Calorie Requirement For a Nursing Mother

Production of milk requires the supply of up to 500 calories per day. To burn up these calories, one would have to bicycle uphill for an hour daily. Studies have shown that nursing women maintain breast milk supply by having 700 to 1000 additional calories totaling around 2700 Cal. per day. However, in most cases it's enough to listen to your body and satisfy your increased hunger. The Committee on Nutritional Status During Pregnancy and Lactation of the Institute of Medicine concluded that they were "impressed by evidence that mothers are able to produce milk of sufficient quantity and quality to support growth and promote the health of infants - even when the mother's supply of nutrients and energy is limited."

In the book Breastfeeding and Human Lactation by Jan Riordan (editor), you can read: "The amount of energy needed by lactating mothers continues to be debated. The lactating mother need not maintain a markedly higher caloric intake than that maintained prior to pregnancy: in most cases, 400-500 calories in excess of that which is needed to maintain the mother's body weight is sufficient."

As to body weight control during breastfeeding, the common sense and tradition recommends not to worry too much about it until your baby starts eating hard food. The best way to be back to your "normal" body is to start exercising more. To figure out your healthy weight, don't rely on your bathroom scales. Body fat % is a better indication of your body composition, which could change during pregnancy and nursing. It takes only a measuring tape and online calculator to estimate your body fat.