Can I lose a stone in 4 weeks?

[Peonyyyy]

I had my second baby 9 weeks ago and starting to feel so down about my weight. I love food and have rubbish willpower! After my first I bounced back relatively quickly but this time I think I overate during pregnancy due to tiredness and stress of looking after a toddler and being pregnant etc as well as having a lot of nausea.

i went on the scales today and was horrified to find I am still 1.5 stone bigger than my usual weight. I can’t fit into my jeans and I just feel so sad. Annoyingly all the weight is on my thighs, tummy, arms and chin and I still have tiny boobs! (Not breastfeeding)

I have been eating healthier for the last few weeks and trying to fit in some walks when I just have the baby with me but the weight isn’t shifting currently. I know I shouldn’t put pressure on myself but I really want to get back to feeling like me and being my normal weight.

please can you let me know if it’s possible to lose a stone in 4 weeks? I really want to go hard to start with to shift the weight. Currently I’m eating something like the below per day:

breakfast - low sugar nutty granola, skyr yoghurt and berries

lunch - one slice wholemeal toast with butter and marmite or houmous or peanut butter and some fruit

dinner - something homemade, chicken curry with brown rice, salmon pasta with wholemeal pasta etc. doing smaller portions than usual

I might also have some cups of tea through the day.

Can I lose weight like this or do I need to be more extreme? I’m not very good at being hungry and starving myself but I really need to be a bit more drastic or it’s never going to shift. Thank you!

No, 14 lbs in 4 weeks is highly unlikely.
Use an app like nutricheck, weigh and enter all your food and use that to balance your nutrition.
Once you have that information make small changes.
Add in more fitness.

Thanks, I am a bit of a novice to weight loss!

do I need to eat less than what I am currently to lose weight? I probably walk about 30 mins-1 hour per day as well.

How much do you weigh?

I don’t think you can lose that sort of weight quickly but it’s much harder if you are slimmer to start with

Why the rush? I would aim for 1lb a week, especially so soon after having a baby.

A stone in 4 weeks is a ridiculous goal. To achieve that you’d have to be on a very restrictive diet and as you’ve said you aren’t good with being hungry. You are much better aiming for 1-2 pounds a week and not starving yourself.

I lost 16lbs in the first 4 weeks doing fast 800.

Start Weight was 10st9lbs

But what's the rush? You've just had a baby. Take your time and be kind to yourself.

Why a month, your only 9 weeks pp. Why the rush.

Hi Peony,

This is all the advice I had from a personal trainer when I wanted to lose about the same amount of weight as you a few months after having my baby.
You reduce calories slowly so that your body doesn't notice it happening. So maybe start 1700 a day and reduce by 100 or so until you are on around 1300-1400. If you go too low too quickly your body is more likely to go into starvation mode and hold onto fat reserves. I track my food on fitness pal.
Also, try to get lots of calories through protein - eggs, meat, lentils and beans etc, and carbs through vegetables rather than complex carbohydrates.
This plus lots of exercise - I used to do uphill walks with the buggy - great workout!
It's slower but more sustainable and better for your body.
I know other diets/programmes can be quicker but I know they wouldn't work for me as I don't have much will self-discipline with stricter rules!
Hope any of that might be helpful :)

Thank you all ☺️

the reason I want to lose the weight is because I’m not happy this weight. I’m currently rotating about 3 pairs of stretchy trousers and leggings, I much prefer jeans, too skint to buy more clothes cos of statutory maternity pay. I would feel a lot like myself and a lot happier if I felt like me, wearing my normal clothes. I totally get that I need to be kind to myself, and I was for the first 6 weeks but now I want to be kind to myself by getting to a weight I’m happy with.

I've never had a baby so have no idea if it's realistic to try this with a 9 week old.

You need to find out the number of calories you need to maintain, at your weight, height and activity level. There are calculators online.

You then need to sacrifice 500 calories a day to lose 1-1.5 lbs a week. You can do this by eating less (easier) and/or moving more (harder).

So you'd want to lose 3.5lbs a week to lose a stone, meaning eating like an absolute bird for a month! I think I've convinced myself it's not possible, unless you want to go down the 'juicing/fasting' route.

There's no need at all to set a mad goal of a stone in a month. Two or even three months is plenty and much better for your body. Just eat healthily and look after yourself. No need to be starving yourself and being harsh on your body image. You've just had a baby, not even two months ago. Jeans can wait a bit longer.

