Okay my wife is in the process of cutting while she is breast feeding. She gave birth in Sept 08 and is wanting to lose some of the weight she gained during pregnancy. We started in January and she made some nice progress (which I can def tell). But she stalled the last week or two (on the scales). Though she didn't gain weight she also didn't lose any over that period. This is her first time eating clean and counting calories. We are now working out 5 days a week on a light cardio and weight lifting. She was eating 1600 calories a day to begin and lost weight. Please review her meals i have posted in the attachments. Any advice in this matter would be helpful. I hear 1800 cals is good for breast feeding. But i'm not sure. She is 5' 6.5" 205lbs at 25 yrs old.
OH the attachment is a meal for tomorrow. She is a touch frustrated with no loss in weight. So I am considering cutting her calories down to the numbers in that plan. Right around 1400. THat just seem low.
Last edited by garlan5; 02-28-2009 at 01:56 PM.
Reason: correction
UPDATE--- BUT STILL LOOKING FOR HELP ON THE SUBJECT
today she weighed herself and she dropped to 201. Which is a four pound loss from two days ago. I assume she is on the downward trend and her lack of weight loss from the previous weighing could be attributed to fluctuating weight. Anyhow today she was going to try to eat 1390 cals but got extremely hungry just now... I asked her to eat 1/4c of almonds and 1 tbsp honey. That will bump her back up to 1650 cals if she continues the meal plan for the day. Will continue to track and post... hope to hear from women who have breast fed while cutting(for some feedback)
First off, congrats on the new bundle. As for "cutting" while breastfeeding, it's going to be a 2 edged sword for sure. She's not eating enough for her body to keep up with breastfeeding alone on 1300-1600cals, it's recommended that you don't go below 1800 cals a day and that's just for the average Jane doing nothing but sitting and nursing, not to mention of average weight, about 130-150lbs..so ..for one, she's gonna stall anyways because she's going to keep her body in starvation mode, for sure it comes off quickly at the begining, but it'll stall for sure and she may even gain some..frustrating I know, but it does and will happen. On top of those 1800 cals she's now working out both with cardio and weights and she's going to need to feed herself even more to keep up with that loss as well. So again, she needs more calories.
Her body is going to burn anywhere from 500-750cals per day just nursing alone, some women it's even more, so just watching what she eats and nursing daily will help her lose weight. There's a great site for moms trying to lose weight while nursing and it'll help you figure out by her height, weight, stats and frequency of nursing just how many calories she needs per day. They have forums for her to chat with other moms, which I really liked myself and they're great for support, which is something she truly needs right now. I nursed my son for 13months, and just weaned him a little over a month ago now. At first for me I dropped weight almost over night, then things got hard. The slower it got, the more I did and less I ate, I litterly started to gain weight, it was nuts and very frustrating..then I actually listened and took other moms advice about eating more and did just that..after a few weeks, it finally started to lose again..but still slowly. They only recommend losing 1 lb per week for nursing moms as well, because they worry about any of the toxins trapped in the fat being passed through the mother's milk, so losing those 4lbs in one week is a lot right there. So she needs to give it some more time and just enjoy this time with your child, it goes by so fast.
And then there are some moms out there that find it hard to lose any weight until after they've weaned. Again with the body holding on to all fat stores in case the body needs it to nurse. So maybe it's something she needs to truly ask herself right now..does she want to continue nursing and losing slowly at 1lb per week, or does she want to stop nursing and go about it more passionately? But certainly look into www.babyfit.com , it's a great website, and there are even a few mom's on here who've used it or still are. Best of luck, and don't get to hard on yourself, you just did one of the most amazing things your body could ever possibly do, you've created and carried life, nourishing it and caring for it unconditionally, congratulate yourself for that, it truly is a big deal. And now it's time to care not only for your child, but for your self, but don't get hard on yourself about it, when ever you get frustrated with how great you've done all week but the scale doesn't show it, look at your beautiful child and just think how much wonderful things and chances you have given your child, you're doing and did the best thing for both of you and I wish you all nothing but the best. Congrats again and look into that site. Let us know how she's doing, we'd like to know. Take care. =)
Oh and I almost forgot, if she's not sleeping enough that'll stall her as well. I never got a full nights sleep until after I weaned him and even now, he'll still wake up once or twice through out the night, but I sleep a lot better now.
If she weren't breast feeding I'd put her at 1800 cals. Since she is breast feeding it's more like 2300 cals. You do not eat based on a goal weight, you eat based on your current weight. If she eats to little, which she is doing, it'll not only stall out her progress by lowering her metabolic rate, but it can also interfere with breast feeding.
