Why does Breastfeeding make it harder to lose preggo weight?

[Anonymous]

I'm curious about something,. I have heard both things--a) that breastfeeding helps you shed preggo pounds quickly and also b) that people don't lose the last 5-10 lbs until after they wean.

Which was the case for you? And why does breastfeeding make you hold on to those last pounds?

[Anonymous]

For some people, they can't keep weight on while breastfeeding, others struggle to lose the last bit. Probably all due to individual genes and metabolism. I'd imagine that your body might like to hang onto a little "extra" to ensure enough calories to make milk.

Breastfeeding also greatly lessens your risk of cancer in addition to all of the benefits for the baby.

[Anonymous]

I agree with PP. If I had a breastfeeding child, I would not at all be concerned about weight. Enjoy being a Mama of a little one. This time goes by way too fast.

[Anonymous]

in my experience, i dropped the pounds fast while breastfeeding and ended up 5 pounds under my pre-pregnancy weight, which i didn't gain back until after I stopped.

[Anonymous]

Losing weight was the least of my worries while breastfeeding, but it happened naturally in the first weeks and months. I ended up being even more underweight when DS weaned at 6 months than I was when I became pregnant, but that may have been helped by a thyroid condition I developed after giving birth.

[Anonymous]

I have no doubt it helped me lose weight. Also helped my uterus shrink and stomach shrink faster.

I've always been small, but less than four months after giving birth and EBF, I was actively trying to GAIN weight to get back to my prebaby weight. It burns a lot of calories.

[Anonymous]

I did not gain that much pregnant (20 pounds)- and I lost 15 while at the hospital. I did everything to lose the last 5 pounds and it did not happen until I quit BFing at 7 months and I literally lost it plus 2 pounds in 2 weeks. My doctor said this was really common in women who are small to begin with.

[Anonymous]

I didn't get back to my pre-pregnancy weight until DD was 9 months old (so...9 months on, 9 months off for me!) and she nursed a lot. I eat healthy, so so I think that everyone is just different.

[Anonymous]

Everyone is different. I'm 7 m PP and BF and below pre pregnancy weight and back to almost all of my clothes (a few higher waisted things don't fit so well-my abs aren't what they were before !).

[Anonymous]

It doesn't. If you consume more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. If you burn more calories than you consume, you will lose weight. It is really this simple.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It doesn't. If you consume more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. If you burn more calories than you consume, you will lose weight. It is really this simple.

actually it's not that simple - I tracked my calories in and out and even with a deficit I couldn't move the last 5lbs. My body refused to let me drop below a certain weight while I was bfing, no matter what I did.

[Anonymous]

back to the basics...
in the beginning BF will help to shrink your uterus back to normal, level your hormones back to "normal" and get rid of all the fluid accumulation you had during pregnancy, here we go with the 20, 30, 40 whatever pounds you gained during pregnancy.
the last 5-10 pounds have to be there because in order to keep your supply up you have to eat well, I mean you CANNOT DIET!!! no reducing calories. You have to meet your needs so there's no way you'll get rid of that little few pounds left. Your boobs will be filling up and you need fluids to make up the milk, each time more since in the beginning the baby eats just a little but in the end they eat A LOT.
once you end the BF cycle you're ready to shrink (or not) your boobs and you won't need that last bit of fluids and fat to make up baby milk so you're ready to diet and lose the rest. some women also have excess skin depending on the amount of stretch they had during pregnancy and skin does weigh so most of those pounds will be hidden in extra skin, fat cells that got bigger in different areas and the like.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It doesn't. If you consume more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. If you burn more calories than you consume, you will lose weight. It is really this simple.

actually it's not that simple - I tracked my calories in and out and even with a deficit I couldn't move the last 5lbs. My body refused to let me drop below a certain weight while I was bfing, no matter what I did.

If you were actually running a calorie deficit, you would have lost weight. The laws of physics and thermodynamics apply to you. This is truly not meant to sound mean, but I get so tired of seeing people I care about lie to themselves about what they're eating and why they weigh what they weigh. Not for my sake, because I could care less, but because they are unhappy.

[Anonymous]

everyone is different and in my experience, every pregnancy is different.

#1 for me----lost all weight and then some by 6 weeks post partum. Skinniest I've been in my adult life by 4 months post partum. However, when I weaned at a year I gained 12-15 pounds seemingly overnight while consciously watching my caloric intake.

#2---breastfeeding up a storm but the weight isn't budging following the initial 25 pound drop (out of approx. 35 gained). The last 5-10 will not move regardless of what I eat (or in this case, don't eat). I'm praying it disappears when I wean.

[Anonymous]

I gained 20 pounds during pregnancy, lost 6 in the first week (even though baby alone was over 7) and the rest plus 7 pounds in the second week. So, atm, I am 7 pounds lighter than my pre-pregnancy weight (3rd w postpartum).