So, I'M PREGNANT... Now what?

When I was pregnant a Dietitian put me on a 2200 calorie diet, however I had gestational diabetes....so I'm not sure what the caloric intake would have been with out that. How long before you see your OB?


Edited because Spell Check can be crazy :ohwell:

you only need 200-300 extra calories a day when pregnant. so and apple and peanut butter should cover that!

and in the beginning you may not get all your calories in anyway cause if you get morning sickness you wont have an appitite.

just aim to make healthful choices during your pregnancy and try to avoid tempting junk food.

Oh and start taking a prenatal!

congratulations and hope you have a healthy and happy 9 months!

I can't help you much with your calories...but I wanted to say "CONGRATULATIONS on your pregnancy".....Babies are angels in disguise...

Congratulations!

If it were me I would change my goals to maintenance and then add 100-300 calories (which is the additional calories needed when pregnant/breastfeeding).

Here is an article from WebMD. http://www.webmd.com/baby/guide/healthy-weight-gain

In the end, definately talk to your doctor to find out his/her suggestion.

Oh yeah and CONGRATS!!!!!

Listen, my doctor is from England and he is appalled at how much American women gain when they are pregnant. Like most have said, you only need to up your calories by 200 and continue your exercise and healthy eating. He said in England some women don't gain anything and less then 10lbs is ideal. I nearly fell over when he said that, but it is true. The whole gain 35lbs is totally unnecessary.

Oh btw, he says that if a woman is obese when they get pregnant, if they are eating healthy and exercising they may still loose weight.

Again, not suggesting dieting, but continueing the healthy lifestyle.

Listen, my doctor is from England and he is appalled at how much American women gain when they are pregnant. Like most have said, you only need to up your calories by 200 and continue your exercise and healthy eating. He said in England some women don't gain anything and less then 10lbs is ideal. I nearly fell over when he said that, but it is true. The whole gain 35lbs is totally unnecessary.

Um... LESS THAN 10 POUNDS? I had a 9 lb, 2 oz baby... that plus all of the other added things during pregnancy (increased blood flow, etc, not to mention water retention) already puts me quite a bit over 10 pounds... and everyone else who has a baby of a average size (which I'm guessing is 7 pounds or so) would be right at 10 pounds at least. Glad he's not my doctor.... I gained a ton of weight during pregnancy (not all due to good decisions... but mostly water weight too because all but 10 pounds was gone 2 weeks after delivery)


For the original poster... I completely agree with the 100-300 extra calories a day on top of your usual maintenance calories. I have also heard it is fine to do whatever you were doing exercise-wise before pregnancy. The only exception to that is not doing exercise for the abdomen -- crunches, situps, etc. I can't remember if that is all the way through or starting a little later on (and then of course it is impossible anyway later on!)

Congratulations!!!!!

I was told to only gain 10 pounds during pregnancy because I'm considered obese but I ended up gaining 35. The 35 though ended up falling off within 6 weeks of having the baby. Since I was overweight to start with I'm starting from that point. The biggest mistake I made was stopping working out for fear it would hurt the baby. I just started again and he is 3 months old! I feel like I'm going to die I'm sooooo sore and out of shape. Keep working out and eating healthy and all should be fine, don't worry about putting a set number on how much you gain as long as you are making healthy choices!

I've been very pleased with my success since starting MFP a few months ago. But, I just found out that I'm pregnant!!!! So now what? Obviously I know that I can't diet or try to lose wait while pregnant, but I also don't want to gain 100lbs. Should I still keep logging? and if I do, how do I figure out what my calorie goal should be? I plan to talk to over with my OB, but just wondering if anyone has any advice in the meantime. Thanks!

You don't need to be prepared to pile on hundreds of pounds, just eat sensibly, get ALL the nutrients you need, cut out any rubbish and by the time you have had your lovely baby, you will probably find you won't have much to lose at all.

I speak from experience on the other end on this one, my first baby I put on two stone, that wasn't too bad and I lost it all afterwards, however, when pregnant with my second daughter, I adored pasta in creamy mushroom sauce! OMG I can still taste it now, I would eat it nearly every day, stuff stuff stuff, munch, stuff, stuff, stuff, munch munch. I couldn't stop!

The end result was a 56lb gain at the end of the pregnancy - that's a bloody lot I tell you :laugh:

So don't do anything like that, stick to sensible eating, do not go on a 1200 calorie per day diet, because the baby WILL take what it needs even if it is to your detriment and could leave you deficient in nutrients which could be dangerous for you.

Definitely talk to your OB and explain and they will advise you accordingly.

The very best of luck with your pregnancy, wonderful time, make the very most of it :flowerforyou:

I can't give you advice on diet cause i've never been preggers - Congratulations btw!

But, one of my trainer friends was preggers and worked out through the majority of her pregnancy. The only changes she made was being extra careful about monitoring her heartrate and changing up her weightlifting routine.