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MyFitnessPal Community

Post partum/breastfeeding and needing encouragement

meesh88

Hey guys!

I'm new to using the forums, but I've been reading them a lot lately and have been really encouraged by the support you all give to each other... Here's my story for anyone that's interested. I'd love some support/advice!

I'm in a rut. I'm 9 months post partum and breastfeeding my daughter 4 times/24 hours. I gained 65+ lbs with my pregnancy! Starting weight was 155 lbs and I went up to 215 + lbs (I stopped looking at the scale near the end!).

In the hospital I lost about 25 lbs immediately following my c-section! I came home and weighed myself at 189 lbs. I ended up gaining an additional 6 lbs post partum (breastfeeding did NOT melt pounds off for me!) due to my sedentary lifestyle during surgical recovery. This was very discouraging because all of the women in my family seem to lose their baby weight instantly, just with breastfeeding!

Once i was cleared to workout, I walked tons, did 10 weeks of Kayla Itsines (not always giving it my all though) and a couple weeks of the 30 day shred. I have also been calorie counting on and off. I just can't seem to stick with anything because I'm quite tired and very discouraged.

Despite all this effort, I am currently 184 lbs and 9 months post partum. I'm so jealous of those people who lose weight breast feeding without doing anything! Oh, and did I mention that I'm quite short? (5ft 1in)

Yesterday I started Turbo Jam for the first time. It was enjoyable and I hope to stick to it. I'd love to hear your stories... Please add me if you are in a similar boat so that we can encourage each other and keep each other accountable!

Thanks for taking the time to read this ❤️

Replies

trjjoy

Try to eat at maintenance. The weight WILL melt off you because the breastfeeding is your caloric deficit.

rohksie

I don't have any advice but were on the same boat! 5 months pp, 5'2", currently at 173 but started at 180 a few weeks ago. This is my #3 and I breastfed my other 2 for a year each and I did not lose zilch. So far I have really stuck to counting calories but who knows its only been about 3 weeks, I've started lifting weights again and it seems to help. Add me!

gearhead426hemi

I know a guys opinion isn't what you want to hear but my wife is 5'4" and she lost weight for the first six months when she was pregnant with our son. The last three months she gained around 30 pounds. Our son was 9 pounds and 22.5 inches long and my wife was only able to breast feed for about a month before he would eat more than she could produce. She really struggled with her weight as well. She tried lots of different videos and fad diets with little to no results. She got very discouraged for a while before she asked me for advise. I am not a dietician or anything like that I have just always enjoyed being in shape. I told her in my opinion eating right and losing weight are more mental than physical. You have to really want it and want if for yourself. You have to kind of be selfish and want to be healthy and fit for yourself.

While breastfeeding I would suggest not be as concerned with how many calories you are consuming but what types of food you are consuming. If you are eating clean then you and your baby will be healthier and the weight will naturally come off with minimal physical activity. My wife cut out bread and the only dairy she has is our farm made goat cheese or goat milk. As many fruits and vegetables as she wants and one meat source two meals a day. She works out with me once or twice a week and does her own videos the other 3 days a week. We try to change it up and never do the same workout in one week either. She lost 35 pounds in 8 weeks. She wasn't breastfeeding so your results would probably be way more dramatic. Don't now if my advice or story helps but best of luck. If you would like some recipes or workouts just let me know I would be happy share them with you.

Luna3386

I struggled to lose weight after my third even though I was breastfeeding. I actually have 8 pounds to go (my son is 5) and I spent all those years gaining and losing.

Here is what I suggest: I would eat at maintenance and track every calorie. Get in the habit of weighing foods on a food scale.

After you have this down pat then attempt a small deficit, something that you can do without wanting to binge. No more than 500 calories.

Exercise doing what you enjoy not because you feel like you should or out of guilt.

Slow and steady wins the race. I wish I would have known and full internalized that.

lauratquinn

While you are trying things, have a lot of compassion for yourself. It's really ok for you to be exactly where you are at. Aim to stay healthy, try not to let yourself become discouraged. You would unconditionally love your best friend if she gained weight. Be your own best friend and love yourself as you are right now. You created a miracle!

meesh88

Thank you all! I am feeling very encouraged. It's so nice to hear from a supportive community. I am very happy to say that I lost 2 lbs this week from calorie counting and working out. Thanks again so much!

meesh88

gearhead426hemi wrote: »

I know a guys opinion isn't what you want to hear but my wife is 5'4" and she lost weight for the first six months when she was pregnant with our son. The last three months she gained around 30 pounds. Our son was 9 pounds and 22.5 inches long and my wife was only able to breast feed for about a month before he would eat more than she could produce. She really struggled with her weight as well. She tried lots of different videos and fad diets with little to no results. She got very discouraged for a while before she asked me for advise. I am not a dietician or anything like that I have just always enjoyed being in shape. I told her in my opinion eating right and losing weight are more mental than physical. You have to really want it and want if for yourself. You have to kind of be selfish and want to be healthy and fit for yourself.

