How to Approach Postpartum Weight Loss Safely
Key Takeaways
Beyond the products of conception, “baby weight” also includes increased breast tissue, fluid volume, uterus enlargement, and fat stores.
You could expect to lose a good portion of your “baby weight” within six to eight weeks if you gained a healthy amount of weight during pregnancy.
Trying to achieve rapid postpartum weight loss (i.e., losing excess fat gained during pregnancy) is neither safe nor realistic.
Instead, focus on healthy lifestyle practices for safe postpartum weight loss, such as eating a well-balanced, nutritious diet and incorporating low-impact workouts.
Baby’s out. And with that often comes the overwhelming pressure to “snap back”. To, essentially, return to your pre-baby body within weeks.
Here’s something you need to hear: rapid postpartum weight loss is neither safe nor realistic.
It could make birth injuries worse and healing harder. Trying to achieve it may also take a toll on your mental health in one of the most vulnerable, sleep-deprived (your tiny human demands to be fed every 1.5 to 3 hours — through the night!), and emotionally turbulent periods of life.
Of course, this isn’t to say postpartum weight loss is impossible. It’s just that you’ll need to give it time. More time than you think.
Your body underwent drastic physiological changes to grow, nourish, and carry a baby for nine months. So, give yourself (and your body) a similar time frame to lose the “baby weight” beyond that of your baby, placenta, and amniotic fluid.
What is “baby weight”?
Before diving into how to approach postpartum weight loss, let’s first understand what “baby weight” is.
It refers to the weight a woman gains during pregnancy; the recommended weight gain for expectant mothers can vary according to their pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) values and whether the pregnancy is a singleton or multiple gestation.
That said, most women within a healthy weight range carrying one baby should gain 11.3 to 15.9 kg (25 to 35 lbs) during pregnancy.
This pregnancy weight gain — or “baby weight” — consists of:
The baby (average birth weight of a full-term male baby is 3.3 kg, or 7 lb 6 oz; average birth weight of a full-term female baby is 3.2 kg or 7 lb 2 oz)
Placenta (0.7 kg or 1.5 lb)
Amniotic fluid (0.9 kg or 2 lb)
Breast tissue (0.5 to 1.4 kg or 1 to 3 lb)
Blood (1.4 to 1.8 kg or 3 to 4 lb)
Fluids (4.6 to 6.6 kg or 10.1 to 14.6 lb)
Uterus enlargement (0.9 kg or 2 lb)
Extra fat stores (2.7 to 3.6 kg or 6 to 8 lb)
How much postpartum weight loss to expect
You would have likely lost approximately 4.8 to 4.9 kg (10.6 to 10.8 lb) from the delivery of your baby and placenta, plus loss of amniotic fluid immediately post-birth.
As for the rest of the “baby weight”:
Breast tissue: If you’re not nursing, your breasts should shrink to their pre-pregnancy sizes within a few days. If you’re nursing, your breasts will probably return to their pre-pregnancy sizes after weaning.
Blood: Your blood volume should slowly return to normal over eight weeks.
Fluid: Your kidneys go into “overdrive” in the first two weeks after birth, producing up to 3 liters of urinary output daily to eliminate the excess fluid retained during pregnancy. This process could take up to eight weeks.
Uterus: The uterus takes about six to eight weeks to shrink to its normal size.
Extra fat stores: These extra fat stores serve a specific purpose — to act as an energy reserve for the birth process and breastfeeding (burns about 500 calories daily). For reference, 1 kg of fat contains an energy content of 7,700 calories.
In most cases, if you gained a healthy amount of weight during pregnancy, you could expect to lose a good percentage of your “baby weight” within six to eight weeks of giving birth.
“But,” you may wonder, “What about the rest? Especially if I gained more weight than recommended during pregnancy?” That’s where the next section comes in.
How to achieve postpartum weight loss safely
Postpartum weight loss should be about your personal choice to feel like yourself again. While your body has undergone significant changes during pregnancy, it's important to understand that "bouncing back" and achieving postpartum weight loss with extreme diets or exercise is neither realistic nor healthy for you.
Instead, focus on taking a balanced approach to regain your sense of well-being. This means prioritizing a nutritious diet and engaging in gentle, regular physical activity that makes you feel good.
If you are dealing with postpartum depression or have a history of eating disorders, please consult with your doctor to create a safe and effective plan tailored to your needs.
Now, some crucial background knowledge:
Calorie balance determines your weight. If you’re in a calorie deficit, you’ll lose weight; if you’re in a calorie surplus, you’ll gain weight.
The recommended weight loss rate is 0.5 to 1 kg weekly. If breastfeeding, it’s best to stick to the lower end of the range (~0.5 kg/week) to avoid adverse impacts on lactation. Note: to lose 0.5 kg weekly, you’d need a 500 calorie deficit daily.
