by Carrie Saum
During my 21 months of exclusive pumping, I kind of became obsessed with milk-boosting foods. There’s a fancy name for those foods, but I just call them Milk Movers.
Breakfast was and is the hardest meal for me, and after having a newborn with special needs that I pumped milk for eight times a day, breakfast became a handful of trailmix and a cup of coffee. This was not sustainable for many reasons, but not the least of which I needed MORE food, and balanced meals. My milk supply was barely adequate to begin with, so getting plenty of Milk Movers was imperative.
While I deeply desired to eat better, I had a hard time fitting in all of my responsibilities, including responsibly feeding myself. My bandwidth for anything beyond survival was pretty minimal in those days. Adding in Milk Movers, which I definitely needed, seemed downright impossible. So, I began experimenting with foods that would be fast, nutritious, provide solid sustenance, and would not overwhelm me with too many steps.
Smoothies seemed like the best option. You basically just take a scoop of this and handful of that and put some kind of liquid in it and call it good, right? Right. I came up with a few recipes to keep handy, and tweaked them to feel like I was having an indulgent treat. The healthy factor could just be a bonus.
My very favorite was this little gem. Full of protein, flavor, and it felt like a complete indulgence.
Ingredients:
- 1 ripe banana, cut into small chunks and frozen solid
- 1 cup oat milk
- 2 Tbsp all-natural peanut butter*
- 1 Tbsp coconut oil (optional but so good for you both!)
- 1 Tbsp cocoa powder
- 1 tsp ground flax seed
- splash of vanilla extract
Directions:
- Put all of the ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth.
- Drink immediately and feel happy you are giving yourself and your baby great and delicious nutrition.
*If you can’t do peanut butter, almond butter will work just as well, and so will sunbutter. And if you are feeling really daring, you can add a handful of baby spinach and get some greens in there, too!
Also, I peeled and chopped a whole bunch of bananas once a week, then froze them in individual servings so I could easily grab them to make a smoothie. This was a total lifesaver. I didn’t have to think, I just had to blend.
All of you mamas are doing great work for your little babes. Keep it up.
Cheers to you!
*Note: It’s important to point out that most women aren’t going to need to eat food with the intention of upping their milk supply, if everything is working the way it is supposed to, your baby will know how to up your supply just fine themselves. Skin-to-skin and feeding on demand are the best ways to increase breastmilk supply to meet your baby’s needs. (Concerned you have low supply? Read this to help figure out if it is something you need to be concerned about.) For those women, galactalogues just happen and they don’t need to think about it. But some women, like me, do need a boost. As a mom who ended up exclusively pumping and indeed having low supply such that I ended up on medication solely to increase my milk production, I know what it’s like to look for anything, anything at all that would help my body make even just a little more milk to help feed my baby. With the support of my health care providers, we tried everything. It becomes “I will eat all the cookies, I will drink all the shakes, I will eat all the parfaits!” if it even just makes me feel like I’m doing something to address the low supply struggle, it is worth it.
If you love this smoothie recipe, you might like this recipe for Paleo Salted Chocolate Chunk Cookies or these Grain-Free Crepes Florentine over on Our Stable Table.
Carrie Saum brings a passion for wellness and over a decade of experience in health care to her clients. A certified Ayurvedic Wellness Counselor (AWC) from the Kerala Ayurveda Academy, she empowers individuals and families to achieve health and balance through time-honored practices and health knowledge.
Carrie has extensive first-hand experience in vast array of medical and service fields. With background in paramedic medicine, Carrie spent ten years serving in the non-profit sector managing organizations, programs, and orchestrating resources to meet health needs of people across the United States and abroad in countries such as Guatemala, Mexico, Kenya, and Zambia. As an AWC, Carrie currently coaches her clients and their families about topics including nutrition, weight loss, and stress management.In addition to her work as a wellness counselor, Carrie is a passionate “foodie” and author. She lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and young son.