I know its probably not what you want to hear, but I can almost guarantee that if you do some of the things suggested at the Natural Healing forum you would not only lose the weight you want to lose, but improve your health tremendously in the process. I'm guessing you didn't exercise much during the prenancy, that's an important time to be walking, dancing, swimming, whatever. Your husband that now is critical should have been helping you keep active, and now he should support you in your efforts. Anyway, I have begun doing Dr. Schulze 's program, which is recommended at Natural Healing, and I am getting great results. I started to lose weight as soon as I began eating raw salads, juicing, taking hot/cold showers and taking the intestinal formula which makes you have two or three bowel movements a day. You will also find the moderator, Unyquity, to be knowledgeable about female issues(she's female)and very supportive to help you achieve what you want. I'm a guy but I also did Atkins, many diets, and even a twelve step program for compulsive eaters. I now feel I that doing a wholistic program is what actually works, and permanently, whereas diets don't do that. Good luck in whatever you do.
Well, I was 5'7" and weighed 260 pounds, I lots around 100 pounds first using water fasting an healthy eating, water fasting has its downside and I later discovered a slighly quicker way, since 25th January I have been eating natural healthy plant based foods with no meat or dairy (thought you can include good quality meat fish or dairy in small amounts so it doesn't have to be vegetarian). Here's my graph:
I could increase that weight loss if I wanted by stopping drinking socially (did that for a year when fasting), and I still have a few luxuries such as lots of olives and excessive amounts of starchy root vegetables, but I am pretty much OK with the rate of loss as it is.
But to do this you'll need to learn lots about food and which foods to eat, you'll need to be come a nutritarian. One advocate of this is Dr Joel Fuhrman, who has written a good book caled "Eat to Live" which lists the high nutrient foods (eg kale, collards), and gives you guidelines on what to restrict slightly for optimum weight loss (eg nuts, avocados). The objective is to eat what our bodies were intended to eat, and the weight will look after itself. Works for me, and if you look at the video on his website or other articles at vegsource you will see that adopting this lifestyle has a few other benefits too.