One change that is particularly noticeable in women is in their physical appearance. According to a study published in the daily journal ‘The Obesity’, 82% of couples’ average weight gain after 5 years of their marriage is up to 5-10 kg, and this increase in weight is mostly seen among women.
Why Do Women’s Bodies Change After Marriage?
So, why do you gain weight in a relationship? Several factors can contribute to this. Newlywed weight gain can be due to changes in stress levels after marriage, a change in workout plans, post-pregnancy weight gain, and so on. Weight gain during the first year of marriage isn’t a problem unique to just women, by the way! Men have their fair share of beer bellies post-marriage as well.
A lot of women go on strict diets before their marriages to look picture-perfect for their wedding. The harsh diets they follow might involve completely cutting out things they’d normally eat. Months of discipline to attain the stunning bridal look can cause the cravings to come back stronger than ever after the big day. Simply going off a rigorous diet can also be a reason why the skinny wife got fat after the wedding.
Interestingly, couples who lived together but were not married did not experience any major weight gain issues. So, that makes us wonder if it is the marriage that’s causing weight issues. Is there a correlation between weight gain and marriage? Remember, the body undergoes hormonal changes after marriage and so does the metabolism. Also, psychologically, the motivation to keep fit and look good is far more before marriage than after. It is easy to shed off those extra 5 kgs when you are preparing to go on a date with your new crush.
But post-marriage, a tub of ice cream while watching your favorite show seems a better bonding move than looking good, right? Once you two are married, there are no real inhibitions, and wanting to impress your spouse takes the backseat. All the work is already done, and the relationship is now officially a marriage.
There are emotional, physical, psychological, and practical reasons behind a spike in body weight post-marriage and if you want to fight that, you have to literally swim against the tide! With the following points, let’s further explore why women gain weight after marriage.
12 Reasons Why Women Gain Weight After Marriage
Do a quick scan of your friends and family, the ones who have been married for a few years now. Ask them about their pre-wedding clothes. Check if they can still fit into them. Chances are they won’t. A common joke that goes around is “I still fit into all the scarves I got at my wedding!” Unless both partners are hardcore fitness freaks, couple weight gain after marriage is a very common phenomenon. If your wife got fat after the wedding, don’t bring it up, don’t tell her. She has most probably caught up on it long before you did and is already trying to figure out how to shed all that wedding cake weight. As a joke, you can send her this article but we can’t be responsible for your safety if the reaction isn’t all too good! Jokes apart, here are 12 reasons why women get fat after marriage:
1. Feasting with fun after the wedding
You diet to fit into the wedding outfit. Once the wedding is over and you’re set for the honeymoon, the feasting starts and the couple’s weight gain begins. With a companion in tow, you have all the reasons to sample a variety of cuisines. Is it really a vacation if you don’t eat all the delicious local food? As you settle into the new life and routines, the frequency of eating out increases, especially if your partner is a foodie. As a couple, you have meals together and most women end up preparing delicacies that are as fattening as they are delicious. And all that bridal weight piles up, which indeed is not that easy to lose. Why do you gain weight in a relationship? The answer to this question can also be hidden in all the social visits you two are obligated to attend. And if there’s delicious food at the venue, who wouldn’t just chow down? The company, the food, and the influence of the partner all couple up together and contribute to weight gain after marriage. Sarah, a newly married woman, shares her post-marriage experience. She says, “I was so conscious about fitting into my dress and looking radiant, I didn’t touch fried food for six months. However, on the night of our wedding, my husband and I ordered room service, and the minute I saw the bowl of fries, all my self-control went away. These things happen because we deprive ourselves to look good for a few hours.”
2. Plenty of post-sex cravings change the equation
Pre-marital sex is common now, as we know it. But once married, sex is just a signal away. In the initial years, you end up having sex more often. While sex itself burns calories, but post-sex cravings, if not handled, can lead to the fattening of the midsection. Hello, muffin top! After a long sex session, you crave cakes, ice creams, and anything sweet. Maybe you and your husband decide to open a bottle of wine and talk. Maybe you suggest adding a cheese platter to it. And before you know it, you have added one more meal to your daily meals, the post-dinner one! So while sex doesn’t make you put on weight, what you do or do not do after the session definitely plays a role in your putting on weight after marriage. Instead of food try these workouts for better sex, and you won’t need to worry about how to avoid weight gain after marriage.
