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weight gain while breatfeeding!!
i have been gaining weight instead of losing it i work out 5x a week 30 mins a day and eat around 2000-2500 calories. my starting weight before i got pregant was 174, i gained 60 pounds with my son. i lost around 40-45 pounds within the first month of having my son and had about 20 pounds extra of baby weight so i was around 190 but now i am almost 5 months pp and have gained 10 more pounds. Do you think its my hormones?/ metabolism? am i missing something here? oh and i am 5"8'
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Re: weight gain while breatfeeding!!
and i just found this on caloriecount.about.com
"You should consume about 1,595 calories a day to reach your goal weight of 160 lbs . This is at a reasonable weight loss average of 1.5 lbs per week, which should be reached by November 30, 2011.
Experts recommend weight loss at the rate of 0.5-2 lbs/week. Remember that this estimate is based on your body weight, height, age, gender, and activity level. It may vary slightly depending on other factors."
and they say you need to eat a extra 500 calories if breast feeding so it would be 2,095 i need to eat. idk
That is WAY high IMO. A good range for weight loss at your weight (if you were not breastfeeding) would be 1200-1400.
I just did it myself to see what it would say and it told me 1460 calories a day to reach my goal weight. I can tell you 100% if I ate 1460 calories a day (and I am quite active) it would take me forever to get to my goal weight. I'm 165lbs now and trying to get to 135lbs. I've lost nearly 100lbs already.
omg if anyone has any answers to keep my belly full on 1200-1400 calories a day PLEASE LET ME KNOW! I'm always starving and try to eat tons of protein but I end up having to chug water to keep myself full then I'm hungry within an hour
It sounds like you are not eating foods that are nutritionally dense. If you spread out your food and have lots of mini meals, you might find that you are too full to eat it (but you have to anyway!). A common complaint about Nutrisystem is that there is TOO MUCH food.
Here is roughly what I eat in a day:
Breakfast:
Nutrisystem breakfast entree (substitute 1 low glycemic carb serving ~80 cal, 1 lean protein serving ~55 cal)
Dairy/protein serving (up to 100 cal, less than 3g fat, 7g protein or more)
Fruit serving (60 cal)
Lunch:
Nutrisystem lunch entree (substitute 1 low GI carb serving ~80 cal, 2 lean protein servings ~110 cal, 1 fat serving ~45 cal, 5g fat, 1 veg serving ~25 cal)
2 veg servings (~50 cal)
2 tbsp FF dressing if desired
1 dairy/protein serving ~100 cal, less than 3g fat, 7g protein or more
Snack:
Dairy/protein serving (same as above)
Fruit serving (60 cal)
Dinner:
Nutrisystem Dinner Entree (substitute 1 low GI carb serving ~80 cal, 3 lean protein servings ~165 cal, 1 fat serving ~45 cal 5g fat, 1 veg serving ~25 cal)
1 fat serving ~45 cal 5g fat
2 veg servings ~50 cal
1 fruit or veg serving ~25 or 60 cal
Dessert:
Nutrisystem Dessert Entree (substitute 1 dairy/protein + 1 low GI carb)
Seriously, you can eat all day. Spread those meals out. I usually have my breakfast entree separately and have my dairy and fruit later. I gave you the breakdowns for the NS entrees so you can make your own breakfast suitable if you wish to.
You can also snack on veggies like cucumbers, broccoli, and tomatoes all day long. There are also 3 20 calorie "free foods" you can have (but not all at once). A free food is anything 20 calories or less- lick butter if you want to LOL. But only 20 cal and it can't be combined with other free foods. It's great if you want a snack like 1 cup air popped popcorn or some sugar free Jello.
Does that help? I have some more great tips posted in my blog including recipes that are compliant with the program.
i am nursing my son so 1200-1400 is way to low i mean look at kellymom.com
"If you really want (or need) to count calories...
Studies have shown that most healthy breastfeeding women maintain an abundant milk supply while taking in 1800-2200 (or more) calories per day. Consuming less than 1500-1800 calories per day (most women should stay at the high end of this range) may put your milk supply at risk, as may a sudden drop in caloric intake. (See Can I diet while breastfeeding? for more information on calorie restriction)."I ate between 1400 and 1600 calories a day with DD and I breast fed exclusively for almost 15 months! She never even ate baby food, cereal... literally nothing but breast milk for that long and I had no problems producing milk... and so far it's the same way with DS...
Why don't you try cutting little by little... if your supply seems to be affected than just stop... I would say you definitely need to cut some calories though if you want to lose some weight... if you are too worried about it then just wait to cut calories until you are done breastfeeding... I would say there really isn't any other magic solution... Good luck!
That helps a lot, thanks! I eat about 6 times a day anyway so if I miss a snack I'm STARVING! I usually eat a lot of protein since I'm a type 1 diabetic so I eat a lot of cheese and peanut butter and veggies but I work a lot during the week so I don't have time in the morning to pack veggies or anything so I drink V8's. And by veggies I mean canned spinach since we don't have extra money to spend on too many fresh veggies :-/ However, cucumbers aren't expensive so I need to go buy those
I'm glad it helped! Keep in mind that cheese and peanut butter are very high in fat and give you little protein for the calories. Have you tried Greek yogurt with some fruit mixed in? Way more protein for the calories. Perhaps your problem is simply that you're choosing the wrong foods with the right goals in mind. Maybe keep some precooked chicken strips in your fridge to snack on, or maybe a lettuce wrap with some FF deli meat? Those are much, much better ideas than peanut butter or cheese.
