Friday 18 April 2014

Losing The Babyweight - The Problems

There was an article floating around the news last week stating that Mothers who failed to lose excess weight within a year after delivery or put pounds on may be risking their health.

"What we're seeing is the period between three and 12 months after delivery is a critical window during which practitioner and patient attention to weight control may be very important to long-term metabolic and vascular health."

Well that's all very well... but how does one juggle losing weight while looking after a baby (and possibly older children as well)?



Before I fell pregnant with C I weighed between 9 and 9.5 stone which gave me a very healthy BMI of 23.2.  I had maintained that weight for 2-3 years after previously undergoing extensive weight loss.
Maintaining that weight was pretty simple: Eat well and exercise frequently.  I had no problem with either.

I am therefore well informed in exactly what I need to do to lose the weight again.  I know what works for me.

Eat Well

I have found with both of my children that my appetite has sky rocketed while I was breastfeeding.
I am hungry all the time.
If I don't eat, I get tired and irritable... well I basically wouldn't be in a fit state to look after them,
It is not easy to eat well while juggling 2 children.
Breakfast is fine and I eat a healthy, sensible bowl of muesli.
After that I find I am usually starving again by about 11:30am.  Unfortunately both children are awake at this time and therefore there is no time for me to eat lunch.  I therefore grab a snack of whatever i can get my hand on... lets say 3 or 4 biscuits (although I probably eat a whole packet I'm so hungry).
I then get lunch at about 12:30-1pm (by which point I'm not particularly hungry having stuffed myself at 11:30).
I am then hungry again by about 4:30pm.  Again both children are awake and therefore again there is no time to eat.  Again I will grab whatever I can.
I don't get to have dinner until 7:30pm when the children are in bed.  This alone is not good for my metabolism I used to find.  To lose weight I ideally need to avoid eating after 6pm.



Exercise Frequently

I found exercise requires 3 things:

Time
Energy
Motivation

All of these things are required to be able to carry out regular, meaningful exercise.
Before C was born, none of these were a problem.
Now, I am finding it impossible to have these at the same time.

Time

I have proved in the past that low intensity exercise within the house has no effect on my weight.  I either need to go to the gym, for a run or for a swim.
Unless your children are in childcare then the only realistic time you can do these types of exercise is when they are asleep.
For me this is either before they get up in the morning or after they go to bed at night.

I am limited by the fact DH works away from home 3 days a week.  Therefore I can only leave the house on days he is able (and willing!!!!!) to babysit.
In the mornings I would need to be back home by 6:30am therefore would need to be up an exercising by 5:30am.  Maybe worth trying once I am getting more sleep at night. At the moment I couldn't face it.
In the evening I am not eating until 7:30pm and then I need to let food settle therefore I would not be ready to exercise until 8:30 at the earliest.
I am usually thinking about going to bed at 9pm to be able to get enough sleep to function the next day.
Weekends are also difficult as DH is busy with DIY (our house is an ongoing project) and therefore stopping to provide childcare while I go out means less DIY gets done.


Energy

Looking after one or many children all day is physically and mentally exhausting (don't underestimate the effects of mental exhaustion - I feel like a vegetable by the end of most days).  In the evenings I am exhausted and exercise is the last thing on my mind.
If I got up early an exercised before the children woke up, I then need to have enough energy to get through the day with them.
Generally I am at my most energetic mid morning or mid afternoon.

Motivation

This is kind of linked to energy I guess.
Motivation to overcome the hunger and the tiredness and force myself out of the door.
I do get this kind of motivation, but generally mid morning or mid afternoon when I am not hungry and have my most energy... not when I have any childcare available to be able to leave the house.



My BMI is currently just over 30.  That is technically obese.  I honestly am keen to put in the hours required to lose it but I just can't see how to fit it in.
Ideally I need an hour to myself in the middle of the day, regularly, and I just don't have that!

I am really am open to suggestions (as long as they don't involve "exercising with your baby" - I took C out in the jogging buggy once. She howled.  Not a fan of high speed it would appear; and walking appears to not be high intensity enough to have any inpact on my weight)!

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