Breastfeeding and calorie intake question

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vickym1976
vickym1976 Posts: 3
in Health and Weight Loss
should I add calories to my total allowed to cover the fact that I'm breastfeeding? If so how much should I add?

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  • tiptoethruthetulips
    tiptoethruthetulips Posts: 3,365 Member
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    http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/infant-and-toddler-health/in-depth/breastfeeding-nutrition/art-20046912
  • harmonythayer
    harmonythayer Posts: 1 Member
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    My nutritionist added 500 extra cals to mine. I am exclusively breastfeeding
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,411 MFP Moderator
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    harmonythayer wrote: »
    My nutritionist added 500 extra cals to mine. I am exclusively breastfeeding
    This and you shouldn't have a very large deficit.
  • postpartummarta
    postpartummarta Posts: 1
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    http://www.freedieting.com/tools/breastfeeding_calorie_calculator.htm this put me at 1600 metabolic rate plus milk, being 5'3" and 140 lbs. It also adjusts for how active you are, so my actual intake for a slight deficit should be 1850. Breastfeeding makes me real hungry so it was actually easier for me to lose after weaning, so be gentle with yourself while you nurture your baby
  • NewYearsResolutionerAtUrGym
    NewYearsResolutionerAtUrGym Posts: 4 Member
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    I had always heard don't go below 1800 and make sure you're drinking lots of water. Also keep an eye on your supply and adjust as necessary. Some people notice a drop in supply when they cut back on calories and others don't.
  • Ninkyou
    Ninkyou Posts: 6,666 Member
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    I'm pregnant, so I've been doing alot of reading up on this...
    I've read that 1800 calories should be the absolute minimum while breastfeeding, and you should be mostly between 2,000-2,700 calories, depending on your activity and deficit. You should lose no more than 1.5 lbs a week and watch for changes in your supply.

    Good luck!
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    Ninkyou wrote: »
    I'm pregnant, so I've been doing alot of reading up on this...
    I've read that 1800 calories should be the absolute minimum while breastfeeding, and you should be mostly between 2,000-2,700 calories, depending on your activity and deficit. You should lose no more than 1.5 lbs a week and watch for changes in your supply.

    Good luck!

    +1
  • vickym1976
    vickym1976 Posts: 3
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    Thanks everyone!! My baby is almost 10 months and he's feeding 3 times a day now. He's eating solids too but I want to feed him till he's 1 then introduce cows milk. I've lost all my baby weight but I started to put on weight after I introduced solids.

    So I wanted to get this under control and lose weight before it got out of hand.
  • mykaylis
    mykaylis Posts: 320 Member
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    it depends on how much you're feeding. newborns? 500 calories extra. older babies, fewer extra calories as they're not taking as much milk from your body.

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