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How not to gain weight while feeding your baby. Why do people gain weight while breastfeeding? Menu of a woman breastfeeding

How not to gain weight while feeding your baby. Why do people gain weight while breastfeeding? Menu of a woman breastfeeding

After the birth of a baby, some young mothers face the problem of sudden weight loss. This problem is especially acute for women who are breastfeeding and want to gain weight. Of course, there are fewer such mothers than those who want to lose weight. Therefore, there are practically no articles on the Internet on the topic of weight gain after childbirth. In our article, young mothers for whom the problem of weight gain during breastfeeding is relevant will be able to glean useful information for themselves.

Reasons for weight loss during breastfeeding

Why does a woman lose weight while breastfeeding? After all, many young mothers develop a voracious appetite during this period, and doctors do not recommend engaging in active sports immediately after childbirth.

There are several serious reasons for weight loss during breastfeeding:

The process of milk production burns about 500 calories daily. And this is not counting the calories that a woman burns during the day during walks, physical activity, maintaining vital functions, etc. Therefore, while breastfeeding, a woman who wants to gain weight can confidently increase the number of calories she consumes per day.
In addition, in those women who breastfeed, the volume of their hips begins to decrease rapidly. Most often, this process starts a few months after birth. Active weight loss begins from 3 to 6 months after childbirth and taking into account that the young mother is breastfeeding.
A woman's physical activity increases after childbirth, even if she does not play sports. Usually, all the numerous worries about the baby fall on the mother’s shoulders. The woman’s rhythm changes dramatically and becomes more active. And this also contributes to weight loss.
Hormonal levels in the postpartum period can be very unstable, and internal organs can also play pranks. If a woman feels unwell after giving birth and suddenly loses weight, she should consult a doctor. Since unjustified weight loss during breastfeeding may indicate problems with the gastrointestinal tract or hormonal levels.

Weight gain after childbirth and while breastfeeding

Here are some helpful tips to help you gain weight while breastfeeding:

Eat little but often. This advice is suitable for everyone - both those who want to lose weight and those who want to gain weight. Very often, a woman does not gain weight after childbirth, because she simply does not have enough time to eat normally and calmly. In such cases, it is best to set yourself a reminder on your phone for each meal. In addition, try to eat slowly, chewing your food thoroughly.

Add more protein, meat and flour products to your daily diet. Bread and meat help even the most naturally slender women gain weight. This diet will help you round out your curves and gain weight while breastfeeding. However, do not overdo it; you should not eat only meat and bread around the clock. Excess protein is harmful to the body, and large amounts of flour are very difficult for digestion.
Introduce into your menu, depending on the season, either fresh fruits and vegetables or vitamin complexes. In order to bring your weight back to normal, your body requires sufficient amounts of vitamins and nutrients. You can get all this from vegetables and fruits. However, remember that during breastfeeding you need to be very careful about allergenic foods that may cause your baby to develop a rash. It is better to select vitamin complexes during breastfeeding in consultation with your doctor.
Maintain a sleep schedule. Remember that it is almost impossible to gain weight without a full 8 hours of sleep a day. Of course, at first, having a small child, maintaining a normal sleep schedule can be very difficult. However, try asking your grandmother or family to stay with your baby for a couple of hours while you get some rest. If a woman suffers from insomnia, then she should consult a doctor for advice.

During pregnancy, the expectant mother gains a certain number of kilograms - this is how nature works. The baby inside you is growing - and it needs nutritional resources, which will be nowhere to get if the expectant mother eats one leaf of lettuce a day, and the slightest breeze blows her away into the blue!

After childbirth, during breastfeeding, the main problem for most young mothers also remains the problem of weight, which they desperately struggle with. There are many methods for losing weight while breastfeeding, used by millions of mothers.
But if there is a problem with weight loss during breastfeeding, it is logical that there is a flip side to the coin. That is, the problem of weight gain during breastfeeding. Yes, there are fewer mothers who dream of gaining weight while breastfeeding - and this is a problem. The Internet is replete with articles on the topic: “How to lose weight while breastfeeding?” But articles on the opposite topic, unfortunately, are negligible. We will try to correct this injustice and help those young mothers for whom the question weight gain while breastfeeding has become a serious problem.

