Breastfeeding twins: Calorie goal?

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danielleisms
danielleisms Posts: 42 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am exclusively breastfeeding my twins who are almost one. I don't plan to ween when they turn one, but want to work on my weight loss goal without affecting my milk supply. Any insight on how many calories to add for BF (esp for two babies)?

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  • xtinababaris
    xtinababaris Posts: 1 Member
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    I don't have an answer for you but have the same question! I have 2 month old twins and wasn't sure how to adjust based on breastfeeding.
  • Hearts_2015
    Hearts_2015 Posts: 12,031 Member
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    Others Moms on here have shared you add an additional 300 calories to what MFP suggests you eat. For twins... I don't if you then add 600 or something in-between? Hopefully someone more in the know will pop on this thread and give a more definite response. Congrats to both of you and Kudos for breastfeeding your little ones!! <3
  • comptonelizabeth
    comptonelizabeth Posts: 1,701 Member
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    Congratulations!
    When I was breastfeeding I was told to eat an extra 500 calories,especially in the early stages when they're feeding non stop! I don't know if you double it for twins
  • Hearts_2015
    Hearts_2015 Posts: 12,031 Member
    edited January 2017
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    I Googled but did come up with a wide range. I'll let you both check out the link and see what you think. It might be wise to check in with your Doctor/Nurse/Midwife to get a more accurate number though.
    https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=how+many+extra+calories+while+breastfeeding+twins


    @Alex I wonder if you could help out here and might have any suggestions for twins? If I recall correctly it's suggested by MFP that 300 cals extra be added onto daily cals? Do you know if it's doubled with Twins or a bit less?
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 9,994 Member
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    Why not just continue eating normally (I'm assuming you've been maintaining) for another week or two while you log what you eat, see what your average daily intake is, and try cutting 200 calories from that (or 100 calories for a week or two, if you want to be extra cautious about not affecting your milk supply). Once you're sure that's OK, if you're not seeing any noticeable change in the scale (200 calories is just under half a pound a week), you could try cutting another 100 calories per day. But you may have to settle for slow loss to be sure your supply isn't affected.
  • Alex
    Alex Posts: 10,145 MFP Staff
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    Hearts_2015 wrote: »
    I Googled but did come up with a wide range. I'll let you both check out the link and see what you think. It might be wise to check in with your Doctor/Nurse/Midwife to get a more accurate number though.
    https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=how+many+extra+calories+while+breastfeeding+twins


    @Alex I wonder if you could help out here and might have any suggestions for twins? If I recall correctly it's suggested by MFP that 300 cals extra be added onto daily cals? Do you know if it's doubled with Twins or a bit less?

    Hi @Hearts_2015! I don't actually know the correct calorie adjustment. @danielleisms I am sure there are members of MFP who have personal experience in this area and can offer their own insights, MFP's recommendation is to obtain a calorie estimate from a doctor or nutritionist.
  • comptonelizabeth
    comptonelizabeth Posts: 1,701 Member
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    lynn_glenmont wrote: »
    Why not just continue eating normally (I'm assuming you've been maintaining) for another week or two while you log what you eat, see what your average daily intake is, and try cutting 200 calories from that (or 100 calories for a week or two, if you want to be extra cautious about not affecting your milk supply). Once you're sure that's OK, if you're not seeing any noticeable change in the scale (200 calories is just under half a pound a week), you could try cutting another 100 calories per day. But you may have to settle for slow loss to be sure your supply isn't affected.

    It won't affect the supply (unless you're actually starving yourself) The babies will take what they need. It's you who is affected. I always lost a lot of weight during breastfeeding which I didn't need to do,and felt shattered all the time
  • Hearts_2015
    Hearts_2015 Posts: 12,031 Member
    edited January 2017
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    Alex wrote: »
    Hearts_2015 wrote: »
    I Googled but did come up with a wide range. I'll let you both check out the link and see what you think. It might be wise to check in with your Doctor/Nurse/Midwife to get a more accurate number though.
    https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=how+many+extra+calories+while+breastfeeding+twins


    @Alex I wonder if you could help out here and might have any suggestions for twins? If I recall correctly it's suggested by MFP that 300 cals extra be added onto daily cals? Do you know if it's doubled with Twins or a bit less?

    Hi @Hearts_2015! I don't actually know the correct calorie adjustment. @danielleisms I am sure there are members of MFP who have personal experience in this area and can offer their own insights, MFP's recommendation is to obtain a calorie estimate from a doctor or nutritionist.

    Thanks @Alexmini-graphics-dancing-and-singing-679401.gif
  • danielleisms
    danielleisms Posts: 42 Member
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    Thanks all! I've read similar and it's a road range. Since I'm a bit overweight I think I could be on the lower end of the extra calories. For the person who commented with 2 month olds, at that stage don't worry about weight loss and eat what you need to have enough energy!
  • annacole94
    annacole94 Posts: 997 Member
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    I just did some estimating as I decreased breastfeeding. So if full time at 6-8 months was 500 calories, i lowered it to 300 for a toddler. And then tapered it off as I cut back.

    For twins, it would be more like 1000-1200 calories at peak. You could likely count it as 500-700, and see if you lose. The tough part is, it keeps changing, so it's a moving target as your kids get older. Great work EBF-ing twins - that's a huge job.
  • rnedwbt
    rnedwbt Posts: 57 Member
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    I have one, she is three months old and ebf. I read that you burn approximately an extra 20 cal per oz produced and I estimate I'm at 32 oz per day, so I've been doing 640 (and losing consistently).
  • stephmph16
    stephmph16 Posts: 114 Member
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    I nursed twins and am now nursing a singleton. She is 11 months, doesn't nurse overnight and nurses maybe 5 times and day. I don't really adjust for nursing with her.

    How often are the twins nursing? Do they nurse overnight? Do you give them solid foods as well?

    If they're nursing 5 times a day, no overnights and eating solids, I'd probably adjust for 500 cals or so. If they're nursing more frequently and using primarily breast milk for their food, I'd do more (maybe 750?)

    You can always fudge the numbers later if you find you're not losing enough weight, or if you find your supply taking a hit.

    Kudos for nursing your twins, I know how hard it is!
  • Karie2017
    Karie2017 Posts: 215 Member
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    http://www.freedieting.com/tools/breastfeeding_calorie_calculator.htm
    Also 1 ounce of breast milk is 20 calories

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