FTM Breastfeeding...missing my size 8!
deenaspell
Posts: 227 Member
I'm a FTM exclusively breastfeeding my 9-week-old daughter. Before I got pregnant last year, I lost 32 pounds and looked amazing. I even surpassed my goal weight! Unfortunately, I gained 40 pounds with her and have only lost 18. I'm in love with my daughter, but I'm really having a hard time not getting discouraged by my postpartum body.
I haven't lost a single pound (or inch) since about 3 weeks PP and I've been exercising almost everyday for 5 weeks. It's been mostly cardio like running/walking/squats/lunges. I haven't added weight training in yet, but I was going to start this week. I've read that I'm supposed to be eating between 1500 - 1800 calories (1500 seems really low, but some say up to 2500 and that's way too much for me), so I had my diary set at 1800. I sometimes went over, sometimes ate less, so I just dropped it to 1650 to see if it makes a difference. My milk supply is good - no issues there since I lowered calories. I'm no stranger to weight loss, so I know if you eat too little your body will plateau, too. Just trying things out to see what this new body will respond to.
Anyway, I could use some friends on here who know what it's like to feel like a stranger in their body! Please feel free to friend me.
I haven't lost a single pound (or inch) since about 3 weeks PP and I've been exercising almost everyday for 5 weeks. It's been mostly cardio like running/walking/squats/lunges. I haven't added weight training in yet, but I was going to start this week. I've read that I'm supposed to be eating between 1500 - 1800 calories (1500 seems really low, but some say up to 2500 and that's way too much for me), so I had my diary set at 1800. I sometimes went over, sometimes ate less, so I just dropped it to 1650 to see if it makes a difference. My milk supply is good - no issues there since I lowered calories. I'm no stranger to weight loss, so I know if you eat too little your body will plateau, too. Just trying things out to see what this new body will respond to.
Anyway, I could use some friends on here who know what it's like to feel like a stranger in their body! Please feel free to friend me.
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Replies
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This is normal after having a baby, with breastfeeding you need to increase your calories, cause breastfeeding does burn a lot. I don't know about 2500 though. You just had a baby and that's a major change on your body, just give it some time and would suggest you increase you calories.0
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Hmm, I don't have much advice for you, but I wanted to let you know that you are not alone...I am currently 36 weeks pregnant myself and wondering about what my body will be like, post-baby. And like you, I'm especially concerned about how exercise (specifically cardio/running) and moderate calorie reduction might affect my milk supply. Going to send you a friend request.
For what it's worth, I have read that up until 6 weeks post-partum your body still "thinks" it's pregnant, since there are still so many pregnancy hormones circulating in your blood. In fact, I was told by my doc that taking a pregnancy test within these 6 weeks will often give you a "positive" result due to this. You're only 3 weeks out of this time frame, so I'd agree with the above poster to give it some more time. Then, if I were you, I'd begin to gradually adjust my calories downward (and make sure I was logging them accurately) until I saw the scale begin to move.
Do you mind sharing how soon after the birth of your daughter you were able to start doing cardio and/or jogging? This is something I've been wondering, since I love to run and miss it greatly...have not been able to manage more than a leisurely stroll for the past month or so due to ligament problems related to pregnancy.
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having had 3 kids i can tell you your body will never look exactly the way it did before. its dependent on alot of variables but everone is different as is every pregnancy. after my first i lost a ton of weight and was told i looked sick by friends and family (babys now 10). with my second my hips spread and they never went back (she is now 8) and my last pregnancy the weight came off fast but im just not pleased with the way i look (hes now 2). the body takes about a year to completely go back to normal as far as hormones and the like and after that some reevaluation and possibly new goals will need to be set. your not destined to wear mom jeans forever but dont rush it i injured myself pretty bad from exercising with my joint still so loose from delivery.0
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Just wanted to encourage you....I was an eight pre baby, gained 42 pounds with my daughter. She is now 2 and I'm four pounds away from pre pregnancy weight. It's been a daily battle, eating right and exercising and getting used to my new body...BUT I can tell you, it will come off if you keep up the good work. I thought it would be so much faster.