Causes of weight loss while breastfeeding

It is not for nothing that breastfeeding is considered an effective method of combating extra pounds after childbirth. For women who want to lose weight after the birth of a baby, doctors advise breastfeeding without fail - this is not only beneficial for mother and child, but also promotes weight loss! Yes, during breastfeeding, a young mother usually wakes up with brutal hunger and is ready to chew around the clock. And doctors do not recommend playing sports immediately after childbirth (especially cesarean section).

Is it really possible to lose weight under such conditions? As it turns out, it is possible! And there are several good reasons for this.

Firstly During milk production, about 500 calories are burned daily. Moreover, these are only additional calories - not counting the calories burned additionally - for physical activity, walking, maintaining vital functions and even, imagine, watching TV! So, when breastfeeding, a woman can easily afford additional treats without harming her figure.

Secondly, when breastfeeding, the volume of the hips is intensively reduced. This usually occurs around three months after giving birth. And in the period 3-6 months after childbirth, particularly intensive weight loss begins. Of course, taking into account that you are breastfeeding your baby.

Third, after giving birth, you begin to move a lot - even if you don’t do daily exercises like before giving birth. Usually, all the worries about an infant fall on the shoulders of the mother: the young father is constantly at work and comes home tired, and grandparents cannot always be involved in caring for the child. In this regard, many hours of walking, ironing, standing at the stove, cleaning, changing diapers, night feeding, insomnia, which is common among young mothers, and bathing the baby fall on the shoulders of the young mother. It is not surprising that living in such a rhythm greatly contributes to weight loss!

Fourth, the postpartum period is very unstable hormonally, and internal organs can play pranks. Therefore, if you have lost a lot of weight after giving birth, feel unwell, or lie on the couch all day long because you have the opportunity to hire a nanny and au pair - but the weight still comes off - consult a doctor. Unjustified weight loss during breastfeeding may indicate problems with hormonal levels or with the gastrointestinal tract.

And, of course, one should not write off heredity and natural constitution. If your mother lost a lot of weight after giving birth, and you are naturally thin, it is not surprising that you will quickly return to your pre-pregnancy shape after giving birth. But learn, we are talking only about those cases when you eat what you want, without limiting yourself and without using strict diets - and still do not gain weight. In all other cases the method does not work.

There are some helpful tips to help you gain weight while breastfeeding.

1. Eat small and often

This is universal advice for anyone who wants to normalize their weight. Often the inability to gain weight while breastfeeding is explained by a simple lack of time to sit down and eat normally, calmly. If you are afraid of forgetting about your next meal, set an alarm clock to remind you about it. Eat small and often meals. Moreover, do not swallow food without chewing, but start your meal in a good mood, forgetting for a while about all the problems and not thinking about how to have time to iron all the laundry and prepare dinner before your husband arrives. Your own health is more important than all this.

It is a well-known fact: protein and bread help even the thinnest people gain weight. Yes, it’s not a fact that you will become a woman weighing “under a hundredweight” - yes, you probably don’t need this. But this diet will help you round out your shape and gain weight while breastfeeding. Just follow moderation in everything - you should not lean on meat in the morning, lunch and evening - excess protein is also very harmful to the body.

3.Diversify your menu with fresh vegetables and fruits or vitamin complexes

To normalize your weight, you need a sufficient amount of nutrients and vitamins, which can easily be obtained from fresh fruits and vegetables. The only thing that should become taboo for you is allergenic foods. If your child develops a rash, eliminate the allergen product from their diet. If you are unable to eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, you can also gain weight while breastfeeding by taking vitamin complexes. But you should choose a vitamin complex for yourself only in consultation with your doctor, so as not to cause harm.

4.Maintain a sleep schedule

We understand that with a small child, maintaining a sleep schedule is extremely difficult. In this case, try asking one of your family or friends to babysit while you rest. This is explained by the fact that it is impossible to gain weight while breastfeeding without at least 6-8 hours of sleep per day. If the lack of sleep is caused by your insomnia, try starting to take mild sedatives at night. It could be motherwort extract. But before you start taking any drug, consult a specialist. Some herbal sedatives may be allergens for the baby.

