By allowing ads to appear on this site, you support the local businesses who, in turn, support great journalism.
5 ways to get your body back after pregnancy
caf7858357fd2b9c2fe50e80e3fcafc7bbf04e5aa9608b2c0ae22bcda8abdcf2
Losing baby weight can be daunting. Here are 5 tips to help make it easier. - photo by Melinda Fox
It can be discouraging post-baby to learn to live in your new body. But there are some simple things you can do to make shedding some of that baby weight a little more simple. But remember, it took you 9 months to get there, so set realistic goals for yourself.

Breastfeed

It is important to have a careful diet and not cut too many calories from your diet while you're breastfeeding, but nursing actually helps you lose weight on its own. Your body burns roughly 300-500 calories creating milk. So not only does nursing benefit your baby, it helps you as well.

Take naps

Because of your new baby's unconventional sleeping and eating schedule you may be struggling to get enough sleep yourself. Lack of sleep will do nothing for your attempts to lose the baby weight. Lack of sleep affects your self-control making you more likely to binge on cookie dough late at night.

Also, tiredness can even make you think you're hungry. Levels of leptin, the hormone that signals to your body that you're full, lowers when you don't get enough sleep. This means that sometimes you may mistake tiredness for hunger.

Don't diet

It can be dangerous for you to try to lose the weight too fast, especially if you're breastfeeding. Don't push your body too hard on the treadmill or starve yourself.

Your body was working pretty hard making a human when you were pregnant. If you go back to your regular healthy diet, eating for hunger and to nourish your body, you should get back to normal.

Find a friend

Finding a friend who recently had a baby as well can be a great resource. You need someone whose body recently went through the same changes as yours to give you the support that you need. It's great to have someone to rely on, and who's relying on you, to make you accountable about exercising. If nothing else, you have a tandem stroller walking buddy.

Go on a media fast

This might not help you get your pre-pregnancy body back per se, but it will certainly help you get your pre-pregnancy self-confidence back. You need to remember that your body is great the way it is and doesn't need to live up to socially defined ideals. They set unrealistic expectations for how you should look after giving birth and how quickly you can get there. (But check out this photoshopped version of Kourtney Kardashian post-pregnancy, and you'll see much of it's a lie.)

At the end of the day, keep in mind that your body will never be exactly the same, and that is absolutely okay. Your body created a human being, and that's amazing. Not only that, but you are a mother now, and your baby loves you no matter how you look.
Sign up for our E-Newsletters
How to avoid 'sharenting' and other paparazzi parenting habits
ce406c66b9871a104ac24256a687e4821d75680dcfc89d9e5398939543f7f88f
A recent study revealed parents often spend up to two hours staging a single photo of his or her child to post online. - photo by Amy Iverson
Before having kids, some people just dont appreciate their friends baby posts. But after having a child of their own, three fourths of new parents jump right on the parental social media bandwagon. If you have become a member of this group, there are some rules to follow for posting responsibly.

Much of a parents worry is how to teach their children to use social media responsibly. We talk with our kids about privacy, oversharing, and setting restrictions on their devices to keep them safe. But parents themselves need to look in the digital mirror once in a while. Before having children, it doesnt take as much effort to think about what to post online. Its up to us to decide what we share about our own lives. But once you become a parent, there are many questions to think about regarding what is appropriate to post about your kids on social media.

In a recent survey, kids clothing subscription company Mac and Mia surveyed 2000 new parents to find out how they are documenting their kids lives on social media, and what concerns they may have.

First of all, people without children seem to feel a bit differently about the onslaught of baby pictures online than those who are parents. 18 percent of people say before they had kids, they were annoyed by their friends baby posts. But after having children of their own, 73 percent admit they post progress pictures of their little ones every single month.

Not only are new parents letting the world know each time their baby is a month older, but they are posting about their kids every few days or so. Men and women report they post 6-7 times per month about their baby.

And while 70 percent of new parents say the benefit of using social media is how easy it is to help family and friends feel involved, there are some downsides. Here are a few tips to avoid the pitfall of becoming paparazzi parents.

Dont miss the moment

In the Mac and Mia survey, some parents admitted to spending up to two hours to get the perfect shot of their baby. That seems a little extreme. New and old parents alike should be careful about spending so much time taking pictures and videos that they dont enjoy the moment. Years ago, I decided to never live an experience through my phone. A study by Linda Henkel, a psychology professor at Fairfield University in Connecticut, found that when people took pictures of objects in an art museum, they didnt remember the objects as well as if they simply observed them.

This photo-taking impairment effect can happen to parents as well. If we are so consumed by getting the perfect photo, we can miss out on the moment all together, and our memory of it will suffer.

Dont forget about privacy

60 percent of couples say they have discussed rules and boundaries for posting their babys photos, according to the Mac and Mia survey. Even so, men are 34 percent more likely to publish baby posts on public accounts. If parents are concerned about their childrens privacy, keeping photos off of public accounts is a given.

In the Washington Post, Stacey Steinberg, a legal skills professor at the University of Florida, and Bahareh Keith, a Portland pediatrician, wrote that sharing too much information about kids online puts them at risk. They write that all that sharenting can make it easier for data thieves to target out kids for identity theft. Check that your privacy settings are where they should be and never share identifying information like full names and birth dates.

Dont be paparazzi parents

36 percent of parents say they take issue when their childs photo is posted online by someone else. Responsible social media users will always ask permission before posting a photo of another child. But parents should also think about whether their own children will take issue with their own posted photos a few years down the road.

When parents are constantly snapping pictures and throwing them on social media, it can be easy to forget to pause and make sure the post is appropriate. I always use the billboard example with my kids. I ask them to picture whatever they are posting going up on a billboard in our neighborhood. If they are okay with that, then their post is probably fine. Parents should ask themselves this same question when posting about their children. But they should also ask themselves if their child would be OK with this post on a billboard in 15 years. If it would cause embarrassment or humiliation, it might be best to keep it private.

Once children reach an appropriate age, parents should include them in the process of deciding what pictures are OK to post. Researchers at the University of Michigan surveyed 10- to 17-year-olds and found children believe their parents should ask permission more than parents think they should. The kids in the survey said sharing happy family moments, or accomplishments in sports, school and hobbies is fine. But when the post is negative (like when a child is disciplined) or embarrassing (think naked baby pictures or messy hair), kids say to keep it off social media.
Latest Obituaries