Stressed over postpartum weight? Here's the catch

Grace* a primary school teacher in Vihiga, Western Kenya gave birth to a son two weeks ago, and she is already stressed about her baby weight.

“I weighed 76kg before I got pregnant, and now I’m 92kg; I feel like a log,” says Grace who had a normal delivery.

“Nowadays, I detest looking at myself in the mirror. I’m huge. So huge. I miss my clothes and I don’t have a budget for new clothes. For now, I’d say I’m on my own since the father of my child isn’t supporting me in any way and my salary isn’t much,” shares Grace who also has a child in high school.

She says she’ll start exercising at six months to lose the extra kilogrammes.

“I really want my figure back,” she says.

For pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers, gaining weight is a foreseen reality they have to deal with.

Losing the weight is a journey that forces women to do many things like taking lemon water or vinegar, jumping or running around the house, and going to the gym if the money allows.

However, the exercises for women who had normal delivery and those who went through a caesarean section might not be similar as the latter needs more time to heal, and strenuous exercises may open up the wounds.

It’s a challenging journey.

But Prof Ruth Oniang’o, a renowned nutritionist who has worked with pregnant and breastfeeding mothers has a message for any woman stressed over the weight gained during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

“Remember when you were pregnant, you had to eat extra food for the baby and when you give birth,  you need to eat enough to sustain production of breastmilk,” she points out.

Regaining your pre-pregnancy body will be a gradual process and one has to be patient, she advises.

“Remember the baby was in your tummy breaking muscles and they cannot suddenly bounce back to normal. It has to be a gradual process,” she says.

Furthermore, adding more weight during breastfeeding is unavoidable due to the demands of adequate food to produce enough milk for the baby.

Joys of motherhood

“Normally, the demand for food for breastfeeding is more than the energy they burn so, they are likely to add more weight after delivery,” she notes.

She encourages the new mothers to embrace the joys of motherhood rather than being focused on slimming.

“At the end of the day, there isn’t anything like motherhood. Having that precious human being you’re completely responsible for and who is completely depending on you (is great)...enjoy the moment. They grow so fast. Before you know it, they are gone,” she says.

For women who are quick to jump into exercise, Prof Ruth warns this may significantly affect milk production.

“If you exercise, you really have to be very careful because your milk may just dry up,” she urges caution.

“Just remember the baby depends on you entirely, you cannot afford to be injured or have your milk production decline because you want to look good. So, when you exercise, you need to ask yourself; you want the body back for whom? Is it for the baby, is it for your partner, (or) is it for you.”

There are, however, things mothers can do to help their bodies recover and perhaps lower the rate of weight gain.

“Eat less carbohydrates and a good amount of protein, and a lot of roughages,” she advises.

“Remain active; be up and about. Walk around the house.  Don’t be too dependent on your helper.”

[email protected]