Why I love breastfeeding #1

Now, I have spent my entire adolescent and adult life trying to lose weight. I only have to look at a doughnut and the pounds pile on. I lost around a stone and a half before getting married but my god, it was a struggle. I didn't eat cake or crisps for months, only used skimmed milk, never ordered dessert and pretty much lived on salad and veg. I ran the Great North Run, clocked up miles of training runs beforehand and still had to watch what I was eating so that I didn't put on weight. It's always been the same story.

Until I got pregnant.

I ate a lot when I was pregnant, admittedly I craved berries which was a pretty good craving to have, calorie wise. But I also ate a lot of cake. Crisps and crackers stopped me from feeling sick for the first 15 weeks so I ate them...in massive quantities...all of the time. I always ordered dessert, never refused a biscuit at work and didn't once think about my weight. Somehow I put on just less than 2 stone. Now, baring in mind that Henry weighed nearly 9 pounds and taking into account the placenta, increased blood volume, MASSIVE boobs and water retention, I hardly put on any extra fat. I was back in my normal jeans within 10 days.

I've now been breastfeeding Henry for almost 5 months and I'm a stone lighter than the day I got pregnant. I have also never eaten as much as I have in the past 5 months. I always thought it was a myth that it used up 500 cals a day, but I'm starting to believe that that's true.

I don't know if it's a total fluke and I've just got lucky, maybe I'll get a massive shock for baby #2 when I put on 5 stone and find it hard to lose, I really don't know. I also don't know what will happen after I stop feeding. Will my body go back to its old ways and I'll have to battle to maintain my weight? Will it continue to lose weight the way it is at the moment? I wish I could find out but at the moment I'm in no rush to do that, I'm going to enjoy the calories while I can. 

Now, where's that cake?

A few of my recent treats...

Miss this belly!