I have a really hard time losing weight while breastfeeding. Like instead of losing weight, I gain it. While other women waste away while breastfeeding, I’m voraciously downing the last cupcake and picking off my children’s plates.
Because breastfeeding makes me HUNGRY.
But after talking to my doctor who told me it was safe, I decided to try intermittent fasting while breastfeeding my 4th (and last) baby. And it turned everything around for me.
Honestly, intermittent fasting (IF) was perfect for me. No, I didn’t lose a ton of weight quickly (which is not healthy or easy to maintain), but I reversed the trend of all my previous pregnancies and have slowly and continuously lost weight while nursing.
Through intermittent fasting while breastfeeding, I am now below the weight I was at when I even started having kids…and I’m still nursing!
This post is all about my experience and results using intermittent fasting to lose the baby weight.
UPDATE May 2019: After two years of intermittent fasting, I’ve stopped. While I had a mostly positive experience, I no longer feel it’s the best eating philosophy for long-term mental and physical health and wellness. For more on why, check out Why I Stopped Intermittent Fasting after 2 Years
MY EXPERIENCE INTERMITTENT FASTING AND BREASTFEEDING
After each birth, I would resolve to lose all the baby weight. And the weight left over from the past pregnancies. But I always had trouble losing while breastfeeding. In fact, I would gain 10 lbs and then get pregnant again.
But since I found breastfeeding extremely rewarding, I refused to let my weight interfere with what was best for me and my baby. So after each pregnancy, I found myself heavier than I had ever been before.
After the birth of my 4th and last child Dec 2016, I was at my all time heaviest while not pregnant. And I was determined to FINALLY overcome my inability to lose weight while breastfeeding.
So after getting the okay from my doctor, I joined a gym, hired a personal trainer, tried to eat healthy, and worked my butt off for weeks and weeks. But my weight did not budge. For a long time.
It was so incredibly depressing.
Then, I came across intermittent fasting while researching healthy eating, which was my main struggle. It was a revelation. There are so many health benefits to IF, it’s unreal (e.g. fat loss, increased lifespan, lower ideas risk etc).
I wanted to do it, but couldn’t find anything substantial about intermittent fasting while breastfeeding. I didn’t want to risk my milk supply or quality, but I also didn’t want to wait a year to lose weight when I was so determined.
But then I thought: women throughout history have successfully breastfed with limited food supply and in various circumstances. Really, how could a couple extra hours of fasting a day impact my milk supply?
RELATED: The 6 Things I’m Doing to Become an Intuitive Eater
IS IT SAFE TO FAST WHILE BREASTFEEDING?
While you should consult your own doctor, for me the answer was yes.
At my baby’s 3-month visit, I decided to ask the pediatrician about intermittent fasting while breastfeeding. By this point, my milk supply was well established and my baby and I were in a great routine.
My pediatrician has always been very involved in my nutrition when I am breastfeeding, making sure I am getting all the vitamins and nutrients I need so my babies get what they need. She stays very current on research and is very concerned with healthy living and nutrition. So I figured she was the perfect one for me to talk to.
Honestly, I assumed she would say “no” out of extreme caution. But to my pleasant surprise, she was really supportive of my plan to fast daily for 16 hours.
I told her I was going to eat between noon and 8:00pm each day while focusing on drinking tons of water and eating healthy. She had no concerns, but just told me to make sure the baby was still enjoying the milk.
(She said that getting into ketosis can change the flavor of the milk.)
Super excited, I started the very next day.
MANAGING INTERMITTENT FASTING WHILE BREASTFEEDING
I woke up around 7:00am and got busy taking care of my kids to keep myself from eating before noon. Honestly, keeping busy isn’t as struggle as a mom, right?
After the morning routine, we went to the gym. By the time I got my kids checked into the kid’s center, worked out, gathered up my kids, and drove home it was almost noon.
By then, I was definitely ready to eat and prepared a nice big meal. Then I ate 3 meals between noon and 7 and made sure to be done eating at 8:00pm.
I continued this and by about day 4, it was seriously no big deal waiting til noon to eat. I was no longer hungry in the mornings. In my experience, it was really easy to adjust to intermittent fasting while breastfeeding. Eating during an 8 hour window is so doable!
Plus, I found that feeling “empty” in the mornings helped me have more energy to take care of my kids and get stuff done around the house.
