Eating for two, after delivery

Thats right. Eating for two doesn't end when you give birth to your precious bundle of joy.  When you're breastfeeding at least.

So many mommas seem to forget that your baby gets his nutrients from you, which means you need to keep yourself well nourished. Just as its important to eat a healthy well balanced diet when you are pregnant because what you eat passes to your baby in utero, its important to eat well when breastfeeding because what you eat passes through your milk. 

I know its easy when you are the frazzled mother of a newborn to forget to eat or stay properly hydrated but it is so important for your baby! Not only will they not get all the nutrients they need but it could also harm your milk supply, resulting in a shortened nursing relationship and less health benefits for you and your baby. 

There is so much pressure on new moms to lose the baby weight quickly, from the media especially.  "Heidi Klum back to prepregnancy weight minus 5 lbs 30 seconds after giving birth!"  Okay, maybe I exaggerate some, but still.  All the focus is on losing the weight, which for many moms means excessively exercising and dieting.  While exercising in moderation and watching what you eat can be good, extreme dieting to drop the weight will cause your baby to miss out on those nutrients as well. 

Two great tips I've received from two great mommas- my own momma, and GreekMomma, is to drink a big glass of water every time you sit down to nurse, and designate an area as your nursing area, whether it be the computer desk, the bed, or a rocker or recliner, and stock it with (healthy) snacks, like granola bars, crackers, trail mixes, nuts, fruit (like apples, oranges, bananas, cuties) and also beverages.  Water is best, but juice and gatorade like drinks are better than soda.  Another option is to premake little meals, like chef salads (my favorite!) and keep them in the fridge and take them out when you are getting ready to sit and nurse.

Precut veggies like celery, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, avocado, etc and you can grab a small bowl to snack on while you nurse, or throw them in a bowl with some healthy green salad mix, some hard boiled eggs, and meat of choice (chicken is a favorite of mine, ham, steak, and turkey are good too) and you've got a quick, delicious, nutritious, chef salad.  I also like mixing in some peas with mine.

Well phooey, now I want a chef salad!