Not-that-heavy girls

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Mom for a year: 125 lb - 135 lbs

pairie
pairie Posts: 1 Member
edited November 28 in Social Groups
So I had my baby almost 18 months ago. I am having a hard time working off the last 10 or so pounds from after she was born. I am still breastfeeding but I hope to be done with that in the next few months. Only recently have I started to work out more consistently. I haven't needed to go back to work, that has been a blessing but I wonder if that has also been part of this struggle. It is helpful that I am getting support from my husband because he is trying to lose weight as well. I just want to know if there are any helpful tips anyone might have. I just worry that if I am not prepared then I am just setting myself up for failure. I have tried using myfitnesspal before I got pregnant but it did not go well. I have never really been overweight so tracking calories have never been a goal for me.

Thanks

Replies

  • ExistingFish
    ExistingFish Posts: 1,259 Member
    Hey! I'm also still breastfeeding, mine was 1 this month. I have heard for some people the body holds on to some of the fat it accumulated while pregnant until you stop breastfeeding. I'm not sure if this is the case for me though. But once I got close to my goal weight (which is way less than my pre-pregnancy weight) my weight loss has been so much more of a struggle. It was so easy when I had more to lose and breastfeeding was helping me burn calories. Now my LO is eating much more solids and I'm nursing less, so burning fewer calories. I am keeping it up though, just slower and steady.

    It is helpful to see what you are eating, it is the only real way to know if you need to cut back or not. Try to get in the habit of logging, it will come easily if you make it a habit.
  • niniundlapin
    niniundlapin Posts: 327 Member
    edited August 2018
    This might not mean anything since I haven’t gone through the postpartum weight loss journey yet (currently 36 week), but I did have success losing “the last few” by logging food intake religiously prior to pregnancy (& paired with the right amount of weight-training/cardio).
    I also didn’t have much to lose, but I still spent 6-8 month trying to figure out how much I should/can eat and to lose just 8lb. I’m not sure how much I’d be able or want to lose this time after baby, but I’d definitely go back & be picky about what I eat this time as well.
  • DomesticKat
    DomesticKat Posts: 565 Member
    I've lost almost 70 pounds in the last 16 months while breastfeeding. I've been as consistent and accurate as possible with logging my food so that helps. I use a food scale for solids and measuring cups for liquids. Breastfeeding hasn't been an issue at all, besides having to manually increase my calories to account for it. I'm now at a healthy weight and sliding towards maintenance and recomp. I recommend reading all of the getting started threads in the main forum for guidance. All of the best advice is collected there. Expect to lose a half pound a week since you're already close to your goal weight, focus on logging accurately, and be realistic about expectations.
  • Niki_Fitz
    Niki_Fitz Posts: 951 Member
    edited August 2018
    pairie wrote: »
    So I had my baby almost 18 months ago. I am having a hard time working off the last 10 or so pounds from after she was born. I am still breastfeeding but I hope to be done with that in the next few months.

    I just want to know if there are any helpful tips anyone might have. I just worry that if I am not prepared then I am just setting myself up for failure. I have tried using myfitnesspal before I got pregnant but it did not go well. I have never really been overweight so tracking calories have never been a goal for me.

    Thanks

    I’m down to the last few lbs and I started when my son was 18 months old. I wish someone had told me not to overexercise, to avoid exhaustion so I could keep exercising consistently and also keep up with parenting. Make things as easy as possible for yourself with simple food prep. I have to track everything to lose but I chose to spend lot of time on body recomposition along the way, eating at maintenance with resistance training and a lot of patience, and less tracking. Hope some of this helps.
  • mom23mangos
    mom23mangos Posts: 3,069 Member
    It's been a really long time since I breastfed and I wasn't actively trying to lose weight at the time, but those extra 10-15lbs I was holding onto just magically fell off once I weaned.
  • ExistingFish
    ExistingFish Posts: 1,259 Member
    mom23mangos wrote: »
    It's been a really long time since I breastfed and I wasn't actively trying to lose weight at the time, but those extra 10-15lbs I was holding onto just magically fell off once I weaned.

    That is what I hear. I breastfeed for a long time though (ODS until 4, DD until 3). YDS just turned 1, so....
  • ntede3
    ntede3 Posts: 17 Member
    mom23mangos wrote: »
    It's been a really long time since I breastfed and I wasn't actively trying to lose weight at the time, but those extra 10-15lbs I was holding onto just magically fell off once I weaned.

    So, it was the opposite for me - I actually gained a few pounds when I weaned (daughter was 22 months, whew), before I realized what was happening and adjusted my mentality.

    But OP, I'm in a very similar situation as you. Have always been a normal body weight, with little to some effort depending on what's happening in life. One thing I did want to suggest is that you may or may not need to get back to the same number on the scale to feel exactly the same about your body. In my case, my body SHAPE changed such that I felt pretty ok with my body at 130 lbs, when my pre-pregnancy weight was more like 128. I had gone from a barely-B cup before pregnancy to a full D after delivery, settling into a full C during breastfeeding, to a regular C after weaning. My hips are also wider. I felt like the extra pound or two made me look proportional.

    Otherwise - log everything, even your bad days. The habit of logging is just as important as what you actually log. Make sure you stay active during the day. I've found that consistently hitting my 10,000-15,000 steps per day does more for me than 3 gym sessions a week but sitting around the rest of the time. Do you have a Fitbit? I totally love mine.

    Adjusting to one's postpartum body can be difficult. I think most women go through your experience, so you're not alone!

    When you used MFP before pregnancy, why didn't it go well?
  • 12Sarah2015
    12Sarah2015 Posts: 1,117 Member
    I've just started to try and lose weight again. 14 months post partum. 7 kg to go. I've found drinking just milk, no yoghurt or cheese is helping me to lose weight. Also lots of boiled Eggs for lunch. Eating Apples and corn are pretty filling. And cutting down on red meat.
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