of weight loss pro - A Simple Acid Relux Cure
Many people today are afflicted with heartburn. If they eat food that is too spicy, they get heartbu - Five Effective Household Back Pain Treatments
Back pain treatment comes in lots of forms, from exercise to pain mediction. Standard and most wides - Herbal Remedies - Can They Cure What Ails You?
You've probably heard about herbal remedies before and how they can treat a variety of health proble - Natural Relief for Tinnitus - What are your Choices
Natural Relief For Tinnitus - Alternative Options Did you know that there are an estimated 50 t - Birthing Around the World
Since ancestral times, different cultures showed off different customs and beliefs around the miracl