How to Lose Body Fat While Pregnant

There are so many wonderful benefits to being healthy while you are pregnant. While you are pregnant you need to think about more than just yourself, you are growing another little human being or maybe even a couple!

So your health affects both you and baby.

So many women decide to get back in shape when they find out they are pregnant. A lot of it stems from not wanting to gain to much weight so they can lose the weight quickly after they have a baby.

I get asked a lot how you can lose body fat while you are pregnant so then it's easier to bounce back after your baby comes.

I have good news for you! You can lose body fat while you are pregnant!

The important thing here though is losing body fat not weight.

While you are pregnant you should be gaining weight unless you doctor advises you that you should lose some weight.

This was something that was hard for me to get used to when I first got pregnant. I worked so hard on losing weight and having a fit and toned body and then I had to switch my brain to being okay with gaining weight.

Luckily you can still be fit and toned while being pregnant. You may not have a six pack, but you can have a toned body and a belly only pregnancy.

Staying in shape while being pregnant reduces complications throughout pregnancy, faster postpartum recovery, healthier for you and the baby, and you can also bounce back faster after your baby comes.

Step 1: Working Out

Working out will help you lose body fat while you are pregnant. Doing workouts are also beneficial to the growth of your baby and helps you to not gain weight too rapidly.

You will want to workout 5 days a week and mix in cardio and strength building exercises. An example would be to do cardio for 15-30 minutes and strength training for 15-30 minutes.

If you don't have a lot of time you can mix cardio and strength training by doing HIIT workouts.

Check out my fitness tab in the menu for workouts that are safe for pregnancy. If it says pregnancy in the title you can do these without harming you or your baby!

If you haven't worked out in a long time though you need to start off slow and with less reps so you don't overwork your body. You can always increase the intensity as time goes on when you feel ready to do more.

After the 1st Trimester

With your workouts you need to avoid bouncing, jarring, or leaping exercises. And don't do exercises flat on your back after the 1st trimester.

If you are doing workouts flat on your back the baby and uterus pushes on your vena cava vein which is the main vein that pumps your blood to your heart.

Listen to Your Body

If you get lightheaded, unusual discomfort, nausea, etc. you need to stop till you feel better. Sit down, drink some water, and eat a power snack to get your energy back up.

If you are having sharp pains in your abdomen you need to call your doctor right away. It could mean something serious so it's just better to be safe rather than sorry.

If you are super sore the next day from a workout you should lessen your reps the next time you workout.

There is a difference between sore and not being able to move. If you can't move without excessive pain take a rest for a few days, then get back into working out.

I remember training with my husband one day and it was too intense for me. The next few days I had to slowly get up and down. Haha I couldn't even sit on the toilet without a ton of pain.

Needless to say I took a break for a while and when I got back into working out I did less reps so that wouldn't happen again.

Yoga

Yoga is another form of working out that is very beneficial to you and baby.

During pregnancy I always had back problems because of the extra weight I was carrying. I definitely was not used to that!

My back would spasm and I couldn't move when I would try to get out of the couch.

Then my husband and I started to do yoga together and it helped immensely!

With having back and hip pain this yoga sequence would help me to stretch everything out and release the tension in my body.

Yoga is also a great way to meditate and relieve extra stress you may be having during pregnancy. Which in turn could help you loose body fat.

Step 2: Eating Healthy

Nutritional snacks

Your diet will also be a huge help with losing body fat. I'm not saying go on a diet or a fad diet because you still need key nutrients while you are pregnant. Now is not the time to diet!

It is the time though to choose healthier options.

Eat 5-6 small meals a day, emphasis on the small. You should not be eating full portioned meals. Eating 5-6 meals puts you at eating about every 2-3 hours which will help you stay full longer and help you to not turn to unhealthy snacks.

With your meals eat lean protein, healthy carbs, and veggies. You will want to cut down or completely cut out processed sugar, high sodium, and prepackaged meals.

With snacks healthy alternatives are great! These are all wonderful snacks that will keep you full and keep your energy up during pregnancy.

  • Fruit or veggies
  • Yogurt with fruit and granola (this is my lunch everyday because it's so good!)
  • Apples with cheese or peanut butter
  • Trail mix
  • Crackers or veggies with hummus
  • Homemade smoothies
  • Banana and peanut butter
  • Peanut butter and banana slices on toast
  • Fiber bars, they help you poop!
  • Tortilla chips with guacamole
  • Half of a tuna sandwich
  • Protein bars
  • Ants on a log (celery with peanuts butter and raisins)
  • Eggs with spinach on an English muffin or toast
  • Cottage cheese with fruit
  • Grapes and Cheddar cheese cubes
  • Fruit salad (cut up fruit then add a dash of lime juice and honey)
  • Cucumber sandwiches (cucumbers, dill, and cream cheese)
  • Frozen grapes with string cheese
  • Real fruit popsicles

I also have a list of super foods to eat while you are pregnant for optimal growth and development for your baby. It also benefits you as well of course!

If you are like any normal pregnant person though you will also have cravings. You shouldn't avoid your cravings your whole pregnancy, that would just be miserable! You should eat your cravings in moderation though and mix in healthy snacks.

Drink plenty of water as well. You will want to drink half of your body weight in ounces. So if you weight 160 now you will want to drink at least 80 oz of water.

I hope that these tips help y'all to have a good and healthy pregnancy. That is the ultimate goal!