While breastfeeding I would suggest not be as concerned with how many calories you are consuming but what types of food you are consuming. If you are eating clean then you and your baby will be healthier and the weight will naturally come off with minimal physical activity. My wife cut out bread and the only dairy she has is our farm made goat cheese or goat milk. As many fruits and vegetables as she wants and one meat source two meals a day. She works out with me once or twice a week and does her own videos the other 3 days a week. We try to change it up and never do the same workout in one week either. She lost 35 pounds in 8 weeks. She wasn't breastfeeding so your results would probably be way more dramatic. Don't now if my advice or story helps but best of luck. If you would like some recipes or workouts just let me know I would be happy share them with you.

Thanks for the very helpful advice and the heartfelt response! I'd love to see some of those recipes you were talking about!

Aparna3164

gearhead426hemi wrote: »

I know a guys opinion isn't what you want to hear but my wife is 5'4" and she lost weight for the first six months when she was pregnant with our son. The last three months she gained around 30 pounds. Our son was 9 pounds and 22.5 inches long and my wife was only able to breast feed for about a month before he would eat more than she could produce. She really struggled with her weight as well. She tried lots of different videos and fad diets with little to no results. She got very discouraged for a while before she asked me for advise. I am not a dietician or anything like that I have just always enjoyed being in shape. I told her in my opinion eating right and losing weight are more mental than physical. You have to really want it and want if for yourself. You have to kind of be selfish and want to be healthy and fit for yourself.

While breastfeeding I would suggest not be as concerned with how many calories you are consuming but what types of food you are consuming. If you are eating clean then you and your baby will be healthier and the weight will naturally come off with minimal physical activity. My wife cut out bread and the only dairy she has is our farm made goat cheese or goat milk. As many fruits and vegetables as she wants and one meat source two meals a day. She works out with me once or twice a week and does her own videos the other 3 days a week. We try to change it up and never do the same workout in one week either. She lost 35 pounds in 8 weeks. She wasn't breastfeeding so your results would probably be way more dramatic. Don't now if my advice or story helps but best of luck. If you would like some recipes or workouts just let me know I would be happy share them with you.

Hi, I really wanted to know the diet that can be followed during breastfeeding which will help weight loss.please help me too.

gearhead426hemi

meesh88, Aparna3164

There are a couple things you both will have to consider while breastfeeding and changing your diet. You will want to track your meals and what ingredients you use. This is a time when you will start to see foods that could cause problems for your children when they get older. Certain fruits that are acidic may not cause you any problems but may cause colic. My wife loves orange juice and while she was pregnant with our son she would drink 2 or 3 glasses a day. When we had our daughter if she ate an orange or drank orange juice she would get really fussy. Now she is 14 and we recently found out she has acid reflux which explains the colic when my wife would drink it.
As far as meals go here are a few of my wives favorites.

Few things first.
1. If it comes out of a box don't eat it. If the first ingredient isn't what you are actually eating don't eat it.
2. Be open minded about trying new things.
3. Stop eating anything from cows. Milk, cheese, even beef.
4. The only dairy you should consume should be from goats. I know it sounds crazy but goat milk is better for you and easier for the baby to digest. Goat meat is leaner and is delicious. Once we switched to goat products my entire family actually prefers it now. We have since started our own goat and sheep farm.
5. No bread unless it's home made sourdough
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1 Pound Ground Turkey sausage
1 Bag of frozen vegetables or fresh if you prefer
1 bag of real brown rice ( no instant )

Season and brown the sausage, boil or steam the vegetables, follow directions on rice. My wife uses 1/2 cup for all her serving sizes. Mix and store in Tupperware. One pound of sausage should make 4 meals.

Goat curry recipe

3 pounds chopped goat meat
4 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp black pepper
6 tbsp. yellow curry powder
1 large onion
1/2 onion ( diced )
1 jalapeno or habanero ( I used *1 * habanero seed and all ) ( **Leave out if you don't like spicy food**)
4 Garlic cloves
1 large sprig thyme
4 medium peeled sliced potatoes
Brown rice

- Take meat, pepper, 5 tbsp curry powder, 1 large onion chopped, diced garlic cloves, habanero mix in large bowl, cover and marinate for minimum of 24 hours.
- Take 4 tbsp olive oil and brown meat mixture
- add 2 cups hot water and bring to simmer for 1 - 1.5 hours ( add water as needed)
- add thyme, 1/2 chopped onion, 2 more cups hot water and bring to boil
- once its boiling add potatos, 1 tbsp curry powder and simmer for another 30-60 minutes or until meat is really tender and potatoes are slightly firm.
- boil rice of choice
- smother with curry and ENJOY!
-

Banana pancakes

1/2 to 3/4 banana and one egg.

