Breastfeeding & Gaining Weight

krissydawn16
krissydawn16 Posts: 14 Member
in Motivation and Support
I'm still breastfeeding, and struggling with calorie counting. I started at 172lbs, eating 1500 net calories a day (then adding 500 calories "burned" breastfeeding). Now (only a month later) I am at 158 and myfitnesspal told me to cut my calories back to 1200. I didn't see a reason to change, since what I was doing was working. But, with no diet or exercising changes, I gained two pounds back and have completely stopped losing weight.

I drink two protein shakes a day to make sure I get the vitamins and protein that I need. I eat a lot of fruit. And I try to eat a sensible dinner with chicken and some vegetables usually. My diary is public I think. You can look at it and see that I haven't really changed much since i started in March.

I also drink more than 80 oz of water everyday. Breastfeeding really dehydrates me.

I wear a HRM when I exercise that tells me the calories I burn based on my HR and weight/age. I think it's more reliable than the calorie counts on my gps-running-app. I run every other day with C25k. I go for walks with my family both on running days and on rest days. I do yoga once a week. I have not started any strength training program because I have separated ab muscles from pregnancy and I want to wait until my check-up to ask my OB what he recommends for ab exercises. I tried 30 day shred and my stomach really hurt from it, so I stopped until I can talk to the doctor.

I really have no idea how many calories I "burn" because of milk production. But, I do know that if I don't get enough calories, I won't be able to make milk. I'm afraid to cut back on calories, but I'm gaining weight back that I just lost...

Has this happened to anyone (new moms?) while nursing?? Should I change something in my work out? Should I cut back on calories more? Or should I eat more/less of something? Should I drink even more water?

Replies

  • gelbell
    gelbell Posts: 24 Member
    maybe your not getting enough calories.... its recommend not to start low calorie diet until two months after having baby.
  • ChantalGG
    ChantalGG Posts: 2,404 Member
    I just ate clean and didnt really exercise much, just played with the baby and dropped 1 lb a week. I gained 65lb and lost 8lbs
  • sunshyncatra
    sunshyncatra Posts: 598 Member
    That is a lot of weight dropped in just a month! I wouldn't change anything for a few weeks. You need those calories for breastfeeding.
  • mommyJto3
    mommyJto3 Posts: 139 Member
    looking at your diary, you eat very heavy in the evening at dinner. Your biggest meal of the day should be breakfast. Honestly I would not drink Vi shakes as a meal. You need real nutrients from food, especially since you are breastfeeding. When i was breastfeeding, I would net at least 1800 cals a day. Your body and your baby needs the food.
  • krissydawn16
    krissydawn16 Posts: 14 Member
    maybe your not getting enough calories.... its recommend not to start low calorie diet until two months after having baby.

    Baby is 10 months old. I guess I forgot to say that :)
  • krissydawn16
    krissydawn16 Posts: 14 Member
    looking at your diary, you eat very heavy in the evening at dinner. Your biggest meal of the day should be breakfast. Honestly I would not drink Vi shakes as a meal. You need real nutrients from food, especially since you are breastfeeding. When i was breastfeeding, I would net at least 1800 cals a day. Your body and your baby needs the food.

    It's just so hard to make anything else in the mornings! I will try to flip-flop breakfast and dinner. 1800 calories sounds good -- I asked my OB and no one in the office had any idea how many calories I should eat. It's hard for me to get more calories than I do and still get enough protein. When I don't drink the shakes, my nutritional values are all out-of-whack. I just eat when I'm hungry.... but since I choose things like fruits and vegetables during the day, my calorie count is lower than if I snacked on crackers and pretzels. But I could use the shakes as snacks and eat bigger meals. Thanks for the ideas!
  • aoifebos1
    aoifebos1 Posts: 42 Member
    When I was eating extra to account for Breastfeeding I couldnt drop the last 10lbs of baby weight for seven months. I stopped counting Breastfeeding as Calories burned and dropped 10lbs in a month. Shes now 14 months and I'm still nursing her. Never had a supply issue.
    I'm not saying you shouldn't count them at all but many reduce them?
  • tinana_RN
    tinana_RN Posts: 541 Member
    I feel like (as a nurse and as a mother) if you're breastfeeding, you should try to nix the protein shakes for a while and try to eat regular meals for now, or at least do some maybe homemade protein smoothies instead. By looking at your diary, it just seems like you aren't taking enough in. Maybe your OB or primary MD can recommend you to a nutritionist?

