Dieting While Breastfeeding - Cleveland,TN

What you eat or drink has very little to do with your supply. Here's how it works: Your body will always give the best that you have to your baby. It will take all the vitamins, good stuff, etc away from you and put it in the breastmilk. So, if you don't eat healthy, your baby will still get the good stuff, but YOU may have your own resources depleted. (Ex. think of the mothers in third world countries that are sickly thin, but have healthy fat babies) If your resources get depleted, then you run the risk of getting sick/rundown which in the long run could affect your supply. I encourage you to eat well rounded diet with appropriate portion control. Portion control is important-many ppl get caught in the idea that they are "eating for two", and you aren't. You are eating for one! Please don't do any of the diets where something is avoided (no carbs, or no meat, etc). Your body needs all of the nutrients provided in food. It's ok to cut out junk food and fatty foods--things that provide empty calories. Exercise if you can, but don't over do it.

Be healthy, be smart. And give yourself time--your baby is still really little. Your body may react differently this time then it did before. It may not be like before when you didn't lose.

good luck mama!

I asked my doctor about this when my DD was still young. Doctor's don't recommend dieting, just exercise (and not too excessive). "Dieting" is eating certain things, limiting carbs, calories... all the things DC needs. He said the only diet that could be safe is the Body for Life diet. (6 small meals a day, that way you constantly have nutritions for nursing). Good Luck!!

S.,
It is perfectly OK to modify your diet while breastfeeding. Keep in mind that you need 1200 to 1500 calories a day to maintain your health and energy level, choose fresh foods in their closest to natural state and give weightwatchers or sparkpeople.com a try.
It is often easy to consume many more calories while mothering. We grab a bite here and a bite there, and we are often not very conscious of what that bite is.
The fact that you are producing milk burns calories, so if you can make sure you are keeping your calorie intake in line the pounds will come off.
You might also consider cardio activities that you can do with your children like walking or biking, dancing to veggietales is a big hit at my house...
As mothers, it feels like we are running all day but the reality is that we neglect the cardio and strength-building exercises that help to build muscle and raise our metabolism.
Eat for your health - your body will provide for the baby in the breastmilk first - so any shortages will affect you first.
Happy Mothering!
L. G
IBCLC

S., unfortunatly, you should not be dieting while breastfeeding, you still need 500 extra calories a day. What you can do is make sure those calories are nutritous ones. It's the summer, so eat plenty of fresh fruits and veggies and drink plenty of water. If you cut out all the junk and go for optimum nutrition instead of dieting, your milk supply will be good and you will set yourself up for weight loss down the road. Please keep in mind that they say it takes 9 months to put it on and 9 months to take it off. Don't feel that you have to rush back to your old self, you just had a baby, and some extra weight is expected and normal. Just take it one day at a time and when you stop nursing you can go at it full force. Hope this helps,
-K.

I have not suggestions but I wanted to say I complete agree with you, this is my first I have been BF for 10months and besides the weight I lost immediately the other 15lbs still lingers. If you find any good suggestions pass them my way.

I just started Weight Watchers online (no meetings, YAY) and they cater to breastfeeding mothers by showing you what intakes to change to prevent too much weight loss and to keep milk production. go to www.weightwatchers.com to check it out :) Good Luck.
PS I used WW once in the past and lost 35lbs. :)

I don't think just breastfeeding will take the weight off. I didn't start really losing my baby weight until I started running -- I think exercise and a lot of it is what it takes. If you drink plenty of water, your milk supply will keep up. I started running at 6 weeks and started training for a half marathon at 6 months (that got rid of the last 10 pounds) and my milk supply was fine as long as I drank enough water. With all the running, I didn't really watch too much what I ate. Actually, I ate all the time and had a ferocious appetite, which I attributed to the running and breastfeeding. As far as a good diet, Weight Watchers is a great way to eat healthy and lose weight and they have a program for breastfeeding mothers. Good luck.

Hey S.,
Congrats on your new baby boy! While I haven't tried weight watchers while breast feeding, they do tailor a program for nursing mothers. I can testify to Weight Watchers working before my first child I lost 86 lbs on it. Best of luck.