3. Your daily routine goes for a toss
Time is a commodity single people have in abundance. They have a lot more control over how they spend their time. Most schedule a gym hour or a yoga class or perhaps the now-famous Zumba or Pilates. But once married, especially for women, things change: they may have to manage both work and home. In short, married life is usually busier than single life! In such cases, one has to make an extra effort to fit in fitness and exercise. Women especially tend to put family before themselves and health and fitness take a back seat. That’s why the change in routine leads to getting fat after marriage. To counter this very real risk factor, you need to chalk out a fitness routine and try to make space for that in your busy schedules. The reason for belly fat after marriage can be an inability to adjust to your new routine quickly. It takes a while to figure out how to go about squeezing in half an hour of exercise that takes two hours of convincing yourself to go and do it.
4. Stress level increases
If you’re wondering why do women get fat after marriage, the answer can be as simple as an increase in stress levels. Marriage does bring in a lot more responsibility, and with it, stress. Plus you want to make the best impression on your husband and your in-laws if you are part of a joint family. This need to be better further adds to the stress levels. And then there is the challenge of living in a new system with new people, which brings its own stress too. One of the easiest ways to handle it is to start eating your feelings away, right? When one is stressed, they either end up eating too much or too little (and then binge later), which leads to weight gain. Stress changes the body’s metabolic rate, abetting weight gain. For all the husbands reading, this is essentially why your wife got fat after the wedding. My college roommate got married a few months ago. Here’s her take on why women get fat after marriage: “There is so much going on around you once you get married. I’m so conscious about making good impressions, I don’t eat anything because of the stress. This ultimately leads to binge eating anything and everything in the middle of the night.” Instead of pushing yourself so hard, maybe try these 60 fun ways to make your spouse happy.
5. Sedentary lifestyle and neglect
Since the pressure is off and you are already time-strapped, maybe you slide into a comfort zone. Think about it, the easiest thing to forgo amidst all the new responsibilities is your fitness, at least for the time being. With no exercise, the body piles on fat and the bulk starts showing. A nutritionist told us that most women who come to her don’t even realize that they are getting into the “I am not fit” zone before the increase hits double digits and then it becomes a huge uphill task. Hurtful comments on weight gain after marriage can dampen anyone’s self-esteem. So if your wife got fat after the wedding, support her and protect her from mean comments from relatives.
6. Metabolism reduces
One big reason for weight gain is purely scientific, people marry later these days, mostly around 30. According to health experts, the metabolic rate starts decreasing in your 30, which, in turn, leads to weight gain. This means once thirty you are already on the wrong side of age. You may be used to chowing down multiple cheesecake slices without really gaining a lot of weight, but your metabolism over the years has kept slowing down without you noticing it. This now means you gain weight a lot faster and that you’ll have to exercise a lot harder to lose fat. This unexpected “sudden” change in metabolism levels is why girls get fat after marriage. With hormonal changes after marriage, it is like a double whammy. Hence, the probability of gaining weight after marriage goes up while that of losing weight goes down.
7. Social commitments
Remember the scores of celebrations and parties that are thrown for the newlyweds? Extended family members, close friends, neighbors, everyone wants to welcome the new bride and the groom. The entire network of two families and friends throw get-togethers, and most have an array of desserts, rich food, and even alcohol. The newlyweds then reciprocate by inviting people to their new homes, it only leads to more socializing and parties. Call it fun, obligation, or social courtesy, there is no escaping this. Once at the party all there is to do is drink, eat and be happy. Devouring food at a party thrown for you may seem justified but what about those extra calories? Social commitments are a prominent contributor to couples gaining weight.