When I was where you are I bought 3 cheapo pairs of Primark jeans and a couple of 'fast fashion' tops. They did me well for the 6 ish months it took me to naturally find a more comfortable weight / shape.

You need energy with 2 kids to look after and you risk feeling awful by about 3pm and diving into the biscuits.

I'd have a much bigger and more satisfying lunch - protein heavy - eggs on toast / chicken wrap - lentil soup - avocado / bacon / chicken etc

Nope! Not in any sensible way. 1-2lbs a week is decent weight loss. One pound of adipose tissue is a calorie deficit of 600 calories a day

Eating a very restrictive diet to lose weight quickly almost always backfires because when you reach your goal and start eating normally again (maybe even bingeing because you’ve been depriving yourself for ages), you will gain most of it back. It’s much better for long term weight loss, your health, and your mental health to go slowly and aim for 1-2 pounds a week.

Please be kinder to yourself and your lovely body OP. You have literally just created a whole human being. Your body has been amazing and has been through a whole lot of trauma. It needs good, healthy food and gentle exercise to heal. If you do something too dramatic it's likely to cause longer term issues. At the moment your hormones are likely too be all over the place too, higher stress hormones from the birth and messed up sleep, reduction in oxytocin etc. This will be affecting how your body receives and uses the calories you are taking in, but also your mood and how you are feeling about yourself and your body.

Give yourself a bit more time before you go for a drastic weight-loss programme. Focus on health and healing. Eat lots of lovely veg soups, herbal teas, big hearty salads - food that nourishes and nurtures your body whilst also being good for you.

I've definitely lost a stone in a month on keto.

I can relate to how you feel. I've always been slim , heaviest after my two babies. I was miserable and buying clothes in larger sizing made me so sad. I bf until 6 months with both. By 9 months postpartum I'd lost the weight and then another 1/2 stone. Walking everywhere, a good 20k steps a day. Eating better but not starving myself, I tried keto for a few weeks which worked well.

A month isn't realistic, you need to take care of yourself xx

You’ve just grown a brand new human so dont be too hard on yourself!
Don’t diet, just cut out the sugary crap, eat well and exercise a bit more - out in the pram for a good long walk everyday, it’s easier now the weather is (hopefully) improving.

Not judging your choice in any way. Breastfeeding can help with loosing weight post partum.

You guys are right, 1 stone is unrealistic. I’m very impatient and just want to be back to normal so badly. Noted on increasing protein and making sure I don’t end up binging at 3pm from being so hungry looking after a baby and a toddler.

I just can’t bring myself to buy larger jeans, it’s almost like I’m worried if I do I’ll never lose the weight 😬😩

I don't think you're eating enough to lose weight.

Your diet isn’t helping. You must be very hungry. Protein, fats, meat, fish. No carbs. No bread or cereals. Lots of boiled eggs!
1.5 st isn’t much for such a new mother though. Keep your strength up.

Just buy the bloody jeans. It's just an arbitrary number on a piece of fabric. Womens clothes sizes are all over the place anyway. I can go from a 10 to 16 depending on where I shop FFS. And don't even get me started on the hellscape that is Zara. Life is better when you're comfortable. The psychological and physical grind of trying to shove your body into too tight jeans is soul destroying and a constant trigger for you to think about your weight. Get some lovely jeans in a bigger size.

It doesn't mean you are going to be that size forever. It means they will fit you right now. Imagine that your child comes to you when they are 10 and says "don't buy me bigger clothes mum, I'm too fat to be comfortable and Im worried about never losing the weight". You'd be horrified. Your body is amazing. She deserves to be looked after and loved for her strength and resilience. Buy the bloody jeans ❤️

Invest in some cheap clothes and try to eat healthily for a while. Honestly I don't think you should be calorie counting so soon after having a baby. You should just focus on feeling well and eating nutritious foods and keeping yourself healthy so you can focus on the baby. Half a pound a week of 1lb would be a great weight loss given your circumstances. I know 9 weeks probably feels like a long time to you know but it's nothing really considering you gave birth, be patient!

I know I should be happy as I am but I look down and see this big lump of belly fat, and I feel my thighs touching (which they don’t when I’m my normal size) and I feel pretty gross.

I’ve been eating really healthily and not snacking for the past few weeks so I’m going to see how that goes, and I’ve told myself I won’t weigh myself more than once a week and won’t even try on my old clothes for another month.

I hate to wish this time away but not being the size I want t be does really bring me down!