To give up breastfeeding as I can't lose weight

[mustardmustard]

Baby is 11 weeks old and I have been breastfeeding, I originally wanted to BF until baby turned 6 months but I feel like my body is retaining all my fat and not letting me lose any weight whilst I BF. I am 2 and a half stone overweight and despite healthy eating and exercise (walking) the scales will not go down, only up if I have the odd day where I have some biscuits or chocolate.
Has anyone else experienced this? I keep hearing that people who BF lose all their pregnancy weight really quickly, this couldn't be further from the truth for me

[CeeceeBloomingdale]

to clarify that was weaning onto solids I was referring to, I continued BF. I also gained a lot of weight in pregnancy, stones in fact. I think the BF helped me lose it, you're just a little way off seeing it yet

[Dishwashersaurous]

11 weeks is so do young.

And actually if you are hungry then your body might be in starvation mode.

Honestly please focus on enjoying your baby and then think about this when they are weaned onto solids

[HumunaHey]

I think people automatically translate the fact that you burn extra calories just from breastfeeding to mean breastfeeding will mean you lose weight. Well there are lots of variables to prevent this (e.g mix/sometimes formula feeding, healthy eating but having big portions, not actually being as active as you might think, etc).

Also, what is healthy eating to some is not to others. Same goes for exercise. I spoke to someone recently about how I was trying to do lots of walking during pregnancy, she said "same, I try to do at least 5k a day" Puts my mile and a half walk every other day or so to shame

[naomi81]

I gained weight bf too 🤦🏼‍♀️ I did it for a year and had enough by 10 months but couldn't be bothered with formula by that point. She has just turned 2 and I am now shifting the weight, can weight to get back to pre pregnancy weight 🤐

[Twizbe]

@mustardmustard

I am not expecting to lose significant amounts, but it is really disheartening when I have cut my calorie allowance down to 1800 per day and have been going to bed hungry every night, and have been doing around 10,000 steps a day. And literally not even .01 of a pound has dropped on the scales.
My BMI is currently now on the borderline of obese, so it's not just vanity but also health reasons.
And then you hear of other BF'ing mothers who lose all the weight without even trying and it really does make me down about it

I know just how you feel. I saw these other women bounce back and I didn't.

Tbh I don't think it would have helped if I'd bottle fed. It's just how my body works. I've lost all the weight now though and I'm super pleased I kept breastfeeding. It was totally worth it.

Yes I felt shit about my body but now that is a distant memory.

Do sign up to slimming world. It works, you can breastfeed and not go hungry.

For context i went from a 12/14 to a18/20.

[Woodpecker22]

How old are you? I lost the weight rapidly when I BF my first at age 30. With my second at age 39 I am struggling to loose any weight whilst BF.

[helpmum2003]

My experience was mixed. Lost some weight, but not all, while feeding 1st child, while feeding 2nd went to lowest weight I'd been since prior to 1st.

So I would say in my case some was due to breastfeeding and some due to being busy running round after a toddler in addition and probably ate less then I did the 1st time.

I think there is an unhelpful narrative that you can eat what you want when you're breastfeeding without gaining weight. (Not saying that's you OP). Why don't you put what you're eating into Myfitnesspal or similar just to see how many calories you're eating? If your intake is very high you could sensibly reduce a bit as long as milk supply is OK.

Good luck.

[helpmum2003]

Sorry OP I've just seen you've cut calories to 1800 already. You couldn't go lower than that I would think. . How tall are you? Are you getting plenty of protein?

[TheKeatingFive]

I am not expecting to lose significant amounts, but it is really disheartening when I have cut my calorie allowance down to 1800 per day and have been going to bed hungry every night, and have been doing around 10,000 steps a day. And literally not even .01 of a pound has dropped on the scales.

I totally hear you

I felt exactly the same. But it IS early days and my advice to you is relax. It’ll happen when your body’s ready. It clearly isn’t yet and it’s just unnecessary pressure to put yourself under.

Make sure you eat well, plenty of high quality protein, fish, fruit, veg, but don’t deny yourself either. Take a multivitamin. Think of your nutrition more generally, what might you be lacking? Pregnancy and bfing take it out of you.

Buy a few nice pieces that fit so you feel more confident and then just roll with it.

Starting solids seems to mark a change for some people, as well as stopping completely. When you get to those stages your body will be more ready. Honestly, don’t stress.

[helpmum2003]

Sorry, also meant to say that thyroid problems are common after pregnancy. It would be worth asking your GP to do blood tests.

[bishbashbosh99]

It worked for me. Almost over night when I stopped. It's all bloody lies that it helps you lose weight. I was livid haha

[Couchbettato]

I'm sure I read somewhere that breastfeeding can cause some level of insulin resistance.

Anyway, I didn't lose weight either breastfeeding until I decided to cut carbs to 50g/day, and then I just shed it off, and I'm still breastfeeding my son at 2 years old.

