OK - the truth - did you lose weight breastfeeding?

[Mirry71]

Sitting here with DC wondering if I am ever going to be my pre-pregnancy weight again - did breastfeeding help you lose weight? and if so how long did it take?

I have heard such mixed views and need consoling that I won't be in maternity gear for ever....

bf always made me feel desperately hungry, so I didn't get to pre-pg weight until after I'd stopped!

Nah. But I lay the blame on all the treats circulating at baby groups, coffee mornings and NCT get-togethers! One year on, I'm still pretty large.

Should I get a badge that reads 'Still Breastfeeding, Still None of Your Business, Still Fat'?

Lost loads this time but that is cos I have a chocolate mad three year old as well as a baby. She can sniff the stuff at 100 metres so I do actually have to sit and eat apples etc. in front of her rather than junk. When PFB was a baby I was still be shovelling cake down so the weight came off more slowly - still came off but not as much and much more slowly. Don't know about post bf as got pregnant with second while still bf.

I lost all my baby weight whilst BF (put on 3 stone). I didn't diet, in fact I ate like a horse the whole time. It did take 8 or 9 months though.

I weighed less after giving birth than before I got pregnant with dc3. Now weigh (after 7 months of breastfeeding) 2 stone more than before I got pregnant. Quite embarrassing really!.

I put on less than I should have whilst pg, therefore technically speaking I lost it, which was obvious after each dc was born and I was half a stone lighter ...unfortunately I didn't have any to lose! I ate like an absolute whilst bfing but failed to put any on. at least I didn't lose any more Only put some back on when stopped bfing. I have fairly greedy children, obv

I put on 3 stone while pg and thought it would never come off. Two months later I fit back into my pre preg jeans and by about 5 months or 6 months I weighed less than before pg. It had to be breasst feeding as I ate like a horse. Too bad I'm not breast feeding anymore

Another success am slimmer than I've ever been . Other than major weight loss when DS was born didn't really notice weight loss til 4/5 months later. This did coincide with moving to new house and having much more to do so might have had an impact too. Have been eating like a horse, but mostly fairly healthily - well toast rather than chocolate on the whole. Mind you saw first weight gain since birth recently , DS now 10months and cutting back on feeds so think I need to be careful....

Think I put on a bit more than should have whilst pregnant, but not excessively so and was v slightly overweight pre pregnancy.

I lost a lot of weight after DD was born. Breast fed for one year. After about 6 months I was a dress size smaller than I was pre pregnancy and a bit lighter. I'm now about half a stone lighter. Not sure if it was the breast feeding or the stress though.

I lost 1lb a day for 6 weeks when breast feeding dd.
It was fantastic!
x

Be careful what you wish for. I lost all my pregnancy weight & more but I also lost a bra size! 12 years later the boobs still haven't regained their pre-pregnancy size and I have given up hoping...

I put on three stone when pregnant and lost it all in about three weeks after my DS was born. I mentioned weightloss to my GP who said, Oh yes, so did I, with all three of mine. (thinks me me me)
I asked if I should take any supplements like a shake, and she said Oh no, have you tasted them??
Is there a market for supplements (besides vitamins) for bf-ing mothers with little time on their hands? There are plenty of fortified drinks for little ones out there, why not their mums?

Haven't read the whole thread but I agree with a lot of posters on page one....I lost the first stone or so within a few months of the birth but then retained an extra half -stone/stone while BFing, despite running three times a week. In my case, it is partly thanks to extra eating (and eating the wrong things too often) but I also strongly believe that your body tends to hang on to a bit extra in case of famine etc... With dd, the 'extra' practically fell off within a few weeks of stopping BFing and I'm hoping the same will happen this time, although I'm not planning to stop BFing ds (11 months) just yet.

try four stone in as many weeks!!! but then i was on a no fat diet due to gall stones, but i just went like a rake - back to my big and bouncy self now!

I lost well over a stone in the first few months feeding ds2, and I don't have a lot to spare. He used to feed ten to twelve times a day, however, and it was like feeding a dyson/hoover. I ate chocolate and biscuits as fast as I could to keep up with him. It did go back on, plus a bit, once I stopped feeding - specially since I didn't stop the chocolate at the same time! However, running around after two active boys has removed a lot of it again.

HTH

I lost all my preg weight and more during bfing, in the early stages this was due to only having the time/inclination to eat one proper meal a day. Later on I started eating normally but pretty healthily (apart from biscuits!) but it did still fall off me without any particular work - sorry!

In general however I think this is down to not sitting on my arse at work 5 days a week, getting out and about (DD would take ages to get to sleep so I walked for miles), and also going up and down stairs all day long. Did anyone else find this? I felt like I was forever up and down the stairs - my washing machine is in the basement though.

I stopped at 10 months, and when I went back to work when DD was 11mo, I was the slimmest I've been since school.

I lost weight steadily bf'ing, but the last bit stayed put until I finished. Carrying baby in sling all the time definitely helped! I was raring to go again after feeling hobbled by huge belly in late pregnancy and it was more that I kept doing too much and getting knackered. I also used to spend rainy afternoons moshing to the Clash in my living room. Gets a "colicky" baby off to sleep in no time, and toddlers love it! x

Haven't read the whole thread just op but basically I bf for a year without loosing any weight at all. Then suddenly I lost a stone in the space of 2 months, I didn't change my eating or exercise habits in any way.

Lost quite a lot stin first 3-6 months, but then have yoyoed depending on how much chocolate I have been consuming

Still about 9lbs to go, and just finished feeding my 12 month old, so really hoping that quite a bit of that drops off now! Better stop eating quite so much chocolate I guess...

Hmmm, bfing has worked far too well for me. After a year of it I'm now almost a stone lighter than my pre-preg weight. And my pre-preg weight was only just OK (I mean on the lighter side of normal). Don't know how common this is - most people in RL look like they want to hit me when I mention it - but I am finding it a tad depressing - and the GP is talking about food supplements.

No breastfeeding made me put on loads of weight I only lost that weight when I stopped feeding my daughter.

sariska - totally not related to bf but wanted to ask you about your name, have you been?

I lost LOADS of weight when I was breastfeeding. It was actually a bit worrying because I was eating like a horse but still constantly losing weight. When my dd was about 3 months old I was the lightest and thinnest I have ever been in my life - clothes were hanging off me! I had my thyroid function and iron levels checked but they were ok. I gave up bf when dd was 5 months as it didn't seem to be agreeing with me. Now 10 months on I am back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I don't think my experience is typical but its not that unusual either as a friend of mine was exactly the same.