breastfeeding and STILL no weight loss

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embeejai

New member
So, here I am...26 yr old with my first baby! I have never had to worry about weight loss...until now! My baby is now 8-months-old and apparently (based on everyone else's comments) I should have lost all of my baby weight by this point! I am 5'2" and currently 144 lbs. I was 115 when I got pregnant and 150 when I gave birth. I lost all the way down to 128, but somehow gained it back...probably the reese's pieces craving AFTER the baby! I am still breastfeeding my baby and initially this helped my uterus go down, but once I continued to breastfeed the extra calories needed brought the weight back. I want to lose weight, but since I've never been in this position, I don't even know where to begin. All I know is, I'm tired of everybody I know commenting on how fat I am or asking when I'm gonna "let the baby weight go!" I'm starting to see how Britney Spears feels...people constantly commenting on your body and your parenting choices has a way of lowering your self esteem and driving you CRAZY! My goal weight is 120, so I have lots of work to do!

Can somebody please help me figure out where to start and how to not let other people's comments about my weight get to me?!
 
Only you can decide whether or not other people's comments bother you...

There's a quote by eleanor roosevelt that you might want to remember - that no one can make you feel inferior without your permission...

You've just had a baby - your body has changed and it might never go back to what it was... so make sure your goals are realisitic
 
embeejai said:
I should have lost all of my baby weight by this point! I lost all the way down to 128, but somehow gained it back...probably the reese's pieces craving AFTER the baby! I am still breastfeeding my baby and initially this helped my uterus go down, but once I continued to breastfeed the extra calories needed brought the weight back.
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You did lose the baby weight - this is Reese's Pieces weight. :) You only need about 500 extra calories a day to produce enough milk for a 100% breastfed baby.

If you'd been overweight pre-pregnancy, I'd say focus on maintaining or losing very very slowly until you wean, on the grounds that you don't want to dump too many fat-soluble toxins into your bloodstream (and milk supply) at a time. Since this was all pregnancy / postpartum gain, I assume you haven't been laying down fat stores of mercury in the last 17 months. And unless you have an atypical 8 month old, potential diet-related supply dip isn't a big deal. So once you have a plan that works for you, breastfeeding shouldn't be an issue.

I lost a bunch right before I got pregnant, gained ~45 pounds during pregnancy, and was 10 pounds below my pre-pregnancy weight when my daughter was 4 months old. (Gallstones + allergic baby, both requiring strict diet on my part = a great weight loss tool.) By the time she was a year old, I was 10 pounds above my pre-pregnancy weight. So I know about Reese's Pieces weight. :) She was still getting 95% of her calories from breastmilk when she was a year old - I speak from experience when I say that breastfeeding doesn't burn much in the way of calories compared to a dish of candy.

Anecdotally, I've heard other moms say that the last 10 pounds or so does tend to hang on until you wean. My DD weaned freakishly late, and I'd gained a bunch of medication-related weight in the meantime, so I can't speak for that. In my experience, your post-pregnancy body is a different shape, even at the same weight, from your pre-pregnancy body. Some jeans are just never going to fit the same, no matter how much you lose, particularly if you had slim hips to begin with.

If you look around in people's journals, you can get a feel for what works for different people. Then just pick one or two things to try - if they work, stick with them. If not, try something else. Weight Watcher's has a breastfeeding moms program, if you want to go that route.

Good luck!
 
You're right about that reese's pieces weight! I never even thought about the fact that I had lost the baby weight...its the candy weight that I can seem to shake! ha ha! I also had never realized that my body would be forever changed post baby! Thanks!
 
I had a baby 18 months ago and my body hasn't been the same since, even though I eat the exact same, if not a lot less some weeks, than I used to. I thought it was because of my advanced age of 38 when I had my little luvette ha ha. My shape is different (and not in a good way unfortunately) and I'm 10 lbs heavier and cant get it off for the life of me. Some say I'm not trying hard enough, and to an extent that is very true, but there are other times where I try hard as hell for months and I still dont lose past my plateau weight of 137.5. I'm just planning on trying extra hard in the new year to shake this, but I'm losing hope to be honest. Wah wah wah, things could be worse I suppose!

I'm very curious to know exactly what you're doing differently than you were before you had the baby, if anything (e.g. the Reeses). Are you eating more? Are you less active? Are you eating different types of food? This could help us figure out what to suggest, or will help you yourself realize what's stopping you from losing the weight you gained, which I agree is definitely not baby weight (nor is my last 10 lbs baby weight either because I had gained 10 lbs about 6 months before I got pregnant).

I really question the type of people you're associating with, and why they feel its OK to say anything about your weight in that manner. That is just rude, family members or not! Before I lost most of my weight my sister would always tell me how pretty I looked and how I'm imagining that I look so heavy. Mind you she was lying as is obvious from the pics, but she still has not stopped telling me how I look nice and its all in my head (despite the scale and clothing size ha ha). Its really no one's business why you gained some weight and they need to keep their rude comments to themselves about it.
 
Kudos on the baby at 38!! Wooo Hooo...good job! I'm 26 and wondering if I should have waited! lol! Well I had what seemed to be STRONG cravings after my baby, Reeses pieces and nutter butter cookies. The nutter butters were low in calories as it was just peanut butter wit a basic flour and water shell over it. I have slowed down my eating dramatically since the baby was born and I dont have a"formal" exercise plan, but I do chase my baby around all day, clean the house, laundry and cook...as well as take care of a dog! So, I move alot more than when I was pregnant or before I was pregnant. I dont eat as healthy as I should, but it seems like no matter what I do during the day or week, the scale never changes. I've even gone so far as to weigh myself in the morning...(first thing of course, like a kid on christmas!) and i'll be 136 then without fail at bedtime I'll be 6lbs heavier! I know that in theory this isnt possible, but i figure the scale isnt lying!

