Baby Lifts This exercise will help tone your arms. It is easy to perform and you can do it anytime anywhere! It comes in handy particularly when you aren’t supposed to be lifting anything heavier than your newborn! Be careful you always pay attention to your baby’s comfort. This exercise should be done when your baby has some head control.

- Lie on your back with knees bent and feet flat on floor.

- Place baby face down on your chest.

- Hold your baby firmly under arms to anchor them safely.

- Slowly and very gently raise baby off your chest.

- Gently lower your baby back onto your chest.

- Repeat.

Baby Squats Many women gain weight in their lower body, particularly in legs during pregnancy. This exercise will help tone your lower quadrant.

- Stand with your legs slightly wider than shoulder width apart.

- Place your toes facing slightly out.

- Hold baby against your body or in an infant carrier.

- Slowly squat half way down to floor.

- Slowly raise back up.

- Repeat.

Be sure when doing Baby squats that you do not lock your knees and keep your abdomen tight and tucked in at all times. You can gradually increase number of squats that you do as you get stronger.

Baby Bends This is another great exercise for toning your lower body.

- Stand with a chair placed in front of you for balance.

- Hold your baby.

- Slowly raise one knee at a time, while balancing your baby on your thighs.

- Repeat as you can, slowly increasing number of knee raises as you get stronger and acquire more balance.

The first way to do this is to eliminate word diet temporarily from your vocabulary. This is particularly important if you are breastfeeding. You should consider yourself on a journey toward healthy eating not dieting. Some women . will be able to breastfeed successfully without adding any extra calories to their diet. Be sure that you ask your physician before attempting this, as you don’t want to affect your milk supply.

So we are going to talk about creating a healthy eating plan to help you lose weight instead of a diet. Your motto from here on out should be to eat healthily. You can and you will lose weight if you adopt this strategy!

Let’s talk about some simple yet effective strategies for losing weight via a healthy eating plan.

Portion Size

Portions are out of control everywhere! People have simply gotten into habit of eating larger than normal sizes. Most restaurants now offer servings that are more well suited for three people than they are for one.

What can you do? If you eat out frequently first thing you should consider doing is having your waiter box up half of your meal. This will prevent you from overeating and allow you to enjoy your meal without having to worry about packing on extra pounds.

If you are cooking for yourself, keep this in mind: a proper portion of protein should be about size and depth of palm of your hand. So, if you want to cook a steak, consider a steak that is about size of your palm. Likewise, a serving of starchy carbohydrate should be about 1 cup, or about amount of your fist. Not very much when you think about it is it?

Fortunately you can be a little more liberal when it comes to vegetables. Eat all salad you want, BUT don’t pile on fatty dressing. Did you know just a tablespoon of your favorite dressing can pack on more than a hundred extra calories? Try asking for your dressing on side, this way you can control amount of dressing you will be adding to your salad. You can even dip a forkful of your salad into your dressing rather than pour it on top.

Other additions to traditional ‘salad’ that make it fattening include bacon bits, cheese and guacamole. Your traditional taco salad is typically loaded with fatty extras including sour cream. If you are a fan of taco salad, avoid eating shell at all costs and consider using salsa instead of ranch dressing, you’ll save several hundred calories.

Consume Enough Water

Many people believe that they are hungry when in reality they are thirsty. The body sometimes mistakes these two signals. If you think you might be hungry but have just recently eaten, consider having a large glass of water and waiting a few minutes.

Did you know that most people walk around in a state of dehydration? It is true. The best thing you can do to avoid this problem is drink at least eight large glasses of water per day (that is 8 to 10 oz of water per glass for all you that are counting!). If you feel thirsty, chances are you are already dehydrated to some extent.

Nursing women actually require more water than average woman. Triple this if you plan on working out and perspiring. What does this mean? You should basically plan on having a water bottle at your side at all times.

Not a fan of plain water? No problem! Consider spicing up your water with a squeeze of lemon, lime or even orange. There are also many sparkling waters that are available on market today.

Water can also help you lose weight when you drink water with your meals, which will help you feel fuller and help you eat less if you are trying to lose weight.

Add Fiber

Fiber is an important part of any diet. Most people aren’t eating enough fiber. Fiber is not only important for maintaining proper elimination, it helps keep your colon healthy and can help you lose weight!

Ok so fiber is important. What exactly is it? Fiber is basically roughage, or indigestible materials that are found in plants. It has no calories and your body doesn’t have ability to absorb it. High fiber foods can be either soluble or insoluble, meaning it can either be broken down and dissolved in water or not.

Both forms of fiber are actually very important to your health and digestive system. Fiber can help bulk up your bowel movements so that waste materials move through your body quickly and efficiently. This helps maintain your colon health and prevent constipation.

Fiber can also help regulate blood sugar and may help regulate blood cholesterol levels. An even better bonus? Fiber can help slow absorption of sugar after a meal, and help you feel fuller longer.

Generally high fiber foods are low in calories. They make you feel full faster. Here is a list of some excellent high fiber selections that you should consider adding to your diet:

High Fiber Foods

- Fruits

- Vegetables

- Beans

- Popcorn

- Brown Rice

- Whole Grains

- Wheat Bran

- Psyllium

- Barley

- Oatmeal

- Prunes

How can you tell if you are consuming enough fiber on a day to day basis? You should try to eat at least 20-35 grams of fiber per day. Most people don’t get even half of this amount in their daily diet.