It's summer- grow some veggies
Please feel free to come check out my blog for some snack and meal ideas. I just posted a yummy portabello mushroom BBQ chicken pizza that makes a great (and filling!) snack. Everything I post is low glycemic index so it's safe for diabetics.
I have to admit that I am new to this mom gig and new to breastfeeding so I honestly don't know if/how breastfeeding affects one's metabolism/hormones/weight-loss capabilities, etc., but I have to jump in here and say that 1200-1400 calories a day seems WAY too low for someone who is both exercising and breastfeeding....and is relatively tall.
If you check out the H&E forum over on The Nest, they would never tell you to drop as low as 1200-1400 calories a day to lose weight at any point, let alone while breastfeeding. If you don't provide your body with enough energy in the form of food, it will hold onto what fat it has to protect itself against starvation, and make it that much harder for you to lose weight. And I believe the weight you do lose first from eating so few calories tends to be muscle weight, which is not what you want.
By eating so few calories and exercising at the same time, you're basically asking your metabolism to speed up (exercise) while you slow it down at the same time (by withholding food).
1200 calories a day is the generally recommended amount of calories for a non-BFing person if they did nothing but sit in bed all day.
Why don't you try cutting 100 or 200 or 300 calories from your current amount of 2000-2500 and see if that helps. Or you could go the other way and try eating more if you currently find yourself feeling hungry a lot. Who knows, maybe you're not eating enough right now. Play around with it a bit but don't go super drastic and cut almost 1,000 calories from your diet.
If you don't already, consider adding heavy lifting to your exercise routine, or replacing some of your cardio with it. You'll burn fat and add muscle, which burns extra calories for you even outside of the gym. Women don't bulk up like men do so don't worry about that.
Also, this is important, especially since you're breastfeeding and need to keep up your supply - if you feel hungry, EAT. Just make it healthy like a piece of fruit and some protein, or something with complex carbs and protein that will digest slowly and make your body work for it.
Sorry if I seem pushy, but I just don't put any stock in diets that recommend fat free salad dressings full of fake ingredients and packaged meals that cost $$$ and are impossible to maintain long-term. What whipped me into shape pre-pg, and what I'm planning to do again as soon as I get clearance at my 6-week appt., was eating well-rounded, healthy, nutrient-dense foods - the one thing I did agree with PP about, lifting heavy weights at the gym, and doing some cardio. I ate when I was hungry and had treats in moderation, and I never, ever starved myself or went super low on carbs or fat.
Best of luck!
I will! I forgot that I eat the greek yogurt too but I have to be careful about carb intake, that's the only issue, or my dr makes me feel like a blob lol. So for snacks I try to eat less than 20 g. of carbs so the fruit or honey ones are a little bit over. The pizza you posted sounds amazing!! I'll def go check out your blog. Usually I'm in such a rush that I try to grab things, like peanut butter, that are simple and fast and get the job done. Thank God my company makes weight watchers yogurt, that's a lifesaver when they're able to put it in the breakroom for us
thank you for the feedback i will try messing around with my calorie intake and my workout routine and see if that helps at all. i love bf to much to give it up i might have to wait til i am done inorder to lose weight.
wish me luck
One thing no one has mentioned is go in and get your thyroid checked - preferably by an endocrinologist who specializes in weight issues. Shortly after DD was born mine went to heck in a handbasket and wasn't caught until she was 4. OTOH, I now know for certain that it's impossible for me to have diabetes! (20+ tests later!)
I'm a competitive lifter, and the calorie amount seems high even for me (5x/wk x 2hrs/day)... Granted, my attitude is "count reps, not calories"... Consider linking up with a GOOD trainer at the gym (institute on a "no whining/excuses" from you attitude with the trainer) and increasing your training time. There's a balance that needs to be struck. Also, sleep deprivation can greatly increase your risk for weight gain more than calories consumed! Make sure you're getting plenty of sleep.
oh on the veggie front. I try to be frugal also. My husband farms part time and grows some veggies so that saves some money on our food budget. The rest I watch the newpapers for sales. I buy what is in season.. this makes it way cheaper! Also hit up farmers markets if you have time. We will discount food if we have an abundance to get rid of it. And sometimes if you are willing to buy stuff that is bruised or slightly dammaged we'll sell it really cheap/ practically give it away because we can't sell it. Try talking to a farmer at the market I bet they can work something out. Farmers hate wasteing food.
When the baby naps I try to chop up/wash veggies and get them ready for cooking/snacks. Also freeze veggies/fruit that thaw well so we have them when they aren't in season.
In the end it works out that you can get fruit and veggies cheaper than canned food, and it tastes better (also healthier in season and locally)