So you've welcomed the new addition to the family. But you would probably have added on a few extra unwanted pounds yourself and some stretch marks to boot.
If you are conscious of how you look post-pregnancy, take heart. You would have lost as much as half your body weight in the first few months after giving birth as your body flushes out most of the water weight. But don't be in a rush to become a svelte siren again.
Dr Shiau Ee Leng, a pioneer in cosmetic lasers who specializes in invasive and non-invasive slimming and toning treatments, and medical director of ClearSK Aesthetics Centre says that genetics, activity level and how much weight was gained during pregnancy affects how quickly you can bounce back into shape. Most will lose at least five kg of water weight in the first two weeks after birth and the rest of it over the next two to six months.
Generally, a lady who is younger - below 30 years of age, has an active lifestyle, has gained less than 12 kg and has a great family history where everyone at home is skinny or if she is already slim will lose weight the fastest.
For women who are thinking of going the family way, there are some natural ways to ensure you can lose weight more easily after birth, while keeping stretch marks to a minimum. While breastfeeding will surely help you with losing the baby fat, some women may like to try assisted weight loss programmes that is carried out with proper medical supervision.
Dr Shiau gave the following tips:
1) Avoid gaining more than 12kg of weight during pregnancy, as anything more is excessive can lead to obesity.
2) Eat healthily and avoid high fat and high calorie foods. Instead, eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. Also, have a diet rich in iron, calcium and protein to help the body recover from the birth.
3) Begin on gentle exercises, such as brisk walking daily for 20 to 30 minutes after you get the okay from your doctor to start exercising. Gently increase to jogging at the end of eight weeks when the body is fully recovered from the birth process. Massages, wraps and certain lymphatic drainage treatments help to remove the water retention from the body.
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Three things you can do to get back into shape after giving birth
1) Don't gain more than 12kg during pregnancy
2) Avoid high fat and high calorie foods. Eat more fruits and vegetables and load up on iron, calcium and protein to help in post-partum recovery
3)Start on gentle exercises once you get your doctor's ok. Massages and wraps may also help.
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Stretch marks begone
Besides getting heftier, our bodies will bear stretch marks too as the womb was gradually enlarged to accomodate a growing baby. Your bust size will also go up as well during your pregnancy and while you're breastfeeding, and you may likely see stretch be faced with a saggy chest too.
To prevent or minise that, it's important to watch your posture during breastfeeding, says Dr Shiau. Most mothers let baby pull on their nipples and breasts during breastfeeding and this stretching force is exacerbated post pregancy, as the skin is already loose.
The baby's neck should also be supported while mum sits down comfortably during breastfeeding.
Doing toning exercises for the pectoral muscles are good for improving the appearance of the chest as well. However, this does not help your bust to regain that perky appearance again, as our breasts tissue are made of mostly fats.
Finally, you may also consider external assistance that has little downtime and minimal pain, if watching your diet and doing exercise is not giving you optimum results.
Dr Shiau suggests trying the Swiss-made Novashape or the Accent Ultra System which use ultrasound to firm the body and can work off mild to moderate volume of fat on the body. To get rid of stretch marks that are still fresh, ie red ones, certain lasers and radio frequency can help to reduce their appearance. However, the marks will not disappear completely as the stretch marks are due to a loss of elastin in the skin while the foetus was growing in the womb.
If your problem is skin sagginess, certain treatments, such as the Velashape system which makes use of bi-polar radiofrequency, can possibly help you regain your shape.
