breastfeeding and weight

[galadriel]

I've heard some people say that breastfdeeding melts the pounds away, and others say that your body hangs onto the extra while you're nursing-- and then after stopping, it drops off. I weigh the same as I did when 1yr old dd was a newborn, and I just don't get it. What is your experience with this?

[daria]

I think it just varies for everyone. I gained 45 pounds while pregnant and had lost it all by 5 months pp. My son is now about 6.5 months old and I'm holding steady, but haven't lost any more in a while (I wouldn't mind losing another 10 lbs or so). What I suspect made a difference for me is that I work and pump, and I follow the guideline to try to pump about 20% more than he eats (to make up for any waste, spoilage, or sudden growth spurts). He still nurses frequently in the night so I'm producing a lot of milk around the clock. I think producing even more than he needs is what has helped my weight loss.

If I didn't have to pump I don't know that I would do it just for the possible weight loss benefit, tho. It's time-consuming and a PITA. I guess exercise would be better (but I hate exercise--"working out" seems so pointless).

[Iansmama]

I gained about 35 pounds. After losing the initial 20 immediately following delivery my weight remained unchanged.

I started jogging a couple of months ago and the weight came off really easily. Ian is a year old now and I am just under my pre-preg weight.

[nikirj]

Hmmm...

I don't know for sure, I never stopped nursing between my children. But I lost all the postpartum weight I was gonna lose within 3 months after each child was born. I gained 70, lost 50 (which actually put me at a healthy weight - I was underweight before my first), then with my second I gained 70 again and again lost just 50 (so now I have 20 lbs to lose).

I am currently struggling with the fact that nothing I do seems to change my weight. I haven't changed my diet much, though, which is the next step *sigh* - my DH is very unsupportive of going on 'diets', he seems to think everyone should just work out more. Well, if an hour 3x a week doesn't change my weight (I look better, but am not losing those extra 20 at all) I think that the exercise thing is not the whole answer, you know?

BTW - my first post in this forum - didn't know it was here - will start looking in here :-)

[water]

Personally, I don't lose weight while breastfeeding. I was so bummed at at the books saying that the pounds would just melt away from bfing, but it didn't happen for me, after the initial loss right after birth.

Finally, when my ds was 18 months, I went on a diet and lost another 20 pounds, while still breastfeeding, sigh.

I think some people's bodies are different than others...

[daria]

Originally posted by nikirj
Well, if an hour 3x a week doesn't change my weight (I look better, but am not losing those extra 20 at all) I think that the exercise thing is not the whole answer, you know?

OMG that is so true. A few years ago I wanted to lose 10-15 lbs and I worked out 5x a week for 3-4 months. High-energy step aerobics, y'all. NOTHING HAPPENED. I lost maybe 5 lbs. Everyone I knew was like "you're building muscle" but if that were true I would have at least dropped a clothing size, you know? (I was a 10 trying to get down to an 8, fwiw.) The only thing that happened from all that working out was I was STARVING all the time.

The funny thing is that a few months later I went on a month-long study abroad in Ecuador and lost the ten lbs. there. I was living with a host family that had a maid who shopped at the market every day and served very fresh totally made-from-scratch meals (and not low-fat or anything), and I walked a couple miles a day going to school and walking around town. I got totally skinny without even thinking about it! Too bad I don't have a maid at home, and don't live in a place where I would walk anywhere.

That experience is part of what makes me feel like "working out" just for exercise's sake is pointless. I so wish that my lifestyle would accommodate better eating and more walking around but that doesn't seem likely at this point (or ever, really). We will never live somewhere urban, we will always be dependent on our cars and pressed for time.

[KathinJapan]

nakking
From what I have read some women loose and othets don`t. The don`t group is slightly higher. I think loosing weight is promoted as a reason to BF, as if there were not enough good reasons.
I lost all my pregnancy weight the first month, and at 5 months post partum I weigh less than when I got pregnant. I eat a lot more than when I was pg. fwiw. My weight loss stopped when the babe develped allergies and I had to change my diet and cut out dairy, wheat and eggs.
Kathryn

[KarmaChameleon]

Put me in the "doesn't lose weight while bf'ing" category. It is TOTAL bummer and in my darkest hours I fantasize about weaning so that I can fit into my skinny pants.

I gained 20 lbs this last pregnancy and lost 10 after her birth. I know, the math is all wrong. I was already 5 lbs. up from my normal weight, which was 10 lbs up from my optimum weight, so....now I have 25 lbs to lose and NOTHING WORKS.

I eat whole foods, practically no sugar and limited fats. I power walk 3 miles a day pushing my kids in a double jogger. I remain 25 lbs overweight. I find this very discouraging.

