Fitness while breastfeeding

DiamndMnd

Is anyone else breastfeeding while trying to get in shape?

ragenhay1

Yup. My little guy is 4.5 months. I started working out when he was two months. I'm down 23lbs so far with 57 left to go. I was over weight before I got pregnant.

pineygirl

I'm still breastfeeding and eating at a least a 500 caloire daily deficit (more like 600 to 900 according to MFP and fitbit...but my metabolism is low because of PCOS).

I'm losing at 1.2/lb per week roughly.

Dieting hasn't impacted my supply much at all. And neither has weightlifting or cardio.

What really killed it was the return of my fertility and a new pregnancy, then miscarriage. All before I started losing weight.

I still make milk. I pump maybe 5oz per day. When I'm home with him and breastfeeding on demand I probably make a little more than that.

My son is 16 months old and eats solids and drinks whole milk, so I'm not relying on it for his sole source of nutrition anymore.

If I were exclusively breastfeeding I'd eat at maintenence and let the breastfeeding create the deficit. And probably not less than 1800 per day (or 1600 if you are petite). And only once supply is well established.

janjunie

Saramore10 wrote: »

Is anyone else breastfeeding while trying to get in shape?

Yes I am right now. You say fitness so I assume you mean working out, not just cutting calories. Started when lo was 5 months old, just eat back 50-75% of your exercise calories, eat extra for breastfeeding and you should be good.

DiamndMnd

ragenhay1 wrote: »

Yup. My little guy is 4.5 months. I started working out when he was two months. I'm down 23lbs so far with 57 left to go. I was over weight before I got pregnant.

That is great! Keep up the awesome work, you can do it! What are some recipes you make that are healthy? I always find it hard to think of new healthy meal ideas.

DiamndMnd

pineygirl wrote: »

I'm still breastfeeding and eating at a least a 500 caloire daily deficit (more like 600 to 900 according to MFP and fitbit...but my metabolism is low because of PCOS).

I'm losing at 1.2/lb per week roughly.

Dieting hasn't impacted my supply much at all. And neither has weightlifting or cardio.

What really killed it was the return of my fertility and a new pregnancy, then miscarriage. All before I started losing weight.

I still make milk. I pump maybe 5oz per day. When I'm home with him and breastfeeding on demand I probably make a little more than that.

My son is 16 months old and eats solids and drinks whole milk, so I'm not relying on it for his sole source of nutrition anymore.

If I were exclusively breastfeeding I'd eat at maintenence and let the breastfeeding create the deficit. And probably not less than 1800 per day (or 1600 if you are petite). And only once supply is well established.

Aw, I am sorry to hear about your miscarriage! I will be 6 weeks post on Monday and I am very excited to get in shape. I more so want to get tone vs. Losing a bunch of weight. I lost most of the weight I gained. I started at 120-125 and went to 153 and I am at 130ish now. I just don't want to hurt my supply because breastfeeding is something I felt strongly about keeping up. I just started keeping track of my calories to make sure I am eating enough and also to help me eat healthier. I have it set at 2500 because of the 500 or so I will lose with feeding.

DiamndMnd

janjunie wrote: »

Saramore10 wrote: »

Is anyone else breastfeeding while trying to get in shape?

Yes I am right now. You say fitness so I assume you mean working out, not just cutting calories. Started when lo was 5 months old, just eat back 50-75% of your exercise calories, eat extra for breastfeeding and you should be good.

I actually am not really cutting calories. Adding them to make sure I don't hurt my supply since I am only 6 weeks post. I am just excited to grt in shape and toned!

ragenhay1

Saramore10 wrote: »

ragenhay1 wrote: »

Yup. My little guy is 4.5 months. I started working out when he was two months. I'm down 23lbs so far with 57 left to go. I was over weight before I got pregnant.

That is great! Keep up the awesome work, you can do it! What are some recipes you make that are healthy? I always find it hard to think of new healthy meal ideas.

I actually eat the same as I did before just less sweets and treats. It is usually fairly healthy. I do most the cooking so I make meat and veggies mostly. I also go to the gym for an hour five days a week.

tasaiar1

My little guy is 4 months

tasaiar1

Ugh i wrote a long pay and only half got sent

gradchica27

My youngest is 4 months today! I've run and worked out through all of my breastfeeding (14+ mo with previous 3, now again w #4). 11lbs to go (50 down ).

unswin

I'm planning to try and lose some weight while breastfeeding, but probably not much right away since I have been having breastfeeding issues with my little girl. She's about a month old though, so hopefully she'll get the hang of it a little better soon. I've been using MFP to try and make sure I get enough calories (trying to get close to my limit since I can't seem to go over since I had to stop eating dairy and chocolate - that seems to cover my usual vices!). As soon as I'm able though, I do have some extra pounds I'd like to lose.

unswin

ragenhay1 wrote: »

Saramore10 wrote: »

ragenhay1 wrote: »

Yup. My little guy is 4.5 months. I started working out when he was two months. I'm down 23lbs so far with 57 left to go. I was over weight before I got pregnant.

