BF'ing, Diet & Excercise

[momof2inohio]

Please, oh please give me your thoughts!

I've noticed I've lost weight just BF'ing since I gave birth (not anymore, but in the beginning), but I'm still 30 pounds higher than where I was pre-prego, and I want to get back to those clothes again.

However, many moms have told me that my milk will dry up if I do anything more vigorous than a brisk walk or areobics more than 1-2x's a week. Is this true? They also said that I have to keep my calorie intake up, which of course makes sense, but I can't do that by dieting. I don't plan on going on a water diet or anything, just cutting back my portions.

Do any of you BF'ing mammas excercise more than 3x's a week and have stopped snacking? My BIL is getting married in a little less than a year and I so want to have my shape back again, but I don't want to stop BF'ing.

TIA!

[movaly1]

With ds, I walked everyday (starting with 15 min/day and going to 60 min/day when I could), **tried** to eat healthy (I am weak when it comes to chocolate and sweet things), and was ebf for the first 6 mos. I didn't do anything else. I was back to my pre-pg weight by 4 mos, but I never did get rid of the pooch.

I am doing the same with dd (I'm 6 wks postpartum) and I am about 12 lbs post-pg weight right now. It's all in my belly, I think.

I guess what I am trying to say is that you have almost a year... I don't think you don't need to do anything drastic right now.

I've read that you should wait 4 weeks for your milk supply to get established before you start rigorous exercise.

[jennyofthemoon]

It is advised not to "diet" at all while bf'ing, but I'm not really a believer in the whole diet thing anyways The key is to make healthy lifestyle changes, and to do it slowly so you (your body) can adjust.

It's fine to exercise more than a couple times a week, you just have to eat enough to support what you are doing. Weight, like nursing, is all about supply and demand.

After I had my third I went to the gym 6 days a week, but I ate twice as much. I lost a lot of weight doing that. You also want to do some weight training, because muscle burns calories at a higher rate than fat does. Plus, you look more nicely toned (I'm not talking body-builder muscles here, just nice toning).

The way the body works is that it gives nutrients to your baby first, so you wuld be the one deprived if you are overdoing it. And that does effect your babe, cuz if you are too tired and drawn to take care of him, that's no good.

Normally a weight loss of 2-3 pounds a week is okay, but when you are nursing, you want to go slower, 1-1.5 pounds per week. There is a good book out there somewhere about losing weight while breastfeeding, but the name and author escapes me right now

Take it slow, make HEALTHY changes, and if you start to feel like you are overdoing it, back off. Listen to your body. There are a few nutritionists out there who are very skilled with bf'ing moms, so that may be something you culd look into if you have no idea where to start. And if you have any questions, I'm alwyas on here and willing to help Good luck!

[ModernMama]

BF'ing is the best thing you can do to lose weight quicker. It takes 500-700 calories a day to make milk. The best thing to do is if you are hungry....eat something! Try to make your calories count by eating healthy. Excersise is great but don't do too much to soon. Your body needs lots of time to heal after carrying a baby for 9 months and giving birth!

[zonapellucida]

I am going to start exercising at the 6 week mark. Too damn dtired to do so now. Strenuous exercise may change the taste of the milk so I will probably delay nautilus until much later. Yoga and walking and cutting out the carbs I have been inhaling is on the list.