When I first had my baby, I struggled with what to eat while breastfeeding. I’m sure many other new mothers can relate to the many priorities I was juggling. I wanted to ensure I always had a good supply of milk, not be starving all the time, get back on track eating, and lose weight.
The first thing that’s important to know is that the initial few weeks are crucial to developing a good supply of breast milk. During this time, the first 6 weeks, I didn’t worry about what I ate. It wasn’t until I received the all clear by OB-GYN at my 6-week appointment that I started approaching a more normalized routine. It’s also important to note that Healthi has a special setting for breastfeeding mothers as breastfeeding uses up a lot of calories. You can find this setting in your Profile under Gender.
I thought it would be helpful to share with you all my normal routine. This is what worked for me and I hope it can provide guidance, motivation and ideas for others:
I am not a morning person, so I generally start my day late. Baby and I usually get up around 10am. As a new mom, baby comes first so I usually won’t have “breakfast” until 11:00-11:30am. For breakfast, I take my prenatal vitamin and have a bagel with cream cheese. I round this out with an orange and a handful of nuts (which are healthy and supposed to help with milk production).
Around 3pm, I start getting hungry again so I will have a snack. I currently love to have some chocolate covered popcorn and I round that out with a banana.
Every day I also have a splurge drink. I call it a splurge drink because I don’t like drinking my calories and these drinks do have calories. It’s generally a Starbucks dupe so either a nice coffee, a protein coffee or my newest obsession: the pink drink dupe- which is a cup of coconut milk and a cup of white cran-strawberry juice from ocean breeze. (I’ve also shared a lot of my coffee favorites and tricks in blogs before).
Dinner is usually around 7pm and generally consists of a starch, chicken breast (usually with a marinade) and vegetables. Last night, I made a stir-fry with chicken breast and rice. I added teriyaki sauce for a touch of flavor. On the side, I sautéed onion and zucchinis and added a splash of soy sauce.
During the night I get up twice to pump / feed the baby and will often have a granola bar if I am hungry.
Eating this way leaves me with a little over 100 extra calories. This works for me as I know that sometimes I can get hungry or feel that I need something else. I still try to listen to my body and if I feel like I need more, I will eat more calories, but have found this to be a good amount for myself.
My pregnancy has taught me to listen to my body more as I am making healthier choices. I am trying to keep this momentum going and continuing to listen to my body while not getting back to my “bad” eating habits.
