Pregnancy changes us. The change most times is drastic, and especially for us here in Africa, with our culture (the whole pumping you with food after childbirth and all that). 70 percent of women never get back to their former size after childbirth, and of the remaining 30 percent, 15 percent don’t lose the big tummy.

After childbirth, you might notice that you still look pregnant despite the fact that you have already given birth, this is absolutely normal. It takes between four and six weeks for your uterus to fully contract back to its normal size. Remember; please do not make the work harder on yourself. Do not over it during the pregnancy, the more you overeat, the harder it is to lose. Ensure you eat healthy during the pregnancy, but please please please do not overeat.

Diet
With no intent to criticise our culture, I would say that the habit of pumping women with tins of milk after childbirth and daily pounded yam is totally uncalled for. A lot of women add more weight after pregnancy than they did during pregnancy. Don’t get me wrong, you really need to eat well, but not over eat. You should eat healthy, lots of Vegetables, Fruits and Salads, drink lots of water and continue with the routine drugs given to you at the hospital. The myth that if you don’t drink multiple tins of breast milk after childbirth your milk would dry up is fallacy. What happens to the poor women who can’t afford milk? Does their breast dry up? How many market women have you heard that complained that their breast milk dried up because they could not get powdered milk to drink? Please avoid daily pounded yam and the likes after childbirth.
http://healthavenue..com/2010/11/guide-for-loosing-weight-after.html