Personally I never pass up the chance to compliment others that I feel are working on their weight, but of course others feel differently. By the way, I agree with your sister...you look GREAT! ;-)
 
embeejai said:
I've even gone so far as to weigh myself in the morning...(first thing of course, like a kid on christmas!) and i'll be 136 then without fail at bedtime I'll be 6lbs heavier! I know that in theory this isnt possible, but i figure the scale isnt lying!
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The scale might not be lying, but it isn't giving you an meaningful response, either. Weigh at the same time of day, in the same state of (un)dress, every time you weigh. You're going to have a fair amount of water weight fluctuation regardless, but virtually everyone is at least a couple pounds heavier at night than they are in first thing in the morning.

With only 16 pounds to lose, you shouldn't expect to see any meaningful change on the scale day-to-day, or even week-to-week. Assuming you're losing half a pound a week, normal water weight fluctuation is likely to change the scale on any given day more than a month or two of weight loss will. Don't focus on what you do or don't do on any given day - focus on making healthier choices for the long-term.

Nutter Butters are pretty calorie-dense compared to other cookies, because of their high fat content. At 65 calories per cookie, three of them have as many calories as a candy bar or a small bag of Reese's Pieces.

You might try spending a week writing down everything you eat (even a nibble here and there), to get an idea of where you're starting from. Not even necessarily counting calories, but keeping track. A lot of people do that kind of thing in a diary here; I count calories, so use (which is free for the online version).
 
noooooooooooooooo....not my nutter butters! ha ha ha! Well, i eat the wafer type, not the actual cookie type (not that THAT makes it any better)! Well, at any rate I'm gonna cut them out! Maybe I can substitute with a granola bar!
 
Hi there,
I haven't had a baby, but I know all about the struggle with Reese's PB cups...haha. Yes, I had 2 of the lovely things today. :biggrinjester:

As to the morons who think they're doing you a favor by getting on your case about your weight, tell them to shove their nasty comments where the sun doesn't shine. :D

As to what to do, looks like you're not consuming fewer calories than you're expending--which is obviously needed in order to lose weight. You've already been given good advice by others, so I'll just say to figure out how many calories you consume each day--keep a log. And then make sure your activity level burns enough calories. Strength training is something I really recommend bc it will burn calories, help you maintain muscle and help to tone things up--something I know most new moms need. Pilates are great for that, and can be done at home. :)
 
I didn't lose when I breastfed either

I breastfed my daughter until she was 10 months (and pumped enough to last her until she was a year) and I did not lose more than 10 pounds in that entire 10 months even though I was trying really hard!

Then when I had my son I didn't try to lose...and I didn't. But I did nurse ALL THE TIME! I quit breastfeeding three days after he turned 6 months and had enough milk to last him to almost 13 months! You'd think that would be enough milk to get some of the fat off me, but I guess not.


GOOD LUCK!
 
Blancita said:
I really question the type of people you're associating with, and why they feel its OK to say anything about your weight in that manner. That is just rude, family members or not! <snipped>
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Great minds think alike! That's the first thing I thought too. There's no excuse for people to be that rude.

The next time somebody asks when you're gonna lose the baby weight, I would ask them when they are going to learn good manners.:rant:
 
when i had my first child i beastfed till she was 15 months and did not lose any weight then found out i was having another one gained another 25lbs added to the lbs15 from the first child, after she was born i breastfed her till she was two and again did not lose any weight so four years latter when i had my third child i was even more over weight even though i know that my child benifitted form breastfeeding i still hoped that i would lose some of the weght but yeah again no such luck! but i can agree with these ladies i think some times we can justify eatting more because we breastfeed but that's just another lie we tell ourselves to over eat. i glad you were able to lose some of your baby fat and good luck on your weight loss goals.
 
Wow Mina! That is so awesome that you nursed for so long! It is so healthy for those little babies!

It did made me sooo hungry so I just made sure to drink LOTS of water and get plenty of fiber.
 
You are all absolutely right...I have vowed to stay away from those not so intelligent people for the time being! Since my initial post I have stopped breastfeeding. I was starting the weaning process so that I could be completely finished by the time my baby was 1. Little did I know, my little guy had other plans. One night I decided to do 1 bf a night and the rest enfamil. The next evening I attempted to bf and he looked at me as if to say "quit playing wit that thing, and fix me a bottle!!" :toetap05: So, I ended up quitting a little ahead of schedule!

As for the weight loss, I have noticed a little less of a bloating feeling, but I don't believe there's been a dramatic change. I still have a little milk and the stored fat that comes along with it. So, hopefully in another couple of weeks I'll see a difference. I was able to fit in some jeans that were 1 size smaller than I usually wear so that was good!:hurray: I've also started eating fewer calories and no reese's pieces!!! I noticed that the hardest part was actually making the decision to eat better. I've lowered my calories to 1500/daily and try to walk 2 mi or get on the treadmill for 30 mins a day, which generally equals approx 1.5 miles.

I'll keep you posted on my journey thru motherhood and weight loss! Thanks for all of your support!
 
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