Mix egg and 1/2 banana in a bowl with a fork. **Do not use blender it wont work you want the mixture slightly clumpy*) You can add a dash of cinnamon. little olive oil or olive oil spray in pan an cook on low heat.

Puzzl3dunicorn

Hello! I'm also a breastfeeding mom who couldn't lose weight just by breastfeeding. I actually weighed more 3 months pp then i did nefore giving birth. For the past 3 months I've been tracking my calories and macros, and working out with hiit bodyweight workout at home. I've lost 2 lbs a week consistently and I eat about 80 percent clean and 20 not so clean. I started out with a small deficit (200c) and have worked my way up to a larger one (750 including net breastfeeding calories) without effecting my milk supply. Feel free to add me

meesh88

Puzzl3dunicorn wrote: »

Hello! I'm also a breastfeeding mom who couldn't lose weight just by breastfeeding. I actually weighed more 3 months pp then i did nefore giving birth. For the past 3 months I've been tracking my calories and macros, and working out with hiit bodyweight workout at home. I've lost 2 lbs a week consistently and I eat about 80 percent clean and 20 not so clean. I started out with a small deficit (200c) and have worked my way up to a larger one (750 including net breastfeeding calories) without effecting my milk supply. Feel free to add me

Thanks! It's so frustrating

mkmarte

I'm 3.5 months postpartum with my 2nd baby. I got up to 205 pounds pregnant and have lost 40 pounds by counting calories and walking a few times a week and exclusively breastfeeding. I love using MFP to log daily calories and exercises and hope to lose another 20-30 pounds to reach pre-baby weight.

roobe18

I'm 8.5 months post partum and have really struggled with the weight gain. A week after giving birth I was only about 5 lbs heavier than before getting pregnant, but then I gained like 12 lbs! That doesn't sound like a lot, but it's enough that none of my clothes fit now. I went from a size 10 to size 14 now!

So this week I've decided to work on fixing this! I bought a Fitbit and have started walking. What cals are y'all eating? I've read that you should stay at 1800, possibly going as low as 1500. I REALLY want to go to 1200 but absolutely don't want to hurt my supply so I haven't

roobe18

mkmarte wrote: »

I'm 3.5 months postpartum with my 2nd baby. I got up to 205 pounds pregnant and have lost 40 pounds by counting calories and walking a few times a week and exclusively breastfeeding. I love using MFP to log daily calories and exercises and hope to lose another 20-30 pounds to reach pre-baby weight.

What calories are you using?

mkmarte

What calories are you using?[/quote]

my daily calorie goal is 1900. and I won't typically 'eat back' any exercise calories I burn.

valentikate

I feel ya! I breastfeed my son for a year and only stopped about 2 months ago and now I'm 6wks prego. I also had a csection which I personally thinks takes a lot out of your body so your body just holds on to the fat to create stability (just my thoughts, not fact). I also read up on why my body wasn't letting go of the weight and it seems to be a hormone thing related to Prolactin. Basically anyone with high levels of this hormone tend to gain weight. So don't hold it against yourself that the weight isn't coming off.

Personally, I try to not focus on the weight or scale. Of course this is easier said than done. I think about showing my son what healthy eating habits look like and what an active lifestyle is. They're like little sponges right now and just doing my best to show him the habits I hope he develops is a HUGE motivator for me when the scale isn't going down.

I hope this helps! Just remember in time the changes will happen!

DancingMoosie

I love turbo jam, try all of the videos, they are so fun! Also look to see if you have fit for moms in your area. They have stroller strides and stroller Barre classes that you can do with your baby and also meet other moms.

dragonfly_66

Hey I was in a similar boat. Just had my 3rd 5 and half months ago. If you're breastfeeding just be careful to make sure you have enough

My story is in the success thread, I also went over 200 with all my kids. I eat minimally processed foods and after my second got down to 135 now I am 157 after eating pretty "clean" for the last almost 2 months down from 174 beginning of May. I hit a point where I decided I wanted to get healthy more than I wanted to keep on the same road. It's a large part mental. I have lots of recipes and certain things I eat so I don't feel deprived or get bored.
You can do it for sure, but be gentle with yourself as you're still BF

meesh88

mkmarte wrote: »

What calories are you using?

my daily calorie goal is 1900. and I won't typically 'eat back' any exercise calories I burn.

[/quote]

I have been eating 1400 calories lately as I'm not noticing a decrease in my milk supply. I usually do eat back my exercise calories at this point!

ASiddiqui1

Are you feeling more tired than normal? If so, get your thyroid tested. Sometimes hypothyroidism occur's postpartum. Best wishes!