Nursing moms out there - help me!

I just want to make sure I am doing this right.  I read the article about what nursing moms diets should be but the amount of milk 23-27 oz is way off for me.  It says for nursing mothers it takes 680 calories to produce 23-27 oz of milk.  So they recommend you add 500 calories to your diet while nursing and the additional 180 will come from fat storage.  So..... I actually produce closer to 40 oz of milk a day but I stuck with the 500 calories.  I eat 1800-2000 calories a day.  I seem to be losing weight (about 4 pounds since I started) I just want to make sure this is the way to go.  Any other nursing moms do it differently?

Someone please!!!

You're doing things just fine.

As long as you're making enough milk while losing weight, you're eating the right amount of calories. A good estimate is 20 calories per ounce of breastmilk produced. At 40 ounces, you're probably burning 800 calories daily but, again, that's just an estimate.

I don't know your stats but I'm 5'3" and lost 40 pounds of pregnancy weight in 4-5 months by eating 2,000 calories a day. I also don't make as much milk as you do (I have an older infant).

The best way for me to tell if I'm eating enough is by my milk supply. If it drops suddenly and stays low, I start eating more until it's back up to where it should be.

Good luck!

Do you also exercise?  I am 5'7 and currently 195, looking to lose about 60 pounds.  Thanks for the reply!

I exercise when I can. Probably 4-5 times per week for 30 minutes each session. Nothing too hardcore and it's not unusual for me to go a week or two without an actual "workout" (isn't taking care of two kids a workout?!).

Exactly!

I'm 5'7" and 150 lbs. I lost 30 lbs of pregnancy weight in about 3 months. I'm not sure exactly how much milk I'm producing, though. My daughter is 3 months old and 10th% for weight. I'm eating about 2000 Cals/day at least but she just isn't gaining weight very quickly.

I'm going to try eating about 2200/day for a while and see how much that affects my milk supply.

I was exercising a lot but after dr's appointment we had at 3 months I stopped doing so much because she had only gained 5 ozs from 2-3 months!

My son definitely hasn't had a problem gaining weight.  He was 8.6 at birth, and now weighs about 17 lbs at 3 months old.  My biggest fear is that I will restrict my calories to the point where my milk stops producing and I don't want and/or need that.  But at the same time I want to lose this baby weight.

oh my gosh! I actually mistyped, my daughter is 4 months old and weighs 11lbs, 10 ozs! She was 7 lbs when she was born!

With your boy gaining weight just fine I bet you could easily cut out a few hundred Cals without hurting your supply.

I'm eating between 1800-2000.  I'm thinking that number is ok.  Yeah my son has more than doubled his birth weight.  It's amazing.  Your daughter looks adorable!

He's definitely a big boy! At one week shy of 11 months, my son weighed in at 19 pounds, 4 ounces and he packed on a pound and a half in the last month after losing weight between months 8 & 9. He didn't hit 17 pounds until he was 7 months old. I tend to have small babies, though.

I, too, think that you could probably cut back on the calories a little bit. If you don't want to mess with a good thing, just stay where you are. You could always build up a nice freezer stash to save for a mom's night out!

I do have a huge freezer stash, probably a couple hundred ounces saved up.  I work full time so I pump while I am at work and then freeze it.  I started pumping and freezing when he was brand new because I had so much milk.  I will stay where I am for now and then slowly take away 50 calories at a time.  Thanks for your replies.

I'm a little late replying to this - but, I eat healthy foods and range my calories from 1500-1900 per day.  I exercise a little each night - usually no more than 30 minutes (= workout video, walk the dog, walk daughter in the stroller, etc).  I don't know how much milk I am producing, but my daughter was born Feb 25th at 7lb 4oz, and now at 6mo weighs about 21lbs and is in the 95% for weight since she was 1mo old.  I started at 249 after she was born, and I weigh 196 as of this morning.  I would recommend not cutting calories too much and staying in the 1700-2100 range depending on your activity level.  I never had the energy to pump or the time with my daughter so I have 0 milk in storage, you are lucky to have so much saved!!  Another thing, you can always cut back your cals by 50-100 per day for a week and see how your milk production is, if it stays the same, cut back again... that will give you a good idea on how many cals you should be consuming :-)

This has been very helpful thanks for posting this.  My daughter is now 10 months old ooo wait a mo pretty much 11 eeek time has flown.  She was big born 11lb 8oz and I haven't a clue how much she weighs now haven't had her weighed since April.  She's getting bigger though and outgrowing clothes so I guess doing just fine lol.  I can't seem to express so don't bother so again haven't a clue how much i'm producing.  I'm trying to keep to 1800 cals but seeing how your all doing I don't mind going over now.  I've never gone over 2000 since I started keeping track of my daily intake but I'm far more aware of what I can/can't eat and maintaining the balance.

I lost 3lbs last week so I guess I must be doing ok and she's still feeding ok, i could well end up loosing more and using more calories once school returns on wednesday as it's a good 15-20 minute walk to school so do you think it worth me upping my calorie intake or seeing how it goes?

If you are doing fine losing weight, not really hungry at the end of the day, and producing plenty of milk - I wouldn't add in more cals.  If you are still hungry then eat!  If you exercise, eat a small snack or in your case, when you get to school, eat a light snack.  I wouldn't up your cal intake alot, but be aware of when your body is telling you to eat and keep a small healthy snack on hand while you're at school :-).

Katie,

I am not saying it's the "right" thing, but I went on Nutrisystem at 4 months post partem and lost all my baby weight by 5 1/2 months (a total of 19.5 pounds).  My calorie intake was 1200-1400 calories a day and I still produced more than an appropriate amount of milk for my daughter, who breastfed till she weaned herself at 9 months.  

While every person's body is different and requires different calories amounts to produce for their own child, you should be able to play with the amount of calories you're intaking, making sure to pay attention to your supply.  If you are wanting to lose weight, try reducing your calorie intake a bit, say a couple hundred calories, and if your milk supply remains the same, you're good!  If you notice a reduction in your supply, then add more back to your diet.  Our bodies are smarter than we are...it knows what it needs to do.

I am pregnant with my second child now and will do exactly the same thing for round 2, no concerns.

Good luck to you!

Sarah