Meal prep & breast feeding?

Heyyy!
Looking for others here who are trying to lose weight & tone while also breast feeding!
Needing tips on what to eat to ensure I keep my supply up as well as tips for meal prep ideas!

Replies

  • kyrasymington
    kyrasymington Posts: 1 Member
    Oats are a healthy option plus really good for milk supply! Plus just lots of fruit and veg it’s super hard to lose weight whilst breastfeeding you just need to eat the right stuff cut out the sugary snacks (which we all crave whilst feeding) and make sensible changes (brown bread/rice/pasta alternatives instead of white) and don’t forget water lots of water to help keep supply up. Good luck x
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    When I meal prepped I used to make four servings with chicken done one way, and four done another way, plus rice for one and potatoes for the other. With the potatoes meal I made broccoli fresh as I don't like it reheated. I also made a bunch of hard boiled eggs for snacks, and kept baby carrots and cheese or hummus in the frig at work and nuts in my desk. (I work from home these days.)

    Casseroles, soups, and stews are great make ahead dishes that usually freeze well. I eat more of that in the colder weather though.

    This time of year my OH grills boneless meat while I do the starch and veggies.
  • geauxtigerlily
    geauxtigerlily Posts: 75 Member
    I made a ton of lactation muffins while breastfeeding and kept them in the freezer. I had a variety of blueberry, banana chocolate chip, pumpkin, cinnamon - but they all contained oats, flax seed, and brewer's yeast.

    I wasn't as good about prepping my other meals, but I least I had breakfast and some snacks down with the muffins!
  • lrober11
    lrober11 Posts: 4 Member
    I’m in your same boat! You don’t need to cut calories as much as focusing on your nutrition & cutting out inflammatory foods. By doing that you’ll tone & lose the belly flab without starving! It’s so underrated the amount of protein nursing women need so I’ve been eating quality proteins (grassfed/organic), eggs, & drinking bone broth. I make lactation muffins or cookies for breakfast with clean ingredients & the galactagogues! Then lots of leafy greens help with supply too.
  • nykoeldkahn
    nykoeldkahn Posts: 14 Member
    When I was breastfeeding, the main thing that I found that helped me was doing the calculation for my new TDEE taking breastfeeding into account. Then I modified my intake to keep to that limit. For me, I mostly found that not cutting carbs and staying well hydrated were the keys to keeping my supply up.

    There are a few great websites to help calculate your TDEE while breastfeeding. Here's a link to one that I used:

    http://fittobepregnant.com/pregnancy-breastfeeding-calorie-calculator/

    As far as actual food, overnight oats were great - I would throw in a couple spoonfuls of flax seed to the batch and they worked even better. I normally make a large bowlful on Sunday nights, and portion it out into mason jars so that I can just grab one and throw it in my bag to eat at my desk once I'm at work.

    Also - they are really underrated but lentil dishes are also fantastic for meal prep. There are number of really good indian/pakistani type lentil dishes that you can make in large batches in an instantpot. Serve with some rice and you have a really health source of protein and fiber.

    Finally, this time of year I've really big on meal prepping salads, I'll grill enough chicken, fish, steak, etc., for the week and toss it in a pyrex with some greens, carrots/peppers/cucumber/whatever veg I have around, and bring some salad dressing or hummus in a separate container.

    Hope this helps!