Eat a well-balanced, nutritious diet
Calorie counting is an effective way to quantitatively measure nutrition and accurately determine whether you’re in the calorie deficit necessary for postpartum weight loss.
But let’s be honest.
The postpartum period is challenging enough. Between grappling with self-doubt, frustration, nipple pain, breast engorgement, baby blues, mood swings, and regular household chores, the thought of carving out additional time and/or headspace to log your foods is laughable.
Here’s the good news: you don’t have to track your calories to achieve a calorie deficit.
Instead, you could simply follow a few guidelines for your postpartum diet for weight loss:
Build your diet predominantly around whole foods: This would include lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, good-quality protein (more below), and dairy products.
Eat enough protein: Adequate protein consumption is crucial to support post-birth recovery and breastfeeding. According to a 2020 study published in Current Developments in Nutrition, the protein requirement for exclusively breastfeeding women (3 to 6 months postpartum) is 1.7 to 1.9 grams per kilogram of body weight daily. Eating enough good-quality protein (lean proteins such as chicken and tofu, and fatty fish, such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel) also promotes satiety — increasing the likelihood of sticking to the necessary calorie deficit.
Avoid alcohol: Alcohol is very calorie-dense (it contains 7 calories per gram). Beyond its energy density, there’s also the fact that alcohol can pass into the breastmilk and then into your baby, potentially impacting their sleep and gross motor development, among other adverse effects.
Limit ultra-processed foods and added sugars: Ultra-processed foods are loaded with sodium, added sugar, and oil. They’re incredibly calorie-dense yet provide minimal health-beneficial nutrients. It’s not just UPFs you should limit for postpartum weight loss. There’s also the “hidden” added sugars in beverages and foods. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends limiting your added sugar intake to less than 10% of your calorie intake (200 calories or 50 grams based on a 2,000-calorie diet) and less than 5% of your calorie intake (100 calories or 25 grams based on a 2,000-calorie diet) for additional health benefits.
Don’t use crash diets: Whatever you do, don’t use crash diets — where you drastically reduce calorie intake to 800 to 1,200 calories daily — to achieve postpartum weight loss. These negatively impact lactation (if you’re nursing), are unsustainable, and set you up for weight regain.
Incorporate low-impact workouts
Physical activity increases your daily energy expenditure.
But encouraging postpartum weight loss is not the only benefit it brings; postpartum physical activity may also:
Improve mood
Maintain cardiorespiratory fitness
Reduce depression and anxiety
That said, always ask your OB-GYN when it’s safe to begin exercising again (in general, you’d need to wait longer before you can exercise if you’ve had a cesarean). And when you’ve gotten their go-ahead, start gradually with low-impact workouts. Examples include:
Walking up to 30 minutes daily
Breath work and basic abdominal exercises (to strengthen your weakened core muscles)
Gentle yoga
The Singapore Physical Activity Guidelines recommend postnatal women aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise weekly and incorporate muscle-strengthening and stretching activities.
Drink more water
While your kidneys will naturally work hard to get rid of the excess fluid retained during pregnancy, you could support the process by staying well hydrated. That’s because:
Dehydration may cause fluid retention (your body wants to make up for the lack of incoming water)
Research suggests an association between water intake and kidney health
But how much fluids should you drink daily?
The Institute of Medicine established a total water intake of 3.3 liters daily for breastfeeding women. If you’re not breastfeeding, as a rule of thumb, you should be drinking enough so that you urinate several times daily, and the color of your urine should be clear, pale yellow, and odor-free.
Note: “fluids” include plain water and all other liquids, such as milk, soup, and those that come from foods (e.g., fruits and vegetables). That said, once again, limit your intake of beverages high in sugars.
Get as much good-quality sleep as possible
Sleep deprivation could thwart your efforts to achieve postpartum weight loss by:
Upregulating hunger hormones
Increasing your propensity to seek out calorie-dense foods
Decreasing your total daily energy expenditure
But, of course, getting enough sleep is challenging with a newborn who needs round-the-clock care. Here are a few tips that could help maximize your rest time:
Try to sleep when your baby sleeps (newborns sleep in short bursts, usually lasting between 20 to 50 minutes)
Lean on your support system (have a trusted person take care of the baby while you sleep)
Practice good sleep hygiene (e.g., keep your bedroom dark and cool, plus limit caffeine intake)
Can you use GLP-1 RAs to achieve postpartum weight loss?
GLP-1 RAs are contraindicated in pregnancy and breastfeeding.
There’s some concern that GLP-1 RAs may be excreted in breast milk and affect fetal growth (based on animal studies).
If you’re not breastfeeding, there may be instances where a doctor may prescribe you GLP-1 RAs — not to promote postpartum weight loss specifically, but to help you better control:
Blood glucose levels (e.g., if your gestational diabetes is not resolving)
Interested in finding out more about the suitability of GLP-1 RAs for you? Book an appointment with one of our specialist doctors to learn more about our medical weight loss program, NOVI Optimum Plus.