Fire up your Metabolism and Trim your Tummy
by: TeresaBrown | Total views: 17 | Word Count: 693 | View PDF | Print View
If you can eat right when you were pregnant, then you can certainly continue to do so postpartum but in this case you are only eating for one. To lose weight after giving birth the healthy way for the long haul also requires knowing what foods to eat, exercises or training to do and how to live a healthy lifestyle.
It is easy to ignore the fact that every single cell in our body is a part of us. How we assist the biochemical symmetry that goes on inside of us to keep us alive has a huge impact on our success in losing pregnancy weight and keeping the weight off. An important piece of this "symmetry" is our metabolism. It is responsible for controlling the efficiency at which our bodies can utilize our energy to keep you the busy Mom that you are. You can get on the road to proper weight management by boosting your metabolism with the following actions.
Fuel your Body with Fat Burning Foods
We all know that we have to eat right and the "spirit is willing but the flesh is weak". You try to instill healthy eating habits in your family but alas, you are a busy Mom and it's so easy to cave into the conveniences of frozen dinners, fast food take-outs and deliveries. But this time it's about you and you need to lose your tummy and recover your pre-pregnancy body.
Foods high in protein such as lean meats, fish, poultry; low-fat dairy products, beans and legumes should be a stable part of your diet. Foods high in fiber constitute generally most fruits, vegetables and whole grain foods such as bran, bulgur, and oats. They are to be purchased and prepared in the most natural way possible so that you will receive the most nutritional and fat burning benefits.
Train in Intervals
Be thankful for interval training. It is the answer to how you can trim your tummy with a 15-minute workout. In order to harvest the fat burning benefits of this type of training, you must be able to give each exercise your maximum effort. Essentially, your workouts should begin with a brief warm up followed by a series of short burst of exercise at high intensity followed by short interval of rest. This "fast-slow-fast-slow" method keeps your heart rate elevated and your metabolism humming to increase and sustain your metabolism above its resting rate.
Strength Training builds lean muscles
Losing pregnancy weight to get a lean and toned body includes more than just cardiovascular workouts. You need to include some strength training into your workout routine so that you can start to re-build your muscle mass to become toned and lean. The more muscle you have, the more fat you will lose.
The strength training that can accommodate your needs is called resistance training. Resistance training is a form of training that strengthens your muscle groups by applying an external force of resistance to work against them such as dumbbells, water in a pool, an elastic exercise band, or your own body weight. You can workout at home and lose the pregnancy weight with a 15 minute interval training workout.
Keep on Moving
An active Mom, who is determined to lose the pregnancy weight for the long-term, will have to keep the momentum going by staying physically active. When the weight has come off, your new goal will be weight management. This can be done if you recruit your family into participating in physical activities such as a hiking, biking, swimming, skiing, rollerblading, etc. Not only will you be living a healthier lifestyle and keeping the weight off but you will have quality time with your loved ones.
Choosing to eat fat-burning foods and to include resistance interval training into your daily schedule will increase your metabolism to melt the pounds and inches off your body. You should seek to maintain a healthy lifestyle in your emotional, physical and spiritual well-being. In this way you will be able to stay lean and fit for the long-term and be a healthier Mom for it.
About the Author
Teresa Brown is a dedicated advocate for women's health and wellness. For more information about losing the baby fat and on losing pregnancy weight the healthy way for the long run, visit Teresa's blog.
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