Are there any nursing moms?

melgirl1120

Hello,
My name is Melissa, I have been using MFP off and on for a few years now but never really posted much.
I am a new mom and my baby girl is now 9 weeks and I am definately ready to lose this baby fat...I gained 60lbs (baby #4) of that she weighed 11lbs 8oz...lol I am trying to eat better and watch calories and excercise. Just not too sure on what my calories should be a day, I am allowing myself 1400 calories, I weigh 220 and I am 5'4"
I was also just reading some threads about the mirena which I just got last week and hope it doesn't hinder my weightloss efforts.
A few years ago I lost 50lbs with the help of MFP and another diet plan so having this weight back on is really depressing :yawn:

Thanks for any help or advice

jenren85

Just don't forget: if you are a nursing mom, your body tends to "hold on" to weight a bit more! And that's okay! I am still nursing my 13 month old (3rd baby). I just now feel like I've lost "all" my baby weight. Exercise really helps. When I used MFP during the first few months, I tracked my nursing habits as well (that builds in the extra calories you need). Now, since she's so old, I don't do that anymore.
Hope you have great luck!

ahmommy

I was a nursing mom, but unfortunately not anymore (although that doesn't have anything to do with me restricting calories). Be careful about eating too few calories - I wouldn't go less than 1800 while you're nursing. If you're exclusively nursing, you use up about 500 calories a day - these are the calories going into your milk to feed your baby. If you restrict your calories too much, it will cause your milk supply to decrease.

I was able to lose all of my baby weight while nursing this time, but not after my first. I think every time it's different. After my first, I felt like my body was hanging on to those extra pounds. This time the weight melted off, but I gained some back when I stopped nursing. Now I'm trying to lose those few pounds I regained, and get in shape.

Good luck, you can do this! And congratulations on your baby girl! My baby is almost 6 months old now!

melgirl1120

Thank You!! I wish my weight would just melt off...lol that has never happend for me. Is 1400 calories to low? I am exclusively BF but I really want to lose this weight too, I also excercise. Good Luck on losing your last few lbs and on your baby also :flowerforyou:

runzalot81

If you exercise, 1400 is definitely too low! Someone else said 1800 and that sounds about right.

ahmommy

Thank You!! I wish my weight would just melt off...lol that has never happend for me. Is 1400 calories to low? I am exclusively BF but I really want to lose this weight too, I also excercise. Good Luck on losing your last few lbs and on your baby also :flowerforyou:

Yes, I think you should aim for 1800 net. That means if you exercise, you need to eat back those calories too. Think about it this way - if you weren't nursing, it would be like eating only 1300 calories instead of 1800. If you only eat 1400 calories, then take away 500 for nursing, you're only netting 900 calories a day. I would be worried that your supply would drop. Trust me, I understand how badly you want to lose that weight, but not at the cost of losing your milk. That being said, try tracking a normal day of meals first. Just see how many calories you're getting when you're not really watching it. I did and I found that I wasn't going much past 1800, and I was full and satisfied. I'm sure that was in part because I cut out dairy (as it turns out, my baby is intolerant to milk and soy). There's a lot you can't have when you don't eat dairy! But you might find that you're not really eating too much. Or you might be like me after my first - perpetually starving.

It took me 2+ years to lose the weight after ODD was born. Part of that was because I just didn't know how to lose weight and I was in denial for a long time that I was actually going to have to work hard at it.

Just remember, 9 months on, 9 months off. It's not an overnight thing. Slow and steady wins the race.

erinlea75

Nursing my 13 month old, 3rd baby. Only 1-2 times a day now though.

I think the key to figuring out the right amount of calories and exercising is to see how it affects your mulk supply. If you're getting too few calories or exercising too much, your supply may very well drop.

amanda_ataraxia

It definitely takes some trial and error when you are nursing. Not everyone is the same.
I found that cutting my calories made my supply drop, but eating a fair amount (2000) and then creating the deficit through exercise did not hurt my supply.
Good luck to you!

wabecca

I don't know your weight and height, but 1400 sounds very low for someone who is nursing a 9 week old. I would figure out how many calories you need to lose 1lb a week and then add 500 on top of that number. I am 5'6 and was 150lbs when I first started and was eating 2000 calories a day and still losing weight thanks to breastfeeding. Now I am 135lbs and my 13 mo old is still nursing and maintaining my weight with 2100-2200 calories a day. HTH!

wabecca

You just have to be careful because you don't want your supply to drop

Kimberly121

If you are exclusively breastfeeding, type in breastfeeding into the food search and select the option that gives you -500 cals. This way, you will eat for your milk supply off the top. So in essence, you will be eating 1900 cals, but your food goal will say 1400. HTH, don't be afraid to eat! I have lost 62lbs and counting since I delivered 9 months ago and I am still nursing.

Willbenchforcupcakes

I'm nursing my 10 month old. I'm now 31 pounds below pre pregnancy from her. What has worked for me is setting my profile to lose 1 pound a week (although I'm now set at 1/2 lb/week), and adding back in breastfeeding calories in my food diary.

ElviraCross

I have a 10 month old that I breastfeed. I lost all of my baby weight. I eat 1830 calories and I eat my exercise calories back.

I'm also on Mirena and it has not hindered my weight loss at all. Feel free to add me.

Mindmovesbody

Hi there! I'm nursing my 10 month old ( baby #3) I am back at pre pregnancy weight ( from her) but still trying to get back to where I was before my second pregnancy! I am set to lose 1 lb a week and then I add in my breast feeding calories. If I do not exercise, I use my breast feeding as my deficit. In the beginning I tried 1280 calories ( where MFP had me) and my milk supply definitely took a hit. I am 5'4" as well. I would say make sure you NET 1800 calories at the end of each day. Do this for a month and see how it goes. Listen to your body! Good Luck!!! :flowerforyou:

Edit to add: I had Mirena put in back in February or March...it has not hindered my weight loss. Also, no other weird side effects!

drakehj

Hi there! I am also nursing my 9 week old son. So far, the weight isn't falling off like I thought it would. I am going to try and watching my diet a little more (especially on the weekends). I was curious how to account for breastfeeding as well.

So everyone just adds a "generic" 500 calories per day to their diet since there is no setting on MFP to account for nursing? I am confused as to whether I should set my account to "lose 1lb per week" and then add in an imaginary 500calories per day I can eat. Or should I try to customize my settings. For example right now MFP states I should aim for 1270calories. Should I customize that for 1800 calories or leave the settings alone and then aim to get 1800 per day?

Thanks!!