The scale is also useless. Throw it out. Between water fluctuations and muscle gains, readings can be extremely deceptive and psychologically harmful. Take measurements and progress picts. Reevaluate no more then every 3 weeks. There is a lag time between diet and exercise changes. Don't do body fat measurements either as there's too much error and can also be deceptive. The very last thing you want to do is drop cals and do tons of cardio. Have patience and just look for a slow loosening of clothes.
She may have issues losing while breast feeding and so soon after pregnancy. It'll all depends on the state of her hormones. So don't get frustrated if it doesn't go as well as hoped. Enjoy your newborn and adjust as parents. Fat loss isn't the tall pole right now
I agree. The calories are too low and I am not a huge fan of the calorie sources. I personally had trouble losing weight due to hormones while breastfeeding even while on a strict diet. I weaned my son last week and I am finally losing a little weight.
I recommend:
- Adding more EFAs such as almonds, peanut butter, olive oil, avocados, etc.
- Milk: make sure that this is fat free milk, and limit to 1-2 cups per day.
- Food choice: Choose whole grain carbs and lean meats.
Also, since she is nursing, feel free to splurge occasionally. You have your whole life to lose weight, but nursing is a once in a lifetime bonding opportunity.
I agree with everyone..she's not eating enough for breastfeeding AND working out. I breastfed and lost a ton of weight and was NOT working out so if she's also working out, she needs to add calories or soon enough, her supply will suffer. I was back to pre-pregnancy weight 4 months after giving birth without working out...simply watching what I eat.
Maybe she isn't seing results anymore because her body is in starvation mode...so retaining fat.
Good luck and keep in mind what's most important right now....she'll have plenty of time to lose weight
WORKOUT
M: Full body workout
T: Off
W: Full body workout
T: Off
F: Off
S: Full body workout
S: OFF
Walk dog 1 hour a day.
DIET
Protein and good fats, low carb
Goal: Loose fat and gain muscle!
Just do it!
Obsessed is a word the lazy use to describe the dedicated!
You are what you eat!
I was affraid she was too low on the calories. I will be sure to bump them up asap. Thanks for all the great feed back and I shall pass the info along to her.
I have stats similar to your wife, I am 27 years old, gave birth in Sept 2008, and 190 pounds. I have been steadily eating 2100-2200 calories (notice a little lower than what your wife is doing because I weigh a little less) and am making progress. Although the scale hasnt moved in a month, I have lost an entire clothing size since eating this many calories. Please dig out a measuring tape and the camera and encourage her to use other progress methods rather than the scale.
I also go through periods where I can tell I may not have eaten enough the last few days as my baby will be fussier like I am not making enough milk, I bump the calories up, and all is well again. Tell her to really watch her milk supply.
And what sort of a workout is she doing? She may need to revamp it a little to confuse her body.
Jessica
I have stats similar to your wife, I am 27 years old, gave birth in Sept 2008, and 190 pounds. I have been steadily eating 2100-2200 calories (notice a little lower than what your wife is doing because I weigh a little less) and am making progress. Although the scale hasnt moved in a month, I have lost an entire clothing size since eating this many calories. Please dig out a measuring tape and the camera and encourage her to use other progress methods rather than the scale.
I also go through periods where I can tell I may not have eaten enough the last few days as my baby will be fussier like I am not making enough milk, I bump the calories up, and all is well again. Tell her to really watch her milk supply.
And what sort of a workout is she doing? She may need to revamp it a little to confuse her body.
Jessica
here is our work out schedule: (normally)
day 1- Weights Lifting- Chest 3-4 sets of 10. Jump rope for a 4-5 1 min sets afterwards
day 2- Cardio with jump rope 15-25 min total. Using the HIIT method
day 3-Weight Lifting- Back 3-4 sets of 10. Jump rope 4-5 1 min sets
day 4- Cardio with jump rope 15-25 min total. Using the HIIT method
day 5- Off for recovery
day 6-Weight lifting- Legs 3-4 sets of 10. light jump rope after
day 7-off for recovery
day 1-off for recovery
day 2-Weights Lifting- Chest 3-4 sets of 10. Jump rope for a 4-5 1 min sets afterwards
day 3-Cardio with jump rope 15-25 min total. Using the HIIT method
day 4-Weight Lifting- Back 3-4 sets of 10. Jump rope 4-5 1 min sets
day 5-Cardio with jump rope 15-25 min total. Using the HIIT method
day 6-off for recovery
day 7-Weights Lifting- Chest 3-4 sets of 10. Jump rope for a 4-5 1 min sets afterwards
and so on
I give a day off before leg work and two days afterwards since at the moment we are doing jump rope... but i'm planning on getting some work in on the heavy punching bag and maybe a speed bag too.. and when it warms up we will start jogging. we have no treadmill or inside bike at the moment.
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