New here and breastfeeding.....

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momof4wildkids
momof4wildkids Posts: 2
in Health and Weight Loss
I am new to all of this. With my 4th baby I gained 45 lbs and am down about 20...only 25 to go :) I am new to all this dieting stuff. I started tracking my calories just to see what I was eating and found that even with my habits I was eating only about 12-1400 cal a day.....I need at least 1800 while breastfeeding. I am eating healthy but I don't get this whole exercise and burn 200 cal so you get an extra 200......how is it possible that you lose weight by eating more?? I don't want to risk nutrients to my son, so I upped my goal from 1655 cal to 1800. I am trying to hit that but finding it very hard most days. I am close though. If someone can explaine to me how this all works that would be great. Am I supposed to be eating 2000 cal when it says that or should i shoot for my 1800? Thanks for any help you can give me :)

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  • magdalena1976
    magdalena1976 Posts: 12 Member
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    I am also pretty new here (only been on this site for a month) and I am breastfeeding my 3 month old daughter, I started out with 1400 calories per day, and my milk supply dropped and I actually was not loosing weight, so i increased my calories to 1600-1800 and started loosing weight again.... I think it's different for each person I think, I had to figure out how much I have to eat to make milk and still loose weight. I think it is not a clear cut number, you have to figure out for yourself... what your body needs. Good luck with breastfeeding and good luck with loosing baby weight!!!
  • mikkimomof3
    mikkimomof3 Posts: 224 Member
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    I've been on the site for a couple of weeks now and I am exclusively breastfeeding my 7 week old. My calorie goal according to MFP was 1390, but I added a few hundred initially b/c of the bfeeding...all went well, so I gradually reduced it bit by bit and I haven't had any problems yet. I drink a lot of water and choose healthy foods (not filling up on junk). If my supply starts to drop, I will up my calories, but so far so good.
  • dolliesnlollies
    dolliesnlollies Posts: 9 Member
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    BFing a 5 week old here and trying to stay under 1200 calories. Lost a lot at first (32) and now it's stubbornly coming off a lb a week. Working out 40 min a day too. UGH. Anyway, I listen to my body.. if I feel starving I'll eat some grapes or something healthy. My supply is fine and even I forget to drink enough... but been trying really hard to remember to drink more since I know my supply could be at risk. Oh, and baby is fine with this "diet".. he gained 2 1/2 lbs in 4 weeks and is still in the 95th percentile for weight.. love big fat babies but I don't love my big fat belly!
  • momof4wildkids
    momof4wildkids Posts: 2
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    Thanks for the help. My little man is 7 weeks old and weighing in at 12#14 oz....my supply is still up there. I will just keep myself at 1800 cal or so and see what happens. I have lost 3 lbs in 2 weeks, but none since :( guess i will up my cal a little and see what happens. thanks again and good luck to you all!!

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