If not a single recipe helps you gain weight while breastfeeding, consult a nutritionist, gastroenterologist or endocrinologist. Perhaps the reason is some internal disease. And console yourself with the fact that when you stop breastfeeding, your weight will definitely return to normal. In the meantime, a tiny part of you really needs your milk! And for this you can wait a little.

Returning to the clothing size you had before pregnancy is every woman’s dream. And this problem worries mothers as much as the child’s development. And this question is most tormenting during breastfeeding. This is due to the fact that some women lose weight sharply, while others increase in volume even more than during nine months of bearing a child. The main goal is how to lose weight while breastfeeding so that it does not affect the health of the mother and baby.

There is no woman who does not gain weight during pregnancy. Nature has made the female body such that during this period the body’s fat reserves increase sharply. They are needed for two tasks. Firstly, to protect the child in the womb from all kinds of injuries. Secondly, create reserves for future breastfeeding. A woman’s fat reserves guarantee the full development of the child both during pregnancy and after birth.

Weight gain is different for every woman. The optimal increase is from five to twenty-five kilograms. This weight includes adipose tissue, the weight of the fetus, the uterus and the volume of amniotic fluid. The real weight can only be found out after childbirth.
Weight gain is affected by:

Genetics. If the mother or grandmother had a tendency to be overweight, then the woman will also be at risk.
Poor nutrition. Provided that a woman adheres to proper nutrition both during pregnancy and after, this will help her return to normal shape faster.
Hormonal disorders. The problem of excess weight in most cases haunts women who have undergone IVF. Diabetes mellitus and regular use of medications to prevent pregnancy can affect hormonal imbalances.

To avoid problems with excess weight after pregnancy, you need to listen to certain recommendations. They will help you quickly bring your body back to normal and lose weight after childbirth while breastfeeding.

Motivation and desire. They are the most important in trying to lose weight.
Maintain the same daily routine as your child. The biggest mistake new mothers make is eating as soon as the baby falls asleep. It is not right. You need to train yourself to eat when your baby eats. Adhering to this regimen, mom will eat in small portions. And this is the basis for fast and safe weight loss.
Complete rest. An adult needs to sleep 7-8 hours a day. Usually the child does not allow the mother to fully rest. Therefore, it is recommended to allocate several hours a day for sleep and go to bed with your child.
Maintaining balance. It is not recommended to go on strict diets while breastfeeding. Weight gain is facilitated by the myth that the fat content of milk depends on the amount of food consumed. It's a lie.

What should a mother do to lose weight?

Women who seek advice on how to lose weight during lactation receive one answer: breastfeed. It may seem strange, but breastfeeding is a natural process that leads to rapid loss of weight gained during pregnancy. And most importantly, this process does not depend on how the birth took place: naturally or by cesarean section.

It is possible to lose weight while breastfeeding if the mother follows the following conditions:

Feed according to the child's wishes.
Make the right diet.

To lose weight while breastfeeding and not harm the baby’s body, it is advised to create the right diet, change habits and reconsider your lifestyle.

Nutrition for a nursing mother

Many mothers do not understand the difference between nutritious and high-calorie nutrition. A complete diet contains all types of foods: meat, vegetables, fruits, cereals and dairy with the correct ratio of nutrients. That is, a woman’s menu should have at least one product for each type. What exactly it will be is up to her to decide.

Important! Food should bring pleasure, and not just influence the increase in lactation.

There are several more rules that a woman should follow to lose weight while breastfeeding.

