Hiya Honey, glad that you're breastfeeding is going well. I'm sorry you've struggled with the plan, do you think your weight gain is through breastfeeding or simply not getting the right balance with SW?
I'be only had baby 3days ago but starting to think abt the plan. I didn't.gain much and would ideally like to keep to staying the same until things are settled
What are the allowances for exclusively breastfeeding or part formula/BF?
My weight gain was from making a very naive mistake in thinking I could eat whatever I wanted because I was breastfeeding. I assumed the weight would just melt off regardless of what I ate so I really went to town lol. I also got major sugar cravings so I was making a dessert every night! My fave was rhubarb and apple crumble with copious amounts of double cream. Mmmmm
Almond crossaints for breakfast, brownies, chocolates, endless slices of bread and butter, pies, baguettes, pastries, macaroons etc were the reason for my weight gain
By the time I realised my weight was going up rather than down I'd formed pretty bad habits. That, coupled with my fear that cutting back and eating healthily would affect my milk supply, kept me eating rubbish for another month. It was only a week ago that I decided to just go for it! I was still worried about my milk supply, especially as the day after I restarted SW my boobs seemed a lot softer but I made sure to drink lots of water and hold on to the knowledge that the fact that I was gaining so much weight meant that I was clearly eating more than my body needed (with the excess calories migrating to my hips!) so logically following SW shouldn't affect my supply. Then I read articles about how a sudden drop in calories could affect milk production and that nearly sent me to the biscuit tin! It was a harrowing few days to say the least. But I kept my faith and by day 4 my supply was back up and overflowing again!
I don't know if it was all in my head or just the natural fluctuations of milk production or whether it was indeed because of my change in diet. Whatever the case, I'm just glad everything is fine. My daughter never showed any signs of hunger or disatisfaction at all so maybe it was all in my head lol. She's almost 4 months and 16lbs the chubster!! I feel so proud that she's thriving on my boobie juice, it would kill me to have that compromised in any way. Now that I know that my supply is fine, I can fully focus on SW and blast this weight off! I can't tell you how happy and relieved I am. For the first time since my daughter was born I feel encouraged and positive that I can do this.
Sorry this turned into a bit of a ramble, hope it helps anyone else in my situation.