Breastfeeding 7 month old and need to exercise

Angie - posted on 02/14/2012

Jennifer,

look into Moms Into Fitness. Lindsey has a great program targeting post partem. She also makes changes to the diet plan specifically for BF. She targets the transverse abs, too. If you go to her website you can sign up for 4 free workouts tailored to your needs ie. when was your last kid born, what is your goal, ect.

you can buy the work outs on DVD or down load them for instant access.

I also have been exclusively BF my soon to be 8 month old. I try to cut out the soda and sugar.... that helps cut out the empty calories. I do eat dark chocolate, though.... a girl needs /some/ chocolate and dark is decent for you.

Good luck!!!

Hella - posted on 02/14/2012

Go to diet solution, or www.beyonddiet.com teach you how to eat right.

Michelle - posted on 02/13/2012

My two scents, for what it's worth...Last year I got an app called MyFitnessPal and started keeping track of everything I ate. You can scan in everything and it keeps track. You can change the calories you are supposed to be eating (So if your doctor says eat this many due to BF, you can change it). I lost about 8 pounds in the first month...then I didn't keep it up. BUT the major point is...I didn't exercise...at all! I didn't change any of my activity. THIS year (Jan), I started exercising 3 days a week at the gym....and just trying to watch what I ate. I didn't lose more then maybe a pound, and I felt so tired all the time.

SO, my point is this...eating right is HUGE!!! You can lose weight just by eating right. exercise is good for you, but if you can't fit it in or physically can't...don't be discouraged. You are probably active with chase a crawler around.

Also, weights versus cardio?

Lifting weights makes your muscles burn calories for about 24 hours, cardio is much less. I heard that you should start your exercise by lifting weights...THEN do your cardio, because by then your muscles are in the fat burning stage. So, what I did, was walk for 5 minutes, lifted weights, then did cardio, then stretched. Jillian Michaels says to let your muscles recoup for at least 2 days in between...and I wasn't doing that. I'm starting to count calories again. WW is great, I just can't afford it!

Tine - posted on 02/12/2012

I just put my 3 month old in the Ergo (a soft carrier that's GREAT!) and walk to the playground with my 3 year old. While she plays and he sleeps in the sling or looks around, I carefully do step ups on various steps on the play equipment, walk up and down little hills, march around chasing my daughter, etc. Another great way to burn off kj's is to put the older child in a pram and the bub in the sling (ergo for me) and go walking up hills or across grass or other soft / rough terrain. Really gets the sweat and heart rate going!!



I'm the same, still have chub from both pregnancies but am breastfeeding my son and expressing milk for a friend's baby so don't want to interfere with my supply or damage my breasts by doing anything too full on. I think the key is to focus on enjoyment and on being fit and healthy in the first year rather than weight loss per se, and the weight loss will follow!

:-) :-)

Erica - posted on 02/12/2012

For $10 at Walmart you can get a prenatal yoga dvd. I love yoga, so this helped me ramp back up. I also seriously increased my fluids intake (a must). I sometimes use my Wii Fit or a DDR dance cd. But nothing has helped me more than using a baby carrier (like my Ergo) and strapping baby on whenever we go out for a walk or run errands. I'm ebf, 14mos and going. I don't really exercise other than walking or jump roping right now, but my "exercise" always includes my baby. I say find creative ways to play with your baby but that also helps you stretch and tone at the same time. ;)

Heather - posted on 02/09/2012

Drink crazy-tons of water!! Honestly, my favorite thing is a push up. It works your chest, back, arms, and entire core! I like planks and variations of it waaay more than crunches, and squats/lunges are God's gift to you legs and butt!

Don't forget that muscle weighs a lot more than fat - you may not see the scale moving if you are getting leaner, so make your goal a new pants size or a particular dress, not just a number on the scale!

Ronda - posted on 02/07/2012

I am wondering the same thing! My LO is 9months old and I have trouble even getting her to sit in a stroller for longer than 10 min. She is very demanding and I still have not spent more than three hours without her (and that was only one time) It's challenging when you cannot get a babysitter to go to the gym. I usually can squeeze in an hour here and there, as long as there is a close family member around. Does anyone know of any DVD's that really work?

Ania - posted on 02/06/2012

Anna, you are right about plugged ducts, that is a good point. And you are also right about choosing exercise that you think will work for you best, but variety is also important :)

I always point out to people that if they want to do weights they should get a good trainer, and your body limitations are important as well. All valid points

Anna - posted on 02/06/2012

Ania, the reason I said you have to be careful with heavy weights for upper body is that there's a chance of developing plugged ducts. There are different approaches to exercise and lifting weight and hard core cardio are just two ways of doing it. I happen to be an Iyengar yoga instructor, recreationally, which is a type of yoga which is very much focused on proper body alignment and is a very slow flowing, rather it's not flowing at all, and, believe me, it gets you amazing results. Anyhow, my point was that you can pick whatever exercise you like, as long as you do it properly. Unfortunately, you tell people they need to lift 10 lb weights to get results, they might go to the gym without a personal trainer and they can easily injure themselves. Weights, cardio, yoga, or whatever you pick you need to know your body's limitations and start out the right way, especially post-partum and while breastfeeding.

