How To Lose Belly Fat After Pregnancy

There are 8 habits that can lead to a flatter and firmer belly after pregnancy.

Flat Belly Habit #1: Start Every Day With a Green Smoothie

Green smoothies fill you up, give you energy, and are super tasty when you make them the right way.

To make your daily green smoothie, you’ll need a blender.

There are so many different green smoothies you can make.

You can make savory smoothies or sweet smoothies. Don’t add sugar , instead use whole food as it is.

Combine an apple (chopped), whey protein powder, a banana, a handful or two of kale or spinach, orange slices, half a cup of ice, and a cup of water—add more or less water depending on how thick you want the smoothie to be.

Mix and match!

You can try adding grapes, clementine slices, strawberries, blueberries, or whatever you have on hand.

It might be a good idea to keep frozen blueberries and strawberries in your freezer so you can easily grab them when you’re creating a smoothie and they won’t go bad.

All the fiber and the added protein should fill you up and give you the energy you need for your day.

Here I share the recipe for Blueberry Flat Belly Smoothie

Yield: 2 Servings

Two of the best sources of antioxidants in one rich drink? Start your day the healthy way with fresh fruits and veggies containing the vitamins and minerals that our bodies crave. To keep that slim waistline, use non-fat milk or yogurt.

Ingredients

1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
½ cup frozen blueberries
2 tablespoons whole oats
1 carrot, peeled, chopped,
1 teaspoon raw honey

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until very smooth. Enjoy!

Flat Belly Habit #2: Drink at Least Two Cups of Green Tea Per Day

Green tea contains a phytochemical called catechins that can help boost your metabolism after you drink it.

Note: caffeinated tea will likely produce better results for you than non-caffeinated tea.

You can drink the tea as-is or you can add a bit of cream or milk to it. Stay away from adding sugar.

You can drink more than two cups of green tea per day.

You may want to drink up to three or four, since its metabolism boosting effects don’t last very long.

Even though it’s more expensive, you might consider drinking matcha green tea. It’s more potent and might increase the positive effects.

Here is the recipe : Iced Flat Belly Green Tea

Yield: 4 Servings

INGREDIENTS

2 1/2-inch piece fresh ginger, minced
3 cups water
6 bags green tea
3 tablespoons honey
Mint sprigs, for garnishing

Directions

Combine ginger and 2 water in a saucepan; bring to a gentle boil over medium heat. Lower heat to low and simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add the green tea bags and steep for about 3 minutes; strain out the solids and stir in honey.

Add 1 cup of water and chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour. Serve garnished with mint sprigs over ice.

Flat Belly Habit #3: Partake in Mindful/Intuitive Eating

It’s so important to eat healthy, whole foods as much as possible.

But even if you only eat the ‘right’ foods, it’s important that you don’t eat too much of the right foods.

It’s time to retrain your body and mind about what it actually means to be hungry—and what it actually means to nourish yourself.

We call this mindful or intuitive eating.

You’ll learn how to eat when you’re hungry and to stop when you’re comfortably full.

Try this— think before you eat. Be mindful about whether you’re truly hungry or not.

Don’t just eat mindlessly in front of the TV or because you’ve stored food in your desk.

Appreciate your food. Sit and really think about what you’re eating.

Don’t eat while you’re doing other things.

Be aware of what and how much you’re taking in. Stop when you’re full. Don’t eat again until you’re actually hungry.

Try mindful eating at all meals of the day.

Flat Belly Habit #4: Create a Nighttime Ritual for Better Sleep

Poor sleep increases leptin/ghrelin.

Leptin is a hormone that’s produce by fat cells in the body.

Leptin generally signals to the brain that there’s enough fat stored in the body, among other roles.

Leptin is supposed to tell our body that we can stop eating.

But if you’re eating too much and you’re overweight, then the signal leptin is supposed to send isn’t working the right way.

This can cause you to eat more and burn fewer calories.

How does this relate to sleep?

If you’re not getting enough sleep, then your body probably isn’t producing enough leptin.

When you’re asleep, leptin levels increase. This means you won’t be hungry.

If you’re not getting enough sleep, your body doesn’t get the right signals and will assume you don’t have enough energy stored.

Your body will store more fat.

Not producing enough leptin can slow down your metabolism and help you gain more weight… and belly fat.

Ghrelin is known as the hunger hormone.

It helps to regulate appetite and helps to regulate energy.

If you’re sleep deprived, ghrelin levels are likely to increase.

This means you’ll be hungrier, since increased levels of ghrelin lead to an increase in appetite.

So, how are you going to increase your sleep levels?

If you’re suffering from a true insomnia, you may want to make an appointment with your doctor.

It can be really helpful to create a nighttime routine to set yourself up the right way for sleep.

It’s helpful to go to bed at the same time every night.

Don’t stay up late watching TV- instead, settle down with a dim light and a good book.

Don’t browse Facebook or anything else on your laptop or smartphone before bed.

Put your phone—off or scree darkened with notifications off—on the other side of the room. Or switch on the Flight mode.