[Glittergal]

i guess i'm in the lose weight category. i gained 38 lbs, by 6 wks could fit into my regular clothes and by 5 months, i was feeling uncomfortably thin. i'm at 6 months now and am always starving. sounds good i know but i don't feel like myself, i think it might be something with genetics too. my mother, sisters and aunt all swear their skinniest years were post baby!

[soulful]

i gained 60lbs while pregnant and then post-preg i immediately lost 35. over the next four months i dropped another 10 without doing anything. now my dd is 18 months and in the past 6 months i've gained another 15. it's so frustrating. my appetite is always huge and i want to eat for her, but i also want to fit back into my old clothes. i really can't afford to keep buying new clothes!

[edamommy]

I'm with you

I weigh just 10 lbs LESS then I did at the end of my pregnancy (which ended at the end of the 7th month)! I work out daily. But I crave food more then ever. I can eat as much as my 6foot 4 220lbs husband without batting an eye and I'm just 5foot 2 and I weigh 143.

oh well. Kimberley

[Peppamint]

I am at my pre-pg weight right now (ds will be 1yo next week). I am 146lb and 5'2". I lost most of the pregnancy weight right away, but then started pigging out on junk last summer and gained about ten pounds DESPITE working out 3x/week at Curves. The weight is slowly coming off now that I've cut down on sugar.

I love carbs and sugar and I think that may be my problem so I'm going to try out the Curves carb diet... you only do the strict phase for a week so I'll see if that will help me jumpstart things so I can lose the 15lbs I need to lose!

It's going to be hard though, dh rarely eats veggies and drinks Coke all day long so there's temptation around every corner and inside very cabinet.

[morninglark]

I gained about 50lb during my pregnancy and have lost almost all of it (my ds is 5 mo.). I am still slightly overweight (about 10lb over what I like to weigh), as I was before I got pregnant and I wonder if that is part of it. I wonder if I started at my ideal weight and gained as much if it would have been harder to drop down again as quickly. I have never lost weight this easily. It will be interesting to see if it stops here

I work and pump and my dh is a sahd so we can't afford to eat out like we used to and dh cooks lovely meals from fresh whole foods and I take my lunch to work. I don't exercise save for a short walk to and from the bus stop and running errands while slinging all 18lbs of ds.

I don't believe in eating "low fat" for the sake of it and I limit simple sugars and "white" foods.

I do think though that my body looks more flabby than it did before and this can affect how "fat" I think I am.

[MamaSoleil]

Well, ds is 8 mts old, and I'm 10lbs less than my prepreg weight. I lost 10 lbs, from January till end of February. Then I started running, and haven't lost any actual weight, though I've lost 5 inches in my waist, and 6 inches in my hips/butt.
I don't know if it's true, I stop bf'ing dd at 31/2 mts, and I had gained 80 lbs in her pg, only lost 50. This time, I'm still bf'ing, I gained 40 lbs, and lost 50 lbs....I'm also a lot more active, and more conscious of eating healthy foods only. (for the most part :LOL )

[Peony]

I lost alot of weight. I was at my pre pg weight just a few months after dd was born, by the time she was 9 months old I had lost another 15 lbs. I got extremely thin and am now maintaining my weight with the help of a chocolate diet :LOL which I'm getting ready to quit so we'll see if I lose any more.

[Tegan]

In my experience, I also can not seem to lose while nursing. I wish I knew what the missing link is between the two groups.

[daria]

morninglark, I could have totall written your post...down to the 50-lb. weight gain and the sahd who cooks healthy meals. I have also suspected that the dramatic weight losses you hear about from nursing can be chalked up to having started pregnancy at a higher-than-desired weight.

I plateaued at about 10 lbs. over my pre-pregnancy weight for a good two months, but then the last bit just dropped off in a few weeks between 5 and 6 months post-partum. I can't quite tell yet if I'm still losing, but I suspect I'm in the range of about a half-pound to a pound per week.

[MamaSoleil]

have also suspected that the dramatic weight losses you hear about from nursing can be chalked up to having started pregnancy at a higher-than-desired weight

This is very true. I was quite higher than desired pre ds....

[DesireeH]

My ds is 18.5 months and I am still 20 pounds above pre preg........I lost 13 pounds in January doing semi low carbs but I gained it ALL back in February.......yuck.

[KiwiZ]

I have NO idea why some women lose weight like crazy while bfeeding and some don't! I held onto my pregnancy weight gain until about 3-4 months pp. Then I very quickly went back down to my pre-preg weight. My theory is that was my peak milk production, but who knows?