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Postpartum Fitness: How To Lose A Baby Belly
Tired of looking at that post-pregnancy flab on your midsection? With these tips on how to lose a baby belly, you'll be back in shape in no time
For a lot of people, the belly is one of the hardest spots on the body to lose weight. And most often, it's the last spot to lose the fat. It doesn't help that your body has gone through post pregnancy changes, but the good news is that you can still get your body back after the baby. Here are some tips that will tell you exactly how to lose a baby belly. Warning: you may find yourself digging through your closet looking for all those cut-off tops from the nineties after following these exercises.
One complaint a lot of new mothers have is that they still look pregnant. This is a perfectly normal physical reaction. After all, you've been carrying a little person around for nine months. If it took that long for your belly to expand, needless to say, it's going to take some time to get it back to the way it once looked, meaning you may find yourself carrying around a little extra (aka: a baby belly). After giving birth, hormonal changes cause your midsection to deflate like a balloon, slowly shrinking it back to pre-pregnancy state. Daily exercise can help speed up the process and help you lose a baby belly.
According to Gina Lombardi, a personal trainer in Los Angeles, in addition to performing cardiovascular activity to burn off the baby belly, crunches are necessary to tighten those stretched out abdominal muscles. She recommends starting with one set of ten repetitions and slowly working your way up to three sets of twenty. Try doing this several times a week. She also suggests bicycle crunches, where you lift your right elbow to your left knee and then switch. Perform the same amount of reps as you would regular crunches. Boost your diet with belly-fat blasting foods like oatmeal, olive oil, berries, almonds and whole grains to speed up the process of getting back your body after childbirth.
Important note: research has shown that women who don't shed the post-pregnancy weight within six months are more likely to carry it around ten to fifteen years later, which is why it's important to start exercising as soon as your doctor gives you the green light. Follow these moves that show you how to lose a baby belly and people will be amazed to find out that you were ever pregnant.
One complaint a lot of new mothers have is that they still look pregnant. This is a perfectly normal physical reaction. After all, you've been carrying a little person around for nine months. If it took that long for your belly to expand, needless to say, it's going to take some time to get it back to the way it once looked, meaning you may find yourself carrying around a little extra (aka: a baby belly). After giving birth, hormonal changes cause your midsection to deflate like a balloon, slowly shrinking it back to pre-pregnancy state. Daily exercise can help speed up the process and help you lose a baby belly.
According to Gina Lombardi, a personal trainer in Los Angeles, in addition to performing cardiovascular activity to burn off the baby belly, crunches are necessary to tighten those stretched out abdominal muscles. She recommends starting with one set of ten repetitions and slowly working your way up to three sets of twenty. Try doing this several times a week. She also suggests bicycle crunches, where you lift your right elbow to your left knee and then switch. Perform the same amount of reps as you would regular crunches. Boost your diet with belly-fat blasting foods like oatmeal, olive oil, berries, almonds and whole grains to speed up the process of getting back your body after childbirth.
Important note: research has shown that women who don't shed the post-pregnancy weight within six months are more likely to carry it around ten to fifteen years later, which is why it's important to start exercising as soon as your doctor gives you the green light. Follow these moves that show you how to lose a baby belly and people will be amazed to find out that you were ever pregnant.
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Older comments
I don't see any good results with so called belly fat reducing foods
by Pinky5 Tuesday, October 9, 2012 at 01:31PM Report as inappropriate
Terrible article. Some women (like myself) have trouble getting rid of the post-belly belly because of weaker inner muscles (the TAs). And NO amount of crunches in the world will fix this!!! This is a potetially dangerous and depressing article. I have been working at losing my belly for over a year (bootcamp, running, spinng and pilates). Sometimes, it just takes longer. I am appalled!
by Tamaravb Tuesday, October 9, 2012 at 01:15PM Report as inappropriate
This information is not just useless, it's dangerous. Doing crunches right after pregnancy is a great way to create dome-shaped abs that are stuck that way no matter how much fat you lose. Anybody calling themselves a "trainer" should know better than to give bad advice like this.
by postpartumpunk Tuesday, September 25, 2012 at 04:58PM Report as inappropriate
Good article, I've never had a kids but at least now I know how to lose the weight. Thanks.
by RoleModel Tuesday, August 28, 2012 at 06:50PM Report as inappropriate
Pretty much, the useful information in this article could be summed up in one sentence. If you don't lose that baby weight in 6 months, you might keep it forever. I wish this article had a little more meat to it :(
by Rowan Thursday, August 16, 2012 at 02:55AM Report as inappropriate
nice
by Nicole2814 Wednesday, August 1, 2012 at 08:25PM Report as inappropriate
Not super informative. I was excited to have new, helpful information to send to my friend who is trying to lose her baby weight (no babies for me).
by tallredamanda Friday, July 6, 2012 at 01:40PM Report as inappropriate
Nope, it's not just you, there's no links.
by MissXu Saturday, April 21, 2012 at 05:29PM Report as inappropriate
Is it just me, or is there no link to the workout moves?
by VV001 Saturday, April 21, 2012 at 04:17PM Report as inappropriate