Breastfeeding and weight

Ok so I thought breastfeeding was supposed to help you lose weight?  Everytime I have done it it makes me extermely hungry and i eat like a horse.  This obviously doesn't help with the weight loss thing.  Has this happened to anyone else?

[30something13]

I was 10 years younger before when I nursed the last three and I dropped like crazy! I am under what I was before I started this time but I have plateued off now I think. I am hungry more then I ever was before too! I have heard others on here that did not loose much either! I am though going to change my eating to see if it will pick back up though.

[Brittny27]

I lost quite a bit at first but haven't lost anymore in 2 months. I am starving all the time. I can eat a meal and an hour later be looking for something to eat again. I hate it. I try and snack on apple slices and peanut butter.

[nola0805]

I am experiencing the same thing.  I am always hungry and while I lost a lot of weight initially I have not lost any in the last six weeks.  I keep waiting for the big weight loss payoff - maybe it comes later?  

[LosingMyMindInGA]

I came out of my pregnancy 5 lbs under my prepreg weight.  But now, since I'm  constantly hungry and always eating...I've gained about 8 lbs :(.  I'm going to start keeping a food log to keep track of fat/calories and see if that helps me to regulate what i'm eating.  I am also trying very hard to find the motivation to start using my treadmill...thusfar I have not been successful at that.

[KarenDiane]

I thought the same thing! Most of my weight fell right off. I lost 28 lbs. within a week, but I gained 48 and that last 20 is stubborn. I'm starving all the time too and if I wait too long to eat, I feel nauseous. I'm hoping that once I start working full-time, it'll come off but I think breastfeeding advocates are exaggerating the weight loss thing :(

[jenstam]

I always hold onto about 5-10 lbs when I'm nursing because ALL I can think about is FOOD and EATING!! I mean, stuffing my face! I eat more than my husband. Hate it, but I know it's my nursing appetite! Just wanted you to know that for many women it's normal. I don't even try to diet while nursing because I can't stop thinking about food! I had my four girls when I was in my 20's and (unfortunately) I bottle fed them all with formula. I had my two boys in my 30's and have nursed them both and the weight came off easier and quicker with my girls in my 20's. So for me, the nursing has not helped me lose weight faster. If anything, I pack on more pounds because of my appetite! Now, if I were choosing healthier, lower fat foods it probably wouldn't be the case, but I'm not doing that! It's like I have cravings for carbs and heavy foods. I swear, I can't help it!! (:

[cocacolapanda]

With my first that's exactly how it was, but this time around I'm just eating smaller amounts and waiting to make sure I'm still hungry and it's worked great for me.  Also at the end of this past pregnancy I didn't eat much so I think that has something to do with it too.

[Whitneylauren]

You burn about an extra 500 calories a day from nursing full time. So OF COURSE you are starving :) Plus, you gotta admit, those boobies weigh a lot (at least 8 lbs)! I always hold onto extra weight until after I taper off on breastfeeding (usually after the first 15 months).

[Michele, Katy, TX]

Don't worry GA.  It's normal and it hasn't been that long since you delivered.  I always feel huge and swollen right after I give birth even though I am breastfeeding.  And I eat whatever I can get my hands on too.  But after a few months, I all of a sudden start to notice my pants getting bigger slowly.  It's just a process, so don't worry!

[Clysta]

I'm dropping weight no matter what I eat, and it seems to be happening rapidly. I'm down to 110 pounds. I usually lose 1-3 pounds a week, or sometimes more.

[Brittny27]

I seem to want pasta all the time and eat it all the time. I lost the first 20 lbs in the first 2 weeks PP and now I have 20 to go. I'm hoping that my appetite does slow down in the next few weeks but my stomach is always growling at me. I'm still in my maternity clothes. I hate it!

[LosingMyMindInGA]

I have been seriously craving carbs and all things bad for me.  I always seem to come out of my pregnancies a few pounds under what I was when I got pregnant, but then I start gaining weight postpartum.  At the doc yesterdaty I was almost 3 lbs OVER my prepreg weight but a week after giving birth I was 6 lbs UNDER my prepreg weight.  I, too, see to be craving things like pasta.  I've been eating the weight watchers 3 cheese Ziti Marinara like it's going out of style, that and pizza, cheese quesadilles and mcdonalds biscuits and hashbrowns.  No wonder I'm gaining weight but it's as bad as pregnancy cravings.  I wish I could find a good way to curb my appetite but it just seems like I'm ALWAYS hungry.  I have been trying to substitute eating a lot of junk food or unhealthy foods with constantly nibbling on bbq sunflower seeds.  I'm hoping that becuase it takes so long to hull them and eat the little seeds that it'll give me a sense of eating but help me to not overeat, plus they are a good source of iron.  All I know is that I'm just tired of being fat and not having the energy and will power to get off my duff and do something about it.

