Did breastfeeding help you lose weight?

[MangoJuiceAddict]

hey, I was wondering about others' experiences of breastfeeding and weight loss. Did breastfeeding actually help you to lose weight? I breastfed my daughter for 8 months and didn't lose any weight... I gained it as I was so hungry and constantly craved sugar for energy! So is the 'breastfeed to lose the babyweight' saying an old wives' tale? My mum and mother in law both swore it was true but my experience definitely says otherwise!

[LittleRedDinosaur]

I'm still breast feeding. DD is 8 months and I still can't get my wedding rings on! I'm hoping. It will start to fall off when I stop?! Definitely feel a bit cheated!

[MangoJuiceAddict]

My weight fell off when I stopped! I stopped because I got married when DD was 15 months and I knew I could not get married at the size I was! But I did manage to lose 4stone in 7 months when I stopped breastfeeding! There's hope :). I just ate special K for breakfast, tuna and salad with wholemeal bread for lunch and either soup or a stir fry in the evening, with fruit for a snack. I walked DD for 45 mins everyday and stopped breastfeeding: the weight fell off! I felt cheated too lol.

[Snazzywaitingforsummer]

It did for me. I was ravenous and was able to eat anything I wanted and was still losing weight .

[MangoJuiceAddict]

You're so lucky! That's exactly what I hoped for and was promised: but I just gained the weight! How long did it take you to lose the weight?

[clabsyqueen]

Breast fed for 10months. Gained weight until I got my body back and took control of my appetite. Definitely feel cheated!

[MangoJuiceAddict]

I'm so pleased i'm not the only person who was cheated and only get their body back when breastfeeding stopped (although I obviously sympathise!). Everybody at the mums and tots groups seemed to be glowing and jumping around in their pre-pregnancy jeans whilst I wore a tent and was increasing in size by the week!

[MimsyBorogroves]

Not really - but that's because I hoovered down biscuits as they were quick and easy...which then became habit because I was "burning calories with the breastfeeding". I probably was at first, but not at 10/11/12 months.

I gave up the biscuits at 13 months, and only did one breastfeed a day. I'm still doing the same at nearly 18 months, but have lost a stone. I'm putting that all down to the biscuits. I still crave them.

[plannedshock]

Seems to be working for me, eating crap-choc, loads of biscuits, and I'm back to my pre-pregnancy weight, baby 8wks. I could just be lucky.

[lottiegarbanzo]

No, like you, I ate too much cake etc. but after I stopped I felt more physically 'normal' and energetic, which prompted weight loss.

[MrsWooster]

No.

[poocatcherchampion]

apparently yes,although my mum swore blind it was a myth.

it took 9 months to get to pre preg weight but then I got preg again and I've only put on a stone in 6 months - I put on 3 last time (in total)

[poocatcherchampion]

still bf btw

[Longdistance]

I didn't lose any weight either. You're not alone in thinking it was a load of old crap. I feel cheated too.

[NulliusInBlurba]

I had quite the opposite problem and lost all my pregnancy weight and more within two months. But I've always had a fast metabolism and DD1 had dreadful colic so I hardly slept in that time - I think I lost some of the weight from pure stress. It became hugely difficult to maintain a BMI of even 19 while I was EBF. The midwife gave me the recipe for a high-energy natural drink which involved a lot of milk and bananas, but it didn't help much.

[cupcake78]

Oh no! I had all my hopes pinned on breastfeeding being the way forward. For those of you that did lose weight do you snack or stick to 3 meals a day?

Think I will empty the house of cake and biscuits before baby gets here. I've put on nearly 4 stone. I'm 37 weeks and hoping for 2 stone to go with birth and water retention.

[50shadesofbrown]

Didn't lose a single pound (actually gained another 6) while I was BF). I had to stop at 5.5 months when DD got teeth, she was & still is a really determined biter. It took about 6-8 weeks for my hormones to settle (I think) & I've lost nearly 2 stone in the 6 months or so since. She is about 13 months old ( I got HUGE when I was pregnant!) So don't despair! It will happen. I think think the losing weight by EBF thing is a myth they tell women to encourage them to do it. FWIW, I loved EBF, so much easier than bottles, I was heartbroken when I had to stop. Cried for days. Still makes me sad I couldn't carry on with it.

[IsThatTrue]

I haven't lost weight and DS is 6mo. I feel cheated but I'm so hungry and if I try and stop snacking my milk supply drops. I have started running again though so hopefully exercise will cure what diet can't. Watch this space :)

[changeforthebetter]

Dd1 no but I tried "routines" etc. dd2 massively because she was a gannet and fed a zillion times a day

IIRC there is a decent- sized study to show that women who do bf keep the weight off into middle age. I don't have a reference for that (long out of world of bf support) There will always be exceptions. Just because you didn't lose weight doesn't disprove the trend.

And in case I sound smug, mega-feeding baby did not stop AF returning at 2 months!

[talkingnonsense]

I didn't lose till I stopped feeding- but my sister lost masses so it is just the luck if the draw! ( or maybe whether you have a greedy body or a greedy baby!)

[barefootwalker]

Definitely didn't help me! I was fairly careful during pregnancy not to gain too much weight but after DD was born, her weight gain was slow so I was advised to make sure I was eating lots if calories to pass on to her. This was when I put on most of my weight. I've since been worried about affecting my milk supply so haven't dieted. We're weaning now so I'm hoping to start losing the weight in earnest soon.

[TwasBrillig]

I bf but I've put on 3 stone in that time . . .more than I weighed when pregnant. After shrinking back to pre pregnancy weight straight after birth!

I think traumatic birth experience, complete lack of sleep and depression probably had something to do with it though.

[worsestershiresauce]

I lost weight very fast, too fast, and am in the slightly odd situation of being 12 weeks post birth and needing to gain half a stone. It uses 500+ kcal a day, which is quite a lot of extra food to eat.

[squidkid]

I'm not sure. I've lost all the weight now at 8 months, but I ate healthily and exercised too (which was fairly exhausting with a baby and bf to be honest, but I hate feeling unfit and tired). I'm certainly not someone who sat on a sofa eating cake and the weight fell off. Maybe it helped a bit? I like to remind myself of all the other health benefits to bf, for me and baby.

It seems totally arbitrary how people's bodies respond to pregnancy, whether you bf or not.

[Bunbaker]

Like Snazzy the weight fell off me. I couldn't eat much in the latter stages of pregnancy as my baby was pressing into my stomach cavity. Eating became a pleasure again once DD was born so I ate for England. My MW said that breastfeeding had helped to retract my uterus, and it had shrunk back to its normal size within 10 days.