Breastfeeding and weight loss

[Ladybug122]

I think it's a lie. With DS, I did not experience the "weight loss" phenomena, but I did supplement formula from about 6 weeks on. This time, however, I am exclusively breastfeeding and I have not seen any evidence that nursing is helping me lose weight. Currently, I am working out 5 times a week, and doing weight watchers. I am losing weight but it is s.l.o.w. I'm not asking for a lot, I just want to fit into a pair of jeans again!!! I am not even that far away from my pre-pregnancy weight but it seems that my stomach still looks 4 months pregnant. Sigh.

What has been your experience(s) with weight loss/nursing after baby?

[Pollyanna]

I think the nursing helps for about the first 4 weeks after birth but that is about it, IMHO.

[Chrisada]

Nursing has actually hindered my weight loss. If I decrease my calories at all then my milk does not have enough fat for the baby. Therefore I have to eat a lot when breastfeeding. Now that I am dieting, I only breastfeed twice a day and am supplementing. My mom always said that breastfeeding does not really help with weight loss and that you still really have to work at it.

[SuzySunshine]

I could be wrong but don't you lose the weight AFTER you stop breastfeeding because you need the extra calories for the breastmilk??

[migirl]

I actually think nursing helped me lose the initial bulk of the pregnancy weight with both kiddos, and then a consistent exercise plan helped me lose the rest. Now, my body shape is completely different even though I weigh less than I did pre-pregnancy.

[ides]

Breastfeeding actually made me gain weight. Everytime I nursed him I became a hungry monster. Just couldn't get enough food in me. So, I ate too much and ended up gaining 10lbs. I'm still breastfeeding but I'm not getting as much insane hunger pangs so the weight is starting to go down a bit. I walk an awful lot but that's about it for exercise for me.

[moonlight]

I think it's a lie. With DS, I did not experience the "weight loss" phenomena, but I did supplement formula from about 6 weeks on. This time, however, I am exclusively breastfeeding and I have not seen any evidence that nursing is helping me lose weight. Currently, I am working out 5 times a week, and doing weight watchers. I am losing weight but it is s.l.o.w. I'm not asking for a lot, I just want to fit into a pair of jeans again!!! I am not even that far away from my pre-pregnancy weight but it seems that my stomach still looks 4 months pregnant. Sigh.

What has been your experience(s) with weight loss/nursing after baby?

IDK... All I do know is that I'm within 4-5 pounds of my pre preggo weight, but my hips and thighs have NOT gotten the message. I'm wearing two jean sizes bigger at the same exact weight before baby.

I don't look pregnant (no pouch in the front), but I seem to be wider from side to side. It's very discouraging. I guess I'll need to lose 40 more pounds to get back to my old jeans.

[Auspicious]

My experience was that bf would cause zero weight loss by itself, but would act as a little bit of an accelerant to any other weight-loss measures I would take.

Last time I stayed at my home-from-the-hospital weight until 16 weeks, when I started at the gym and it came off slowly and steadily (and slightly easier than in the past) until I was below my pre-preg weight (though still many pounds overweight).

This time at 9.5 weeks out, we started at the gym a week and a half ago, and I'm still at my post-hospital weight.

Both of those are with exclusive breastfeeding. So I say it's a slight lie.

[GrayMatterWife]

Breastfeeding (which I never did exclusively, I admit) did not seem to help at all. It was all about WORKING OUT and calorie reduction. Worked out every day (although not "marathon training, or anything close--just consistently) and eliminated pretty much every fun food--beer, desserts, etc.

But I was highly incentivized. There was no way I was going to fork over big bucks for new suits/business clothes.

All I know is that it disappointed my husband. He missed the boobs. A lot. I am pretty sure he would have traded my discomfort of a bloated belly for B-cups. And I think the first area of my bod to return to "normal" were the ta-tas.

[Chrisada]

All I know is that it disappointed my husband. He missed the boobs. A lot. I am pretty sure he would have traded my discomfort of a bloated belly for B-cups. And I think the first area of my bod to return to "normal" were the ta-tas.

My ta-tas were a 36 C/D BEFORE I got pregnant. Lets not talk about what they are now. I'm hoping they go all the way back down.

[Rapunzel]

Breastfeeding DOES cause weight loss for me. However, I gain sixty to seventy pounds when I get pregnant (so maybe it's easier to take off since it's only pregnancy weight?) and I nurse over a long period of time (like as close to a year as possible for each child).

The caveat for me is that the weight loss is gradual and takes months to happen. The kids I nursed barely any amount of time (my twins - for about five months) caused the LEAST weight loss for me. After I weaned them I had to really work out a lot to get the rest of the weight off.

[MrsK]

I'm with moonlight and GMW. I'm 7 weeks post partum and breastfeeding exclusively. I gained about 20 lbs during the pregnancy and I'm about 4 or 5 lbs over my pre-pregnancy weight. My hips and ribcage are about 2" wider than they were pre-pregnancy. My breasts are about 2 cup sizes larger. Impressive but too tender to touch. So, I can *almost* fit into my pre-pregnancy fat pants if I rubber band the buttonhole and I can only fit into pre-pregnancy tops that have a lot of stretch. No way I'll fit into my jeans, suits, or jackets.

[HouseofWool]

My ta-tas were a 36 C/D BEFORE I got pregnant. Lets not talk about what they are now. I'm hoping they go all the way back down.

My sister swears that her ta-tas actually get smaller after each child (she just weaned her 4th).

As for the weight. I am still nursing Sophie 2x/day and still have 20 pounds to lose. In the last month or so, I have been exercising at least 4x/week, with no resulting weight loss. I have been watching my calories, but am ravenous from nursing and the exercising. I am hoping that the rest of the weight will start to come off once she weans. On the plus side, I am way more toned underneath all of my fluff. All of the pilates and P90x seems to be helping.

[spotty_dog]

With both babies I have gotten down to my "default"/pre-pregnancy weight within 4-6 months with no special effort. Maybe it's breastfeeding, maybe it's just my body's physiology, I dunno.

I'm with moonlight and GMW. I'm 7 weeks post partum and breastfeeding exclusively. I gained about 20 lbs during the pregnancy and I'm about 4 or 5 lbs over my pre-pregnancy weight. My hips and ribcage are about 2" wider than they were pre-pregnancy. My breasts are about 2 cup sizes larger. Impressive but too tender to touch.

I BF exclusively for about 6 months. Even though I lost a lot of pounds quickly (I gained a lot at the end, so most of it was water), it was 6 months before by hips and butt got back into my pre-pregnancy jeans (Then I did a dance!). I found that it all goes back to pretty-much "normal" (I carry far more weight in my belly than I ever did before), but it takes a lot longer than you think.