RELATED: Tips for Intermittent Fasting While Breastfeeding
MY RESULTS
1) Milk Supply
My biggest concern when I started was wondering if intermittent fasting would affect my milk supply. To my pleasant surprise, it was entirely unaffected by the fasting. I had plenty of milk and I noticed no change in nursing whatsoever with my slow and steady weight loss.
(I stayed very well hydrated by drinking tons of water)
Note that at times when I’ve lost weight more quickly (months after beginning IF) I have noticed a slight (and temporary) drop in supply. However, I believe that is unrelated to IF and instead a result of rapid weight loss (i.e. more than 2 lbs a week). As of right now, I am still nursing my very healthy 18 month old toddler.
* UPDATE March 2019: I continued do intermittent fasting and breastfeed up until my 22 month old toddler decided she was done nursing.
2) Weight Loss
The weight immediately began to come off at about a pound a week (my breastfeeding sister has seen similar results with IF). While this slow weight loss may not be exciting, I haven’t gained back anything that I’ve lost over a year after starting intermittent fasting while breastfeeding.
Other than the first few days, I never felt hungry. I have lost 35 lbs so far putting me at a weight from before having any children. I’ve certainly plateaued, which is normal over a long term weight loss journey. But through changing habits, I’ve managed to not gain anything back, which is honestly pretty exciting.
3) Changing Habits
The best part of intermittent fasting while breastfeeding is that it helped me get in control of my eating, which was key for me on my weight loss journey. While nursing, I am typically ravenously hungry and have a really hard time controlling cravings. Intermittent fasting changed that for me.
Since beginning IF, I have changed my eating habits a lot.
And the best part is that it’s been a really natural and gradual progression. Which means that it’s a change that has been easy to maintain, hence not gaining back the weight I’ve lost.
I’ve always been big into exercise, but you can’t exercise your way out of a bad diet. And breastfeeding has made me feel like I am starving ALL THE TIME. It was hard to control my eating because I want to eat everything in my sight.
With intermittent fasting while breastfeeding, I felt like I took back control of my eating habits. It became easier to start making better food choices.
Never one to calorie count, instead I started to be more mindful of my true hunger cues and started really listening to my body. Listening to how food actually made me feel.
As I gained more self-control, I read some fantastic books on nutrition that helped shape the foods I was eating and develop a healthioer relationship with food.
RELATED: 3 Ways For Busy Moms to Get Motivated to Exercise
Here are a couple of my favorites:
- Food: What the Heck Should I Eat: In this book, Dr. Hyman goes through every food group and boils down all the current research we have on foods. I found this extremely helpful as a nutritional food guide.
- Intuitive Eating: One of the most important books I have ever read. This book has changed the way I look at food, dieting, and it has helped me develop a healthy relationship with food and my body.
With IF and continued nutritional education, I began to finally stop the cycle of gaining weight while breastfeeding and lost all the weight I’ve gained through having children.
INTERMITTENT FASTING WHILE BREASTFEEDING WAS THE ANSWER FOR ME
Overall, intermittent fasting is simple (no counting calories or tracking food) and has been a miraculous way for me to build healthy eating habits. It was an important tool for me in taking back my health and losing 35 lbs of extra weight from you pregnancies.
If it interests you and you are breastfeeding, be sure to consult with your doctor/pediatrician first.
UPDATE May 2019: After two years of intermittent fasting, I’ve stopped. While I had a mostly positive experience, I no longer feel it’s the best eating philosophy for long-term mental and physical health and wellness. For more on why, check out Why I Stopped Intermittent Fasting after 2 Years
MORE RESOURCES
- The IF Meal Plan That Helped me Lose Weight (with free Printables)
- Tips for Intermittent Fasting While Breastfeeding
- 3 Ways For Busy Moms to Get Motivated to Exercise
Heather says
I am very happy to read about success stories. I am currently BF baby boy #2. He is almost 9 months old. The lack of weightloss has become such a burden on my mental health that I considered stopping nursing – but it just killed me to think about stopping for selfish reasons. I’ve been keto on and off for years now and have been very interested in IF for some time. I plan to begin with a 16:8 and let nature take its course. I’m so relieved to see other nursing moms are IF and not have everything be so negative. It’s a win-win for my family, Mom can start feeling better and baby still gets “mommy milk”.
