Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 10:08 — 12.0MB) | Embed
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS | Subscribe to Herb 'N Wisdom and Natural Living

Feeding and giving your body the nutrients it needs when you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or a young mother is crucial and will affect your body for years to come. You are what you eat,” is a fact, whether you look skinny on the outside or not. Your insides tell the truth and reveal the opposite of health when you eat junk. “But, I haven’t put on a pound?” When people say this, the first thing I ask is, “What does your daily diet look like?” The answers vary, but the results are, they don’t eat healthily.
How you look on the outside is part of health, but not the whole picture. I can put on five pounds from my healthy weight and feel like crap. People compliment me because five pounds isn’t noticeable on the outside, but for me, it’s like gaining 15 pounds on the inside. I don’t feel healthy, and my energy level drops.
When a woman gets pregnant, she is excited and starts planning immediately. She plans a nursery, she and her husband pick out a name, decide on the best car seat, choose whether to breastfeed or not, etc. You pick all these items and make decisions ahead of time because they are a necessity before the baby arrives. So, in all this planning, why is it we don’t plan our meals, track our health,

The phrase, “You need to eat for two,” is a total misconception and one that drives me crazy when people say. YES, you are carrying a beautiful little person so NO, you do not need to eat like you’re carrying an adult. You should eat when you’re hungry the same as when you’re not carrying a child.
Eating whatever you want when you’re hungry is also a WRONG thought process. Your body and the baby do not need empty or garbage calories, they need vitamins, minerals, proteins, etc. If you eat healthy from the beginning, it won’t take you a year or five to lose your baby weight.
I see multiple mothers all the time who are still carrying their baby weight years after they’ve had a child. I feel bad for them because I know they don’t want to look like they just had a baby. They want to look and feel amazing and have the energy to take care of their infant or child.
Women want to feel sexy, loved, and unique. Carrying around ten plus pounds doesn’t do that. Guys also don’t want the women they’ve married to pack on pounds and keep them, whether they’ve had a child or not.

You get pregnant, gain healthy weight, lose the weight, and boom your body loves you. That’s the perfect cycle anyways, but usually not how it happens. I think women and men should take health classes or do their research before they get pregnant. This way, you are giving your body and your baby the best information and nutrients to be a Rock Back Mama.
If you are over your desired weight before you get pregnant, then why not start exercising and eating healthy to lose the weight before you start trying for a baby? That’s not selfish; it’s thinking about what’s best for you AND your baby’s health. Babies, we know, are greatly affected by alcohol and drugs. So, why would you assume that sugars and fats won’t affect them? They are what you eat. That’s a fact.
Some experts say the baby, once born, is not affected by what a mother eats. I can tell you from experience this is not true. I have had four children, and two of them were colicky. They reacted to what I ate. For instance, things that were high acidic or would make an average person gassy bothered them.
- Tomatoes,
- cucumbers,
- broccoli,
- cauliflower,
- mushrooms,
- chocolate (because of the caffeine),
- peanut butter even in powder form,
- nuts,
- granola,
- raisin bran,
- caffeine
- supplements such as iron.

How do I know? I decided to keep a food journal to see if what I ate had any effect. For instance, I would try one new food at a time and see how the baby reacted. If she cried an extreme amount, I would then take that same food out of my diet. I would try this at least twice to make sure it wasn’t something else that was bothering her. If it were consistent, I would eliminate that from my diet and move onto the next food.
Granted this can make a very bland diet, but it is incredibly worth it for you and your baby when they don’t hurt from gas pains, and you don’t have to listen to a screaming baby!
If you are questioning whether to breastfeed or not, I will encourage you to say yes. Breastfeeding helps you lose extra pounds. How? Your uterus cramps when your milk drops. Call it mother nature’s way of bringing your uterus and body to what it was before you got pregnant. Mothers who don’t nurse do not understand this benefit. Another reason to breastfeed is most formulas have the same amount of soy and estrogen in them as THE PILL woman take to prevent pregnancy.

Regardless of what you’ve been told, modified soy is horrible for you. For men, it causes man boobies because of the high estrogen. Modified soy is NOT your friend, and you should try at all costs not to consume it. Soy crops in the United States are highly sprayed with chemicals and produce proteins your body won’t recognize leading to problems such as allergies, asthma, and thyroid disorders.
A healthy diet is everything. People who practice health have a more fulfilling life. They have the energy to enjoy their children, travel, host, and live easy every day. When you breathe easy, your life is more fruitful. We are talking body here. Mental as always is something different, but I will say a healthy body helps with a healthy mind. When you look in the mirror and see someone to be proud of, then you can smile and say, “I did it,” or, “I’m making progress,” instead of turning away.
Getting pregnant and having a new baby is stressful enough without adding the bonus of lousy health.
So, be smart and pay attention to what you’re eating. You get one body as does your beautiful baby or child.
Tweet
If you or a loved one needs some encouragement or have questions about how to take your health back, then send me an email, write me a letter or leave a comment. I will listen and offer advice based on your needs.
Disclosure: I am not a medical doctor, so my advice will be from personal experience. In other words, I will encourage as a friend and not a medical professional. Nor will I accept payment. This service is for those who want to get their health back on track.
-Heather Earles
Heather…Congratulations to you and Rocky and your family on your new blessing. I am going to share your blog on facebook as it makes so much sense for women who are having their first or their fourth!!!! Love ya..Amy
Thank you so much, Amy! I don’t think as a mother or grandmother you ever learn all there is to raising kids and taking care of yourself. I know I have a long way to go but I’m so happy to share the knowledge I’ve learned.