New Moms...breastfeeding & trying to lose weight

ngozi82

Hello all,

I have an 8 week old baby and just started exercising. I have also been counting my calories. I gained 32 lbs during pregnancy and have only lost 15lbs so I still have 17 more lbs to go plus the 8lbs left from baby #1. I am so hungry while breastfeeding and cant seem to lose a pound even though I have been staying within my calories and exercising. I just started the Insanity program and hope to see results.

lovecola06

Hi fellow mommies, and a HUGE welcome to the new people:flowerforyou:

Congratulations for making the decision to lose weight while breastfeeding. It is a little bit more challenging, but our lil ones are definitely worth the extra effort

@ngozi82, I did the Insanity program a few months ago and it is super intense! I was very pleased by the extra definition & weight/inch loss results I got in the 2 months of the program. You are really brave - I started out with Debbie's Slim in 6 weeks program right after having my baby to kind of "ease into" working out.. As long as you push yourself to your own personal limit(don't worry about what the people on the videos are doing), you will get great results. Good luck!! Don't forget to fuel your body with healthy food b/c you have to ensure that you're getting enough calories to keep up your milk supply. Just to give you an idea - I ate about 2300 calories(losing 1-2lbs/week) while I was doing Insanity & some people still thought that was too low b/c of the 500 extra for breastfeeding... You'll know if your supply starts going down that you need to up your calories..

@jambandjunkie- same advice- you can do a strenuous workout without any issues with your milk supply as long as you are eating enough calories. Some people think that you have to choose weight loss over breastfeeding but it's just not true. If your supply starts going down, up those calories! I usually up it by 100-150calories for a few days while pumping/nursing a bit more often/regularly whenever my supply starts to get low.. Good luck!

My second baby boy is now 9-months old(eating solids & breastmilk) & I'm still trying to lose another 10-15lbs. I love making friends with other mommies. Feel free to message me/ add me as a friend for extra advice/encouragement:flowerforyou:

CAlivinMO

I'd like to join in on the breastfeeding mommy support! My daughter is 6 1/2 months and we are exclusivly breastfeeding, no solids yet. I've been working out since 5 weeks pp. I lost all but 10 lbs but then have gained back 5 and fluctuate by 5lbs...so basically I hav 15 to go. I was a my best and lowest weight before pregnancy, I was pretty ideal body fat % so that may be why I am keeping lbs on, my body is actually at it's "ideal" weight though it's not MY ideal I plan on breastfeeding just past a year but if i'm this hungry all the time, I'll never loose weight I'm not sure how "joining" the group works but I'd like to be included in sharing the weightloss journey! Thanks!

edited to add...question: I've heard that some people keep weight on, anyone else not loose any weight by breastfeeding? It's so frustrating when you've heard that it's the best way to loose weight!

Summerleahd

I lost all the weight I gained with the pregnancy with her. And then it stalled trying to get the weight off from my first pregnancy. And now that she is eating mostly solids during the day and nursing once or twice at night, my weight loss has started again. I had to decrease my calories bc I couldn't get away with eating the extra 500 anymore. So now I just stay between 1500-1800.

silversong24

I seem to have found the balance that works well for me and my little guy. I guess 1900 calories is the magic number, 1400 for me and 500 for him lol. This last Monday I weighed in at my pre-pregnancy weight for this one, and this Monday I should begin into the area of my lowest weight in a little over six years! If I can get to my goal weight of 140 then that will be around my pre-pregnancy weight for my second baby, as well as in the range of having a healthy BMI. Overall I am a little over halfway to healthy now!!!

Rachel1913

Great to see other breastfeeding mothers. My little guy is now 11 months old and I'm considering whether or not to wean him at a year. I'm one of those who just seem to hang on to the weight until I wean. After I weaned my daughter at 14 months, the weight came off pretty easily. I'm doing C25K and 30 day shred as well as trying to eat well to see if I can be successful at losing without weaning.

eab12191

I would love to add some of you, as I am also a mommy to a 6 month old

CAlivinMO

You can add me! My daughter is 6 1/2 months so we're about the same stage I never thought this would be helpful but I've found I need support from other people who are in the same boat as me right now. I'm one of those whose weight wont budge so this is my next try

lovecola06

I'd like to join in on the breastfeeding mommy support! My daughter is 6 1/2 months and we are exclusivly breastfeeding, no solids yet. I've been working out since 5 weeks pp. I lost all but 10 lbs but then have gained back 5 and fluctuate by 5lbs...so basically I hav 15 to go. I was a my best and lowest weight before pregnancy, I was pretty ideal body fat % so that may be why I am keeping lbs on, my body is actually at it's "ideal" weight though it's not MY ideal I plan on breastfeeding just past a year but if i'm this hungry all the time, I'll never loose weight I'm not sure how "joining" the group works but I'd like to be included in sharing the weightloss journey! Thanks!

edited to add...question: I've heard that some people keep weight on, anyone else not loose any weight by breastfeeding? It's so frustrating when you've heard that it's the best way to loose weight!

