Pregnancy question

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Replies

  • carrieo888
    carrieo888 Posts: 233 Member
    Change your focus from weightloss through healthy eating and exercise, to growing a baby through healthy eating and exercise. Be sure to get advice from your doc on this. After you have that healthy baby you'll still need to focus on healthy eating (esp. if you plan to breast feed, but even if not, you're gonna need the energy) and exercise - weightloss will be a nice by-product of your efforts. And congratulations!
  • drinknderive
    drinknderive Posts: 28 Member
    You actually should not eat that differently in first tri. That tiny little embryo doesn't take that much energy. :)

    http://www.babycenter.com/0_pregnancy-weight-gain-what-to-expect_1466.bc

    "Eat a healthy diet while you're pregnant and ask your doctor or midwife to help you set up an exercise program that's right for you. Eating for two doesn't mean eating twice as much as you usually do. In fact, you don't need any extra calories in your first trimester. According to the IOM, you need only 340 extra calories a day in your second trimester, and 450 extra calories daily in your third trimester."
  • SeamsSewWright
    SeamsSewWright Posts: 41
    There's a group on here that you should join: Fit Fabulous and Pregnant. I started a "Fit Fabulous and Pregnant, Due in September 2013" group and I'm sure as more people open up about their new status of being pregnant, many more will join with a due date close to yours.

    There are some great resources to read up on and prepare yourself for when you can discuss with your doctor again.

    This is the only website where I've joined the pregnancy forum, because I know when we've all had our babies, they will be great friends to motivate and stay on track of our weight goals!

    Good Luck, Mama!
  • BarbieAS
    BarbieAS Posts: 1,414 Member
    You've gotten some good advice, I'll just share what I know :smile: .

    For an average/normal/healthy weight woman, first trimester you shouldn't need to eat much more than maintenance. 2nd trimester add about 300 calories per day, and 3rd add about 500. That's going to vary a little if you're under or overweight. Absolutely check with your doctor, but that's a good rule of thumb/starting point. Also, I agree with those who have told you to listen to your body. At first, you may not feel well enough to eat much - that's ok, eat what you can and the baby will take what he/she needs. And as you go, if you're hungry, EAT! If you make good choices most of the time you can allow yourself PLENTY of space for the times where you will just DIE if you don't have a Snicker's bar immediately. Speaking of, listen to your cravings, too. Often times your body is trying to tell you something. With my first baby I was craving watermelon constantly, and I believe it was because I was dehydrated. With my 2nd it was egg yolks, because I was anemic (I think).

    With regard to exercise, unless/until your body or your doctor tells you otherwise, you're safe to do pretty much anything you're doing now. Don't start anything new and be conscious of how much you're lifting. Other than that, your doctor will tell you of any physical restrictions and if you're feeling tired or in pain you need to stop whatever it is you're doing.

    Anyway, that's just my 2 cents. With my first baby, I didn't follow any of that, I treated it like time to eat everything I see. I gained 57lbs and it was a struggle to lose more than about 25 of them. With my second baby, I followed all of that (including plenty of indulgences!) and I only gained 19lbs, all of which were gone within 3 weeks. So, hopefully my experience will help you.

    And CONGRATS!!!!!!!!! :flowerforyou:
  • StarChanger
    StarChanger Posts: 605 Member
    Definitely don't go at a deficit while pregnant. I honestly don't think it has anything to do with it, but my husband seems to think that we miscarried at 7 weeks because I continued training very hard and I was still eating less than my maintenance calories.

    The doctor said it really is impossible to tell, but I still feel guilty and like I wasn't feeding my body enough to sustain a pregnancy.

    Don't go crazy and eat whatever you want, but restricting your calories at a time when your body needs a little more is not healthy for you OR the little one. Just make good food choices. :)

    Congrats on your pregnancy, and good luck :)

    I can almost assure (99.9%) that your diet / deficit / exercise had NOTHING to do with your miscarriage unless you are/were seriously underweight (BMI <18). If women miscarried simply because we exercised in pregnancy or didn't get 3 square meals a day, we'd all be extinct. In addition, you don't need to be carrying ANY guilt over a circumstance that happens to up to 25% of pregnancies (yes, the miscarriage rate has been quoted THAT high, but most women never realized they were pregnant...)

    Sorry about your loss, but it was more likely due to a random genetic mismatch that told your body "this one isn't the the one"...NOT something you "did". Exercise is GREAT for pregnancies. Matter of fact, I let my patients ride horses (assuming they know how in the first place) until the 3rd trimester...

    Tell your other half. He doesn't need to be holding any resentment against a woman who did nothing wrong...

    <---Ob/Gyn
  • Boogage
    Boogage Posts: 739 Member
    Congrats! Its great being a Mum!

    I think during the first trimester you need about 100 calories more than usual so now is not the time to diet. Depending on how overweight you are now you may maintain or even lose weight if you eat a normal amount for someone your size +100. Do not eat at a deficit as you will be depriving your baby and yourself from much needed nutrients and energy.

