One of the key parts of losing pregnancy weight is managing your portion sizes. So many of us are eating way more than we need to, which in time keeps the kilos creeping up.
If you want to lose weight after pregnancy by following a healthy eating plan, try out our 7 tips below to avoid you eating too much.
1) Don’t let yourself get crazy-hungry
Even for the most strong-willed weight loss warrior, hunger sends all reason out the window.
You can be having a perfectly lovely morning, and then hunger strikes and your primal hunter-gatherer instincts come out which can see you looking for the nearest donut shop before you know it.
Remember that you need to take meals or snacks with you if you are going to be out and about in the day.
Don’t leave it to chance that you will be in the right frame of mind to make the best choice from the café or supermarket when you are already in hungry-mode. Remove the element of chance by keeping a healthy snack or your lunch in your bag.
2) Put down your cutlery between bites
So often we shovel our food down too fast, not giving our body enough time to work out that it’s had enough to eat. Before we’ve realised, we have piled more food onto our plate and have started nibbling on the kids leftovers.
Be mindful when you are eating. Sit down as a family at mealtime (and sit down yourself at snack time rather than eating on the run).
Between bites, make a point of putting down your cutlery. This will slow down the rate at which you eat, giving you more time to notice the fullness cues that your body sends when it is satisfied.
3) Start your day with a Healthy Mummy Smoothie
We might all feel busy or stressed in the morning sometimes, but that is definitely not a good excuse to skip breakfast.
Just think, you haven’t eaten since dinner last night and yet you expect your body to keep going about its business without refuelling?
It often leads to the ravenous I-will-eat-my-arm-if-I-don’t-get-food-now feeling which can lead to a blow out at morning tea time.
Instead, spend the (short amount of) time it takes to prepare yourself a Healthy Mummy Smoothie for breakfast. It is packed with vitamins and minerals, supports breastfeeding, tastes great, and will keep you full (and sane) until morning tea.
4) Remember to plan your snacks as well as your meals
Often we can get busy planning our dinners for the week, forgetting that we also need to plan our snacks too.
Snacking is beneficial for weight loss as it keeps the metabolism firing, and keeps your blood sugar levels stable between main meals.
At the start of the week have a think about the snacks that you are going to use for the week. If you need to do a little bit of baking, why not cook double and freeze individual portions of healthy muffins or breads that you can grab in the morning on your way out the door.
Or if you will be snacking at home sometimes, chop up loads of carrot and celery sticks to enjoy with some homemade dips, which is a great snack that feels like a treat. Why not try one of our 4 healthy dip recipes here (they all have 4 ingredients or less so they’re super quick to prepare).
5) Ensure you are getting your 2L a day
Water can help to fill the gaps in our bellies when we are going about our day. It’s also very common for dehydration to be confused with hunger.
So tote around your water bottle and sip regularly throughout the day to keep yourself hydrated and full.
6) Consume plenty of protein and fibre
Ever noticed how you can easily consume a freshly squeezed juice (which may have around 8 pieces of fruit in it) but if you tried to consume the same amount of whole fruit you would struggle? That’s the effect of fibre.
In a similar way, you might be able to tuck into a big bowl of potato chips, but try the same amount of cashews and you would feel full to bursting. That’s the effect of protein.
Both fibre and protein help you to feel satisfied with what you are eating, and they also keep you feeling fuller for longer. Check out our article here that outlines how you can get more fibre and protein into your diet.
7) Serve up meals in the kitchen
This is a really good way to help with portion control. When you are serving up a meal, instead of placing the whole tray on the table – serve up in the kitchen instead.
Immediately pack away leftovers into containers to freeze or take for a packed lunch.
When the food is not in front of you, the desire to top up your plate (or just pick a little here and there) is removed and you end up eating less.
And if you find that you end up emotionally eating and your eating is not driven by hunger – see some tips here on how to overcome emotional eating
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