    And I'm not usually someone who says that "you need to eat more!" I myself typically eat on the lower-calorie end.
  • JenniCali1000
    JenniCali1000 Posts: 646 Member
    I hope I can help :) My daughter is 17 mo and I'm still breastfeeding. Is your baby eating solids? How often? Is he starting to wean at all? I know they say bf burns UP TO 500 cal a day, and for the longest time I always ate an extra 500 cal to make up for that. Ok I'll be honest: I overate. Not excessively or anything, but I wasn't losing weight. It's like I was stuck at 150-155 forever. I was running, working out, eating pretty healthy, but I just couldn't drop any more weight! MFP has been a blessing because it's allowed me to track my calories so easily.
    As soon as I got on here and stuck to my allotted calories for the day, I started losing. What's more is I started noticing where I had been overeating and overcompensating. My daughter only nurses 2-3 times a day now, and it's mostly for comfort, but I am still producing plenty of milk, so I only count 250 calories as being burned during bf. I know it's always a challenge to figure out exactly how many calories your body is burning during bf, but it's most likely not 500, especially if your baby is eating solids and not nursing as much as before.
    My suggestions are to reduce how many calories you log in as being burned for bf, and also think about eating more, earlier in the day and slowly taper it the other way around. Try not to eat so much in the evenings. Trust me mama, I know how easy it is to eat a lot at night, what with the stress and craziness of dinner time, bed time, etc. I always hear people say you shouldn't eat anything after 5 pm. Well I wish I had that kind of determination, but it's hard to go that long without food when you're bf! So try to load up on healthy fats and protein earlier in the day, and maybe just have a big salad for dinner. Again, I know it's easier said than done :) As for working out, as soon as your dr gives you the go ahead, start up again with the 30 Day Shred! Jillian is sooo good at kicking butts! And all that muscle you'll build will help you burn fat faster!
    Good luck!!! You'll get there, I promise! :wink:
  • HealthWoke0ish
    HealthWoke0ish Posts: 2,078 Member
    Just a strike from MFP for a comment I made in here earlier. I crossed the line between light-hearted and light-minded. I apologize to all in here.
  • JenniCali1000
    JenniCali1000 Posts: 646 Member
    Just a strike from MFP for a comment I made in here earlier. I crossed the line between light-hearted and light-minded. I apologize to all in here.
    Eh. It's ok. You have to figure a thread about breastfeeding would get at least one creepy guy lurking ;) hehehe
  • krissydawn16
    krissydawn16 Posts: 14 Member
    Just a strike from MFP for a comment I made in here earlier. I crossed the line between light-hearted and light-minded. I apologize to all in here.

    I like that. Light-hearted and light-minded :) Thanks for the apology :)
  • krissydawn16
    krissydawn16 Posts: 14 Member
    I hope I can help :) My daughter is 17 mo and I'm still breastfeeding. Is your baby eating solids? How often? Is he starting to wean at all? I know they say bf burns UP TO 500 cal a day, and for the longest time I always ate an extra 500 cal to make up for that. Ok I'll be honest: I overate. Not excessively or anything, but I wasn't losing weight. It's like I was stuck at 150-155 forever. I was running, working out, eating pretty healthy, but I just couldn't drop any more weight! MFP has been a blessing because it's allowed me to track my calories so easily.
    As soon as I got on here and stuck to my allotted calories for the day, I started losing. What's more is I started noticing where I had been overeating and overcompensating. My daughter only nurses 2-3 times a day now, and it's mostly for comfort, but I am still producing plenty of milk, so I only count 250 calories as being burned during bf. I know it's always a challenge to figure out exactly how many calories your body is burning during bf, but it's most likely not 500, especially if your baby is eating solids and not nursing as much as before.
    My suggestions are to reduce how many calories you log in as being burned for bf, and also think about eating more, earlier in the day and slowly taper it the other way around. Try not to eat so much in the evenings. Trust me mama, I know how easy it is to eat a lot at night, what with the stress and craziness of dinner time, bed time, etc. I always hear people say you shouldn't eat anything after 5 pm. Well I wish I had that kind of determination, but it's hard to go that long without food when you're bf! So try to load up on healthy fats and protein earlier in the day, and maybe just have a big salad for dinner. Again, I know it's easier said than done :) As for working out, as soon as your dr gives you the go ahead, start up again with the 30 Day Shred! Jillian is sooo good at kicking butts! And all that muscle you'll build will help you burn fat faster!
    Good luck!!! You'll get there, I promise! :wink:

    Thanks!! I counted 500 so that I would eat extra to compensate.. no matter how many I actually burned. But, I'm having trouble even getting that high. She does eat solids, at meal times. She nurses 4-5 times a day. She really likes table food, so she is sort of weaning. I drink mother's milk tea and take fennugreek when I think my supply is low. I plan to stick-it-out until she's 12 months in June, then let her decide.

    It's so hard to eat less at night! Especially when it's the only time of day we're all together and we want to sit down to a big meal. Thanks for sharing :) you're advice will help, I'm sure!
  • krissydawn16
    krissydawn16 Posts: 14 Member
    I feel like (as a nurse and as a mother) if you're breastfeeding, you should try to nix the protein shakes for a while and try to eat regular meals for now, or at least do some maybe homemade protein smoothies instead. By looking at your diary, it just seems like you aren't taking enough in. Maybe your OB or primary MD can recommend you to a nutritionist?

    And I'm not usually someone who says that "you need to eat more!" I myself typically eat on the lower-calorie end.

    I know. I need more protein and the shakes seem to be the only way I can get enough, and I just have so much more energy when I get enough protein. Everyone I talked to suggests yogurt and cottage cheese.. and I can't eat those every day because I think they are both gross. I know a few dieticians that I could ask. I do stay away from diet shakes, like Slimfast, with aspartame in them.
  • mommyJto3
    mommyJto3 Posts: 139 Member
    there are many other ways for protein - egg white veggie omelet for breakfast, grilled chicken, tuna, tilapia, etc with veggies and brown rice or quinoa for lunch and dinner.
  • servilia
    servilia Posts: 3,452 Member
    If she's also eating solids then it's not an extra 500, it's more like 300. 500 Is for when you're exclusively breastfeeding. You could be eating too much.
  • Morninglory81
    Morninglory81 Posts: 1,190 Member
    I am 5'10" and exclusively breast fed my son for 6 months in 1800 cal daily when he started getting 1/2 his food from solids I dropped it to 1600. He is now15 months and only breast feeds once a night befor bed and I am still loosing at 1550-1600 cal daily. I have never had any issues with supply.

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