When you are pregnant, your body goes through drastic changes. There is life growing inside you. Hence, these changes are understandable. Sadly, even after you have given birth, your body just doesn’t immediately get back to its original shape.
This can be frustrating especially if you used to be really fit. As such, it is easy for you to be tempted to go on a diet. Considering the diet fads available, you might want to just try any of them and change right away.
Before you start dieting, the first thing you have to remember is that dieting in general is not advised to pregnant women. You are not just feeding yourself when you’re pregnant. The life growing in you also needs nutrients.
You are the only source of nutrients. The problem with dieting is that you might end up getting nutrients enough just for you or barely enough for you. The fetus gets nothing and this could be detrimental.
Accept the changes
Before going on a diet, you have to understand that these changes are normal. Dieting when you are pregnant is pretty futile since your body will keep growing anyway. The fetus starts growing bigger as you start moving towards the end of your pregnancy.
Rest assured, once you are done giving birth and breastfeeding, you can go back to your diet and exercise regimens. If you are really serious in your efforts, you can see your body back to what it used to be again.
The worst part is when you start dieting and your body still remains the same. You will become more frustrated and you no longer enjoy your pregnancy. This could potentially affect the development of your baby.
Starving doesn’t help at all
The worst thing you can do if you want to avoid changes during pregnancy is starving yourself. Dieting alone can already harm your baby. Imagine if you take nothing at all. Your baby might develop illnesses and this is something you will regret for the rest of your life.
You might be inspired to go on a diet because you see women who become pregnant and still remain fit. Some of them even have abs. They proudly post their photos online. Worse, it is becoming a trend for women who have just given birth to immediately get back to their perfect shape. They put all other pregnant women to shame.
No matter how bad you feel about it, make sure you don’t follow these people. Some of them were born to have that kind of body. If you don’t have one, it doesn’t make you less of a person or a bad mother. You have to be more realistic with your goals. If you aspire to be like other women who have lost weight right after giving birth, you will just feel even more frustrated.
The truth about Cabbage Soup Diet
One of the most popular diet fads these days is the Cabbage Soup Diet. One of the reasons why it is too popular is because those who go through this diet don’t have to feel like they are being starved. They can still keep on eating the foods they want as long as they are included in the cabbage soup.
Cabbage alone is already a good source of various nutrients especially fiber. This is what helps eliminate toxins in the body. A stable diet consisting of cabbage is a good thing among pregnant women. Add to that the other nutrients that pregnant women can get from the ingredients included in the cabbage soup.
The only down side is that other nutrients might be sacrificed. When you are on a Cabbage Soup Diet, you are only allowed to take the same food each day. There are different ways to cook cabbage soup, but still cabbage should be the main ingredient.
Even for those who are not pregnant, it is not advised to go on this type of diet for over 7 days at a time. If you lose the essential nutrients that your body needs, it could affect your health. You might develop other illnesses.
When you are breastfeeding, you are even placing your baby at a greater risk. This is the time when you have to pack your body with as much nutrients as possible. The quality of the milk you produce depends on the type of food that you eat.
If your baby doesn’t get enough nutrients from the breast milk or skip breast milk altogether, it could derail growth and development. You don’t want your baby to suffer just because of your selfish goals to have a slimmer figure.
You need more energy as a mom
Being a mother is not easy. This is true especially for new moms. Everything is still novel to you. Adjusting to this lifestyle could be a huge challenge. Dieting while going through all these changes does not help at all.
As a mom of a newborn baby, you have to wake up in the middle of the night. You need to take care of all your baby’s needs. You have visit the doctor more often. Doing all these things could be very stressful. When you are dieting, it could be even worse. You won’t have the energy needed to carry on all the tasks of being a mother.
Eat healthy
As long as you eat healthy, you can provide your baby with the right nutrients. Think of your baby’s needs first before yours. Rest assured, you can always go back to your exercise and diet techniques once your baby stops breastfeeding. For now, your concern is to give your baby everything that is necessary to grow healthy.
Give yourself a few months before starting your diet technique again. Just remember that your body is no longer the same as it used to be. Just because you have tried a diet technique before and it worked does not mean it could remain the same today.
You have to find a technique which is more suitable to your needs. Again, being realistic about your goals is essential.