Brittany - posted on 02/04/2012

I just started taking a kick boxing class with my husband. I get bored easily with work outs. So having him there with me keeps us both going. It also helps that I really trust the people who watch our kids.



Next month my eldest will be resuming swimming lessons. Since they are a parent child class, I get a nice work out. Starting in summer I'll be taking both my kids to swimming lessons. So that will be a full hour work out. Trust me there is no better weight than you child.

Ania - posted on 02/04/2012

Anna, sorry I don't understand what you are trying to say but know that all these shape magazines that shouw you wimen with 5lbs dumbells and saying how many repetitions you should do are a little wrong. I'm a personal trainer and every woman that comes in and wants results should start with at least 10 lbs dumbells for bicep curl 12 lbs for chest press and if you are doing squats 20lbs in each hand to load your legs is very appropriate for 10-12 repetitions. It is hard but it is suppose to be

Veronica - posted on 02/03/2012

When I was still breastfeeding, I ran once or twice a week and did WW (Weight Watchers). I recommend WW, because they will tell you the amount of points you should use for breastfeeding. You should go in and talk with someone if you have questions. Or ask questions online too. Good luck!

Melissa - posted on 02/03/2012

i started weight watchers while i was breastfeeding you can do it online or go in. I started just over a year ago and have lost 81 lbs

Anna - posted on 02/03/2012

I didn't say she a breastfeeding mom can't lift weights. I said she can't lift heavy weights. Obviously, a personal trainer that knows what he's doing would not let his clients lift more than is appropriate for their body weight.

Ania - posted on 02/03/2012

Anna breastfeeding mom can lift weights, where did you hear that she can't! Weight lifting is better if done with the trainer that will watch your form though.

Anna - posted on 02/03/2012

You can do virtually any type of workouts as long as you don't lift heavy weights (about over 5 lbs, depending on your body built and strength) to do upper body muscle sculpting. Even plain power walking is wonderful and you can take your baby with you in a stroller or baby carrier.

Amanda - posted on 02/03/2012

I started exercising at the gym and dieting when my baby was eight weeks old. It didn't effect my milk supply at all. I used my fitness pal and I've lost over forty pounds already. I had two babies back to back and gained sixty. Still going strong!

Ania - posted on 02/02/2012

Jennifer planks are perfect...build your strenght through them and try to keep for 30s max and side planks the same. If you try every day you should be able to achieve this goal by the end of the week. Next step would be (additionally) to do side planks with little dips, like you are trying to touch the ground with your hip (uo and down) These are perfect to bring your core back, but they will not get rid off belly fat. The best way is to run...if you hate it. start walking fast for 40min a day with the stroller, that should be plenty and a great workout

Celeste - posted on 02/02/2012

Jennifer, Yes, you can do it online! That's how I like to do my WW's :)

Jennifer - posted on 02/02/2012

Thank you ladies for all the suggestions and advice! My goal for now is to lose 10-15lbs by May for a wedding, while still maintaining my milk supply.



Celeste: I took a look on the WW site, but couldn't find anything about a breastfeeding program. I planning to do the online WW. Do you know if it is accessible online?



Ania: Are there any quick and easy core exercises I can do at home? My friend recommended planks and I am only able to do the normal planks for about 10-15 seconds at a time. I am still unable to do side planks. I was worried that my diastasis recti had a huge opening, but my husband helped me measure it and he thinks it's at most 2 fingers. I think it is 3 fingers and a huge layer of fat. Hope that tidbit of information helps on recommending core exercises.

Ania - posted on 02/02/2012

As a personal trainer and BF mom I can tell you that exercise only will not help you to loose weight. You can have healthy BF diet and still loose weight. It is all about food choices believe me. I would say...start doing a food diary and see where you can improve. you can get rid off simple carbs like white bread rice and potatoes and start with whole wheat, also plenty of veggies that are steamed or grilled, fish and less red meat. Fruit like apples berries and bananas are also good. Greek yougurt. When your baby is 7 months you do not burn a lot of extra calories from BF because they do not BF like newborns anymore. On the safe side you probably need extra 300 kcal at this point. which is - 2 bananas on top of what you would normally eat if you dodn't BF. Try www.myfooddiary.com

As for exercise...you need high intensity cardio workouts, like zumba classes, running fast walking first if you are out of shape and build up to running to loose weight. It is not as easy as all these dvd gurus and tv people say it is. It is a major commitment and change of lifestyle all together. If you have any questions email me

Celeste - posted on 02/02/2012

One of the best programs for WL during breastfeeding is Weight Watchers! I used WW's while nursing my twins and I lost quite a bit of weight. They allow you extra "points" to keep up milk supply.



Running is my choice of exercise.



Some of my favorite DVD's are Jillian Michaels workouts. She really kicks your butt.