How many calories while breastfeeding?

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drmommy09
drmommy09 Posts: 8 Member
edited February 17 in Getting Started
I am 5 ft tall and currently weigh 117. I'd like to lose only a few more lbs and increase muscle. I am breastfeeding a 5 mth old, though not exclusively. How many calories should I be consuming?

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  • victoria_1024
    victoria_1024 Posts: 915 Member
    Probably quite a few extra, though it may be some trial and error. When I was exclusively BFing, I was eating 500 extra calories a day and that still wasn't really enough (the weight was coming off very quickly and my milk supply was going down). Now I am nursing my toddler about 4 times a day and I add 200 calories to my day for that and my weight loss has been steady. There is actually a way to log BFing on the MFP database so check that out!

    I am not an expert on this, but if a big part of your goal is increasing muscle you probably don't want to eat too far below maintenance. If you eat too little, you will not be able to gain the muscle you need.
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