breastfeeding and (lack of) weightloss

[fluffydinosaur]

I'm currently breastfeeding my one year old and trying to lose weight. I have about 4 stone to lose. I've been trying for about 6 weeks (12-1400 calories per day, running 5x week and kettlebells 3x week). I cant shift it...I thought I'd lost a couple of pounds but they seem to have just come back on.

I know others have struggled with being unable those while breastfeeding and apart from stopping breastfeeding I was wondering if anyone has found anything that has helped them? I was thinking of asking the doctor if they can prescribe Alli or another weightloss aid but im not sure if this is possible while breastfeeding. I really dont want to stop feeding yet as my LO cant drink cows milk. Meanwhile my weight is really getting me down, I have no self confidence and feel like a big lump of lard.
(please dont comment to suggest i lower my calories further - as i said i am quite considerably overweight and my current intake should be putting me at a good deficit, even before doing any exercise)
Thanks

Stopping feeding will only mean you need to consume fewer calories to see a calorie deficit and therefore weight loss. For exercise I'd be looking walking while pushing the pushchair.

@LynetteScavo thankyou for your response but honestly I think it is more of a case that my metabolism is sluggish while I am breastfeeding. I do a fair bit of walking with the pram and run 4-5km 5 times per week

I lost a stone without much effort after I stopped breastfeeding. Can you stop worrying about it too much until you decide to stop feeding maybe? Your body is doing an amazing thing, and some bodies just need a bit more fat to keep lactating (this is part of why you build up fat stores while pregnant).

Not everyone is like this, and I think some people dont appreciate that it's not all calories in/out if you're pregnant or breastfeeding.

I'm not sure a GP would advise a very low calorie diet or weight loss medication while breastfeeding (if you are wanting to continue), but I'm sure you can ask.

Are you getting enough sleep? I'm convinced that part of the reason I found it difficult to lose weight was because my sleep was so disrupted by DS.

Are you resting enough between runs? I'm no expert but from what I've read, running isn't necessarily the best way to lose fat as your body adapts to the exercise and you quickly plateau. Could you do fewer but longer runs? Different types of cardio? Are the kettle bells heavy enough?

I can't imagine eating less than 1200-1400 calories would be healthy. Have you lost any weight or got any slimmer?

Like I said though, I'm no expert so this could be rubbish.

My body simply wouldn't really shift the weight until I stopped. As soon as I stopped everything started slowly shifting. Actually, that's not true, I joined BIWI's Low carb bootcamp and that was actually successful in starting the shift. It was just painfully slow compared to when not breastfeeding. Think it's just one of those things.

By the way, it sounds like you have an amazing body that can do so many things. Feeding a baby, plus all that exercise! That's a great body. It sounds like you're fit and healthy, and moving lots.

Sometimes it's a good idea to think about what our bodies can do, rather than what they look like.

I really wish you the best of luck.

In my experience there are those that lose so much weight while breastfeeding, and can barely eat enough to keep up with calories lost, and those that just aren’t able to lose much weight until they stop BF. Unfortunately I’m in that second camp, but have BF four babies and always found it easy to lose weight after finishing feeding. I would just wait.

What are you eating for those calories? It could be better for you to focus on counting carbs rather than calories.

thanks for all your comments. Yes I agree that running probably isn't the best weight loss exercise but I did think that combined with diet I would lose at least a bit before I hot a plateau... i have literally lost nothing at all so far! once my local gym reopens then i could look at doing some classes to mix things up a bit. right now I just feel so demotivated.
in terms of what I'm eating, it's mostly good - eggs or porridge for breakfast, and things like lentil dhal, chicken/salmon salads, for lunch and dinner - sometimes a jacket potato or bolognese with wholemeal pasta (being careful with the portions for the more carb heavy meals). I have had the occasional treat like a small piece of chocolate but nothing extreme and all within calorie allowances

I will mostly likely breastfeed at least another 6 months, maybe longer, and the prospect of still looking how i do now by Christmas honestly makes me cry.

I struggled to loose the weight whilst BFing with both mine. I’ve dropped down to once a day for my 18 month old then hoping to drop that soon then will try again!!

oh @fluffydinosaur I really feel your pain. I had a similar experience - I gained sooooooo much weight bf DC1 that when I had DC2, I tried really hard to watch what I ate to lose the pregnancy weight, but failed completely, and it left me in a really bad place.

Sorry that that's not much help. But when you finish BF, you could try a rapid weight loss plan - I've just finished a VLCD (very low calorie diet - i used a meal replacement for simplicity) and the weight dropped off really quickly. I wish I'd done it straight after I finished BF DC2 (but it took me 4 years to find out about it) because I think knowing that there was something I could do with rapid results would have helped my mental health, which was so badly affected by being so overweight.

I find it really difficult to lose weight while breastfeeding (in fact I put on weight while bfing my second )
My third is 13 months and I’ve been losing about a pound a week since May doing 5.2 - more like 700 calories on fast days. Feels like slow progress but heading in the right direction...

@whatwillsantabring I think this might be what happens to me...its just I dont want to place a specific limit on when to finish breastfeeding but it getting me down not knowing when I could start

@lemonjam are you still breastfeeding? tbh I'd be happy with even 1lbs a week at this stage - at least its progress. I wonder if intermittent fasting is the way to go. how much are you eating on your "normal" days?

You are doing all the right things. I’d honestly wonder if you haven’t developed a thyroid disorder? You should contact doctor and ask to have your TSH level (thyroid function) checked.

The most common course for postpartum thyroiditis involves the onset of mild hypothyroidism starting from two to six months after your baby is born. The hypothyroidism then resolves as your thyroid normalizes.

The symptoms during the hypothyroid phase of postpartum thyroiditis are milder versions of general hypothyroidism symptoms. They may include sluggishness, dry skin, difficulty losing weight (or weight gain), constipation, low body temperature, and puffiness in the eyes, face, and hands.

While some cases of postpartum thyroiditis resolve over time, there is a strong risk that the woman will continue to have a thyroid condition.

It's estimated that as many as half of women with postpartum thyroiditis will develop persistent hypothyroidism, a goiter (an enlarged thyroid gland), or both, within four to eight years of onset. This means that you should have your TSH level checked every year.

Sorry (forgot to come back!) - I am still breastfeeding yeah, three or four times a day usually. I haven’t been strictly counting my normal days (I should, though!) but it’s somewhere around 1800, probably 2000 on a Friday.
5.2 works especially well for me as I just hate being hungry but if I can tell myself it’s only one day I can do it!