How to not gain weight if I get pregnant?

Hi I am thinking about having a baby. I’m worried about gaining weight. I’ve been losing weight for the last four years and I was wondering if I keep doing what I’m doing will I gain weight if I get pregnant and after my baby is born? I would love another baby but i haven’t made a decision yet on whether to try for another baby. I do a 8km walk most days if not most every day of the week. And I’m eating less and I’m under my daily calorie intake recommended total every day.
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Replies

  • ashleygroizard
    ashleygroizard Posts: 181 Member
    Unless you are massively overweight you should gain weight while pregnant, you're growing a tiny person!
    How much weight is normal to gain?
  • phill_143
    phill_143 Posts: 64 Member
    It's great that you're thinking ahead about how to have a healthy pregnancy!

    If you're able to stay active throughout pregnancy it makes for an easier third trimester and labour - as well as helping minimise weight gain/recover more smoothly afterwards.

    Some things which I personally think would have been useful to know/focus on before conception (just based on my recent experience) :
    - Squats with weights are a great way of preparing for the extra load. I built up to squatting 70kg prior to pregnancy and credit that with still being able to walk a few miles a day right up until 40 weeks.
    - Pelvic floor exercises!
    - Invest in a good maternity sports bra. I couldn't easily run after 16weeks, due to... additional bouncing... but with hindsight, I think better equipment would really have helped
  • ashleygroizard
    ashleygroizard Posts: 181 Member
    EmbeeKay wrote: »
    First, talk to your doctor about YOUR recommended weight gain. If you are within normal BMI range, I think the recommendation is 15 to 25 pounds.

    Next, I had a really healthy pregnancy for baby number four by tracking my macros, getting enough protein, and exercising consistently. By the last ten weeks, I could only walk or jog, but I did it! In my opinion, it’s maintaining those good habits throughout pregnancy that’s the most important. If you maintain good habits, it will be easy to stay in shape during and after. I’ve also done the “I can eat whatever I want because I’m eating for two” approach and not only was it harder to get back in shape afterward, I had to relearn good habits again. Good luck to you!
    With your fourth baby how much weight did you have to lose?
  • lin_be
    lin_be Posts: 393 Member
    I have the same concerns OP. I won’t be able to get pregnant until this fall but am working hard this year to get down to a healthy BMI before conception. Thanks for posting, the replies were helpful! I’ve heard 15-25lbs is pretty normal. I’ve had friends who shed the baby weight in a year and others who took longer.
  • dsg2000
    dsg2000 Posts: 38 Member
    I've had two pregnancies now. I started both at a normal BMI, and being very active (running+weights). I gained 35ish pounds the first time around, likely closer to 40+ the second time around. I continued being active and eating relatively healthily throughout both pregnancies (more so the first time around than the second). With my first I was back to about the same weight within 5 weeks of birth; with the second I was at about 15 pounds over my normal weight at 6 weeks postpartum, and have been back to logging again and steadily losing that since then - now, at 3 months postpartum, I'm within five pounds of my prepregnancy weight.

    While I was very worried about the weight I might gain during pregnancy, especially before my first, I have now come to realize that if you eat pretty healthy and stay relatively active (if the pregnancy permits - mine were normal and I was able to be active), the pregnancy weight does come off. Breastfeeding does help. Getting back to an active routine postpartum also helps. The one thing I will add is that despite the weight coming off, the body does change - I didn't have the same core strength after my first that I did before, and my shape changed as well even though I was at the same weight. However, I'm sure this will also get better with time and effort.
  • savithny
    savithny Posts: 1,200 Member
    About your shape changing:
    Pregnancy loosens your ligaments. A lot, in the case of your pelvis. I know a lot of women who have found that their skeletons are permanently altered -- rib cages wider, pelvis a bit different. This isn't something you can prevent with exercise or necessarily get back with exercise.

    (it's also a reason to get back into activity gently and take your time; it takes awhile for the ligaments to tighten up. I felt great at about 2 weeks postpartum and took the baby for a long walk. By the end, I could feel my pelvic bones shifting against each other really uncomfortably. "Feeling good" doesn't mean you should go all-in, excerise wise!)
  • simcon1
    simcon1 Posts: 209 Member
    edited March 2019
    Sounds to me like OP is already a mom... and I don’t know that trying to preserve health gains with kid #2 is vain. But i agree with everyone that consulting with health care professionals about how much weight to shoot to gain is probably the way to go, and is based on current weight. Also, barring medically challenging pregnancies, there should be no reason not to keep exercising throughout. I loved walking throughout both my pregnancies, as well as water aerobics, swimming, elliptical, and other things (I’m a runner now, wasn’t then). It helped me to think of labor as a big physical challenge I needed to fuel appropriately and train for in terms of endurance 😀

    ETA: I lost all my pregnancy weight effortlessly with #1 by 4-5 months postpartum because of nursing. The second one was tougher because I was working full time and had my oldest and wasn’t prioritizing my health, but I don’t regret it! And now (they’re 10 & 16), my weight is lower than it was back then, and nothing has felt terribly hard.
  • dolliesdaughter
    dolliesdaughter Posts: 544 Member
    Maybe you shouldn’t have a baby yet
    Perhaps do some more research
    My thought exactly.