Exercise During Breast Feeding

Yes, you can swim. There is no way that swimming in a pool will effect your milk. Sometimes the milk tastes different right after exercise though, so if your baby acts funny, just make sure to shower and maybe wait 30 minutes. Mine were never bothered by exercise but I've heard this from others.

Enjoy swimming!
M.

Just make sure that you shower after swimming. To affect the taste, the water would have to get through your skin into the lactation system, but you don't want to have pool water (or anything that might be in the pool water) on your skin when your baby latches on. Congrats on nursing and on thinking so carefully about what will make your baby happy!
Just as a quick anecdote, babies do taste certain foods that you've eaten. A study at the Monell Institute found that babies "savor" the breast when their mothers have eaten garlic. They nurse more slowly, but for a longer period of time. So cool!

Ry:
Hi, I love to workout and I used to swim alot when I had my first two kids. Just be sure to shower off afterwards or your skin does taste like Chlorine. I'm sure you'll be fine.
S.

Michele S. is right... during exercise, the body produces lactic acids... this actually changes the taste of the mother's milk, basically "souring" it. And some babies will "reject" nursing at this time. So, in light of exercising, one must "time" it, so that your baby CAN nurse either before or after your exercise session. So baby does not have to wait too long! :)

It is recommended, that even waiting 2 hours after exercise, before nursing. By then, the "problem" should subside.

All the best,
Susan

The water won't effect your milk at all. Strenuous exercise will (ie, if you're sweating, consider it strenuous even if you're just walking in hot sun), because of lactic acids/dehydration/salts etc.

Some babies don't mind the taste at all, some actually even prefer it. For the ones that don't, either feed right before you go in, or express/pump-n-dump afterwards. Gawd I always hated seeing all that hard work go down the drain, though.

So get out there, get in the water, and have some fun.

R

No problem. My son and I were in "swimming" lessons from the time he was 6 months old and I breastfed him until 11 months. Just shower or wash off before nursing. Enjoy!

SWIM! It's healthy for you. Your milk is created internally, the pool water does not enter your breast. Exercise is healthy for you! AND your milk production. I breastfed and started working out a week post partum

Exercise is the best thing for you and the baby. I've been swimming and breastfeeding for about 6 months now...no problems here. Swim away!

Go ahead and swim, but make sure to replenish your fluids and maintain enough body fat so that your milk supply is stable and rich in calories.

some women have a hard time sustaining a milk supply while exercising so make sure if you feel like your supply is decreasing to stop if you want to continue breastfeeding.

It's a-ok. I nurse my four month and swim and it doesn't effect my milk at all!

-M