New mother reveals how she shed 5st of baby weight in lockdown by squeezing in 15-minute home workouts around caring for her son
- Jenny Weiner, 32, a managing director from Hertfordshire lost five stone
- Her weight ‘soared’ during pregnancy – leaving her ‘struggling mentally’
- But due to the Covid lockdown, she was unable to go to the gym to work out
- However, she found home fitness app Freeletics, which helped her slim down
A new mother reveals how she dropped five stone of baby weight during lockdown after discovering an at-home workout appl.
Managing director Jenny Weiner, 32, of Bricket Wood, Hertfordshire, gave birth to son Jaxon, now one, on September 13, 2020, but says her early days of motherhood were blighted by her low self-esteem because of her weight.
But her life and body were transformed after discovering an app that helped her to work out at home and saw her dropping four dress sizes from a 14 to a size six in just six months, by exercising between feeds and nappy changes. She saw her weight drop from 14st 7lb to 9st 5lb.
Jenny, who lives with her husband, David, 38, a personal trainer, said: ‘I was desperate to slim down once I’d had Jaxon.
Managing director Jenny Weiner, 32 – pictured here after giving birth but before losing weight – says her early days as a mum were blighted by her low self-esteem because of weight gain
Jenny, shown here after losing five stone, was unable to exercise at the gym after giving birth because of lockdown, so instead, she started doing 10-15 minute HIIT workouts
The now slender Jenny also changed her diet, saying she made ‘small changes every day’, rather than ‘dieting and exercising excessively’. Pictured here with baby Jaxon, now one.
‘I knew I would put on weight while pregnant, but I hadn’t realised just how much and it wasn’t only on my stomach, it was all over.
‘I was struggling mentally after giving birth because I was so unhappy with how I looked.
‘I really wanted to be at the gym, but there was no time to leave the house and, due to the second lockdown, I couldn’t even go if I wanted to.’
Horrified by her weight after giving birth, she was determined to get her figure back.
She said: ‘I couldn’t believe I’d put on five stone while I was pregnant.
Pregnancy weight gain: Jenny (pictured while pregnant) said a lack of exercise and eating whatever she wanted, as well as expecting a baby, led to her five stone weight gain
Jenny, pictured here after giving birth, before starting her weight loss regime, says she accepted she would gain weight during pregnancy, but was keen to drop pounds afterwards
Seen here pre-weight loss, Jenny said it was her personal trainer husband David, 38, suggested she look for at-home workouts when she couldn’t go to the gym during lockdown
The new mother, shown here before losing weight, says she had ‘always been a naturally big girl’, and had got bullied at school when she was younger, describing herself as ‘very chunky’
‘I guess it was a combination of eating whatever I wanted to and not doing as much exercise, but when I gave birth in September 2020, I thought it’d drop off and it didn’t.’
While she lost 7lb quite quickly after Jaxon’s birth, taking her down to 14st 7lb, losing any more was a struggle.
And at 5ft 6in, this weight meant her body mass index (BMI) used to gauge a healthy weight, was 32.6, compared to the NHS healthy range of 18.5 to 24.9.
Jenny’s weight loss diet to lose FIVE stone
Jenny’s diet before:
Breakfast – nothing
Lunch – Pret a Manager Parma ham baguette
Dinner – marinated steak or lamb with potatoes and vegetables
Jenny’s diet now:
Breakfast – porridge and banana
Lunch – tuna salad
Dinner – microwave spaghetti Bolognese
She said: ‘I’ve always been a naturally big girl. I was very chunky when I was younger and I got bullied at school for it.
‘I accepted the fact that I would gain weight during pregnancy because my body was doing what it needed to grow my baby.
‘But, once I’d given birth, all I wanted was to slim down.
‘For the first six weeks after the birth, I couldn’t exercise because I was recovering, so it was November 2020 by the time I started thinking about being more active.’
With gyms closed due to lockdown, Jenny struggled to find a way to exercise while caring for her baby.
She said: ‘My husband is a personal trainer and he suggested looking at different apps I could try. I found Freeletics, which had 15-minute HIIT training sessions.
‘I didn’t think much would come of it at first, but I found them to be so handy.
‘Whenever I had a spare 10 or 15 minutes in the day, I would do one of the workouts.
‘It didn’t seem like I was doing much, because it was such a short amount of time, but the weight started to drop off pretty quickly.’
To Jenny’s surprise, she lost 4st within four months of using the app.
Jenny and her husband David celebrating son Jaxon’s first birthday. By this point, she had already maintained her weight loss for several months
It was Jenny’s husband David, a 38-year-old personal trainer, who suggested that the new mother, shown here after dropping the pounds, looked for at-home workouts
Although new mum, pictured post weight loss, says she ‘didn’t think much would come of’ the home HIIT workouts at first, she soon found them to be ‘so handy’
Jenny, seen here after losing weight, took six weeks to recover from giving birth before starting her new exercise regime
She said: ‘I hit my goal weight of 9st 5lb by the start of April, which was just in time for my birthday.
‘I was making small changes every day, which I didn’t notice until I weighed myself and realised I was dropping in weight.
‘After not being able to do any exercise other than going for a walk with the pram, it was so nice to be able to work out properly.’
But Jenny admits that the weight loss – which has taken her BMI to a healthy 21 – was not solely down to exercise, as she started eating healthier too.
Shown here with her with her new BMI of 21, which is in the NHS healthy range of 18.5 to 24.9, Jenny says she wears size six clothing
After only being able to walk with the pram, Jenny says it was ‘so nice to be able to work out properly’ once taking up her new fitness regime, leading to her new physique (pictured)
Jenny says she is now in better shape than she was pre-pregnancy. She says the key to maintaining weight loss is ‘balance’ – allowing yourself treats as well as working out
‘Loving my new body’: Jenny says she ‘feels fantastic’ after transforming her post-pregnancy body through diet and exercise
‘At the same time as I started using the app, I also switched up my diet because, with weight loss, it’s 30 per cent exercise and 70 per cent diet,’ she said.
‘I started eating at set times and cut back on what I was consuming. I still had the odd cheat day though and enjoyed my weekends, otherwise I would have never kept to it.
‘Before having Jaxon, I would eat later in the day. I would skip breakfast and eat for the first time of the day at lunch.
‘Then my husband would come home from work at 8pm and cook us massive meals late at night.
‘Now, my eating schedule is a lot different and I always make sure to eat a substantial and healthy breakfast to start my day.’
Jenny has maintained her new lean weight and is proudly showing off her slender, toned curves in a size six.
She said: ‘The key to maintaining weight loss is balance. You’ve got to enjoy yourself and allow yourself treats but you also have to take care of your body, which is why Freeletics was so great.
‘You don’t want to diet and exercise excessively because that can quite damaging too.
‘I still indulge when I want to but I’m also loving my new body.
‘I’m better shape now than I was pre-pregnancy and I feel fantastic.’
For more information, visit: www.freeletics.com
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