Two things: NEVER GIVE UP! BE ENCOURAGED; YOU ARE A FABULOUS FIRST TIME MOM!!!!0 -
P.S. For me what pushed me over the edge to lose more was cutting out processed food and having my calories come from "clean" foods, fruite, veggies, lean organic meat and whole grains.0
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I've had two kids and breastfed both. Pre-kids I was a size 6. Post-kids I'm a 12 (that's why I'm here). I can tell you that for some women the baby weight just falls off with breastfeeding. That did not happen for me. My body tends to hold onto the baby weight for about a year and then it SLOWLY starts coming off.
I do not know what your body will do post-pregnancy. Maybe you'll lose all the weight quickly. Maybe you won't. I can tell you that I have a damn hard time getting rid of it, and I have to work really hard to do it.
Either way, I have two pieces of advice: 1) Don't rush it. Eat healthfully, count calories if you want, don't consume an entire ice cream cake (unless you really, really want to), but don't rush it. Your body just did a crazy thing. It will take some time to recover. You will probably never look exactly like you did pre-baby, but you can get close. But now is not the time to rush into crazy calorie restriction. Relax. Get to know your baby and adjust to life as a mother. Everything just changed for you. Oh, and 1650 might be too few calories. That said: 2) do start exercising and strength training, in a slow and sane way. I lost a lot of strength and fitness when I had kids. I would do crazy things like trying to jog 3 weeks post-partum (nope! ab muscles not up to it) and get frustrated when I couldn't snowboard because my core strength wasn't up to snuff. If I had started smaller and slower and kept going, I would have been better off.0 -
been there 3 times hun I breast fed my 3 babies you are doing great and you cant drop calories while breast feeding really but in my experience I lose 10lbs just from stopping breast feeding I hope that is good news to you to look forward to. I stopped breast feeding my 3rd child a yr ago and im smaller than in my profile picture so it isn't forever you can and will find comfort in your new body and be proud of it , I have stretch marks etc but I have 3 babies our bodies should be celebrated. feel free to add me hun0
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no advice but I found your title and photo combination pretty confusing because I'm used to FTM standing for "female to male" trans men! Very confused at first, haha.0
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Hi there,
I think youre not eating enough and your body is holding on to the weight!!
I re-started MFP a little over 2 months ago at 7 months PP, my baby had started solids and I breastfed 5-6x a day, i had my calories set up at 2050/day and I was only walking 30mins/day and lost 2.5lb/week!
I recently lowered my calories to 1800 and im still losing! ( baby is nursing 3-5x a day) and no really exercising!!
Give yourself time!!!
It took 9 months to get there, enjoy your daughter, at 9 weeks pp you dont want to interfere with your milk supply by not eating enough!!
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Post pardum bodies ARE depressing. You are only 9 weeks out! Give yourself some time. For some women the weight will not drop off while nursing. Stick with the 1800 (or bump it to 2000) and just be very very patient.0
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HAHAHA! Oh lawd!swaggityswagbag wrote: »no advice but I found your title and photo combination pretty confusing because I'm used to FTM standing for "female to male" trans men! Very confused at first, haha.0 -
Yeah, 2500 seemed a bit crazy, but different bodies, I guess? Thanks! I'm breastfeeding about 8 or 9 times a day right now. I think that's roughly 450 or so calories.This is normal after having a baby, with breastfeeding you need to increase your calories, cause breastfeeding does burn a lot. I don't know about 2500 though. You just had a baby and that's a major change on your body, just give it some time and would suggest you increase you calories.
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Thanks! I'm definitely trying to constantly remind myself what my body did for me and for her over the past year. It's discouraging thinking I won't be able to lose weight until I stop nursing because I want to nurse at least 6 months. I guess we'll see about the weight loss!BusyRaeNOTBusty wrote: »Post pardum bodies ARE depressing. You are only 9 weeks out! Give yourself some time. For some women the weight will not drop off while nursing. Stick with the 1800 (or bump it to 2000) and just be very very patient.
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It took you 9 months to grow that baby, 6 months to lose the weight is NOT that long.0
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RunningOnWontons wrote: »Hmm, I don't have much advice for you, but I wanted to let you know that you are not alone...I am currently 36 weeks pregnant myself and wondering about what my body will be like, post-baby. And like you, I'm especially concerned about how exercise (specifically cardio/running) and moderate calorie reduction might affect my milk supply. Going to send you a friend request.
