Do you actually lose weight if you breast feed, or is it a myth?

[fussytodd]

I would love to hear some experiences as I've heard mixed things.

Lots of people say you lose weight.

Others say that you actually need to eat a lot, otherwise you don't produce enough milk - so you don't actually lose weight.

Personally, I couldn't breast feed for very long, as I wasn't producing enough milk. I was also not eating huge amounts of food though. So who knows ! Any experiences appreciated. I may be onto my second one next year and would really like to try again and see if I get more milk this time.

I wish I had! Only just started to be able to shift some weight now she's feeding a lot less and is past 1 year old! I held onto all of the fat - and then she started nursery and suddenly I was so much less hungry

I did. I had to stop. I looked like i was ill

I ate loads and lost loads of weight. Such a shame he had to start on solids 😂

I miss my breastfeeding days for that reason. After my first DS, I got down to under 8st and was the slimmest I've ever been. I gained a bit back, but when pregnant with my second the same thing happened. Unfortunately I'm over a stone heavier now. I ate loads when I was feeding, loads of chocolate, carbs etc, but very little alcohol and lots of walking.

I put weight on. I was sitting down more (thank you velcro baby!) and the exhaustion made us turn to takeaways, cake and so on. I was mentally exhausted because at 4 months until 8.5 months DD started waking every 2 hours and would only contact nap so I just wanted crap food. I've started eating a lot better now my DD is 9 months old and combi fed.

@SpamIAm

I ate loads and lost loads of weight. Such a shame he had to start on solids 😂

Reminds me of the desperate housewives episode where one of Lynettes colleagues breast feeds quite an old child and everyone is outraged. But she breaks down because she doesn't want to stop breastfeeding as it will mean she'll have to start going to the gym again..

I breastfed my three for 9,11 and 13 months respectively and didn’t think it helped me lose weight however with my first I was able to walk him for 3 miles a day to get him to sleep, with my second I was monumentally stressed and the weight dropped off pretty quickly but wit my third I’m still carrying baby weight and more 21 years later 🤣🤣

I didn't lose a single lbs and was 2 stone overweight after baby

Breast fed two kids for 1 year each

Didn't help me at all

Lost a lot of weight. Also due to a poor sleeper amd pram pushing.. but id sat most of ot was due to bf

Weight and appetite remained the same

I did. Even with the three breakfasts I was eating daily,

I lost a lot of weight when I breastfed (and I ate huge amounts of fat then).

Unfortunately after I stopped bf, when DD was two, I carried in eating loads and piled on weight 😬

But yep breastfeeding definitely lost me weight people commented on it at the time.

I didn't but could have been the chocolate digestives and two mugs of tea I 'needed' everytime I sat down to feed, made me very hungry & thirsty! I also had problems with making enough milk, greedy boys😍 but found one of the Bach's flower remedies helped (I'm quite science minded so stopped and started three times to do my own research study & definitely worked for me) . Think it was called vervaine, worth a try if your into natural remedies. Calendula ointment by Weleda also good if you get sore. (needs to be the ointment as stronger, not the cream) 🤗

I gained about 2 stone during pregnancy. I breastfed exclusively and I had lost all the baby weight by 4 months in.

However I didn't adjust my diet when I started weaning my DS, and also it was lockdown which meant I was a lot less mobile than usual and DS was a terrible sleeper so I was comfort eating. So I put the 2 stone back on over the following 18 months or so.

I'm now pregnant again and weighed the same at booking in as I did at 36 weeks pregnant last time

@fussytodd

Did anyone have more luck feeding their second baby?

My HV always said when I'd get upset that I didn't manage to feed as much as I wanted, that with the second one I'll be able to do it.

I didn't manage to directly feed my first due to a bad tongue tie and combi fed for three months then on to formula. My second was a dream to breastfeed, he got it straight away. Didn't lose weight though as I it made me so hungry and I ate rubbish but didn't stress about it. I'm now feeding my third and actively trying to lose the baby weight by not eating the rubbish just healthier snacks and better meals, both of these together resulted in a 6lb weight loss last week!! I doubt it will be the same each week but the feeding is definitely helping I think.

It’s absolutely not a myth. I ate whatever I wanted when I breastfed my first for 14 months, lost weight no problem.

Didn’t manage to breastfeed my twins for long :( they are 13 weeks now and I’m still the same weight I was when I have birth.

My stomach hasn’t shrunk back in properly either. Personally not breastfeeding has probably fucked up my figure pretty badly!

I did but I breastfed twins - was back to pre pregnancy weight within 2 weeks - it does make you crave sugar and carbs though so easy to cancel out the weight loss if you are filling up on junk foods

I lost weight...around my boobs and shoulders. I still had a fat tummy so I'm not sure it helped much.

My DS is 11 weeks and I'm breastfeeding. For the first few weeks (and probably while recovering) I definitely lost weight. But as I've spent a lot of time feeding baby and watching tv I snack much more and have started putting on. I also think it's to do with grabbing convenient food rather than cooking which tends to be less healthy

I think it's very dependant on the person.

With my first I only fed her for 4 months (looongg story) was a stone heavier at her 6 week appt. but definitely noticed it come off after I stopped feeding.

This time, I'm 6 months pp and 2 stone heavier than pre pregnancy. I'm EBF though and have no plans to stop anytime soon. I'm certain I'm not over eating so I think my body is just hanging on to extra reserves. Or so I will keep telling myself 😂
I move a lot though and eat a healthy ish diet.
I'm not stressing about it. The lack of sleep is stressful enough!

I don’t know about 2nd as still on my first but took absolutely ages for my milk to come in and found the whole thing to generally be a nightmare. Plus different advice from every health professional I spoke with. The only thing that helped was to have a session with an experienced breast feeding councillor who watched me and the baby feeding and then gave advice on how to improve the whole situation. It was like the difference between night and day. (Every baby and mother is different which is why the individual advice helps much more then the general info)

Other things that help to improve milk flow (hungry baby) are don’t get dehydrated. It’s your blood making the milk do need lots of water. Some foods can help a bit like oats and cherries so ate a lot of porridge. When baby is fussing over it not coming out quick enough have a quick shower break and run warm water over boobs. Use the nipple cream before your nipples get dry.

Also, conversely, the more you feed the more your supply builds up. It is really tough at the start waiting for it to build up. It took me a while as csections can cause delays in milk coming in so I had to start part bottle and slowly move over to EBF.

The more help you can get or ask for the better. And at the end of the day as long as baby is fed and gaining weight you are doing a great job and it doesn’t matter how they are fed.

I lost loads in the first year of feeding DS, I look back at photos of me when he was tiny and I look so skinny! However - I'm still feeding him now at 2.5 years old (albeit only once or twice a day) and unfortunately that certainly isn't the case anymore! I've piled it all back on and then some

I EBF both my DC for over a year each.

I sat around eating chocolate all day and the weight still just fell off me

Some do. Me, I planted my arse on the sofa and had snacks at arm's length while the babies fed.

I did. Slimmest I've been since early 20s.