The ones who shined the brightest at the Oscars this year were the new mothers. Just a month after giving birth to her son Leo, Penelope Cruz highlighted her sexy, post pregnancy curves in a super hot, clingy L’Wren Scott plunging red dress. Fellow new mother Celine Dion showed the world how you can flaunt washboard abs, a month after popping twins, in a Giorgio Armani gown that hugged her body. It may be 10 months since she had her baby, but Oscar nominated actress Amy Adams also dazzled the crowds in her floor length, fitted blue dress. Best actress winner and mum-to-be Natalie Portman also looked smashing while flaunting her expanding tummy. Instead of looking fat, flabby or frumpy, like how most new mothers are expected to look, these ladies were looking supermodel fit.
How is this possible? Are they aliens? Did they go under the knife or starve themselves after birth? No, experts say, all that these stars did was eat right and exercise. Shapeless bodies are not the side-effects of pregnancy, they are the results of sheer laziness and greed. You don’t have to be a superstar with a battery of staff and tonnes of benefits to look good. All women can retain their pre-baby looks and figures by following a few simple rules.
Designer and former Kingfisher model Shilpa Reddy who gave birth a few months back looked gorgeous throughout her pregnancy and got her former body back almost immediately after giving birth. How did she manage this?
“By eating right and exercising. It’s a big myth that you should eat for two when you are pregnant. All you need is 300 extra calories a day, which is basically a Subway sandwich minus cheese!,” she says adding, “You need to maintain an active lifestyle throughout your pregnancy. I swam and went to work every day till a day before my delivery.”
Shilpa advises expectant mothers to refrain from fatty foods and says pregnancy is not an excuse to binge. Her diet consisted of salads, fruits, fruit juices, sprouts and other healthy, natural foods.
Kareena Kapoor’s nutritionist Rujuta Diwekar too says pregnancy is not an excuse to get fat. “There is this tendency in India for women not to diet when they are expecting as they think all diets involve starvation. This is not true, it’s all about eating food that is right for you.” Rujuta refrains from giving a diet sheet for all mums to follow as she says, “This is a cultural thing. If you are North Indian then eat your parathas, if you come from the South eat your idlis and dosas. Eat every two hours, have small mini meals. Don’t give huge breaks between one meal to another. This way you will keep bloating, constipation, nausea and other ailments at bay.”
The trick to looking good lies in maintaining yourself even before you had the baby, so continue to be a regular at the gym. Workouts don’t harm anyone as Leena Mogre, director, Leena Mogre gym, who trained Bipasha Basu says, “There are lots of women in my gym who work out throughout their pregnancy. Cardio and lightweights are recommended. Just refrain from lying on the stomach and doing crunches.”
Like Shilpa, Leena too tells women not to put on more than the required 10-12 kilos. She says the reason stars look so good is because they are slim girls who never let themselves go. Don’t worry about knocking 10 kilos as you automatically lose half that weight once the baby comes out. And the rest too vanishes as soon as you stop breast feeding. In the meanwhile stock up on Spanx to cheat. Yes, the brand famous for inventing underwear that will suck in your stomach and smooth your thighs and bums out under tight-fitting dresses has come up with knickers for pregnant women. Don’t worry, they won’t harm the baby or squash your tummy, they just give your bump much needed support while balancing the thighs and bum.