After you've had your baby, it's difficult to find the time to exercise and shed those last few pounds of baby weight. However, you don't need to spend hours in the gym to slim down and tone up after your delivery. Here are a few simple ways to get back to your pre-pregnancy weight.

Eating a well-balanced diet will help you jump start your weight loss program and give you the energy you need to keep up with your new bundle of joy. Make sure to get your daily dose of vegetables, fruits, whole grains and lean proteins. Avoid simple carbohydrates, empty calorie snacks and foods high in saturated fats. Healthy foods full of protein like yogurt and peanut butter can help you build muscle mass and increase your metabolism. Eat five or six small meals a day rather than the traditional three, to help boost your metabolism. Drink plenty of water throughout the day. If you're breastfeeding, make sure you add an extra 300 calories to your diet.

The best way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you consume. Nothing helps you burn calories like cardiovascular exercise. Most cardio activities allow you to burn between 150 and 500 calories per session. Adding half an hour of cardio to your workout everyday will help you lose weight and improve your overall fitness level. Take a morning run or spend half an hour an exercise bike. If you can't make it to the gym, try running up and down your stairs for a simple yet effective cardio workout.

Strength training builds lean muscle mass. The more muscle you have, the more efficiently your body burns calories. Strength training also increases your resting metabolic rate, which means you can burn calories even after you've stopped working out. Adding some strength training to your workout regime will help you tone problem areas. Try incorporating some weight training into your workout for two or three days a week. Strength training will also help you improve your overall strength and help you sleep better at night.

If you're looking for a fun and easy way to improve your stamina and lose weight, try doing power yoga. This type of yoga requires you to do a number of poses without pausing. It can be a great way to burn some calories from the comfort of your own home. Other forms of yoga are more suitted for improving strength and balance. These exercises can help you tone up and can increase your aerobic capacity, so you can do others more easily and efficiently. You can find plenty of yoga mommy and baby videos that will allow you to work out while spending time with your little one.

Getting back into shape after you've had a baby isn't easy. However, with a well-thought out exercise plan and a healthy diet, you can get a step closer to your pre-pregnancy weight.