8 weeks post baby #2

kheinze79
kheinze79 Posts: 9 Member
in Motivation and Support
Hi all! I started using mfp back in January 2013 after I had my first baby in November 2012. I started out at 172 lbs when I gave birth, up 32 lbs from pre pregnancy weight of 140. By October of 2013 I had lost all the baby weight plus an additional 16 lbs! I am 5'4" so at 124 lbs I was very fit with muscle tone from my 5x a week cardio and weights. I went from a size 8 to a size 0 and was ecstatic. I then got pregnant again at the beginning of November and gained 31 lbs with this second pregnancy. It's now 8 weeks since I had my son, and I'm stuck at 140 lbs. I have 16 more to lose to get back to my best shape, do I started doing the same things I did last time - eating a net 1,250 a day calorie diet and exercising including weights 5x a week. I've been stagnant at 140 lbs for a couple weeks so don't understand why its not working this time!?! Any advice or suggestions are much appreciated. Thanks everyone!

Replies

  • kheinze79
    kheinze79 Posts: 9 Member
    Forgot to add I'm 35 years old. Not sure it matters, but maybe because I'm a year and a half older than last time I lost it all it is harder given a slowdown in my metabolism?
  • abigail659
    abigail659 Posts: 63 Member
    I don't have any advice but I would love to hear some if given. I'm 29 and have had 2 kids. I started my journey at 156 and now at 138ish. I'm looking to get down to 125ish but with a tone/defined look. Good luck!
  • Jennloella
    Jennloella Posts: 2,286 Member
    yeah it gets harder as you get older. Keep doing what you're doing you just need time. My two youngest are 10.5 months apart. It's hard on the body! I always come out under prepreg weight though because I get so sick, but I lose a lot of muscle so my goals are to tone back up and regain strength/stamina. My youngest is 3 months. The only things I'd wonder about for you are: if you are brestfeeding 1250 a day is not enough, may not be enough anyway considering your workouts. Sleep is important. With two that young how is your sleep? It seems counter intuitive but you'd be surprised at what a bump in cals and thereby fueling your workouts better can do, sometimes it's just what you need to get over a slump.good luck ;)
  • kheinze79
    kheinze79 Posts: 9 Member
    Thanks Jennloella! I'm not breastfeeding anymore, but I am wondering if I'm not eating enough still. Good point on the sleep too - I get about 5-6 hours. I work full time (about 60 hours a week), and my husband is a stay at home dad so I usually get home from work around 8pm (I leave at 7am), play with my daughter then put her to bed at 9pm, eat dinner and then get the baby up at 11pm to feed him and then in bed by 12am. Wake up at 5-6am. Repeat everyday. How many calories do you think I should bump up?
  • jenlei7231
    jenlei7231 Posts: 23 Member
    edited October 2014
    You may need to up your calories. You are a busy woman with two kids (mine are 6 & 7), so your activity level is going to be high anyway. Try using the TDEE Calculator to recalculate your calorie intake.
    http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/
  • kheinze79
    kheinze79 Posts: 9 Member
    Thanks jenlei7231! Do you think I should bump up to around 1,400 net a day or more? I'm so afraid to bump up and have it backfire on me, but I'm so sick of being in this plateau.
  • aliwhalen
    aliwhalen Posts: 150 Member
    Have you tried calorie cycling? I found it helped me get over the hump. Congrats on your little one!
  • vettle
    vettle Posts: 621 Member
    Just going to echo that you should try eating more. It likely won't backfire on you. Back before I had kids I was stuck at 145 eating 1300 calories for a month after losing 15 lbs. I increased to 1600 after looking up the proper BMR and AMR and I continued to lose the rest and got down to 130. Then I got pregnant and have since been breastfeeding and it seems all logic goes out the door now with that! But try that first!
  • rslcarson
    rslcarson Posts: 35 Member
    Don't be afraid to up your calorie intake, I did and now I seriously wonder why I bothered around the 1200 in the first place!
    Try it for a few weeks and if your not pleased with it then change again. As always, make sure you're getting enough protein.
  • kheinze79
    kheinze79 Posts: 9 Member
    aliwhalen - I tried cycling a little last week, but find it very hard to do less than 900 net cals without feeling really sick, so was hoping not to have to keep doing that to break the plateau.

    jenlei7231 - I recalculated my stats and my BMR is 1312 and TDEE is 1919. So I guess taking 20% off the TDEE would suggest I should eat 1,535. That is net calories correct?

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