[gretel]

Hi ladies...it's finally come to that time. I'm a little sad that I'm the one initiating it, but seeing that my little lady is 15.5 months and was only nursing once per day, I'm ready. I maybe lost 5 pounds while breastfeeding. But I hear that lots of women suddenly drop weight when they wean...and still others gain weight. Would anyone else care to share your experiences?

[healthyangie]

Oh! I so miss those days
I breastfed for about 16 months also. He really didn't need me after 13 but neither of us were quite ready to leave go .... He's 12 now!

I was an exception to the rule as to I actually gained quite a bit while I was breastfeeding. If I attempted to watch my diet, my milk would go down. Once I weaned him and started eating properly again, yes, the weight came off pretty easy (until the 15 lbs mark, then it was slow as usual.)

Off the weight subject - all of sudden he started reaching down my shirt for comfort. LOL I was so used to him around "them" that I didn't even really notice until a few people in public pointed out that my child was holding my booby. He was also a little more clingy that usual but got over that within a few months.

Good luck and if you ever miss it or get sad, just remember ...
"Our jobs as parents is to make them not need us at all after 18 .... " Sad but true

[Flowers]

Here in Kenya most hospitals and social workers insist that babies should be breastfed exclusively for six months. Breastfeeding is not a major deal as it is in the west. And this is what the biggest percentage of mothers do. We then wean them after six months.

[Annafterolin]

I breast fed both my sons and the first I lost while breastfeeding. My second son/my weight has been trickier. I have lost no weight (until I started dieting) and even the weight I'm dropping is taking forever (or feels like forever). I do know that after I weaned my first born and ran everyday for months, up to 3 miles a day, I lost so much weight. Now, I'm trying to go between yoga, running, and fitnessblender workouts online. Right now I am at the almost 1 year mark and plan to cut off my second born soon... It will be a nightmare as he is seriously committed to nursing.

[gretel]

In the last two weeks, I weaned and have lost just about 2 pounds. It took me 6 months to lose 8 while breastfeeding, so maybe my body is finally ready to let go of the weight. Either way, my fat % is really dropping. Thank you for all of the stories so far! Everyone's weight loss story post weaning is so different.

[Crow]

I'm breastfeeding my fourth child, and I find that I never lose until I wean. Like a PP said, during nursing my body really wants to gain weight not lose it.

My little man is 7.5 months and on 3 spoonfeeds a day, and I'm finding that my weight loss is beginning because of this. I don't expect to lose very much for now, but it's good to at least feel a beginning!

[gretel]

Another quick update. I did wean in January when my daughter was 15.5 months old. Since my last post, I lost another 10 pounds. I don't know if it was the stress of not producing enough that caused my supply to drop, me to stress more, and the weight to stick - but it sure seems that way. Once I stopped worrying about it all, my weight loss ramped up.

[Crow]

Gretel, that's fantastic! Your body obviously knows what it's doing.