Calories During Pregnancy

joneswife09

I was reading that on average a woman should only add aout 300 calories to her diet when pregnant. Many people agreed with this statement. My question is...Does that 300 go on top of the weight loss calories or on top of maintenance calories??? I was trying to lose weight before finding out I was pregnant so do I just add 300 to my calorie goal or do I add maintenance and 300 calories to my goal?? Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks.

Panda86

First of all, Congratulations! My advice is to ask your Doc. I would think you should maintain + 300 calories so you don't lose anymore. You need to be slowly gaining. Also, I think the calorie intake is probably different during each trimester, another reason to ask your doc. Best of luck, and health to you both!

khskr1

Typically it's 300 on top of maintenance.

bonnymom

Congratulations!!

Since a woman should not try to lose weight during pregnancy, it would be maintenance plus 300 calories. But of course everyone is different,so you should ask your doctor.

urmyeffinstar

You would add 300 calories on top of your maintenance calories. You should slowly start to gain weight throughout your pregnancy and that would be difficult when eating such a small amount of calories.

I have usually heard this:

25-35 pounds is a healthy amount to gain during pregnancy if you were healthy to begin wtih
28-40 is a healthy amount to gain if you were underweight prior to pregnancy
15-25 pounds is a healthy amount if you are overweight prior to pregnancy

CoachJ77

Step 1: Talk to your doc. She will know far more than anyone on here. Step 2: I suggest not worrying about your weight though. You are pregnant so enjoy getting to eat all the things on here that others cant (even the weird ones ). Step 3: If you plan on breast feeding, that burns an ENORMOUS amount of cals and will help you lose a great deal of the weight you gain plus some. Good luck and CONGRATS!

recipe4success

Step 1: Talk to your doc. She will know far more than anyone on here. Step 2: I suggest not worrying about your weight though. You are pregnant so enjoy getting to eat all the things on here that others cant (even the weird ones ). Step 3: If you plan on breast feeding, that burns an ENORMOUS amount of cals and will help you lose a great deal of the weight you gain plus some. Good luck and CONGRATS!

except that during breastfeeding it is also recommended to increase your daily calories by, I believe, around 200 calories/day, to help ensure you have all the calories needed That being said, yes breastfeeding can help burn calories and help you lose weight.

It is still important to be concerned about weight during pregnancy, as excess weight gain can cause complications, however as all others have said, intentionally losing weight during pregnancy is not recommended.