6 packs and breastfeeding- Is it possible?

Imanido
Imanido Posts: 186 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have these 2 theories in my head:
- One is that for milk production the body needs the fat and as long as you have any fat "over your 6 packs" you will never see them, so you will never know they are there.
- The other one is that to be able to see the 6 packs you will have to go that low in your fat percentage that you will stop your milk supply.

Therefore I am wondering myself: Is it really possible to have 6 packs while breastfeeding?

Any mums out there that can talk by experience? Any good articles about research being done? How close have you been, how low did you get your body fat while still keeping your milk supply? (Any photos would be also appreciated, "if any").

Replies

  • Imanido
    Imanido Posts: 186 Member
    bump
  • Farburnfred
    Farburnfred Posts: 333 Member
    My guess would be no..but will do some research..
  • 75in2013
    75in2013 Posts: 361 Member
    Why would anybody want a sixpack while breastfeeding? It's already difficult to maintain a sixpack during "normal" periods in life.

    I doubt that you'll find any serious research on that topic.
  • joyfulinga
    joyfulinga Posts: 17 Member
    When I was nursing my 3 sons, my doctor told me to drink lots of fluids to sustain a good milk supply. I was on a 1,200 calorie per day diet and it didn't affect my supply at all. Try lowering your food to 1,500 and see how it goes. If it goes well, drop it to 1,200 and see what happens.
  • Farburnfred
    Farburnfred Posts: 333 Member
    I looked up about body fat % when breastfeeding.. Most research seems to concentrate on weight rather than fat loss per se..

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/512606-breastfeeding-body-fat-percentage/
    http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=119734041&page=1
  • Imanido
    Imanido Posts: 186 Member
    I looked up about body fat % when breastfeeding.. Most research seems to concentrate on weight rather than fat loss per se..

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/512606-breastfeeding-body-fat-percentage/
    http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=119734041&page=1

    Nothing too specific. Probably there is not that much research done about the subject. Actually I would have thought that in the BBing forum there would be more answers to that subject. But thanks for posting it. I completely forgot about checking there.
  • Imanido
    Imanido Posts: 186 Member
    Why would anybody want a sixpack while breastfeeding? It's already difficult to maintain a sixpack during "normal" periods in life.

    I doubt that you'll find any serious research on that topic.

    I have 2 little ones and I am still breastfeeding, quite likely for still quite a while as I am practising extended breastfeeding, that means I will give breast until they wean themselves (not the normal "6 months" ). As I started weight training some months ago, I was wondering how far can I push, (in a healthy way) without losing the milk?, is it really possible?.

    But then the bodybuilding forum thread open for me another question. Whether it is actually more difficult to lose fat while breastfeeding?. While doing weight training for the past 4 months, I have lost at least 1 cloth size (in volume) I can see more muscle definition but I haven't dropped a pound. So now another question that opens for me, could the body actually hold the weight/fat while breastfeeding?
    I wish there was some research done, but I guess not so many women take that route. And, to be honest, I don't think we are designed by nature to be building muscle while nursing another human being.
  • BrittanyynattirB
    BrittanyynattirB Posts: 11
    actual breast feeding makes you lose weight so yeah its very possble
  • Imanido
    Imanido Posts: 186 Member
    actual breast feeding makes you lose weight so yeah its very possble
    Well, that is a bit subjective (in theory, yes). In practise, I actually put on weight after coming back to my normal weight, and that was because of making poor diet choices due to stress. Breast feeding is not a magical pill.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    I have lost at least 1 cloth size (in volume) I can see more muscle definition but I haven't dropped a pound.

    Breastfeeding or not you wont lose very much weight from weight training, but you will lose a lot of bodyfat, hence the dropping dress sizes but not scale weight.
  • Imanido
    Imanido Posts: 186 Member

    Breastfeeding or not you wont lose very much weight from weight training, but you will lose a lot of bodyfat, hence the dropping dress sizes but not scale weight.

    I know that, I have been adding cardio and carb cycling in the last weeks to get lean, but I haven't dropped as much as I was expecting. So I am wondering how much breastfeeding affects when you lose weight, I guess women in fitness must go through the same process a few times in their lifes.
  • mariarobey
    mariarobey Posts: 1 Member
    I am breastfeeding a 13mo and in the gym. I put in everything I eat into myfitpal. The first 8mo i didnt limit myself at all. I was eating about 2400 a day. I started limiting calories somewhat at the beginning of this summer and increasing my fitness level. I improved my condition and people tell me all the time ive lost so much weight...but I weigh EXACTLY the same as i did 6wk pp. I have an athletic apple body type...where i could b an hourglass if i had a smaller waist. I have gone through all the stages...yes even the pillowly puffy fat on arms and thighs from the bf...but i am finally leaning out. I now have myfit pal set at 1700. Some days I eat a little more. Some days less. THE BIG change was my diet. I set the nutrition on myfitpal for a 30/30/40 split. Thats when i noticed huge changes. The higher carb diet works when your exclusively bfeeding but for extended bf you dont need as many carbs to make milk...and you do need protein to make muscle. I cant tell you exactly how much muscle ive put on but even post c i am doing many kinds of sit ups, plank, burpees, pushups and many fit exercises that i couldnt do after my first pregnancy. My current wk is bootcamp type class 3x a week, muscle max class 1x a week plus being a busy mom. When I hit a wall ill change it up. When I was pregnant my very favorite class was the piloxing and i could do that one everyday! I have a background in fitness for 14 years and have trained myself in the past. Im just in a place in recovery where I benefit from group exercise. So far I have improved my condition and fitness but that scale does not budge! I did try a limited calorie but I didnt feel good and I didnt enjoy my workouts. So im not a bfeeding expert but i need more calories now than i did pregnant. I logged my whole pregnancy and ate 1200 calories until 35 weeks

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