New to keto, 3rd day, breastfeeding and hungry :(

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(Mariana Nagi Nabeh) #1

Hi everyone
I am a nursing mom and looking to lose 40 pounds. I starter keto coz I read it wouldn’t effect my milk supply. Its my 3rd day and i feel super hungry today, last 2 days were ok. Today My calories are high 1660 although i didn’t eat much carbs. I still hold myself from consuming more food, can i really eat as much as i want healthy fats.

(Allie) #2

It’s essential that you listen to your appetite and don’t allow yourself to get hungry when you’re first on keto, even more so as you’re breastfeeding. The calories you mention aren’t actually high, they’d be low for me and I’m only 5’ 3” and 120ish pounds.

(Mariana Nagi Nabeh) #3

Have been trying to know how much calories i need. I am 5f 5" and 185 pounds

(KCKO, KCFO 🥥) #4

Got this info from a posting in MFP, nursing mothers need at least 500 calories just for their milk supply, I think the poster found this info in Parents magazine. So add 500 to what you are already eating and see how you go with that.

And do not fast for the time you are nursing, it might be tempting, but don’t do it as per Dr. Fung.

Make sure you are eating only the healthy fats, saturated, olive oil, or avocados are your best choices, please for the health of you and your baby stay away from the seed oils. I think it is a good idea for new moms to read Deep Nutrition: Why Your Genes Need Traditional Food
 by Catherine Shanahan M.D.

#5

Yes, this ^!!!
And seconding the suggestion to read Shanahan.
Breastfeeding comes first, and you can get wonderful nutrition for you and the baby with Keto, but it’s just not the time to be in the mindset of restriction.

#6

1660 isn’t high! Without reading anything else I’d say up those calories! Your metabolism is through the roof while breastfeeding, gotta fuel it!

#7

I know that this is purely anecdotal, but I ate generously when I was breast-feeding, especially in the beginning. I was ravenously hungry, and I ate to satisfy the hunger. In the years after my daughters were young, I was super lean and I think that was partly because my metabolism stayed strong while I was in that time of frequent nursing.

(Candy Lind) #8

YES YES YES!!! Some nutty people in this way of life have even increased their caloric intake by 2000 calories a day as an experiment, and NOT gained weight. NOT that I’m telling you to do that, LOL! You might get into a spit-up competition with your bebé! :rofl:

(Mariana Nagi Nabeh) #9

[quote=“CandyLindTX, post:8, topic:62543, full:true”]
The point is that i am looking to lose 40 pounds :frowning: i will definitely continue eat healthy fats when i am hungry to make sure my milk supply stays the same and see how its gonna go

(Candy Lind) #10

The fact that you are nursing is going to make it come off more easily. I agree with the advice to increase your caloric intake. KCKO!

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #11

The easiest way to know how many calories to eat is to avoid carbohydrate and eat protein and fat to satiety. Breastfeeding requires both protein and energy, so you need to eat both protein and fat, and you need to eat enough to keep going yourself and to feed your baby. The metabolic load of breastfeeding is probably higher than that of pregnancy, and studies show that the body will skimp on fetal development in order to save enough resources for breast-feeding, because it provides so many benefits to the baby. Now is not the time to stint on the food!

(Allie) #12

There’s no calculator that can tell you this, only your body. Keep carbs below 20g and eat fats and protein to your appetite, your body will do the rest.

(Running from stupidity) #13

Eating plenty is the best way to encourage that. Weird as it sounds. ESPECIALLY when you’re then dumping nutrients and calories into another being.

(Allie) #14

@Mariana_Nagi_Nabeh rather than getting stuck on “needing to lose” you would do better to focus on making sure you get enough of the right nutrition. When your body is properly nourished it will be able to heal itself and perform at its best so will be able to burn the excess fat that you want gone. Approaching things this way will also ensure your milk is of the best possible quality for that hungry baby of yours.

Sure, some people can and do lose weight by restricting calories… but the restriction stops the body from working in a healthy way so the weight lost is mostly from healthy and desirable muscle rather than unhealthy and undesirable body fat. This loss of muscle is one of the reasons behind decreased metabolism and ultimately higher body fat and increased weight going forward.

#15

My wife has been Keto and breastfeeding for the last 6 months, she must have dropped at least 30 lbs if not more. Baby is doing really well and a healthy weight. My observations:

  1. She has never had a problem with milk supply
  2. She has never counted calories, she eats as much as she wants to feel full
  3. She eats plenty of fat in her food, mono and saturated, meat, fish, cheese, cream in coffee etc.
  4. She easily maintains strong ketosis and gets back into it really quickly if she ever drops out.
  5. Fairly often she’ll skip a meal, not because she’s trying to fast but more that she just feels full and has no desire to eat at that time.
  6. She has lots of energy, good sleep, stable mood (most of the time, if I’ve been good :wink:)

Happy to ask her any questions directly for you if you like.

(Uta Stelson) #16

When breastfeeding, your caloric need is going to be higher! 1660 is about what I eat. I’m 5’6-3/4" and not breastfeeding.

#17

Hello and lots and lots of Congratulations.

I think the first thing to think about is your breastfeeding with this baby - how do you two, you and baby, do it together at the moment? How old is your little one, have you breastfed before, are you happy with it all, milk transfer, nipple comfort, baby’s weight gain and development, frequency of feeding etc

And the second thing is YOU are the EXPERT about YOUR BREASTFEEDING and YOUR BABY, and how much SLEEP you are getting.

Most doctors are sadly ignorant of lactation and breastfeeding; they are not likely to have had professional education in lactation and much of their experience will be personal via a breastfeeding partner, and her experience isn’t your experience.

So even though they are keto experts, they are unlikely to have the quality of knowledge you personally need.

Maybe talk to people like La Leche League, or speak to a fully trained expert like an IBCLC: keto might be new to them!

I’d say carry on with keto, keep your fats really high, don’t get hungry. Keep an eye on your milk production if it seems to decrease maybe add a little more carbohydrate. Just watch and tweak and balance.

Get out the tape measure and don’t rely on the scales!

If nothing else you will have your body ready to loose weight when you start weaning.

Importantly get enough sleep. Ha ha, the joke of motherhood.

(Mariana Nagi Nabeh) #18

Hahahah exactly

(Mariana Nagi Nabeh) #19

Thanks everyone for your support. So far i don’t feel like my milk supply is decreasing but the fact i am hungry is what makes me worried if i will lose weight on keto this way or not. Ofcourse i will put my baby first and the fact that i am cutting all the yukky sugar and carbs of my system is appealing to me. So i am still new too early just 4 days in :smiley: i will stick around for at least a month and see how am i doing. Thanks allot for all the support

(Mariana Nagi Nabeh) #20

Hi everyone so yesterday was soo bad i was super tired and soo dehydrated and no matter how much i drink my mouth is dry and my milk was really low :frowning: i figured i have to have my oatmeal bowl i have always noticed decrese of milk if i skip it. I carbed up today a bit to enhance my milk supply and it worked but i made 62g net carbs. I am wondering if thats not keto anymore and i better not consume allot of fat. Or i can keep on and my body will adjust. FYI i used to consume carbs wat more than a 28g of oatmeal and 1 slice of whole wheat toast