Calories per day/when pregnant..?..?..?..

aprilm_1983
aprilm_1983 Posts: 22 Member
edited September 20 in Food and Nutrition
Ok, so I'm only about 3 weeks pregnant right now and I know that for the first 3 months my body does not need to take in any extra calories. After that I was told 300 extra calories is what I add; BUT my question is this: ADD to what?!?!? Do I add the 300 calories to what I had my max calories as when I was trying to drop a few pounds? Can anyone help here? :-) I did really well with my son; gained 18 lbs which came off fairly quick nursing him; but this time could be totally opposite. I am lucky to have MFP here; but I need some input.

Thanks to all

~April~

Replies

  • eliblish
    eliblish Posts: 124 Member
    Add 300 to your maintenance calories. Congratulations. :flowerforyou:
  • PaulaDygert
    PaulaDygert Posts: 148 Member
    Not much help but I wanted to say congrats on the new baby and good job trying to stay healthy through your pregnancy, I only gained 17 lbs with my first child but my second child I gained around 65 lbs (I didn't even try to be healthy tho) Good luck!!!
  • jalara
    jalara Posts: 2,599 Member
    Congratulations!

    The important thing to know is what your own situation is. If you are overweight or obese your doctor will advise you about the new weight standards when pregnant.

    That said, for the average healthy woman, you require 100 extra calories per day in the first trimester, and 300 in the 2nd and 3rd.

    I think you would like our group! http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/86868-pregnancy-2010-week-11
  • kerilorene
    kerilorene Posts: 39 Member
    I am 8 weeks pregnant and I know that I need to gain a very small amount of weight each week over the next 32 weeks. What I did was change my goals to gain 1/2 pound per week. At your stage, I would reccomend changing your goal from weight loss to maitenance. Trying to actively lose weight while pregnant is not reccomended. I highly recommend sticking with this site so you can track your calories, water intake and protein consumption. I am going to the doctor tomorrow and I will be bringing the printouts from my entries on this site to show her what I am eating. Good luck to you and Congratulations! There is a message board for TTC and pregnant on this site that is pretty good with some good people on there. Also, I highly reccomend babyfit.sparkpeople.com
  • bstamps12
    bstamps12 Posts: 1,184
    First, CONGRATS!
    In my first trimester, I kept up my normal exercise and eating habits....at the time, I was a competitive swimmer. I trained twice daily and everything I ate was nutrient packed. I slowed down my training A LOT at about 18 weeks (it was summer and I was SO hot!) and my doctor said I hadn't gained enough weight at my 20 week appt (I had only gained about 5 lbs). I had to actually eat less though because my exercise decreased so much, but I gained weight on par from that point on and ended up gaining about 27 lbs (not including my awful water retention in the 48 hours before birth).

    I say all that to say...it depends on your exercise habits now! Add the 300ish calories onto your maintenance calories as you get further along, but if you stop exercising (or like me, switch from swimming-- the highest cal burning exercise to just walking at a moderate pace) then you need to readjust your settings and goals on MFP.

    Good luck! And remember, if you're breastfeeding for a while, it shouldn't be difficult to lose that weight!
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