Rule one. Fats are an integral part of a nursing mother's diet. They are needed for the nervous system to function normally. Without them, a woman becomes irritable, nervous, and her body quickly gets tired. But animal fat really won't bring any health benefits and will only affect your waistline. Vegetable fats in the form of oil will have a beneficial effect on the body.
Rule two. Consume sweets, because milk production requires glucose, which is taken from the blood. This negatively affects mental abilities and makes a woman apathetic. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to introduce foods containing sugar into the diet. But it is found not only in flour and soft drinks, but also in apples, pears, grapes and peaches.
Rule three. No preservatives, namely canned food, sausages, smoked meats and products with a long shelf life. They cause allergies and are dangerous to the health and development of the baby. They can be replaced with meat and fish (preferably boiled).
Rule four. A varied diet is the key to the health of mother and child. Don't be afraid to introduce new products; perhaps these are exactly what your child needs.
Rule five. Have dinner no more than three hours before bedtime. It is better to eat more often, but in small portions, at least every 2-3 hours.
Rule six. Drink more fluids - water, herbal teas, compotes, natural juices (not highly concentrated). If you have a strong desire to eat at night, it is better to drink a glass of kefir or low-fat yogurt.

Menu of a woman breastfeeding

To adjust the menu of a young mother most competently, you should be guided by the principles of nutrition. The main ones are:

Avoid foods that cause an allergic reaction in your child. These include chocolate, honey, nuts, coffee, red and orange vegetables and fruits, seeds and some dairy products. Naturally, this list is incomplete - for additional consultation you should contact a neonatologist or breastfeeding specialist.
Minimum preservatives – maximum vegetables and fruits.
Eating only for yourself, not for two. Take into account not the volume of food, but its quality.
A diet for weight loss while breastfeeding is encouraged no sooner than two and a half months from the date of birth of the child.

A new mother can diversify her diet and at the same time lose unnecessary pounds by eating the following dishes:

for breakfast you can choose porridge with fruit, cottage cheese casserole, baked apples or fruit mousse;
for lunch it is better to eat vegetable soups, puree soups, broths, fish soup, porridge (buckwheat is a priority), zucchini or peppers (stuffed), stewed meat;
The afternoon snack can be varied with homemade ice cream, cheesecakes, nalistniki or omelet;
For dinner, make steamed cutlets, fish baked in a pot (with potatoes), ratatouille, salads.

Important! A responsible mother must monitor the child’s health so that he receives the vitamins and minerals necessary for normal development. And only then think about losing weight.

Goji berries and breastfeeding

It turns out that these miracle berries are also useful when feeding a baby, since they affect the strengthening of the immune system. What else are they valuable for?

Positively affect the cardiovascular system.
They have a rejuvenating effect.
Increase libido and lactation.
Have a beneficial effect on the liver and kidneys.
Regulate hormonal levels.
An excellent remedy for insomnia.

They should be consumed in the form of tea, and in combination with other methods (tea, nutrition, exercise), excess weight will go away quickly. However, you should not count on the miraculous effect of such fruits; use them as support for the body.

What shouldn't be on the menu?

What should be on the menu?

fruits and vegetables - fiber, improves metabolism;
dried fruits, walnuts - select those that do not cause allergic reactions;
bread and cereals - make milk better and affect fat burning;
freshly squeezed juices will fill the body with vitamins;
High quality fats improve the nervous system;
proteins are indispensable for full development.

Physical exercises for nursing mothers

There is a myth that women who have given birth cannot exercise, exercise or go to the gym. In fact, moderate exercise has never harmed anyone. Of course, it is better to wait a certain period of time (six to seven weeks) and only then begin any kind of exercise. How to lose weight while breastfeeding without harm to the body?
To strengthen the muscles in your abdomen, you need to spin the hula hoop every day for fifteen minutes. The result is noticeable within a few weeks. But there is a secret to how to quickly lose weight - do a couple of approaches a day.

Experts say it's best to start with meditation, move on to yoga, and then Pilates. These types of physical activity transform a person at any stage of his life and have no contraindications during breastfeeding. And most importantly, they will not only help you lose weight, but will also help a woman overcome postpartum depression. A definite plus is that they can be done at home, without wasting time or money on gyms.

