Hi Gorgeouses! Guess who’s back? Our resident holistic nutritionist, Lori Kennedy — here to motivate and inform us! Enjoy! And, congratulations, Lori, on the birth of your baby girl! Love, all us Gorgeouses!

So I had my baby 7 weeks ago today. Let’s just say that, no matter how much you plan, things never go the way you want them to. I had a pretty traumatic birth experience where I ended up having an emergency C Section. I had midwives because I wanted a natural birth –- the exact opposite happened. The baby and I are fine and healthy, which is all that matters –- EXCEPT that I am left with a stomach that resembles the face of a walrus!

SO today I will start writing about how I plan to lose the 20 pounds I have leftover from 9 ½ months of eating whatever I wanted. (Yes, I know I am a nutritionist but I was pregnant and all my nutritionist ways went out the window –- I am human after all!) My pre-baby body was hot, if I do say so myself. It was hard work to get it and keep it, and I am determined to feel good about my body again or at least good enough to be naked in front of my husband without covering my walrus stomach with my hands.

I am sure a lot of you moms can relate. You want your body back! I am with you in your struggle. I am still wearing my maternity pants because I refuse to buy pants in bigger sizes and my pre preggo-pants don’t fit …YET!

I invite you to dedicate the next 12 weeks to getting your body back. It doesn’t matter whether you had your baby 7 weeks ago or 7 years ago –- there is no time like the present to regain your health and your self-confidence.

Here are some things that have helped me over the last 7 weeks to avoid eating the chips that my husband keeps buying.

1. Apple and 1 tablespoon of raw or roasted almond butter – BEST SNACK EVER!!! Almond butter can be quite expensive. I get mine from Costco.

2. Berries shake – fastest breakfast and portable, can drink it with one hand. All you of moms can appreciate something that only uses 1 hand.

Recipe:
1 cup mixed frozen berries
1 cup soy milk or whatever milk you want
1 cup water
1 tsp oil – I use extra virgin; you can’t taste it, use whatever oil you want – Flaxseed, hemp, canola
1 scoop protein powder – I use hemp but whey is fine too
Blend on high. Enjoy!

3. 70% Dark Chocolate –- 1 square per day

4. Cucumber, salsa and hummus — my husband came up with this
Cut up cucumber. Mix 2 tablespoons of salsa with 1 tablespoon of hummus. Use the cucumber instead of pita or bread. I keep cut up cucumber in my fridge at all times.

5. Grapes — great to munch on when you want something sweet

Goal for the week — pick 1 day to cheat and eat whatever you want. This has really helped me. My day is Saturday. I literally eat whatever I want on Saturdays. If I want crappy food during the week, I force myself to wait until Saturday. If I still want it…I eat — GUILT FREE!!!

Another tip: Have a dinner plate full of salad before you eat your dinner. Salad fills you up so you don’t eat so much at dinner.

What are some of your tips for losing your baby weight?

Lori

CHECK OUT LORI’S BIO HERE!

Got a nutrition question of your own, Gorgeouses? Ask LORI (click here to ask your question). LOVE!

Q: I am a person who absolutely has to eat breakfast daily. I will eat (for example) two slices of multigrain toast with local honey and a non-fat yogurt with fresh berries or oatmeal with raisins and skim milk. I always have a 1/2 cup of orange juice, coffee (usally black, sometimes with a bit of 5% cream) and a tablespoon of Salba seeds in unsweetened applesauce.

I am 5′10″ tall and weigh about 142 lbs. I am currently nursing a 7 month old baby boy. Even though I eat what I think is a good amount of food in the morning (around 7:30 am), I am weak by mid-morning (let’s say by 10 am).

What can I eat to prevent the mid-morning blood-sugar lows (if that is what it is)? Any suggestions?

Thank you!

– Lori L.

A: Your mother was right when she said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day! In North America we have our eating habits backwards having our largest meal at dinner time instead of in the morning when we need the most energy from our food. What you eat for “break – fast” helps to determine your energy levels and food cravings throughout the rest of the day. It is important to consume a balanced breakfast that contains a good amount of protein, complex carbs and fat. A bowl of cereal even if it’s a fibre or a flax cereal with skim milk just doesn’t cut it.

Carbohydrates convert into sugar (energy) which can quickly raise blood sugar levels. Whenever something goes up, like your blood sugar levels, it quickly comes down. This “crash” is experienced by feelings of more carb cravings, fatigue in the early morning or in the afternoon, headache, irritability and light headedness.

In my weight-loss program 10 Weeks to WOW! all my clients do for the first week is change their breakfast. I give them pages of balanced breakfast recipes that they must consume for 7 days. The comments I get at the end of the week are that they have a lot less sugar cravings; they have constant levels of energy and are able to make better food choices throughout the day; most even lose 1-2lbs! This is because their breakfast now contains protein and fat whereas before it was all carbs.

The question I was asked was how to avoid blood sugar dips a couple hours after eating breakfast. It’s a great question.

Let’s break down your breakfast –- REMEMBER a balanced meal means that the meal contains protein, carbs and fat:

2 slices of multi grain toast – approx 30g carbs
Honey (1tsp) – 5g carbs
Non-fat yoghurt (100g serving) – 5 – 10g carbs & 4g – 6g protein
Berries (1/2 cup) 10g carbs
½ Cup Orange Juice – 15g carbs
Total Grams Carbs: approx. 70g

Keep in mind the average daily consumption of carbs should be between 120 – 200g of carbs per day! This breakfast contains half the amount of carbs one should consume in the entire day first thing in the morning. I am not debating that these foods are healthy –- they are, but they are not balanced.

My advice would be to cut the honey and the orange juice and have 1 slice of toast instead of 2. If you want the taste of orange in the morning, have ½ an orange instead of drinking the juice. The orange contains fibre. You can still have the yoghurt and berries. On the slice of toast I would add a raw nut butter like almond or walnut butter (1 tbsp). I would also add in a good source of protein like ½ cup 1% cottage cheese or 2oz low fat (7% M.F.) cheese or ½ cup egg whites.

Remember that a meal should only keep you full for approximately 3 hours. Try having a snack around 10am –- something that also contains protein or fat.

Hope this helps!

Lori

CHECK OUT LORI’S BIO HERE!

Got a nutrition question of your own, Gorgeouses? Ask LORI (click here to ask your question). LOVE!