6 months - 29lbs - thank you MFP and breasfeeding!

jillianwsu

Happy anniversary MFP - we have been dating for 6months exactly!

On June 6, 2012 I logged into MFP for the first time, weighing 172 lbs and wearing size 12 pants (I'm 5'8"). I gave birth to my beautiful little girl on March 1st, and the baby weight was off within 1 month and I was back to my baseline 172lbs. And it just stayed there...despite my lack of excersie and eating all the wonderfully delcious and calorie-packed food that family and friends keep bringing us, I should have been gaining weight but I wasn't.

In June I decided I really needed to take advantage of breastfeeding, which burns up to 600 calories per day. I jumped on the MFP bandwagon and religiously counted every calorie that went into my mouth. I didn't cut out any specific foods, I just made myself aware of what I was eating. MFP held me accoutable for my actions. I think I was in denial about how much I was acutally eating.

I am now 143lbs and a size 6, which just seems so unreal to me!! This is what I weighed in high school! I have never sucussfully lost weight since going to college and gaining the freshman 15, then the grad school 15. While I was extatic about having a baby, I was also worried I would gain even weight that I would never lose. Little did I know that it would acutally help me lose weight.

So to all those new and expecting moms out there - BREASFEED YOUR BABIES!!! There are so many advantages. It is the very best nutrition for your precious baby, it provides wonderful boding time, it is free, and it can really help you lose weight. I have heard some women say that breastfeeding didn't help them get the weight off, so it doesn't work for everyone. But I think with reasonalbe diet and exercise plan, breastfeeding will help tip the scale in your direction!

Good luck to everyone out there on your weight loss journey!!

Sparlingo

Thanks for sharing and congratulations on the success!

I hope to have a similar story soon, but I was a little late getting on the mfp bandwagon - my baby was born on June 8, and I didn't start mfp until November 10 (well, I started earlier but forgot I had an account and didn't start logging until then).

Unfortunately, my beautiful little girl was early, and they had me supplementing with formula since day one. Something happened and my own production dropped off and my baby girl wasn't gaining weight - eventually I had to wean her from the breast because I was basically dry (within the last two weeks). Part of me felt like I had failed, and even another part of me thought that there'd be no way I could lose the baby weight now (plus the additional 25 lbs I'm sporting). I had a change of attitude, though, and tracking has helped me to stop feeling powerless and move my butt while eating better!

So while I'd echo your encouragement for new moms to breastfeed, I just wanted to throw in the conversation that if you, for whatever reason, are unable to breastfeed, don't despair! Your body wants to shed those extra pounds, so if you're diligent it will happen, even if it's a slow progress.

Mine is slower than I would like, but I've got the rest of my life to do this thing right! There's no deadline and I'm headed in the right direction.

hlpatton

Congrats!

I'm also a breastfeeding momma to a 5 month old! I was disappointed to not magically lose weight at first. I kept wondering when the pounds would magically melt off from breastfeeding. Once I started logging daily I realized I was eating A TON!

Any chance you would be willing to post photos of your success? Also, did your stomach tone up well postpartum? Mine is still "jiggly"!

Sapporo

I effortlessly lost 20 extra lbs on top of the pregnancy weight within 2 months of my baby being born due to breastfeeding. I know this because when she got older and started eating more and more solids instead of the milk the weight started to slowly creep back on.
Congrats on the weight loss!

lirr10185

Great job, very inspiring! That is exactly what I am trying to do. You are lucky that breastfeeding worked so well for you. I had so many problems and my body held on to every pound of baby weight until I stopped. I started at 175 and now finally starting to see some results, only 10 pounds but its a start.