Maybe spray lavender pillow spray on your bedding.

Or rub lavender lotion on your arms, legs, and belly. Having a diffuser using lavender essential oil can help too. This is a relaxing ritual that can help you get ready for bed.

Make sure your room is dark—that will signal to your brain that it’s time to sleep.

It’s important that you get between 7 and 8 hours of sleep per day.

You can try this trick too. With your eyes closed, imagine you are climbing down stairs. Count from 10 to 1 with loud to slower volume.

For example ; “I0. I’m relaxed. I’m so relaxed. I’m very relaxed.

I’m relaxed. I’m so relaxed. I’m very – relaxed, and so on.

Get that amount of sleep on a regular basis and you should find that you feel a lot better, with a lot more energy, and that it’s a lot easier for you to finally drop excess belly fat.

Flat Belly Habit #5: Improve Your Flat Belly Mindset

First of all, it’s important to stop obsessing over your weight on the scale.

Get rid of the scale, if you’re too tempted to check your weight all the time.

Actually, losing “weight” shouldn’t be the goal anyway.

Muscle weighs more than fat. So, if you’re working out and lifting weights as part of your get-fit plan, the number on the scale doesn’t mean very much anyway.

Set goals. How much weight do you want to lose, and by when?

This is so important—and you should be as specific as possible.

Create a vision board—cut out pictures of your goal weight and ideal abs from magazines or even from pictures of you in the past.

Fill the board (poster board or a bulletin board) and fill it with inspirational quotes—anything that inspires you.

Look at this often and revisit your goals often.

Fill your cabinets with healthy, whole foods.

Make sure you workout every day— in ways you enjoy. Maybe it’s a walk around the block or a dance or Zumba class.

Inside our brain, there is a subconscious mind. If we constantly speak of affirmations , for example ; “I have flat belly” , we can nurture our subconscious mind to make our goal into reality. There is also other part of our brain that has negative thinking , that we can’t lose weight as we wish.

Flat Belly Habit #6: Banish Stress

Stress can lead to weight gain, belly fat, and a lack of motivation to fix things and get fit.

When you’re stressed out, your body releases more cortisol. Increased cortisol, the stress hormone, is directly tied to belly fat.

First, take a look at your schedule. Do you really need to do everything that’s on your to-do list?

It might be time for you to start to say no.

Focus instead on the tasks that actually lead to results—at work and at home.

Take time for yourself.

What do you enjoy to do? When do you feel most relaxed?

Focus on those things more than stressful tasks—and you’ll be more ready to handle those stressful tasks.

Get a massage, say no to a new project, break your must-do tasks down into smaller pieces so you can more easily complete them.

Read in the bathtub, take a walk, spend time with your friends, and spend time with your family.

Exercise reduces stress too.

Flat Belly Habit #7: Move Your Body

Do what you like to do—as long as it gets your body moving.

New mothers can start exercise as soon as after delivery or whenever you are ready.

If you have Cesarian section or vaginal tear during delivery, you can wait till 6 weeks post delivery before beginning the exercise program.

You can engage in the aerobic exercise, spot-targeted ab exercises, and weight-lifting exercise.

Weight lifting and building up muscle mass can also help you boost your metabolism.

Stop exercising when you feel dizzy , nauseous or pain.

Bodyweight Core Exercises

Your core is important not only for strengthening your ab muscles, but also for your back and side.

Here are some excellent core exercises you can start with.

For many of these, it might be helpful for you to get a yoga mat to lay on so you’re more comfortable.

You’ll be doing these core exercises on the floor.

Also, you might start out with just one set of 10 of each of these exercises at first.

After your core has grown stronger, you can increase the number of each exercise you do.

Ab Circuits

Try things like bicycle crunches, plank walk ups and mountain climbers to get your heart racing and your abs working overtime.

Burpees
Burpees are one of the best exercises for strengthening your core and working all the major muscle groups.

With a burpee, which includes moving from a pushup position to a jump and back up to a pushup position, you’re working every single muscle in your body!

According to the American College of Sports Medicine, doing just 10 fast-paced reps can be just as effective at ramping up your metabolism as a 30-second sprint!

Mountain Climber
A mountain climber begins with an ab crunch where you bring one knee into your chest.

Mountain climbers work to develop a toned core, improve balance and will burn a ton of calories. It also builds core stability.

Other exercises that can be done , include: Side Planks ,

You can try Yoga fat burning poses too. And with yoga, you are building muscle mass through a series of regular strength and balance-based activities.

By incorporating yoga into your day, your muscles will also begin to lengthen and tone, which helps you look slimmer!

Here are a couple of yoga poses to help you get started:

Upward-Facing Dog Pose

Inhale deeply as you press your hands firmly to the floor. Straighten your arms, slowly lifting your torso and legs just a few inches from the floor.
Hold the pose for up to 40 seconds. To release, exhale as you lower your torso slowly and place your forehead to your mat.

Bridge pose – Setu Bandha Sarvangasana

This asana is amazing to stretch your back, work on your lower body and detox too!