Postpartum Weight Loss Guide for Women: Seize the 6-Month Golden Period and Scientifically Regain Your Figure

Out of concern for the nutrition of both the mother and child, people often provide excessive amounts of food for postpartum women, leading to widespread obesity. Furthermore, Chinese tradition places great emphasis on the postpartum diet, and women who have gone through this period know that it involves a month of intensive nourishment. Lamb, pork, old hen, eggs… all are fattening foods. Eating like this for 30 days, with little physical activity, makes weight gain almost inevitable. While indulging, it's important to remember that due to decreased placental hormones, the basal metabolic rate decreases, resulting in lower daily calorie expenditure and increased calorie intake. Under these circumstances, it's no wonder postpartum women gain weight.

Postpartum obesity, besides increasing weight, also easily leads to muscle laxity. As I mentioned in the section on buttock shaping, sagging buttocks are caused by long-term obesity leading to a loss of elasticity in ligaments and muscles, resulting in insufficient tension. Postpartum laxity is due to the same reason. However, postpartum weight loss affects a wide range of areas, including not only the buttocks but also the abdomen, breasts, and thighs—areas women are most reluctant to gain weight in. Therefore, the pressure to regain body shape after childbirth is much greater than with general obesity.

If you don't lose weight within 6 months postpartum, you might actually gain more!

Due to these factors, almost 80% of women gain weight after childbirth. So, how should you lose weight?

First, you need to know when to start losing weight. Unless it's severe prenatal obesity, I recommend waiting until after childbirth to lose weight, as giving birth should be the priority. Prenatal weight loss is difficult to control, and a mistake can harm yourself and your baby, leading to lifelong regret. At this time, it's better to be a little heavier and extremely careful.

After childbirth, your energy is greatly depleted, so you can't start losing weight immediately. Of course, starting too late is also not good; the later you start, the easier it is to gain weight, and high weight can also harm your health. Therefore, the timing of postpartum weight loss is crucial; it shouldn't be too early or too late.

How do you determine this timing?

Studies have shown that if you can roughly return to your pre-pregnancy weight within six months postpartum, the average weight gain 8-10 years later is 2.4 kg. This is an average figure, meaning that if you return to your pre-pregnancy weight within six months, you'll generally gain a little weight in eight to ten years due to age, but not excessively—the average is less than 2.5 kg, which is perfectly acceptable.

Conversely, if you don't lose weight within six months, the average weight gain 8.3 kg is expected 8-10 years later.

That's a significant amount of weight, exceeding what many women can tolerate. And this is just an average; if you're among those who don't lose weight, you might gain even more.

In other words, you must start losing weight within six months postpartum. However, it's important to note that six months is a significant timeframe. Saying you should start losing weight within six months doesn't mean you should wait until your child is six months old. Each mother can choose a suitable timeframe based on her own physical condition. You can start in the second month or the third month; it's essential to follow the principle of individualized approach.

Regardless of when you start, don't rush into weight loss during your postpartum confinement period. Your body is very weak after childbirth, primarily due to postpartum pain, especially back pain (this is because the shape of the mother's pelvis and lumbar spine changes drastically after childbirth, and hormones fluctuate dramatically during delivery). Many new mothers also need to breastfeed and care for their babies, leading to significant energy depletion. Therefore, strenuous exercise is not advisable at this time.

However, you can begin some preliminary preparations for weight loss during your postpartum confinement period. For example, in the second week after delivery, mothers can use abdominal binders and pelvic support belts under the guidance of a doctor. These little gadgets can help tighten loose muscles without causing any adverse effects. While postpartum women are traditionally advised to consume plenty of nourishing foods, those planning to lose weight should moderate their diet and ideally develop a scientific dietary plan under the guidance of an obstetrician or nutritionist. It's also important to avoid consuming too many high-fat, high-sugar supplements to make weight loss easier later on.