Taking care of your baby is a form of exercise that helps you burn calories. And regularly carrying your child in an ergo-backpack is considered full-fledged physical activity. With its help, the abdominal and back muscles will be tightened, which will help you quickly achieve your desired figure.
You need to choose the type of activity that you like most. And only then approach the intensity of the exercises:

Swimming is recommended during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
In the gym, train without intense loads, since they negatively affect the quality of milk - they increase lactic acid. As a result, the milk takes on an unpleasant taste.
Avoid aerobics (step, running, classical exercises) that injure the chest.
For exercise, get a sports bra that supports your breasts and protects them from injury.
Intense loads can be used only after the cessation of breastfeeding.
If you can’t go to the gym, choose exercises that you can do right with your children at home.

Alternative methods for losing weight while breastfeeding

Nutrition and exercise are not the only ways to safely lose weight. There are others, less popular. Is it possible to lose weight with their help? More on that below.

Special clothing helps increase performance after sports. The most popular clothing is breeches with a thermogenic effect. They are worn both for classes in the gym and under everyday clothes while doing housework or walking. The principle of operation of such clothes is simple. First of all, they increase sweating five times, and the special fabric absorbs all the water and does not cause discomfort to the owner.

Ab Gimnik belts are an excellent solution for passive women. They help strengthen your abdominal muscles. But you can use it only a month and a half after giving birth, wear it daily. The positive side is that you can wear it even if you have back pain.

Well, you can also lose weight after breastfeeding with the help of pills. During lactation they are prohibited.
Fat deposits will quickly disappear for those who breastfeed and eat properly. But unnecessary pounds disappear much faster from those who do not focus their attention on them. How to lose weight while breastfeeding depends not on the quantity of food, but on its quality, a properly formed drinking regime and moderate exercise. Don’t forget about proper rest and positive moments. The extra pounds will go away on their own.

One of the problems that worries women after childbirth is changes in their figure. Unfortunately, this topic of thought does not leave many throughout the entire period of breastfeeding. Excess weight, cellulite, and unpleasant fat deposits on the abdomen and hips are not at all pleasing, and the need to buy new things in the size, or even larger, of the “pre-pregnancy” size can be a reason for serious psychological discomfort. Unfortunately, more women gain weight while breastfeeding than lose weight. This is mainly due to high food consumption, as well as serious hormonal changes in the body. Changes in hormonal levels lead to the fact that nursing mothers want to eat more, they retain more fluid in the body and the process of burning fat deposits is more difficult. This supply for the “hungry” months is a greeting from prehistoric times, when the diet of primitive people was irregular, and breast milk - the only thing that could save the life of a child - had to be produced in the required quantity. Despite the fact that hunger no longer threatens us, we still want to eat and need to eat. This means that we need to make sure that the nutrition is balanced, complete, but at the same time goes into milk and energy, and is not deposited on our hips. How to achieve this? There are several generally known truths:

In your diet, you should give preference to carbohydrates. Vegetables, fruits, cereals and grain porridges, grain bread with the addition of vegetable oils should make up the majority of the diet. The remaining steps of the nutrition pyramid include dairy and meat products.
Drink more fluids. Moreover, liquids mainly include simple drinking cold water, juices (diluted with water), herbal infusions without sugar (teas). The liquid contains 0 calories, enhances metabolism, removes excess sodium and toxins from the body, and promotes fat burning. Lack of fluid leads to its retention in the body and impaired renal function. The amount of liquid (including vegetables and fruits) should be 2 liters per day. Water reduces hunger.
While caring for a child, it is difficult to find time for proper cooking during the day, so there is a tendency to snack. Then have a full snack, let it be fruits, raw vegetables, dairy products, cereal crackers, and not sandwiches with butter. Appliances such as a microwave oven and a double boiler save time on cooking - food is cooked in them without adding fat, and, therefore, has less calories and is easier to digest.
Monitor your condition, take vitamins for nursing, especially in the winter-autumn period. Vitamins also help normalize metabolism.
The ideal physical activity is a walk with a stroller for an hour at an average pace in a forested area. Try to walk with your child and generally spend more time in the air - lack of oxygen also seriously affects metabolism.

To the above, you can add a lot more, which is called in three words - a healthy lifestyle. And the psychological attitude is also important. In no case do not scold or blame yourself for the extra pounds, love yourself, and your baby will once again confirm with his smile that you are the most beautiful mother in the world.

