considering low carb

[natty529]

hi all,
i need to lose a few pounds, probably 15. I have done low carb in the past, but never while nursing.
DS is almost 2, and still an avid nurser. I guess i am wondering how many carbs a day would be safe for DS and still facilitate weight loss...

any thoughts?

[crunchy_mama]

I have been relatively lc through pregnancy and right after nursing with no issue. (I lost my weight and returned to my pre-preg size by 4 mo and now at 5 mo and am maitenance- which is still low carb by standard american diet- I am grainfree/low sugar(only some v. dark choco usually)) I have not had any issues even at times going pretty lc. However, that is what my body is accustomed to and I feel better the less sugar I eat. I would go slow at first especially if you are a big sugar/carb addict as most people are. Anyway, my diet is mostly meat(pasture raised or organic)- veggies- good fats and v. minimal fruits. My milk supply honestly seems to regulate best staying lower carb and I feel the best in the 50-150 g. of total carbs a day.

[Ms. B. Sprout]

Hi there!

I am happily low-carb and nursing my 2 year old. No supply issues here whatsoever, and I have lost 21 pounds since December 29 when I started.

I just checked my FitDay overview for the past 2 months and this is what it says:

Calories: 2072
Fat grams: 136.8
Protein: 106.5
Carbs: 86.2

And percentages:

Fat: 58%
Protein: 21%
Carb: 16%
Alcohol: 5%

Note that I am 5'11", 214 pounds, and moderately active, so my caloric needs may be different from yours.

I am grain-free and processed-food-free. All my carbs come from heavy cream and veggies. No fruit, no sweets. No cravings, either, or else I couldn't pull it off, lol.

Hope this helps! Good luck!

[lil_earthmomma]

I'm primal (no grains, very little starches, no sugar) and nursing. I think staying in the 50-100g of carb a day range will facilitate weight loss without jepordizing your milk supply etc. It has worked well for me. Now that my toddler is only nursing before bed, I have dropped it down to below 50g of carb, and I still have plenty of milk.

[natty529]

thanks for your replies mamas, I will probably start cutting all the sugar i have been eating lately , then settle around the 50-100 carb range, which is MUCH higher than i used to do years ago! More specifically, I am a little concerned about going into ketosis and what that would do to my milk, although if i was consuming 50-100 carbs a day that wouldn't be an issue.

[crunchy_mama]

just to clarify as well- while losing weight I kept in the 50-100 g window most of the time, although sometimes I got down below 50. Remember as well that we are talking about total carbs here and not net carbs.

[Ms. B. Sprout]

Originally Posted by crunchy_mama

while losing weight I kept in the 50-100 g window most of the time, although sometimes I got down below 50.

Yep, me too. I very rarely go below 50 or over 110, just as a natural function of what I eat these days.

When I was trying to get my head around dietary changes, I found the Mark's Daily Apple Carbohydrate Curve informative, though it may be old hat to you since you've been LC before!