8. Change in attitude toward self
Before marriage, perhaps you spent hours in front of the mirror and swung into action if a sole pimple popped up on your face. But after marriage this attitude changes, the pressure is off, and you no longer feel the need to attract a mate or keep him. The focus shifts from looking your best to being fine to continue with the routine. Not being in a conscious relationship with your body is one of the answers to why do women get fat after marriage. To stop the scales from tipping unfavorably, you need to break this pattern and take charge. Kate, 34, got married a year ago. She says, ” I don’t recognize the woman in the mirror anymore. It’s surprising how much you let go of yourself because you have this sense of security that the partner has to love you no matter what. However, it does not feel good internally. Hence, I have decided to make an effort for my sake.”
9. Family and its eating habits
The changes after marriage for a girl are numerous, including adopting the eating habits of her new family. If you are married into a family that believes in eating well and living comfortably, then fitness will take a backseat. However much you try to control, if there are goodies lying around, chances are you will nibble at them every now and then. Most health experts recommend throwing away all fatty food from home, especially those packs of biscuits and cookies! Getting fat after marriage can stem from all the delicious food around you. But there are ways you can avoid it, such as making time for easy workouts with your partner, even if it is home-based.
10. Taking life easy
Some women think of getting married as the ultimate milestone. You clear college, get a job, get married, and settle. Some women give up their careers and get into the habit of living a relaxed life. The usual routine is to work, eat, and sleep. This sedentary lifestyle can be one of the reasons why women get fat after marriage. Moreover, sometimes we tend to do nothing much about it, except blame it on hormones. Ignorance further contributes to getting fat after marriage because you are taking your weight gain lightly.
11. Pampering by new family and friends
With marriage, you inherit a new family and friends, who’d want to pamper you and make you feel welcome. And often, it is done by spoiling you silly with delicacies of your choice. You ultimately give in to the pampering and start eating too much and the results will reflect when you stand on the weighing machine. If your wife got fat after the wedding, blame it on all that extra dessert your relatives made her have when you visited their place.
12. Eating leftover food
One of the common reasons why women gain weight in a relationship is that most married women are called ‘leftover queens’. The idea of wasting food scares them and rightly so. In order to ensure the cooked food is not wasted, women end up eating it either for breakfast or dinner. This increases their appetite and they put on weight. If you are a husband reading this, it may be time to learn how to appreciate your beautiful curvy spouse. However, this newlywed weight gain isn’t the end of the world as it can be remedied.
How Can I Avoid Gaining Weight After Marriage?
So, now that we know why women gain weight in a relationship, it’s time to figure out how to avoid that. One of the best parts of the human body is its sheer malleability. You can change your body and shape it the way you want to albeit, with some effort. Hormonal changes after marriage, increased stress levels, or any of the other reasons why women gain weight after marriage can be countered if you follow the following tips:
Strict workout routine at home: Sometimes, just a strict workout routine at home can make all the difference! However, if you know your lazy self and think you won’t be able to follow through with a workout plan by yourself, try the points mentioned belowJoin a gym: Now we all know this works! Joining a gym will do wonders for that newlywed weight gain and you will eventually work through the initial pain and start enjoying the experience (hopefully!)Get a personal instructor: If you still feel like you need more of a push, no one will push you as hard as a personal trainer. You will hate him/her and then you will love them. They will follow through with their plans of making you fit even when you don’tFix your diet: Fixing your diet and eating habits can slim you down only in a couple of months. Watching what you eat and reducing snacking and eating foods that are high in nutritional value and low on calories will do wonders for youTry intermittent fasting: Intermittent fasting is something people seem to swear by. It is a great and healthy food trend that is not exactly a diet. Give this a go!Consult a dietician: Just like with a personal trainer, you losing weight is not only in your best interests but also your dietician’s. Besides, dieticians understand your body type and your metabolism, and devise a meal plan based on these factors, yielding great results in reducing that extra bulkGet yourself checked out: An underlying health condition could be the reason behind your unnatural weight gain. It could be a problem bigger than the innocent newlywed weight gain. So, if you’re experiencing other symptoms, it’s best to get yourself checked out. Better safe than sorry, right?
There is no harm in earning a few “extra happy” kilos post marriage but one should ensure that this weight gain is reversible or at least in that range. One should know when to draw the line between binge eating and socializing and come back to a routine. Because marriage is a long journey and you can’t keep picking up weight all the way.