Personal experience

Comment on the article "Feeding and getting fat"

I have been breastfeeding for only 3.5 months. and I'm getting fat before my eyes. But instead of despairing and hating my body, I fell in love with it. I am a strong person, so I know that I will definitely lose weight later, but now I am enjoying this period. You can lose weight throughout the rest of your life, unless, of course, there are hormonal imbalances, and breastfeeding ends sooner or later, just as pregnancy ended, during which many expectant mothers are upset because of the change in their figure. You need to learn to appreciate every moment in life and enjoy what nature gives. And most importantly - a huge THANK YOU to my husband, who, in moments of my despair, says that I am the most beautiful woman on earth.

12/21/2005 14:34:51, NATALIA

21.12.2005 14:20:50, N

Total 19 messages .

Nutrition for a nursing mother: how to lose weight while breastfeeding

Method number 1. Reduce volumes

You need to eat less, but more often. Forget about the “eat for two” rule . There is no need to double portions, volumes and calories. For good lactation, an extra 400-700 calories per day is enough (depending on your body type). Everything that the baby lacks, the body itself will take from the mother’s body reserves - and isn’t that what we are striving for?

Method number 2. Eat less, but more often

If a nursing mother takes long breaks between meals, a hormonal effect occurs that affects milk production. Her body is filled with energy, which is taken from all reserves, which reduces the production of insulin and affects the level of thyroid hormones. This leads to a decrease in prolactin, a hormone that controls the amount of milk produced.

When you feel hungry, you tend to eat something from the “forbidden” series. Instead, you need to distribute the number of calories you consume per day among six meals throughout the day.

Method No. 3. Reduce calorie intake

During lactation you need to eat well, which means balanced. The diet should include proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. But you shouldn’t consume flour, sweet, salty and fried foods with the excuse “for the baby” - the extra pounds will “grow” on your figure. Dieting while breastfeeding is completely safe as long as your daily calorie intake does not fall below 1800 and you continue to eat a variety of foods.

Method number 4. Snack wisely

Think before you snack. Instead of chips or ready-made cereal in bags, make whole grain oatmeal. This is a great breakfast for nursing moms who are trying to lose weight. Oatmeal keeps you feeling full for a long time and maintains constant insulin levels. Starchy vegetables such as baked potatoes or sweet tomatoes can also help satisfy your carbohydrate cravings. Brown and wild rice are a great side dish or snack option.

The problem of constipation, which many mothers face, can be dealt with by consuming a decoction of dried fruits (dried apricots, prunes).

Method No. 5. Get enough sleep

Breastfeeding increases appetite, and hungry, sleep-deprived new mothers tend to satisfy their gastronomic cravings with simple carbohydrates. But consuming them makes it quite difficult to lose weight. When normal, healthy adults are deprived of adequate sleep, they usually increase their intake of carbohydrates (sweets, starchy foods), thereby compensating for the lack of night rest.

Method number 6. Exercise

Exercise, fitness and swimming will help you regain your figure after childbirth and during lactation. But it's best to wait 6-8 weeks before starting or resuming a serious workout regimen. If you are planning intense exercise, eat complex carbohydrates half an hour before exercise. Starchy vegetables will help prevent a decrease in milk production. Choose the type of physical activity that you like best.

For example, brisk walking with a newborn baby can burn an average of 500 calories. This physical activity plus less “junk food” will lead to significant weight loss.

Sudden weight loss is unsafe for reproductive health.

Method No. 7. Don't put pressure on yourself

Striving for an ideal figure while looking at “glossy” mothers is dangerous. It is important to accept yourself! During the birth of a child, everything in the body expands: the hips, the chest. Over the course of 9 months, the body gained weight, and now it needs to be given almost the same amount of time to get rid of it and return to its previous shape. Just ignore the excess weight for at least the first 2 weeks after giving birth, and for 6-8 weeks do not make any drastic attempts to lose weight after giving birth. At this time, it is better to focus on your newborn baby and not worry about losing weight.