Breastfeeding

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KatyAverill
KatyAverill Posts: 166 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am 25 years old, married and a former first grade teacher (I'm taking time off until my daughter is school aged). I have PCOS and recently gave birth to a baby girl on November 9th, 2015.

I want to set a healthy example for my daughter. I want to make sure that I live a long life and am able to be there for her for as long as possible. I was overweight before pregnancy (209) and gained quite a bit of weight during pregnancy (262 on the day of delivery). Two weeks postpartum I weigh 232. My goal weight is 139. I'm 5'8" tall.

I am exclusively breastfeeding. How many calories should I be eating each day to lose weight but continue to produce milk?

Replies

  • JaiDessaT
    JaiDessaT Posts: 74 Member
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    My ob/gyn and lactation consultant warned me never to go below 1800. I'm 5'8" as well and started at 231. I'm still nursing my son and losing weight.
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
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    Personally, I set MFP to maintain, logged my exercise and at those back. I let the breastfeeding create the deficit.
    (it was over 1800 as recommended by the person above).
  • ragenhay1
    ragenhay1 Posts: 158 Member
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    Congratulations! I had my son 3.5 months ago and am exclusively breastfeeding him. I was 190 before getting pregnant and went up to 240 during pregnancy. At two months postpartum I was 220 and that's when I began tracking calories and going to the gym. I'm now at 202 47 days in . I did a lot of research before beginning to lose weight while breastfeeding because I did not want to risk losing my milk. You should wait until at least two months postpartum before cutting calories as it takes that long to establish your milk supply. Calories needed usually range between 1800 and 2500. It is highly recommended not to drop below 1500 while breastfeeding. I had to do a bunch of trial and error with my calories to find a balance that allowed me to lose but still have enough milk. I currently have it set to 1500/day plus an extra 300 for breastfeeding if I'm extra hungry I eat more and I eat back my exercise calories.
  • wizzybeth
    wizzybeth Posts: 3,573 Member
    edited November 2015
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    I fed into the misconception that if I breastfed, I'd get back my girlish figure just by breast feeding. Ha! Ha! Ha! LOL Anyway, this article indicates 1800 as the minimum too. You might be able to eat more calories and still lose weight, if 1800 is a general number - you are a little taller than average so you may want to add a few calories and see if you still lose. If you're satisfied at 1800 and still get all your nutritional needs met, then stick with it. But if you're hungry then add 100 calories for a couple weeks and see how that works.
  • janjunie
    janjunie Posts: 1,200 Member
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    Congrats :). My lo is 13 months now but when I was exclusively nursing and trying to lose the baby weight I ate anywhere between 2100-2300 cal a day. In the beginning the weight flew off, when he was 5 months old I started losing .5 lb/week and that was fine for me. I'm now at maintance and eating about the same, just nursing less. I'm also 5'4 and 1/2 your weight so I'm pretty sure you will need more than 1800 cal/day, that actually seems quite low for someone of your height.
  • gradchica27
    gradchica27 Posts: 777 Member
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    All great advice! I'm just starting to calorie count now that baby is 3 months old. I'm 5'4", now 151lbs (ended pregnancy around 195, started on MFP at 162). I eat 1820 cals, way back all my exercise cals, add a bit more if baby is eating more than usual.

    Watch how baby acts--extra fussing, seems unsatisfied after nursing, check volume/# of diapers to make sure milk supply is steady.

    This is a helpful article on dieting while nursing. http://kellymom.com/nutrition/mothers-diet/mom-weightloss/

    Good luck!!
  • LKArgh
    LKArgh Posts: 5,179 Member
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    KatyAverill wrote: »
    I am 25 years old, married and a former first grade teacher (I'm taking time off until my daughter is school aged). I have PCOS and recently gave birth to a baby girl on November 9th, 2015.

    I want to set a healthy example for my daughter. I want to make sure that I live a long life and am able to be there for her for as long as possible. I was overweight before pregnancy (209) and gained quite a bit of weight during pregnancy (262 on the day of delivery). Two weeks postpartum I weigh 232. My goal weight is 139. I'm 5'8" tall.

    I am exclusively breastfeeding. How many calories should I be eating each day to lose weight but continue to produce milk?

    Set MFP to maintain, and breastfeeding will create a deficit for you. If after a few weeks you realise you are not losing, cut 200-300 calories and see how this goes after a few more weeks. There is no magic number that works for everyone, it depends on weight, height, age and activity level.

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