For what it's worth, I have read that up until 6 weeks post-partum your body still "thinks" it's pregnant, since there are still so many pregnancy hormones circulating in your blood. In fact, I was told by my doc that taking a pregnancy test within these 6 weeks will often give you a "positive" result due to this. You're only 3 weeks out of this time frame, so I'd agree with the above poster to give it some more time. Then, if I were you, I'd begin to gradually adjust my calories downward (and make sure I was logging them accurately) until I saw the scale begin to move.
Do you mind sharing how soon after the birth of your daughter you were able to start doing cardio and/or jogging? This is something I've been wondering, since I love to run and miss it greatly...have not been able to manage more than a leisurely stroll for the past month or so due to ligament problems related to pregnancy.
I actually started walking about 2 weeks after. I had a vaginal birth with no complications, so I felt good. I only walked though - nothing else, and not every day at first. I think I walked about a mile 3 times that first week.0 -
salenar2014 wrote: »having had 3 kids i can tell you your body will never look exactly the way it did before. its dependent on alot of variables but everone is different as is every pregnancy. after my first i lost a ton of weight and was told i looked sick by friends and family (babys now 10). with my second my hips spread and they never went back (she is now 8) and my last pregnancy the weight came off fast but im just not pleased with the way i look (hes now 2). the body takes about a year to completely go back to normal as far as hormones and the like and after that some reevaluation and possibly new goals will need to be set. your not destined to wear mom jeans forever but dont rush it i injured myself pretty bad from exercising with my joint still so loose from delivery.
Oh no! I'm sorry you hurt yourself. That sucks! I've been holding myself back a lot so I don't do that. I love playing tennis, but I haven't played it yet since the birth. I'm just doing a lot of walking/running/lunges and squats. I really hope it doesn't take a year to get my body back. :-(0 -
galprincess wrote: »been there 3 times hun I breast fed my 3 babies you are doing great and you cant drop calories while breast feeding really but in my experience I lose 10lbs just from stopping breast feeding I hope that is good news to you to look forward to. I stopped breast feeding my 3rd child a yr ago and im smaller than in my profile picture so it isn't forever you can and will find comfort in your new body and be proud of it , I have stretch marks etc but I have 3 babies our bodies should be celebrated. feel free to add me hun
So you didn't lose any weight while breastfeeding?? :-(0 -
so...what IS an FTM?0
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9 weeks, hon? Enjoy that baby, take it easy, focus on your eating, and add exercise as you are able. There's truth to the 9 months to gain, 9 months to lose mindset. You'll get there.0
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Dang...I might up my calories then. It's just terrifying to do that. I'm sure you understand. I would love to lose 2 1/2 pounds a week! Nice!Hi there,
I think youre not eating enough and your body is holding on to the weight!!
I re-started MFP a little over 2 months ago at 7 months PP, my baby had started solids and I breastfed 5-6x a day, i had my calories set up at 2050/day and I was only walking 30mins/day and lost 2.5lb/week!
I recently lowered my calories to 1800 and im still losing! ( baby is nursing 3-5x a day) and no really exercising!!
Give yourself time!!!
It took 9 months to get there, enjoy your daughter, at 9 weeks pp you dont want to interfere with your milk supply by not eating enough!!
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I look at it this way, it took you 9 months to gain that baby weight. It's going to take some time to lose it. I would ask your OB about a good calorie goal each day and then have your settings reflect that. Just give it time, you will start to lose. Hormones really play a factor in anyone's weight loss, so I am sure that has a lot to do with it.0
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I totally agree with everything you said. It's just hard to change mindsets when you're so used to having no restrictions and a body that responds. I think my post-baby body is awesome. I don't think I look terrible, I just hate not fitting into anything in my closet and feeling out of shape like I "let myself go". I can't wear anything I own right now. Scratch that - about 4 outfits that aren't nursing tanks...I've had two kids and breastfed both. Pre-kids I was a size 6. Post-kids I'm a 12 (that's why I'm here). I can tell you that for some women the baby weight just falls off with breastfeeding. That did not happen for me. My body tends to hold onto the baby weight for about a year and then it SLOWLY starts coming off.
I do not know what your body will do post-pregnancy. Maybe you'll lose all the weight quickly. Maybe you won't. I can tell you that I have a damn hard time getting rid of it, and I have to work really hard to do it.
