the truth about breastfeeding & fat loss

You’ve heard it before, probably even from your OB-GYN or your midwife when she was listing the benefits of breastfeeding to you.  Your mom, sister, aunt, girlfriend or coworker might have told you.  Maybe you googled “baby weight” or “benefits of breastfeeding” and read it there.

hello baby, bye-bye treadmill?

Breastfeeding an infant burns about 500 calories per day. Wow!  500 calories a day!  That’s like jogging an entire hour.  Or doing two back-to-back bootcamp classes!

Only… it doesn’t quite work that way.  It’s true that maintaining a supply of breastmilk requires a woman to eat approximately 500 calories more than she normally would to maintain her own healthy bodyweight.  BUT… that’s the key – it requires you to EAT those calories.  If you don’t eat enough calories, you might not make the same quantity or quality of breastmilk.  So dieting is not really an option when you’re breastfeeding.  The LaLeche League recommends you consume a minimum of 1500-1800 calories per day in order to safely lose a healthy amount of baby weight while still providing quality milk for your little one.

The female body is an enigma.  No matter how much we learn about dieting, fitness and fat loss, we are still at the mercy of Mother Nature.

healthy baby, chubby mommy... fair trade.

I breastfed my first child for 23 months.  That’s right.  When I found out I was pregnant with #2 I was concerned about being active, nursing my toddler and providing enough calories for my growing baby, so I decided to wean my toddler.  After weaning, I actually LOST about 5 pounds that had, despite all my efforts and all my knowledge about fitness and weight loss, been clinging to me for 2 years since giving birth.  Now I’m nursing my second and, almost 5 months in, I am reigning in my expectations, settling in for a long chubby period and expecting to lose those last few pounds with some hard work once I’ve finished breastfeeding for once and for all.  And it’s not just me.  Friends, clients, acquaintances have all told me they’ve experienced the same sudden weight loss during and after weaning.

So what gives?  If nursing burns calories, why do you LOSE weight when you wean?  Shouldn’t the weight melt off while you’re nursing instead?

The truth is that a breastfeeding body is in many ways like a pregnant body.  Hormones produced during the breastfeeding stages help a woman (without asking her opinion, mind you…) maintain fat stores to help feed her and baby in the event of a famine.  Once baby is weaned, many women see a weight loss as hormone levels return to normal.

The best formula for losing that baby weight is to eat according to your hunger (read: not your cravings, your hunger), drink according to your thirst and exercise at least 3-4 days per week with a combination of strength training to boost your metabolism and cardiovascular exercise to burn off extra calories.

And patience.  The other part of that formula is patience.

How have your postpartum weight loss efforts worked?  Did you find you lost weight at certain stages more easily than others?  Share with us!



Jon & Kate Plus a Tummy Tuck

what’s in the news

No matter what you think of them – whether you are a fan, used to be a fan, or have never seen the show and don’t know what all the fuss is about – they are a couple with a family and they are obviously undergoing some major changes if not completely falling apart.  So why do we need to talk about Kate’s tummy tuck?  I was reading a mom blog online and there were photos of Kate Gosselin on the beach with her kids (for prying eyes who want to see the results of her surgery, I assume).  The worst part?  They were interspersed with ads for diet supplements!  Why are we so hard on ourselves?  It’s wrong to stay fat.  It’s wrong to get too skinny.  It’s wrong to have plastic surgery.  Or is it?

I have had clients who have undergone plastic surgery.  One client had both a breast augmentation and tummy tuck a few years after having her son.  She had anorexic tendencies and I was sorrowed to hear she was planning the tummy tuck after seeing her go through the frustrations of a boob job. 

Another client, whom I currently see, is considering some mini-liposuction.  She works extremely hard, trains with me weekly (and has for 3 years) and exercises on her own an additional 4-5 times/week.  She takes great care of herself, takes pride in her appearance and, at 52, is considering having a plastic surgeon do what exercise, diet and genetics won’t do.  If she decides to have the procedure, I will support her decision.  I think she is a great candidate for plastic surgery as she is dedicated to taking care of her body and is at an age where she has the confidence and maturity to make the decision rationally and expect realistic results.

I would not have liposuction.  I would not have a boob job.  Someone suggested to me a few years ago (before I had my first kid) that I was a good candidate for early Botox because I had the beginnings of lines on my forehead.  I didn’t know whether to hit her or laugh.  Now I have some REAL beginnings of lines and I still can’t imagine having Botox.  But I would never judge a woman who does.  Several of my clients have Botox regularly.  It’s just not for me.  Or not yet, anyway…

The jury is still out on the tummy tuck.  I gained A LOT of weight with my first baby.  With my current pregnancy I’m on my way to a much saner weight gain and I expect to have no problem taking it off after delivering.  Postpartum weight loss (like every other kind of weight loss) is really just a combination of diligence and patience.  Plus it’s my job to lose the weight!  But the skin… the skin does not go away.  So maybe I won’t rule out a tummy tuck just yet.

Back to Kate Gosselin.  Why should we care that she has had a tummy tuck?  Besides, the woman has had 8 children – 6 of them in one shot!  Doesn’t this woman deserve a tummy tuck?  I think she deserves a congressional medal of honour.  If she’s willing to settle for $75,000 a week and a free tummy tuck, what do I care?

But people do care.  Maybe you care.  Do you care?  Is there something wrong with a woman having a tummy tuck?  Is a tummy tuck different from other types of plastic surgery; is it more forgivable?  Have you had plastic surgery?  Would you?