Jennifer Lopez, Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman, Jessica Alba – the list goes on of A-list moms-to-be who immediately transform their post-baby bodies into their pre-pregnant shapes. How do they do it so quick?
The overwhelming pressure to be thin in Hollywood is a massive driving impetus for these new moms to whip their bodies back into svelte shape. But all of them work hard to do it. They may have the money for personal trainers, baby-sitters and personal chefs but when it comes down to it, each of these new moms have to put in the work.
Health experts recommend pregnant women gain anywhere between 20 to 40 pounds for a single pregnancy. For those moms-to-be who are underweight to begin with, they are encouraged to fall on the weightier end of this spectrum. For those ladies carrying multiples like Jennifer Lopez and Angelina Jolie, the weight recommendations are a bit more generous.
A few weeks after Jolie gave birth to twins, Vivienne and Knox, it didn’t even look like she had ever been pregnant: Her slender physique showed very little, if any, hint of her pregnant self.
Angie may be blessed with height and a petite frame and so carrying that 40 or 50 pounds of pregnant weight is going to look a lot different on her than say Jennifer Lopez, who has a much more voluptuous and smaller build.
Here is a look at the post-baby exercise and diet routines of some of Hollywood’s most famous moms (and bodies).
Exercise:
These women understand that exercise is integral to getting back into shape
Some stars like Jessica Alba and Jennifer Lopez were chomping at the bit to get back and resume their usual rigorous workouts after giving birth. Jennifer completed a triathlon as a motivation to get her body back. Nicole Kidman was spotted just a few days after the arrival of daughter Sunday at a yoga class. And Alba, who is known for her flawless physique, had an admittedly tough time with her post-baby body, but after two months of exercise and a healthy eating diet that included plenty of protein, veggies and good carbs, Alba proudly flaunted her bikini-clad bod on the beach and showed no evidence of any excess burgers and ice cream that she may have indulged in while she was pregnant.
Once they are given the clearance to return to working out, they get moving. Most of the stars have the luxury of working with personal trainers who can map out focused workout plans and motivate them every step of the way. But they still have to sweat the sweat, something that money can’t buy.
Diet:
Halle Berry joked how she actually ate the dinner that was being served to her at an awards ceremony while she was pregnant with daughter, Nahla. While many Hollywood moms view pregnancy as a small respite from their usual disciplined routine of measuring protein grams and shunning carbs, once their baby is born, they click into their steadfast eating regimens pretty quickly in order to drop that extra weight.
Many Hollywood moms breastfeed their newborns, like Alba, Nicole Ritchie, and Angelina Jolie. Nursing is a tremendous caloric burn. Breastfeeding burns an extra 500 calories a day as the body works 24-hours a day to feed the newborn.
Alba lost the 25 pounds she gained with daughter Honor by following the Braganza’s 321 Baby Bulge Be Gone plan, which included six days a week of exercising and a low-fat, low-carb, 1,700 calories-a-day diet.
After giving birth to her first biological daughter, Shiloh, Jolie stepped up her yoga practice and was rumored to drink cup after cup of African ginger root and garlic tea as a natural weight loss aide.
The bottom diet line: Most of these new moms shun the bad carbs, up the protein and exercise and nix sugar to get their bodies back in camera-ready shape.