3 Tips For Effortless Nutrition In Early Postpartum
Guest post written by Brittany Burns, certified nutrition coach
Whether it’s your first postpartum journey or your third, the last thing a new mom needs is to count and track her food when she’s trying to rest and adjust to the transition of a new baby.
I know that you are ready to feel better in your skin, you want to fit into your favorite clothes again, and there’s a ton of societal pressure to appear as if you “bounced back” - but you just grew a human.
Instead of emphasizing body change when you are newly postpartum, let’s consider nutritional needs and what’s actually important instead.
In shifting our mindset from diet culture mentality to seeing food as nourishment and self-care, we can use what I call the Three Pillars of Effortless Eating:
#1 Build a balanced meal or snack when you’re hungry.
The balanced plate framework I use with both myself and my clients includes protein, fiberwater (lower carb, lower sugar, higher water content fruits and veggies), carbs, and fat - the combination of these foods increases satiation while also ensuring that a meal is satisfying because no foods are off limits!
It’s easy to want to grab granola bars and other packaged snacks when you’re in the midst of that early postpartum period, but pairing the carbs and fat in that bar (most granola bars are going to be mostly carbs and fat!) with protein and fiberwater will ensure that you stay full much longer and don’t graze all day long because you aren’t actually full.
Keep it simple though - you absolutely don’t need to be cooking from scratch. Pair your favorite granola bar with other easy options, like jerky and an apple, Greek yogurt and berries, or deli turkey and raw veggies!
You can also swap out the granola bar for other easy sources of carbs and fat like crackers and peanut butter, or pretzels and hummus.
And finally, waiting until you’re hungry to eat is tricky when you’re juggling a newborn, but the best tip my mom ever gave me is to make sure that before I sit down to nurse or get trapped in baby sleep jail I pee, eat something, and fill up my water to have nearby.
As you find your rhythm and plan ahead for snacks and meals, you’ll become more in tune with your hunger cues and it won’t feel so overwhelming to feed yourself as you get used to prioritizing your needs.
#2 Eat slowly, and stop eating when you feel 80-90% full.
If you’re a parent, then you probably laughed when you read “eat slowly” - but this is somewhat necessary for tuning into fullness cues. If you feel like you have to scarf down your meal in order to eat it before someone needs you, consider using the interruptions as a built-in pause. Breathe, and let go of the resentment. I’ve been there, too! It’s not forever.
However, if eating without distraction is impossible right now, then you’ll need to practice solid portion control. There’s nothing wrong with eating everything you serve yourself, unless doing so leads to feeling way too full! If you’re not ready to eat slowly and drop out of the Clean Plate Club, then practice building a meal that feels appropriately portioned.
The goal for the end of a meal is that you’re satisfied, not stuffed, and no longer hungry. 80-90% fullness is about 4-5 bites before you feel like you overate.
This focus on hunger and fullness cues is the foundation of normal, effortless eating - it’s necessary to tune into this to ensure that you’re eating the right amount for your body without calorie counting
#3 Don’t eat when you aren’t hungry, and solve any emotions that are making you want to eat instead of avoiding them.
You can use the habit loop to solve emotional eating - I often say that avoidance is not a longterm strategy. If we aren’t actually working through making the underlying emotions feel better, then the cravings will continue to make an appearance.
The habit loop goes: cue, routine, reward. This strategy can help us see what is triggering (cue) the desire to eat (routine) to feel better (reward).
With emotional eating, the routine is always eating. The cue is the emotion, but there’s often a pattern that repeats there - like that mid-afternoon workday slump (trying to solve boredom or fatigue), kid bedtime freedom (you’re literally looking to reward yourself, or decompress from the day), or the overwhelm of parenting (looking for stress-relief). The reward is how the food makes you feel, better in some way.
The question you can ask yourself is: “What would make me feel better in the same way as the food, that isn’t food?”
If you’re bored, then you can clean something, go for a walk, or call a friend. If you need a reward, make yourself hot tea or a sparkling water mocktail. Maybe take a hot bath! If you’re looking to relieve stress in the midst of a tantrum, then try some deep breaths, play some music, or getting outside for fresh air and a change of scenery.
The habit loop works SO WELL when it comes to needing a subtle shift in how we solve emotions - but habit science says that the cue and reward needs to stay the same in order for this to work. Only the routine changes! This means that if you don’t like dance parties, then that won’t be the right solution for you when you’re stressed because it’s not offering the same reward as eating! We must seek out new routines that actually align with how we will truly feel better.
Let’s Be Real Though
These pillars are valuable for any goal, from early postpartum focusing on nourishment to later postpartum aiming for fat loss. By following these guidelines you can move away from all-or-nothing thinking.
We are taught to believe that in order to start feeling better after giving birth that we must be “dieting” - the three pillars give you structure without rigidity!
And finally - we must be reasonable and realistic by recognizing that sleep deprivation increases hunger and cravings and decreases energy. These three biofeedback markers are somewhat necessary for navigating nutrition choices!
If you’re noticing that your HEC (hunger, energy, and cravings) are “out of check” (a phrase coined by metabolism expert, Jade Teta), consider prioritizing sleep (ask for help!), rest during the day when you can, and focus on managing stress while planning ahead for meals and snacks in order to take the mental fatigue out of the equation.
Want habit-based guidance from a mom who gets what you’re going through?
I teach busy moms how to eat normally without calorie counting so that they can stop yo-yo dieting, end the binge-then-restrict cycle, and feel better in their clothes in order to show up as the confident and capable moms they want to be.
Schedule a complimentary discovery call by applying to work with me here. (https://www.brittanyalexaburns.com/coaching-application), and find me on Instagram at @brittanyalexaburns (https://www.instagram.com/brittanyalexaburns)