    It is a good idea to exercise during pregnancy but it really depends on the type of exercise as to whether it is safe. If your body is used to certain exercises then you might be fine to continue with these (within reason) but I would advise against starting any new strenuous exercise routines. I'm not trying to scare you but I lost a baby at 3 months after I decided to start exercises that my body wasn't used to and was pushing myself a bit too hard. It could have just been coincidence but I would suggest you consult a doctor for exercise and diet advice as they should know your history. Don't discount walking as exercise as its something thats easy on your body and joints and it'll help keep you fit for the birth and after!
  • CubicCutie
    CubicCutie Posts: 53
    Congrats to you both. I used to be Midwifery Sister so know something about pregnancy and nutrition.

    Definitely don't eat for 2.

    Just cut back on fat and carbs but you need the essentials in dairy, fish and chicken. Same as anyone else really as long as you get those vitamins and minerals in. You will be put on iron so ensure you get plenty of fibre.

    Try ginger for nausea. Not sure if there is a low cal ginger ale out there or low cal ginger nuts. Anything with ginger really as its safe.
  • nika_bolinhos
    nika_bolinhos Posts: 42
    Hello! Congratulations on you bundle of joy. The start of a family is something beautiful.
    So, I have never been pregnant, but I have worked in magazine about parenting for a while and I have learned a lot about how to deal with the ups and owns of pregnancy.
    One thing that called my attention in the keeping fit and healthy area was Belly Dancing. It's said to exercise all the muscles you will be using in labour and will help you to keep yourself fit and comfortable while you are expecting.They also say it helps to make sure the baby is in the best position for labour, besides forming a very strong bond with your child. Here is a link to an article:
    http://www.mindfulmum.co.uk/fitness/2012/belly-dancing-for-childbirth/
    I have done Bally dancing in the past and it is amazing, it helps to develop your core strength, teaches you to do things you never knew you could do and a lot about your body.
    I hope it helps :)
  • ChristieeSmith_x
    ChristieeSmith_x Posts: 15
    In pregnancy you don't need to increase your calories till the 3rd trimester and then it is only by 500. Your doctor may recommend you eat to maintain, that way you will only gain baby weight and still have enough calories to be healthy. I recommend you change your goal on here to maintain till you see your doctor. Just watch what you are eating. Keep portion sizes the same. If you have morning sickness you probably aren't getting as many calories as you log to stay in your body. Don't start any new exersize.
  • melindasuefritz
    melindasuefritz Posts: 3,509 Member
    dont w orry about diet and exercise u are pregnanyt
    congrats bythe way
    worry a bout diet a nd exercise after baby is born

    do not diet while pregnant.. the baby takes the f ood from u . u have to eat and not diet
    Pregnancy is a good time to eat whatever you want
  • jumblejups
    jumblejups Posts: 150 Member
    First off - many congratulations!

    Secondly many of the posts above have already given great tips, but I just wanted to add one extra thing on the point of calories and eating. Advice varies between countries - I'm in the UK, and when I was pregnant sometimes I would be looking at American sites that had different recommendations for how many calories to have and what to avoid eating when compared with official advice here. I can understand that some foods or liquids might possibly have different compositions in different countries, hence the variation, but overall there isn't so much difference between the US and the UK that should mean an American woman needs more calories than I do (!). Yet the official guidance from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (ie UK) is that a woman needs ZERO extra calories in the first two trimesters and only 200 calories more in the last trimester. Compare that with what I assume are the official US guidelines above that say to eat extra straight away, or from the 2nd tri, and you can see it's quite a big difference.

    What did I take from this? Don't worry about it too much :smile: Obviously eat healthily and satisfy extra hunger and cravings with healthy snacks as much as possible. Just as when you're not pregnant, treats here and there are fine. Look to official guidelines for foods to avoid for health reasons*. Our guidelines also state that moderate-intensity exercise is fine and actually recommended. From personal experience, I wasn't calorie counting prior to getting pregnant but I was actively losing weight. Once I got pregnant the 1st tri sickness (24/7, not morning!) meant I just ate when I could stomach it - I couldn't look at anything but sandwiches and sorbet without wanting to throw up. 2nd tri I made sure I had 3 healthy meals a day and healthy snacks if I was still hungry. 3rd tri(1st half) was the same, but in the 2nd half I got much more hungry. I just increased my snacks/meal size as necessary and felt no shame about my daily Nutella on toast... :bigsmile:

    One last thing: if you haven't already, look up pelvic floor and pelvic tint exercises. This link is a UK one but I found it really helpful: http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/pages/pregnancy-exercise.aspx#close . This is so important both during and after pregnancy.

    *Over here that would be soft yolks, liver products, swordfish, marlin, shark, excessive tuna, soft rind/mould ripened cheese, limit caffeine, and don't take regular vitamins as many have elements that are derived from inappropriate sources - esp. vit. A and E - obviously prenatals are made for pregnant women and are fine.

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