Erin says
Thanks for stopping by, Heather! That’s totally why I wanted to write this post. When I was first research IF, I had a hard time finding success stories with IF for nursing moms online. In fact, I had a hard time finding ANY stories of nursing moms really doing IF. It has been such an important way for me to reclaim my health while still nursing my baby (15 months and going strong!).
Sughra says
Hi Erin,
Thank you so much for sharing your story. I am 22 weeks pregnant and set my mind to start IF as soon as baby is born but would you recommend intermittent fasting during pregnancy? As I am half way through and put on 1 and half stones already.
Thanks
Sughra
Erin says
Hi Sughra! Thank you so much for reaching out. Remember, weight gain during pregnancy is completely normal! Though I know it can be upsetting. But pregnancy is not the time to start any kind of weight loss program. Focus instead on eating healthy foods and nourishing that little miracle inside of you. You body may be gaining more weight than you’d like, but your body is doing seriously incredible things. Talk to your doctor about it, but I would say that now is not the time to try and lose weight.
As for starting after the birth, I would definitely wait a few months until your milk is established and you get the go-ahead from your doctor. Girl, I know how scary it is to be gaining weight right now, but now is not forever. But now is the only time to grow this baby inside of you. Once baby is here and you’ve recovered from birth and established your milk, you will have plenty of time to lose weight in a healthy way. Let yourself enjoy the miracle and work to be a healthy as you can! Feel free to email me with any questions. erin (at) theicrementalmama (dot) com xo Erin
Jessica says
This is exactly where I am. My daughter, baby #2 is 10 months and I too had considered weaning at 1 year because of the mental health toll with my lack of weight loss. I’m starting tomorrow at 12.
marvie says
Im exclusively breastfeeding for 3 years now..and i just started IF for a week now…it didnt affect my milk supply and i felt great. 🙂
Erin says
Yay!!! That’s great, Marvie!
Kayz says
So pleased to find this post! I’m EBF my 9 week old and started 16:8 fasting this week but my OH isn’t keen on me “skipping” breakfast! This is my 5th baby and I have 2stone+ to lose! I’m eating lots of healthy foods and some dark chocolate in my 8 hours of food. I’m already seeing a difference in a few days. Was worried about supply but it still seems plentiful at the moment! Thanks for writing this, it’s very reassuring x
Erin says
So glad it’s helpful!
Kelsey says
I have looked EVERYWHERE for success stories but have found none until now! My husband has been doing IF for 3 months now and is 30 pounds down! Just by doing IF, no more beer, and eating healthier meals. I think I will start trying now that I know others have succeeded.
I am like you were and feel like I’m starving all the time and have to eat 24/7 /= Hopefully a slow transition into it will help!
Baby is almost 3 months!
Erin says
Slow and steady is how real and lasting change happens! Good luck, Kelsey!
Nicole Williams says
Heather, I love reading your IF journey. I dare not ask my BF group nor my pediatrician because I know the kind of response I will get, “you will dry up!” “Don’t be selfish!”.. I’m so glad that you have had successful results! My question is, during your 16:8 IF I know you said you eat 3 times during that period, what are your portion sizes for those meals?
Angela Cameron says
I kept myself active and cut out soda and fast food completely. I gained 60 lbs with both pregnancies (gestational diabetes), and right now, I’m a size 1. I wholeheartedly believe that breastfeeding and Mummy magic weight loss tea played a big part in it!
Natalie says
Thank you so much for posting this! It’s reassuring to know people are in the same boat. I know for me once I start eating it’s hard to stop, so if I can wait, it’s less calories consumed.
During this 8 hours do you by chance know about how many calories you are consuming?
Erin says
Hi Natalie! Thanks for commenting! And that’s a great question! And the answer is no, lol 🙂
I have ALWAYS struggled to regularly count calories. It’s just not something I can sustain, personally. Instead, IF sent me on more of a mindfulness path as I pay attention to my body’s hunger cues and how I feel. So what’s worked for me is really thinking about how hungry I am (“am I really hungry or just stressed/sad/happy etc?”) and how different foods make me feel. As a result, I started eating less and eating healthier foods that make me feel better.
I also work out a lot, so my hunger may differ depending on my workout and trying to figure calories all out in myfitnesspal always just made me feel crazy. The mindful approach has been what’s worked for me. Good luck!