That is great! Keep up the awesome work, you can do it! What are some recipes you make that are healthy? I always find it hard to think of new healthy meal ideas.

I actually eat the same as I did before just less sweets and treats. It is usually fairly healthy. I do most the cooking so I make meat and veggies mostly. I also go to the gym for an hour five days a week.

What do you usually do at the gym? Did you get a personal trainer or anything? I'm really impressed with how much weight you lost since I'd like to eventually lose about 35 lbs or more. Well... I'd be ok with not losing as much if I gained muscle and started looking a lot more toned.

LKArgh

Saramore10 wrote: »

pineygirl wrote: »

I'm still breastfeeding and eating at a least a 500 caloire daily deficit (more like 600 to 900 according to MFP and fitbit...but my metabolism is low because of PCOS).

I'm losing at 1.2/lb per week roughly.

Dieting hasn't impacted my supply much at all. And neither has weightlifting or cardio.

What really killed it was the return of my fertility and a new pregnancy, then miscarriage. All before I started losing weight.

I still make milk. I pump maybe 5oz per day. When I'm home with him and breastfeeding on demand I probably make a little more than that.

My son is 16 months old and eats solids and drinks whole milk, so I'm not relying on it for his sole source of nutrition anymore.

If I were exclusively breastfeeding I'd eat at maintenence and let the breastfeeding create the deficit. And probably not less than 1800 per day (or 1600 if you are petite). And only once supply is well established.

Aw, I am sorry to hear about your miscarriage! I will be 6 weeks post on Monday and I am very excited to get in shape. I more so want to get tone vs. Losing a bunch of weight. I lost most of the weight I gained. I started at 120-125 and went to 153 and I am at 130ish now. I just don't want to hurt my supply because breastfeeding is something I felt strongly about keeping up. I just started keeping track of my calories to make sure I am eating enough and also to help me eat healthier. I have it set at 2500 because of the 500 or so I will lose with feeding.

Your supply will not be affected by losing weight at a reasonable rate (so, do not aim e.g. for 800 calories per day) and will not be affected by exercise, so do not worry. Our body is not that fragile, do not stress about it. Stay hydrated, nurse on demand, do not starve yourself (and I mean literally starve) and you will be fine.
Do not overdo it this early, let your body recover and remember that when you are up all night, a nap is more important than exercising. But, on days when you feel like it, nothing wrong with getting back to whatever exercise routine you prefer. Very intense exercise (like athlete-level training) might affect temporarily your milk taste, but for normal fitness, this should not be a problem at all. Be very carefull to nurse right before leaving the house for the gym or running or whatever you are doing for exercise, or you will end up soaked in milk if your exercise routine becomes intense.

DiamndMnd

aggelikik wrote: »

Saramore10 wrote: »

pineygirl wrote: »

I'm still breastfeeding and eating at a least a 500 caloire daily deficit (more like 600 to 900 according to MFP and fitbit...but my metabolism is low because of PCOS).

I'm losing at 1.2/lb per week roughly.

Dieting hasn't impacted my supply much at all. And neither has weightlifting or cardio.

What really killed it was the return of my fertility and a new pregnancy, then miscarriage. All before I started losing weight.

I still make milk. I pump maybe 5oz per day. When I'm home with him and breastfeeding on demand I probably make a little more than that.

My son is 16 months old and eats solids and drinks whole milk, so I'm not relying on it for his sole source of nutrition anymore.

If I were exclusively breastfeeding I'd eat at maintenence and let the breastfeeding create the deficit. And probably not less than 1800 per day (or 1600 if you are petite). And only once supply is well established.

Aw, I am sorry to hear about your miscarriage! I will be 6 weeks post on Monday and I am very excited to get in shape. I more so want to get tone vs. Losing a bunch of weight. I lost most of the weight I gained. I started at 120-125 and went to 153 and I am at 130ish now. I just don't want to hurt my supply because breastfeeding is something I felt strongly about keeping up. I just started keeping track of my calories to make sure I am eating enough and also to help me eat healthier. I have it set at 2500 because of the 500 or so I will lose with feeding.

Your supply will not be affected by losing weight at a reasonable rate (so, do not aim e.g. for 800 calories per day) and will not be affected by exercise, so do not worry. Our body is not that fragile, do not stress about it. Stay hydrated, nurse on demand, do not starve yourself (and I mean literally starve) and you will be fine.
Do not overdo it this early, let your body recover and remember that when you are up all night, a nap is more important than exercising. But, on days when you feel like it, nothing wrong with getting back to whatever exercise routine you prefer. Very intense exercise (like athlete-level training) might affect temporarily your milk taste, but for normal fitness, this should not be a problem at all. Be very carefull to nurse right before leaving the house for the gym or running or whatever you are doing for exercise, or you will end up soaked in milk if your exercise routine becomes intense.

Thank you for the advice! I haven't begun to work out yet. And yes, I much rather a nap than working out for the time being yet! I am still resting alot even though I am 6 weeks pp. But excited for working out when the time is right!