Losing weight while breastfeeding

[inky1991]

Hi all

Just wondering what everyone's experience has been with breastfeeding, and if you lost weight easily or not?

Many people say to me the weight drops off, as you are burning so many calories. However I've never had a great metabolism and always find it fairly difficult to lose weight so just assume it won't be like that for me. I suppose I just want some positive stories!

I would love to have some luck on my side and for my metabolism to go into over drive. For those that put on weight while BF, why do you think that is?

Breastfeeding, especially in the first 6 months, made me ravenous so I focused on feeding and not on my weight. Only really started making a real effort to calorie count and move more at the start of the year and my DD is 19 months this week and still feeding.

I'm not being massively restrictive or doing hour long workouts every day or anything but have definitely cut out the junk and surprisingly, especially given than I'm menopausal too, the weight has been coming off steadily.

I put on weight while breastfeeding. I was so hungry the whole time, I even ended up wanting to snack while I was feeding in the night. I stopped breastfeeding after 9 months and then started to lose weight quite soon after.

I went to an antenatal class and the midwife said that the average body burns an additional 500 calories a day when breastfeeding. So if you kept your eating habits the same, you would lose weight. However most people eat more (or more conveniently i.e lots of snacks!) so it kind of evens out!

With my first, I didn’t drop any weight. In fact, found it easier to lose once I’d stopped. With my second, I lost weight easily (this has never happened to me before in my life) however, since stopping I put more on and I struggle so hard to lose anything now

I calorie counted and allowed myself an extra 500 cal a day. The weight dropped off me and I gained when I stopped feeding both!

First time round it all dropped off despite me eating loads ... second time round not so much!

I lost quite a bit with bf over the first 11 months and snacked loads but now I'm feeding less 12months pp the weight has plateaued and I'm guessing I will start gaining.

Hi there. So, I ate healthily whilst breastfeeding. I knew I had three quarters of a stone to lose before I got back to my pre-pregnancy weight. My weight stayed the same whilst breastfeeding. However, I stopped at 3 months. One month later I had stopped producing milk and periods returned. From then on, with NO changes to my diet, I dropped half a stone in 2-3 weeks. As I say, no changes to diet or exercise at all. My midwife told me apparently some women retain weight whilst breastfeeding (hormones) and don't lose it until they stop completely. I hope that helps.

I didn't lose anything at all until I stopped breastfeeding when DS1 was 9 months old, by which time I was almost three months pregnant with DC2 so started putting it all back on again. Gah! Eventually lost the baby weight when I stopped breastfeeding DC2.

I’ve not lost weight whilst breastfeeding and I’m still going, 18 months in. I’m back to running and weightlifting, so I assume/hope that losing weight will be easier once I stop feeding 🤷🏻‍♀️trouble is, boobing to sleep makes life easy and my periods still haven’t come back, so the pros still outweigh the cons!

I have been feeding my LO for 21m now. I put weight on if anything as I was always hungry. She still feeds a lot; throughout the night mainly.

I have only lost weight the last four months due to calorie counting! I've lost 2st 8lbs so far.

I lost loads dépité eating a lot, didn't notice at the time as was so knackered (twins!) put on weight when I stopped.

Lost here. Gained 3 stone in pregnancy, lost 3+ stone by the time Ds was 4 months. He was 9lb born and ate constantly as newborn. I found it really hard to gain tbh, and was then underweight until I stopped feeding around 18 months.
It was also start covid, so I was running business with no family or friends help with newborn that summer of 2020, so I think just constantly on the go helped also, with no time to cook. Ds also only napped in sling or pram really so walked miles daily.

For those that did lose weight easily while BF, did you have fairly fast metabolisms and lost weight easily before getting pregnant? Im just wondering if there's a link

Shocking metabolism pre pregnancy. Only had to look at food and would gain weight. But I guess was relatively used to fluctuating up and down 10ish kg. Lost tonnes of weight breastfeeding without trying at all. Ended up about 8kg smaller than when I got pregnant. All came back very quickly when I stopped despite no dietary change

Very interesting! Fingered crossed I'm this lucky 😆.

Yes, me. Sorry to break the theory, but I have always lost weight before with very minimal effort, like when I stopped breastfeeding. Breastfeeding, for me at least, completely stalled it (I wish this wasn't the case!!)

With my first two, I lost weight/returned to pre pregnancy weight by the time they were both 1y. I was fit/into sport prior to my first baby. I put on 3st with my first, 4st with my second.

My third baby (whom is currently BF to sleep!) I put on 5st. I have lost 3st so far. It is not shifting as quick, however my body is doing what it is designed to do and keeping my fat supplies up to feed my LO, so I'm surprisingly unbothered. Especially as I read recent studies about the thighs, hips and bum of a mother, holding the best quality of fat that your body stored/stores then uses, to create milk. It all made sense when I noticed my stomach not shifting as fast ;)

For info, I was incredibly into fitness prior to this pregnancy and trained several times a week. I also eat relatively healthily. I have been walking with my daughter since she was 8 weeks old, for 30-40mins daily, she is now 19 weeks.

Should have added that weight loss was over about 13 months. We also live in a city centre so I walked everywhere which probably helped. No other exercise though.

It makes you really hungry and I also gave zero shits about losing weight as was so sleep deprived at that time. I was eating a 12 pack of Kit Kats a day 😂so probably a crap example. I breastfed past one year, but really noticed a weight drop when I dropped night feeds and hormones came back and then again when I was about 3 months after stopping completely. I reckon it depends on getting back to your normal level of exercise though too and I found this much easier once I’d stopped breastfeeding. And I also returned to a job where I’m on my feet for 12 hrs. I reckon sleep deprivation has a bigger influence due to increased hunger and limited energy to walk/exercise.

Same.

I lost loads of weight when I was breastfeeding (to the extent that a family member asked if I'd developed an eating disorder out of concern).

In truth it was a combination of eating healthily (obviously what you eat goes into your milk creation) not drinking alcohol and walking everywhere pushing the buggy.

Compared to working life, (sat at a desk all day, eating meal deals for lunch and snacks that colleagues brought in and drinking booze in the evening) I consumed way less calories without realising and did lots more exercise; then there was the calorie burn from breastfeeding on top.

Same thing happened with baby #2, aside from I was a lower weight to begin with and had a smaller baby so got even smaller.

Having a baby is a lifestyle changer.

Yes, despite me eating like a lion whilst breastfeeding, the weight still dropped off. Mad.

Sorry, I was starving during breastfeeding and put weight on. Both times.

Yeah I walked for hours! That helped too, difficult to maintain when you return to walk and I’m still an avid runner doing half marathons.