Nursing Mothers, How Much are you Eating?

I'm currently nursing my almost 9-month old, she's nursing 4x a day, plus 3 meals. I have my calorie goal settings set at 1200 kcal a day, and then under "cardio" i add in 500 kcal for nursing, so I eat a total of 1700 a day if I don't exercise. This is my 4th baby, and in my own experience my milk supply has always been good so long as I drank a lot of water. The amount of Kcal only made a big difference for my milk supply if I was under 1500/day. However, with your baby being so young right now I'd wait to cut your calories until your baby is 5-6wks old, for now just eat when you're hungry and drink a lot of water. In the past with my other kids I've been able to eat up to about 2000 and still lose weight, and 2500 and maintain weight fairly well.

Also.... my goal weight is the same as yours, and i'm about 8-10lbs away. My pregnancy weight was also about the same as yours, and i've been on and off on this "calorie counting" thing since she was about 10 weeks old, and just re-started....my weight loss (and gain) has come in ebbs and flows - so don't worry, it'll come!

I had my 5th baby 7 months ago. I gained just about the same amount of weight that you did. I got my tubes tied and when I brought my daughter in for her first appointment, my doctor cautioned me about trying to lose weight right away. It is good to eat normally and drink enough water for the first three months while you are healing and building your supply. I had never been told this before! It was really nice to just be okay with where I was until I was able to lose. I have my calories set at just under 1700 then I add about 200 for nursing. I know I should probably add a little more, but I have a lot of weight to lose. Even eating 1900 and drinking all that water, I have to go over my calories 1 or 2 days on the weekend to build my supply back up. I have managed to lose 1.5lbs a week. Sometimes it is closer to 3lbs. I realized that on those weeks where my body lets go of more weight that I needed to eat a lil bit more to keep my supply. Give yourself time and then play around with your calories. You'll find a happy medium Congrats on the lil one!

5ft
sw 247lbs January 2013
cw 229lbs
gw 160lbs

I am currently nursing my 12 month old. At this point, I no longer add the calories for nursing as exercise because I have no supply issues and I am not losing weight at a rapid rate. When he was younger and my supply was of paramount concern, I added 500 calories in as exercise for breastfeeding. Honestly, at 3 weeks post-partum I wouldnt worry about counting calories. Try to focus instead on eating healthy foods. Early on in bf-ing I always allow myself copious amounts of fruit (it also helps w. the thirst for me) and just try to make sure I am not eating gross stuff like fast food, processed desserts, etc.

I understand your frustration because my "stats" are nearly identical to yours. I am 5'4.5", I was 187 at delivery and 160 by 3 weeks pp. I got stuck at 160, but by 2 months post partum I was 150 and by 3 months PP I was 145. Getting below that point was really tough for me until I started back up seriously watching my calories and working out religiously in January. Now I am 12 months post-partum and I weigh 138 pounds with an ultimate goal of 125-130. While the slow weight loss is frustrating, I console myself with the knowledge that losing fat quickly while breastfeeding can lead to increased toxins in your milk. Also, try to remember you are only trying to lose 20-30 lbs, so even if you lost a half a pound a week you'd be at your goal by your baby's first birthday.

Good luck to you and congrats on your baby! Try to enjoy this unique time in life w.o stressing too much about your weight. Your baby will be eating solids and then off the breast before you know it and you'll have the rest of your life to focus on calorie counting.