Kate says
Hi Erin,
I really enjoyed your article and congrats on losing the weight!
I lived by the 5:2 for years and loved the benefits, staying slim but still enjoying food on the off days… and then I got pregnant with my daughter and gained 50lbs! Everyone said I’d lose it quickly when breastfeeding, but it just wasn’t shifting. I wasn’t even eating that badly! It felt like my personal reaction to nursing just held into fat for the baby. I was seriously depressed- it just wasn’t my body!
After 6 months of feeding, eating healthily and going to the gym a bitI had only lost about 25lbs (of which a big proportion was baby!)
It wasn’t until I finished nursing that I really lost the weight and did the 5:2 again, quickly getting back to my old weight. Hurrah!
And then I got pregnant again with my son… and gained 45lbs. He is now 6 weeks old and again I am breastfeeding, but I am seriously depressed again about my weight and body. And I know how hard it was last time, which makes me even more upset! Your article made me think that I could do both fasting and feeding, without taking away from my son’s nutrition. Yay! I wanted to ask if you did the 16hr fast every day or if you did it only a few days a week? And did you ever eat normally or was it always really healthy? Did you stick to a calorie limit like the 5:2?
Thanks!
Erin says
Hi Kate! Thanks for your awesome comment. I’m so glad this was helpful! That’s great that 5:2 worked so well for you!!! And I 100% feel ya in the “can’t lose weight while breastfeeding” department (at least without IF).
Yes, I do a 16 hour fast pretty much everyday. Honestly, it’s now a habit and I don’t even think about it! I personally just eat normally and do not calorie count. Initially, my focus was just eating within the 8 hour window. But IF really helped me get in control of my eating, so I started to change habits and gradually eat far more healthy.
Instead of counting calories, I really focus on paying attention to my true hunger cues and how food makes me feel. Junk food makes me feel terrible, while healthy food gives me the energy I need to keep up with 4 little ones. When it comes to breastfeeding, I personally wasn’t comfortable restricting my calories and instead tries to listen to my body’s needs.
Good luck and let me know if you try IF and how it goes 🙂
Janet says
You mentioned that with the later months of higher weight loss you did notice temporary lower milk supply. How did you increase it? How soon did you notice the drop? I seem to be losing faster than expected while IF and I think it’s affecting my milk. Maybe I need to eat more, but I find IF really curbs my appetite! I am also a “gainer” when I BF, so losing 4 lbs in one week was a shocker for me.
Erin says
Hi Janet! First off, congrats on the weight loss! To answer your question, for me I didn’t lose weight at faster rates for more than a week or so and then I’d settle into the slower rate again. During that time, I drank TONS of water and made sure I was nursing as much as I could–even letting her use me as a pacifier. Other than a day or two of feeling a bit empty, we’d be back in business. I think that our bodies are pretty amazing at adjusting and getting our babies what they need as long as we’re getting enough calories.
Marta says
So happy I found this post! Couldn’t find much resources on IF while EBFing, so thank you!!! Before my last pregnancy I was on 4:3 and 16/8 daily and occasional longer fasts and loved it. Also LCHF/keto on and off. I’m 3.5 months post-partum and wanted to go back to IF, but I was anxious it might affect milk supply. I’m going to start gently with 16/8 and see how it goes. Thank you again for sharing your experience <3
Erin says
You’re so welcome, Marta! Good luck!
Karyn says
This may be a silly questions but do you drink coffee or wait to drink coffee till noon? Since it is dehydrating and I like mine with cream and a tiny sugar I’d imagine I’ll have to wait, but man it’s like my favorite thing in the morning. That may be my hardest thing about starting IF!
Erin says
Nope, not a silly question! I don’t drink coffee, personally, but a lot people who do IF do one they wake up without breaking their fast. You can have anything under 5o calories (like unsweetened coffee) during your fasting period.
Marisa Williams says
Can you go into more detail on what we can drink during the fast? Would bone broth be ok? Herbal tea? Kombucha?
This is a wonderful resource. Thank you!!
Erin says
Hi Marisa! Great question. It’s important to drink tons of water, obviously. And as far as other beverages, anything under 50 calories is not breaking the fast. If it’s during the eating period, then it’s what works for you.
