what else besides calories make you put weight on?

Question

ive just had a baby and im on a diet this all new to me as ive never had to watch what i eat untill now,Im constantly checking labels for calories while im shopping but was wondering besides calories what else should i count????

Answer 1

Good fats vs bad fats. Good fats - olive oil, avocados, fat found in nuts (though I would not eat nuts if you are breastfeeding as it sensitises the baby, who may develop an allergy later on). You can eat good fats in moderation. Bad fats (trans fats, hydrogenated fat, saturated fats - those which are solid at room temperature like butter and animal fat) should be avoided like the plague. So if you eat meat, choose poultry and broil (grill) it without skin. Limit red meat to once a week or less. Oily fish is great but watch portion sizes (no more than 5oz in a meal). All other fish is great too as long as it isn't fried and doesn't come in batter/breadcrumbs! Try to have at least 2 days a week where you eat no animal protein at all.

If you are breastfeeding, go for 2% milk (up to half a pint a day) and low fat cheese (such as cottage cheese, which is a great source of protein). A cottage cheese with pineapple salad mixed with fish sticks is very low in calories and fat and absolutely delicious!

Fibre content - go for wholegrain everything. Eat porridge for breakfast - you will stay full for longer.

Sugar - too much sugar in a product can make your GL fluctuate wildly. When this happens, your body produces insulin, which in turn stimulates the production of glycogen. Excess glycogen is stored as fat. Sugar comes in many forms but the ones you should watch out for are sugar, syrup, molasses, fructose, glucose - anything ending in 'ose' is not a good idea.

Similarly, avoid eating too much carbs but do not cut them out completely. Stick to wholegrains (brown rice, brown pasta, wholemeal bread) and make a third of your meal carbohydrates. Make another third lean protein. And the last third vegetable fibre - the more brightly coloured, the better.

Eat fruit but not with wild abandon. Stick to only 2 pieces a day and avoid bananas and melon (which have a lot of natural fructose in them). Avoid dried fruit too (way too much sugar). Apples are a great cleanser. Cherries have lots of antioxidants so are a superfood. Eat plenty of vegetables, especially brightly coloured vegetables and green leafy salads (with low fat dressings). Avoid potatoes

Add pulses to your diet. Kidney beans, black eye beans and the like. They are really tasty, especially if you boil them until they are nearly cooked then steam them mixed in with brown rice and are a great way to get good protein as well as fibre on your non-animal protein days.

Avoid processed foods. This includes biscuits, cakes, ready meals/tv dinners, sausages, salamis and crisps/fries - the usual suspects. All of these products contain too much salt and fat as a rule as well as questionable nutritional value.

Outside food - walk more. Push your baby in his stroller for at least 30 minutes a day - more if you can manage it. And do your crunches (to firm your stomach and regain your waistline).

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

basically you have to burn more calories than you take in. so if you counting calories is where you start. if you want to drop the weight faster, you need to incorporate exercise into your routine. try looking into weight watchers, jenny craig, or nutrisystem. weight watchers really teaches you about food so that even if you stop the program you are better prepared to do it on your own. jenny craig and nutrisystem are for people who don't want to worry about counting anything. they pretty much do it all for you. whatever you do, do not go for any of the no carbs, not fat, no this , no that diets. they work in the beginning but are really not healthy.

if you are breastfeeding do not worry about dieting until you stop breastfeeding. or try looking into weight watchers. i know they have a program for pregnant women so they probably have a special diet plan if you are breastfeeding.

remember, you just had a baby and your hormones are going crazy so this is not going to be easy. it takes a women's body 2-3 years to get back to normal after giving birth. so even if it seems like your not progressing keep trying. you have to give your body a chance to catch up with you.

Answer 4

If you are breast feeding, make sure you are eating the right things to pass on nutrients to your baby. If not, a bit of excercise (if having a child isn't enough) and a balanced diet (cut out fatty and processeed foods) should do the trick. Dont expect to go back to your pre-pregnancy weight for 3-6 months at least. Don't startve yourself, or over diet, as this will make you tired....more so, and as a new Mum, you really do need to be on top of things.
The very best of luck, and enjoy your baby.

Answer 5

Avoid Foods if any of the following are in the first 5 ingredients: Partially hydrogenated "anything", Enriched "anything", sugar, high fructose corn syrup. Also, Watch your saturated fat and your Trans Fat. I generally say anything with more than 2 gm of Saturated fat in it is out of the question. Good Foods: whole wheat flour (check the ingredients, not the label), pomegranate, tomatoes, GREEN veggies (the greener the better), garlic, mmmmmm... makes me hungry...

Answer 6

have a look at the saturated fat thats what you should be looking at not calories and try to eat loads of fruit it gives you energy for you and your new baby.

Answer 7

Sodas

Answer 8

fat grams and sodium content this being why fat has a lot of calories 9 per gram of fat and sodium makes you retain water it is also BAD for blood pressure which I'm sure you already know.

Answer 9

carbs! this turns into fat if you dont burn it off so is as bad as sugar and fat. calories are this all rounded up so its easier to work out.

a good healthy way to loose pounds is get one of those kenwood smoothy makers and do some fruit smoothys...they fill you up loads.

Answer 10

cut down your calories more
exercise for 30mins every other day, im sure its hard with a baby
but good luck.