weight loss with BF

lisamoe · May 2011

Whats everyones expirience with losing weight after LO comes when you are BFing? I hear you burn alot of calories and weight drops off?

damabo80 · May 2011

Depends on what you eat.

BFing burns about 300-500 calories per day. But, if you are BFing while chowing down on a pint of ben and jerry's...you probably won't see a decline in weight.

mum2jack&littleb · May 2011

Not to burst your bubble, but that's not always true. I GAINED weight nursing both of my previous LO's. It's like my body held tightly to every calorie it came across. And I was not over-indulging in super-loaded carbs or high-fat foods either. I was making a real effort to eat healthfully.

This is truly a YMMV (your mileage may vary) kind of thing.

LyndseyLC · May 2011

I dont have experience (FTM) but this girl told me yesterday that her sister lost all her baby weight in 2 1/2 weeks from BF and pumping!

Gummybear · May 2011

I held onto about 10 pounds that just melted away after I weaned. I did not lose tons of weight. I had a big drop in the first couple weeks but after that, nada, until I stopped.

lissiealkie · May 2011

From what I've heard its supposed to, but it didn't do squat for me. That's the consensus with others I know of, as well.

mbritto4 · May 2011

I'd not count on it being your primary means of losing weight.

jacks123 · May 2011

I think it depends on the person, I've heard of people having difficulty losing weight until they weaned. For me, I breastfed both of my daughters and lost all of the baby weight by the time they were 6 months old.

COMomma81 · May 2011

I ate normally...semi-healthy. I lost all pregnancy weight plus 6 lbs within 6 weeks of birth. I maintained the weight until I reduced his nursing sessions at 1. Then I put on 15 lbs quick! :P

tawillers · May 2011

I didn't lose a single pound while breastfeeding 14 months.

mattnlinz03 · May 2011

I BF and ate crap all day long because I was starving 247. When DS was 2 weeks old I was in my pp pants and by the time he was 3 months old I was back to pp weight. I did start running again at 6 weeks which I think also helped a lot.

KOscar · May 2011

There is no one size fits all answer. It's really going to be very different for every person. Last pregnancy I gained around 25 pounds. I was back to my pp weight six weeks later and continued to loose about 45 pounds because of BF, and I ate an insane amount. I do not expect to be so lucky this time. My SIL BF but it didn't do much for her at all. I don't know the rhyme or reason behind why some and not others but you may set yourself up for disappointment if you count on it being the end all be all to weight loss.

amos07 · May 2011

I had lost all of my pregnancy weight by my 6 week check up (most likely before then since I fit into pre-pregnancy clothes at 2 weeks pp) and by the time LO was 6 months old I was 15 lbs below my pre-pregnancy weight. I ate whatever I wanted and ate all the time but I do have a crazy metabolism so that could be a big factor.

meg211 · May 2011

mbritto4:
I'd not count on it being your primary means of losing weight.

This. My friends told me they were ravenous while BF, so although calories burned were higher, so were calories consumed. I presume it comes down to each individual and how your body reacts afterwards. I plan on getting back on an excercise routine as soon as my dr clears me to speed things up.

MrsVictoriaB · May 2011

I lost 30 pounds in 10 days, but after that bf'ing gave me a HUGE appetite and I started gaining

brenwick · May 2011

With my first born I was SO hungry ALL the time! I literally ate all day and gained a ton of weight. With my next two I had learned from my mistakes and watched what I ate, and drank a ton of water and lost a lot of weight. I only gained 7 lb's with my second and lost about 30 all together when all was said and done, with my last LO I lost 40lb's during the pregnancy, another 20 at birth, and another 20-30 over my course of breast feeding. I think it all depends on the person and their habits.

Mrs.Leah.Maria · May 2011

I ate moderately healthy in the first 2 months and began running again at 2 months, by 3 months I was 5lbs above my pp weight and that's what I maintained for the past 2 years. It was definitely not a miracle worker for me, if anything I had to eat to manage my supply. If I dieted too much my supply would tank.

anakalia10 · May 2011

It also depends on the amount of weight you gained while pregnant- and whether that was a healthy amount or probably too much.

I EBF and lost all of the pregnancy weight by 6 months (but I also started working out at 6 weeks pp and watched what I ate- I was seriously starving and probably ate more while nursing than when pregnant). I actually lost more than I wanted by 6 months so I was a bit underweight and had to up my calories to get back to an ideal weight and also to ensure that I didn't have a supply dip.

Another thing to consider though is that some women will gain weight once they stop EBF. And others may hold onto some weight while EBF and not be able to lose it until they are done.

Basically, it really varies.

jillybean222 · May 2011

I found that I had to eat a lot of food and drink a lot of fluids to keep up with my hunger/thirst. I think it is estimated that BF'ing burns about 500 calories/day (the equivalent of a 5-ish mile run!) so if you make healthy choices, you can definitely lose weight quickly.

My experience is that I lose a lot of weight very quickly but hang onto about 5-10 pounds until I wean completely. I nursed both girls for a year, so that was a long time to be 5-10 pounds over my normal weight, but I got used to it. I will say that even though I lost weight quickly, my body was never quite the same - since baby #1, I have had to wear one size bigger than my pre-pregnancy size. I was always a 4/6 and post-babies I have consistently been in size 8's - something is just different but I feel that I look pretty good!

ktb31 · May 2011

lost all the baby weight and then some within a month. I'd never been so skinny in my life! And I'm usually just a normal weight for my height type person.

aozmomma · May 2011

Lost most baby weight after birth. Then I gained weight fm snacking constantly while exclusive pumping. I started working out 6 wks PP, but nt until i quit pumping was I able to get back to normal. I never knew if my weight was correlated with me being on Lexapro for PPAnxiety though. It might have been different had I not been medicated, who knows? I quit the meds around the same time I quit pumping. I felt they really weren't needed anymore and I didn't want to stay on them.

Want a personalized experience?

weight loss with BF

Re: weight loss with BF

Choose Another Board

Search Boards