Char Erikson says
Another grateful reader, here! My LO is 4 months and I wanted the IF benefits of clearing the brain fog and other things without compromising milk supply. She is number 7 for me, so I didn’t feel brave enough to just chance it, but I feel much more comfortable now. I already follow the body cue/no calorie counting method of eating with fresh foods, some sprouted grains, grass-fed fats and meats, so I feel like I am ready for this. Thank you!!
Erin says
Awesome! So glad this was helpful, Char! Good luck and let me know how it goes…
Charlotte Erikson says
I think she said as long as it is less than 50 calories, it doesn’t matter what the drink is
Ashley says
Thank you so much for writing this. I recently just had my third and last baby. I am 30 and am the biggest I’ve ever been. Like you, I don’t lose weight nursing at all and I gain weight because I’m ravenously hungry all the dang time. My friend has been IF for a while and she loves it, but she doesn’t have kids. So after reading up on it I figured it would be something that would work for me because i don’t typically eat after 8pm and having three kids and homeschooling one of those kids i don’t often have time for breakfast. This seems to be a really good way to lose weight and keep it off and change your lifestyle choices. Next week is my daughters 4 month check up, so I’m going to bring it up to her pediatrician . I’m really
Looking forward to doing this. It’s really depressing that having children who are just amazing can make you really lose sight of yourself and let your appearance dwindle. I’m determined to change that so I’m not depressed about my appearance anymore
Erin says
Sounds like a great plan, Ashley!
Stella McCarter says
Thank you so much for sharing this. I’m definitely going to try intermittent fasting while breastfeeding now.
I do want to say, please do your research into low carb and keto diets as they are ultimately very dangerous.
https://nutritionfacts.org/video/what-is-the-healthiest-diet/
The healthiest diet has been proven to be a plant-based one and it’s also one it is sustainable and where people can lose the most weight.
https://youtu.be/MzHLAqyO7PQ
Thanks again!
Maddie says
Thank you for this!!! Ive always been able to lose the baby weight by about 6 mo post-partum just with exercise but this time around (3rd baby) I haven’t lost hardly a pound! Its hard when people just say DONT DO IT!! When you know they are airing on the side of extreme caution. I actually struggle with some serious overproduction haha! So I wouldn’t mind a slight dip in my supply. Anyways I am so excited to try this. Baby is 4 mo old and supply well established. I feel like this could be a godsend for us over here. I do usually exercise at 5am though so i’m wondering if I should adjust the schedule from 10-6? I guess we will just experiment! Thanks for writing this!
Erin says
You are so very welcome! I continued IF with nursing until at 21 months my baby rejected me (I’m still devastated about it lol). To answer your question, yes! Just move your window to when you need it. When I work out early, I start the 8 hour eating window early. You may want to start with a 10 hour window (or more) to start and then go down to 8 gradually just to make it easier. And way to go working out so early with a 4 month old! Good luck with IF!
Jasmine says
This! Thiiissss! Thank you so very much for this, I am beyond ecstatic that I had come across your article, because I, now, am at this very moment, set in stone, as a result of reading about your experience, determined to commit to this with ZERO fear of losing my supply. This is amazing, and I cannot even describe how much more assured and comfortable I am with this decision to attempt to get myself back — thank you so much. Thank you. After 5 children, all 8 and under, I’m ready to get me back. <3
Carly says
Hi there. How many months into breastfeeding did you start? And did you always stay at a 16hr fast? Before I fell pregnant I lost 10kgs in 12 weeks due to fasting between 1/2pm till 6/7pm so around an 18hr fast with the help of mct oil to curb my hunger and walked 2 – 3 times per day (approx 1hr ish a day) and no other exercise. I wanted to lose another 10kgs but accidently fell pregnant. Through my pregnancy the cravings were intense and ended up putting on 24kgs…I am now almost 4 weeks pp and only lost 9kgs… so have 15kgs (ultimately 25kgs…) to lose.
Just wondering when I should start as my milk isn’t fully established and unsure when that is meant to be.
Erin says
Hi Carly, I would definitely wait quite a bit. Your body is healing! Then talk to your doctor. I started maybe 4-6 months post partum? Milk was great, breastfeeding was going really well and I talked to the doctor first. I never really deviated from 16 hours because doing so I found was really mentally unhealthy for me. I’m no longer practicing IF, but instead practice intuitive eating.