[jenstam]

I feel the same! My son is one today and I'm still nursing, and still starving all the time. Mostly for pasta, rice, rich foods. I know this will go away once I am done nursing though. There are some women who don't lose all of their pregnancy weight until after they are done nursing. I am one of them.

[Ecologic]

I was really hungry at first, it's normal. I did manage to loose 30 lbs of the 37 lbs I had gained, but I can't seem to loose the last lbs - my baby is 6 months old. And I still have a pregnant belly that I hate! I should exercise, I know it would help but I am so lazy...! I have decided to progressively stop eating bread, that should help.

[jschoch8]

wow i cant believe how hungry everyone is, i can see why i dont make enough milk :( i gained 50 lbs and still have 15 to lose. im losing about 1.5 a week now, but its definately getting more stubborn.

[30something13]

jschoch8-
the weight thing has nothing to do with how much milk you have, just your metabolism and eating habits in conjuction with the calories burned from nursing.

SOrry to hear your not making enoough milk, If you nurse on demand no matter waht time, drink a glass of water 20 min before a feed and nurse till your empty your suplly will get better in about 3-4 days! Good luck I know lot sof woman ahve troubel with supply.

clysta-
I am jealous of you girl! I used to be tiny till I hurt my back and neck (discs) now ther is soo much I can not do to loose and even just get around liek I used to, I gained like 60lbs when that happened! Now I have like 45 to go to be good again, can't wait! You are young too and your first, awe I went gained 55lbs with my first then by the time he was 4 months weighed 12lbs lighter and was super tiny! Maybe someday;)

[Michele, Katy, TX]

Yeah GA, be sure to keep that in mind too.  You have been pregnant and delivered several babies :)  I have to remind myself of the same thing too sometimes.  6 and counting over here!!!  And I also have to remind myself that each time I have another baby, I am older than the time before.  So take in getting older (not old) in addition to have several babies...well it just takes a little longer to get the weight off.  I totally would not worry about that right now.  You have had a full plate over the last several months.  You have plenty of time to worry about your weight later, if you feel you need to.  But I seriously wouldn't worry about it right now.

[Clysta]

Haha. It can be good and bad. My 13 year old sister looks as old as myself, and weighs 7 pounds more. When my husband and I go out he gets the "cradle robber" looks since I don't look as old as I am, and he looks older than he is.

[30something13]

haha I look younger too:) That is funny, I am the youngest out of 4 girls. My DH looks young though also but my step son (17) looks older then him! Sometimes people think they are friends or brothers or he is my DH if we are out alone at the store. that part is embaressing for me...LOL

[kt0323]

i was feeling pretty good about still having a few lbs to loose until i read your comment:( ur weight is coming off so fast this your 1st or 2nd child

[Clysta]

This is my first and likely only. Don't feel bad!! I'm concerned at how fast I'm dropping weight. It almost seems sickly to me. :(

[Momof3grrrls]

I lost weight breastfeeding. Even while eating like a P.O.W. prisoner found. The minute I stopped breastfeeding the weight creeped on and on and on. I now weigh nearly as much as I did pregnant! Whilst changing my eating habits dramatically!

[mature_enough]

Still losing here. I was 168 when I delivered. I'm down to 117! Eating healthy & breastfeeding is all I do. (Play time is my exercise)

[zazou]

I was also really hungry at first and one-month post-partum it has reduced. I gained 15 kgs in this pregnancy and have about 4-5 kgs to go to pre-pregnancy weight. I'm not too bothered as I can still fit in to most of my clothes but it is the chest area that causes the most problems!

Some women lose alot of weight, some of them don't, I guess everyone is different with a different metabolism. It seems normal to want more carbs as well, as you burn energy when breastfeeding. But white bread, white pasta have more sugar, so eating brown (wholemeal) bread and pasta is healthier and has less sugar, and you are more full. My problem are sweets, I love sweets at the moment, but I am trying to keep everything under control, it's hard!

jschoch8 - I eat less than when I started breastfeeding (with both kids) but my supply was still good. Are you drinking enough? Are you putting baby on enough? Sometimes my little one just wants to suckle and I latch her on, and it really does help the supply going, as the suckling always results in a let-down (in my case). Plus your brain receives signals to produce more milk. Do you breastfeed on demand? Try drinking mother's milk tea, fennel tea or malt-based drinks. Oatmeal is also good for increasing the supply :-)

[Diane1003]

My metabolism was through the room when I was nursing - I was hungry all the time b/c of it.  By the time I was done nursing I was lighter than I was before I got pregnant. I lost the baby weight as well as more!