Breastfeeding moms or BTDT moms

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EleeseahM
EleeseahM Posts: 15 Member
in Food and Nutrition
How many calories does it burn? I EBF so i generally nurse 8 times a day. I can't say how much she gets but if she takes a bottle its usually 4oz. Not to mention I'll do 1 morning pump and get about 12oz. I normally just eat 1200 calories since i havent been doing anything physical due to my c section. Now that i have been cleared im ready to jump back in. I was going to stick to 1200 calories but exercise on top of breastfeeding i may need more. Any thoughts on exactly how many?

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  • JackieMarie1989jgw
    JackieMarie1989jgw Posts: 230 Member
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    If you are exclusively breastfeeding it is about 500 calories a day. If you type breastfeeding into the food diary, it will show up as negative 500 calories and you add it to your diary every day, it gives you more to eat.
  • JackieMarie1989jgw
    JackieMarie1989jgw Posts: 230 Member
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    So if you want to eat 1200 (you might be able to have more than that an still lose) add your breastfeeding calories every day and eat a minimum of 1700. Make sure to do this every day because if you arent gettting enough to eat your supply can drop!
  • sarahthes
    sarahthes Posts: 3,252 Member
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    Typically you shouldn't go below 1800 calories or so when breastfeeding to ensure a good milk supply. For a very young baby you need at least 300 calories for breastfeeding. From about 4 months to 9-10 months it's more like 500+ and then it slowly drops as baby gets more solids and nurses less.

    If you do go lower, start at 1800 and drop by 100 calories a week. As long as your energy levels are good and baby is getting enough (diaper counts are the best way to tell along with weight checks), you are good to go.
  • EleeseahM
    EleeseahM Posts: 15 Member
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    I didn't know that. Ill be sure to up my calories to keep my supply and energy up.
  • JackieMarie1989jgw
    JackieMarie1989jgw Posts: 230 Member
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    While my son was exclusively breastfeeding, I ate around 1900/day and still lost weight.
  • EleeseahM
    EleeseahM Posts: 15 Member
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    Did you also exercise?
  • JackieMarie1989jgw
    JackieMarie1989jgw Posts: 230 Member
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    Actually, no. I wish I had so I could have been more toned, but that was just from calorie counting alone.
  • EleeseahM
    EleeseahM Posts: 15 Member
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    I don't want to burn to much. My new eating plan is vegetarian and i am noticing everything that i can eat has very few calories.
  • tacticalhippie
    tacticalhippie Posts: 596 Member
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    I tried to net about 1700-1900 calories a day.
    I exclusivley pumped, so I would multiply my ounces by 15 to get the number of calories to subtract/log as exercise.
    I also logged my exercise.
    I think they say the average is about 500 calories.

    Make sure to stay hydrated!!
  • perkymommy
    perkymommy Posts: 1,642 Member
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    You should have the option to put breastfeeding in your profile when you set it up. And I agree with staying hydrated. I loved breastfeeding and miss it.
  • MermaidAmanda10
    MermaidAmanda10 Posts: 63 Member
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    I am still breastfeeding my 10 month old. She doesnt take a bottle so i only breastfeed. I add 300 calories extra to my calorie goal to make up for breastfeeding. It is also helpful to eat those extra calories for my milk supply.
  • robot_potato
    robot_potato Posts: 1,535 Member
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    I am breastfeeding my 7.5 month old. I eat 1850 a day, sometimes i eat exercise cals, sometimes not. I've lost 26 pounds since dec 27. I was eating 2000 up until mid march. I don't log breastfeeding at all, but my supply is still strong (i had oversupply issues in the beginning).
  • LKArgh
    LKArgh Posts: 5,179 Member
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    EleeseahM wrote: »
    How many calories does it burn? I EBF so i generally nurse 8 times a day. I can't say how much she gets but if she takes a bottle its usually 4oz. Not to mention I'll do 1 morning pump and get about 12oz. I normally just eat 1200 calories since i havent been doing anything physical due to my c section. Now that i have been cleared im ready to jump back in. I was going to stick to 1200 calories but exercise on top of breastfeeding i may need more. Any thoughts on exactly how many?

    Breastfeeding a newborn burns about 300 calories, as baby gets older it increases up to about 500.
    Up your calories a bit and just see how things go and reevaluate every few weeks. If you are losing too fast, eat more. If you feel too tired, eat more.

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