I think that every woman is a little bit different on this topic. I found it super easy to lose weight while breastfeeding for my first son. Now, with my 9-month old, I have to fight for every single pound that I lose. I originally started out eating 1800calories+500 for breastfeeding=2300calories without adding in my exercise calories at all. In the last month, since I am within 10-15lbs of my goal weight, I started being more precise. I generally eat about 1850 calories plus whatever my exercise calories are(usally about 300-600 using HRM). That formula has been working pretty well for me right now, but if it stops working... I'll make more adjustments. I think that you shouldn't aim to lose any more than about 1 lb/ week while you're breastfeeding unless you have a significant amount of weight to lose. Good luck figuring out the right balance!

silversong24

Hi ladies,
As time goes on I find I have another question and am looking for your opinions. The last few weeks I have not been as hungry and my LO has begun eating periodically throughout the day, but only small amounts. Eating to meet my calories that I have been at is making me feel over-full and sluggish, so I am thinking about dropping down to 300 cals/day for nursing instead of 500. My question is, should I move it down for now, or should I play it by instinct, because I really don't feel like he is eating that much solid foods yet, so maybe I should bounce it around depending on how he eats that day (i.e. 300 cals one day and 500 the next, depending on what he eats)?

debnu1

In my opinion. I would cut it down to 300 extra and then allow yourself the extra200 if you are still hungry at the end of the day.

silversong24

In my opinion. I would cut it down to 300 extra and then allow yourself the extra200 if you are still hungry at the end of the day.

That's what I opted to do. Gonna try it for a few days and see how it works out. Even with the 300 cals I still feel full lol.

lovecola06

I recently cut back my calories a little bit, since my almost 10-month old FINALLY started sleeping through the nite. I definitely think that you should base your calories on how your energy level is. I would lower my calories by 150-200 at a time & check on how you feel. I've made adjustments using this method several times, and I haven't had any trouble keeping my weight loss going as well as my milk supply.. Good luck!

silversong24

Thanks! I sure wish mine would sleep through the night lol!!

erinmichelle85

Not that I want anyone to struggle to lose their baby weight while breast feeding, I'm SO glad I'm not alone! My daughter just turned one and we are beginning weaning. I'm really hoping for some drastic body/weight changes. A couple months after she was born I went back to my doctor, freaking out, because everyone told me that nursing would "melt the baby weight"... not so much for me. My doctor told me that since I was eating so restrictively prior to my pregnancy, I gained fast and my body clung to it, thinking it would go into famine again. Then instead of being one of the lucky ones who drop tons of weight simply from breast feeding, my lovely body thought it needed to store extra fat. Nice. So anyway, I feel you pain and I'm almost excited to wean- I want my smaller body back!

andbam

Have any other breastfeeding moms dealt with a baby would absolutely refuses to take a bottle? I attended a wedding a week ago, and leading up to the day I pumped enough for his evening feeding, which I was going to miss. Long story short, I had to leave the wedding and go home to feed him. When I got there I tried to give him the bottle as well and he screamed to the point of almost not breathing and refused to keep it in his mouth. I'm just worried that I'll never be able to leave him for more than a few hours and that when it comes time to weening he is going to refuse to take a bottle again. Any advice??

mestacy010

Had my son august 12... and I plan on brestfeeding until he is a year old, its great to see other moms on herein the same boat as me!!!!

mestacy010

Of course I'm new on here, trying to figure everything out

lovecola06

andbam, my baby absolutely refused to take the bottle for about 3 months before he finally caved in and ate. At first, I would come home at lunchtime & that would be all he ate that day. It just depends on how much you really want him to eat from a bottle... We decided to wait our son out, b/c it wasn't realistic for me to continue to come home at lunchtime and feed him. It took about 4 solid weeks before he ate heartily from a bottle.. of course, I was still breastfeeding him when I got home from work & at nighttime(throughout the nite) so he wasn't starving. If your baby is old enough, try using a sippy cup- some breastfed babies like those better than the bottle- you could also spoon-feed the milk to your baby or use a dropper if you're really worried. I would recommend feeding him solids if he is old enough, and he can fill up on real food so he doesn't require as much milk. i hope you figure out something that will work- good luck!:flowerforyou:

andbam

Thank your for your advice lovecola06. My son is about a week shy of being 5 months old so he's not quite ready for solids yet. At the moment it seems like he's teething, or so a public health nurse thought, so I'm thinking that when those first teeth come in I'll have to switch to a bottle. He's already chomping down and pulling his head way back while eating so I can't imagine how I'll be able to continue once he's got chompers! I may try using a spoon just to see if that would work.

bloodbank

Thank your for your advice lovecola06. My son is about a week shy of being 5 months old so he's not quite ready for solids yet. At the moment it seems like he's teething, or so a public health nurse thought, so I'm thinking that when those first teeth come in I'll have to switch to a bottle. He's already chomping down and pulling his head way back while eating so I can't imagine how I'll be able to continue once he's got chompers! I may try using a spoon just to see if that would work.

Just a heads up, there is no reason to wean simply because a child gets teeth. If he's biting, it's likely due to teething pain. Fix the pain, the biting stops. That said, a properly latched child actively nursing cannot bite.

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/older-baby/biting.html