Either way, I have two pieces of advice: 1) Don't rush it. Eat healthfully, count calories if you want, don't consume an entire ice cream cake (unless you really, really want to), but don't rush it. Your body just did a crazy thing. It will take some time to recover. You will probably never look exactly like you did pre-baby, but you can get close. But now is not the time to rush into crazy calorie restriction. Relax. Get to know your baby and adjust to life as a mother. Everything just changed for you. Oh, and 1650 might be too few calories. That said: 2) do start exercising and strength training, in a slow and sane way. I lost a lot of strength and fitness when I had kids. I would do crazy things like trying to jog 3 weeks post-partum (nope! ab muscles not up to it) and get frustrated when I couldn't snowboard because my core strength wasn't up to snuff. If I had started smaller and slower and kept going, I would have been better off.
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I always lose while breastfeeding to a certain point but can never lose that last 8 pounds until I stop. I breastfed long term each time and when I finally stopped those last pounds would come off. Enjoy your baby, be active when you can, try to mostly make smart food choices, and the weight will drop.0
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deenaspell wrote: »
It means first time mom :-)0somuchbetter0 wrote: »so...what IS an FTM?
I have literally never seen it used that way... but definitely am used to seeing it designate someone's transition status.0 -
A few tips to help your weight loss journey;
- Rest. With a new baby, and a breastfed one at that, your sleep will be interrupted, so make sure you get enough rest. Tiredness can lead to overeating, but it also slows weight loss in my experience.
- Walk. With a new babe, go for long walks. Babies love to sleep and your body will live the gentle exercise of walking - just fast Enugu to raise your heart rate into "fat burning area" c. 130bpm.
- Eat regularly. Small meals - 4 to 6 a day. Loads of veg. More veg than fruit. Sounds like you had it sussed at 1800cal. A purely by baby will have you burning between 350 and 500 extra calls a day. Don't bank on those calories, but don't be without them either. Your body will continue to produce the right milk, even ona restricted diet, but life is short and there is no point in suffering at this precious time.
- Drink water. Lots.
I am still bf at 16 months. I haven re told the body holds onto at least 10lbs while bf'ing...Ive enjoyed that excuse, but now it's time to get the body I want.0 -
I also lost weight before getting pregnant (40lbs) and gained over 50 during pregnancy. Baby will be 4 months this weekend and I am only a few lbs from prepregnancy. I am back in my smallest pants, but the body is definitely different. I lost about 35 pretty fast, but baby was big (10lbs8oz). I came back to work when she was 10wks and have been doing MFP since, and have lost 15 more.
Every body is different and finding what works for you may take some time. I do notice when I eat less, the scale doesn't really move, but when I eat my goal it does.0 -
is FTM from the bump?0
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A few tips to help your weight loss journey;
- Rest. With a new baby, and a breastfed one at that, your sleep will be interrupted, so make sure you get enough rest. Tiredness can lead to overeating, but it also slows weight loss in my experience.
- Walk. With a new babe, go for long walks. Babies love to sleep and your body will live the gentle exercise of walking - just fast Enugu to raise your heart rate into "fat burning area" c. 130bpm.
- Eat regularly. Small meals - 4 to 6 a day. Loads of veg. More veg than fruit. Sounds like you had it sussed at 1800cal. A purely by baby will have you burning between 350 and 500 extra calls a day. Don't bank on those calories, but don't be without them either. Your body will continue to produce the right milk, even ona restricted diet, but life is short and there is no point in suffering at this precious time.
- Drink water. Lots.
I am still bf at 16 months. I haven re told the body holds onto at least 10lbs while bf'ing...Ive enjoyed that excuse, but now it's time to get the body I want.
Good advice. Your wee one is taking a large percentage of your calories each day, leaving you in what I can only assume is a deficit, anyway, plus you're exercising and creating even more of a deficit. 1800 may even be a tad low.
You're doing great. Give it time and enjoy yourself!
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I was exactly in the same place! I gained 50 pounds and lost 20 pounds after I left the hospital! My weight loss than stalled forever. I didn't try to lose weight until 8 months postpartum. My baby is a year old now and I am below my pre-pregnancy weight! I would say never go below 1500. I used to pump so I knew approximately how much milk I produced which was around 25 ounce, 25*20=500 calories extra a day. If you exercise you should add more. My advice is to take it easy, and focus more on keeping your supply up. Also when you get more sleep you will lose faster. Good luck and don't stress about it! Nursing is the best thing you do to your baby and will be all worth it at the end.
P.S: I'm still nursing and losing weight.0
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