[Oneeyeopen]

My experience was that I lost some weight whilst breastfeeding but the last half stone didn't go until I stopped.
I used to forget lunch some days though if we had a chaotic day.
Tbh I say give yourself 9 months as that's how long it took to put it on. Also are you trying to lose baby weight or extra that you already had pre pregnancy?
Everyone is different. I remember a woman back in tight jeans after a week, I couldnt even do up my usually loose skirt!

[Puntastic]

I've been breastfeeding for the last three years (!) and with each child I've looked the fattest 2-3 months after birth. As baby starts eating more, it starts to come off faster. I've been back to pre-pregnancy weight at 6/7 months post partum each time with doing nothing more than eating a normal amount and continuing to breastfeed.

Some women genuinely can't lose weight when breastfeeding, but you've not given it long enough to know if you're in that camp or not.

[Bramshott]

Congratulations on your new baby!

11 weeks is such early days, and losing the baby weight can be an unpredictable struggle whether you're BF or not. FWIW I really struggled to lose the weight after DD1, but it just dropped off after DD2. I BF both of them for a year, and didn't do anything different as far as I can remember.

[AnneLovesGilbert]

I sympathise OP. There’s a thread on here today from someone struggling to buy formula so it’s a complicated decision. If you’re enjoying feeding and your baby is thriving, you could give it another couple of months and see how you feel.

[Skysblue]

Breastfeeding is one of the easiest ways to LOSE weight. If you’re unhappy with your weight now, you will be much more unhappy once you stop breadtfeeding. Try healthy eating and walking more instead.

Babies love breastfeeding, it’s not just food, it’s comfort asnd also a painkilling antiseptic antibiotic. Yabu to consider stopping becuse of your weight, and I think you would regret it the next time your child is ill and you can’t offer breastmilk.

[TheKeatingFive]

Breastfeeding is one of the easiest ways to LOSE weight. If you’re unhappy with your weight now, you will be much more unhappy once you stop breadtfeeding.

Erm, try reading the thread. This isn’t true for lots of people.

[MumOfOneAndAHalf]

I echo the comments that I lost very little until after 3 months post natal. By then I was then so fed up with being overweight that I started weight watchers (which adds a huge number of extra points for breastfeeding) and I lost weight between 3 and 6 months post natal.
My milk supply was never affected and I was very committed to continuing to BF. My son is almost 15 months and still feeding at bedtime, and I am back to my pre pregnancy weight.
Good luck.
Ps some people are very against dieting when postnatal or breastfeeding but if done correctly and slowly, you should be able to do both.

[Swearwolf]

How would you feel if you stopped and still the weight didn't fall off?

I've had two bf babies - the first I lost lots of weight while feeding, the second was the opposite and still, 5 years later, I haven't lost all of the weight. It didn't disappear when she stopped feeding like I'd hoped it would!

As they get older, regardless of what your hormones are doing, it gets easier to make time for yourself, diet and exercise. All I'm saying is don't make this decision based solely on something that still might not happen the way you want it to.

[Darkstar4855]

I lost weight breastfeeding but only from about five months on. I did 16:8 intermittent fasting with lots of water to keep my supply up.

[TooExtraImmatureCheddar]

I got to the 3 month point with both of mine and started dieting (low carb with DD, 5:2 with DS) and the weight fell off. I continued to breastfeed with both, but frankly I wouldn’t do 5:2 again because I was ravenous the day after fasting, even though I was doing 1000 calorie days rather than 500 cals on fast days. Milk supply wasn’t affected with either approach. Who knows, maybe I would have lost weight without doing anything!

Whatever you decide, try to focus on nutrition rather than just calories.

[mustardmustard]

@Swearwolf I'd feel gutted but at least I could do a more extreme diet to try and lose the weight.

It sounds like there are lots of us who have been in the same boat, and you are all right, there is no major rush to lose it, just with summer coming up I am feeling self conscious
I will continue to eat healthy and exercise and focus on not putting on any more weight for the time being, and then maybe in a month or so when baby is sleeping through the night (In my dreams! Haha!) I can look at weight watchers or slimming world or maybe intermittent fasting

[mustardmustard]

Just found this old thread of mine and thought I would post an update! As soon as baby hit 3 months I saw a huge shift in my metabolism and hunger levels etc. I joined slimming world and went on to lose 2 and a half stone really quickly! It was the easiest weight loss journey I've ever had! I carried on breastfeeding until baby was 6 months old and am so pleased I didn't give up earlier like I wanted to.
A few of you said there would be a change at 3 months and you were right! Thanks for the advice and I hope this inspires anyone else to carry on breastfeeding in case you are experiencing the same as I did!

[MySafeSpace]

Wow that's amazing. Well done. I'm 12 1/2months into breastfeeding and have only managed to shift a couple of pounds. The thought has def gone through my mind of stopping (altho he's weaned off gradually we're still feeding 4/5 times a day but some of that is for comfort I'm sure). I've just got into my head that once he's ready to stop I can then focus 100% on my weight loss and me again.
Well done again