Lose weight while pregnant?

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  • wendy0210
    wendy0210 Posts: 86 Member
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    Double post
  • nmensen18
    nmensen18 Posts: 39
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    I was in the Army for my first pregnancy, and my OB said that whatever I was doing before I got pregnant I could still do after I got pregnant, I just had to keep my heart rate under a number she calibrated for me, and listen to my body. I gained 25lbs and the baby weight pretty much fell off within 6 months. I ran during my first trimester, and scaled back to speedwalking during my last two trimesters. I still lifted weights, though the excercises slowly became modified over time, and the weight went down. At the time, I didn't have a problem with my weight, so I didn't worry about what I ate, or how many calories I took in.

    My second child, though, I gained a LOT of weight, because i pretty much worked an office job and didn't excercise at all. The baby weight stuck around forever, too.

    As long as you and your doctor work together and she is satsfied with your numbers, then you are probably okay.

    This is a great post.

    To the OP: I have a friend whose overall body shape changed during pregnancy. Here's what I mean, she started her preganancy a little overweight, and gained the amount of weight recommended by her doctor, continued to exercise moderately (as she had been doing prior to pregnancy) and it's like her weight shifted. She had a very healthy, full-term baby, but did end up losing some fat from hips, thighs etc. Therefore, she probaby did lose some excess weight overall, but the gains from her baby evened out and she continued to lose after pregnancy. Now, 2 pregancies later, she's very healthy, in great shape, and smaller than she was before her first.

    I hope this wasn't too confusing and answers what I think you're asking...is it possible to continue to improve your body while ensuring your baby is healthy too?...I think as long as you work with your doctor, as you plan to do, you'll be fine. Good luck to you!

    I love this post! Thank you! This is exactly what I was referring to. Reshaping my body in areas like my hips, legs, arms and not worrying about the number on the scale.

    From previous comments, I get that none of us are doctors. However, there are hundreds of MFP users that are using these forums for questions about their health or fitness/weight loss journey. The point is to gain advice or thoughts from other users who have experienced it...not to replace a doctor. I will continue to work with my OBGYN once I get pregnant with #2 as I would anyway, and I'll keep her involved on my thoughts about continuing to improve my overall health. Wanting to continue with my journey does not make me vain or selfish...if that was the case, then anyone who ever wanted to take control on improving their health must be too? No, I dont think so. I'm not trying to achieve a stick figure look whether I'm pregnant or not. I just want to be the healthiest I can get - not just for me, but so I can continue to be the best I can for my family.

    Thanks everyone.
  • Holly_Roman_Empire
    Holly_Roman_Empire Posts: 4,440 Member
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    Hey everyone -

    So I'm a little over half way with my weight loss goal, but planning to get pregnant in the next 1-3 months. I always thought I would meet my goal weight before I got pregnant again, but my weight loss has slowed down a bit and I'm afraid I wont. My doctor said that as long as I'm active before I get preggo that I can continue to do the same level of fitness, just not to increase the intensity of it. This is great, but I still want to reshape my body while I'm expecting.

    Thoughts on this? The plan is to continue to use MFP and track my calories, while of course adding any additional recommended calories during the pregnancy. I would never deprive whats growing inside my belly, but can I still lose weight overall? Anyone else do this while pregnant?

    Yes, you can lose weight while pregnant, but you should not actively be TRYING to lose weight. If you eat healthy and exercise regularly, and weight loss is a byproduct of that, then so be it. Just stick to the recommended calories during pregnancy like you said, and you'll be fine. Using MFP to track calories while pregnant is awesome, though. I did this to make sure I was always eating healthy foods for my baby, and it was the best way to hold me accountable.

    ETA: Yeah, I'm with you OP. It's not like she's asking if losing 8 pounds a month during pregnancy is healthy or not (like a certain OTHER poster did a few days ago.)
  • christy1027
    christy1027 Posts: 10 Member
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    I am going to go through IVF in just over a month (to be a surrogate). My doctor asked me to lose weight because he was worried about high blood pressure. My blood pressure is fine (btw) and only skyrockets when i am at his office! He asked me to lose 15-20lbs and i am down 18 right now.

    I have also been exercising and getting a routine going so that i can continue while i am pregnant. I walk almost every day, i run (or jog rather) occasionally and I go on long crazy mountain hikes (it's just where i live). I recently (about 3 months ago) joined curves knowing that i planned to be pregnant and it seemed like a very easy to do and modifiable workout that i could start now and continue through pregnancy.

    With my own child i only gained 6lbs in my pregnancy. I was a lot smaller than i am right now. I was not trying to lose weight, i was just crazy active (and a lot younger as he is 12 now).

    I will continue to keep my healthy eating and exercise in hopes that i can continue to "tone" areas of my body, or at least make it easier to get back into reasonable shape more quickly after i deliver, but i probably won't pay attention to the scale while i am pregnant... the doctor will do that for me enough!

    I would definitely suggest talking to your doctor or a nutritionist about how many calories you need and the level of fitness that is safe.

    And feel free to add me as a friend... who knows, we maybe doing this pregnancy thing at the same time with similar focus! I just won't have a baby/stroller during my runs after delivery!
  • christy1027
    christy1027 Posts: 10 Member
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    ... and remember, it will never be too late to work on yourself (fitness) after the baby is born, but you will never be able to put the baby back and do it again the right way... make sure the health of your baby comes first, that is what parenting is all about! Always put your kids needs before your own...

    (btw, this is coming from someone who is also raising her 3yo niece because her sister hasn't quite learned that lesson yet of putting your kids wants/needs first!)
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    Talk to your doctor and follow his/her advice. If s/he thinks it's safe to lose fat while you are pregnant then go for it. If not, then wait until after. Losing a bit of fat 9 months sooner is not worth risking you or your baby's health.

    Asking for or taking advice on something like this from strangers on the internet is crazy!
  • tworthen79
    tworthen79 Posts: 1,173 Member
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    Who cares about hitting a stupid number on the scale at that point. What difference does it make anyway??

    Concentrate on having a healthy baby and not being selfish thinking of a number on the scale.

    I agree! It's only 9 mos out of your life. Still eat healthy at maintenance. And walk. I wouldn't do a calorie deficit.
    Also, why not wait until you lose the weight to try to conceive? Why in the middle of your weight loss journey?
    If it were me, I wouldn't work my tail off to lose a bunch of weight, then get pregnant mid way through.
  • ewarlow
    ewarlow Posts: 71 Member
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    With my middle child, I lost almost 20 pounds over the first half of my pregnancy and then gained about 15 of those back.. Baby was full term, very healthy and a whopping 10lbs 3 oz.

    Eating appropriate portions of healthy foods while remaining active are completely ok
  • aprilwilliams2729
    aprilwilliams2729 Posts: 107 Member
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    While I don't know the OP's particular situation, recent studies show that it is safe and often benificial for obese women to maintain or even lose weight during pregnancy (see below). I am currently undergoing fertility treatments and I intend to continue my current plan with my doctor's supervison. I want a healthy pregnancy - and studies show that at my weight (My BMI is 43 :embarassed: ) weight loss during pregnancy actually cuts down on the risk of possible complications.

    http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070605185550.htm
    http://contemporaryobgyn.modernmedicine.com/contemporary-obgyn/RC/obesity-and-weight-gain-during-pregnancy
    http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/05/12/pregnancy-weight-loss-safe-obese-women/
  • ccarew77
    ccarew77 Posts: 54 Member
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    Hey everyone -

    So I'm a little over half way with my weight loss goal, but planning to get pregnant in the next 1-3 months. I always thought I would meet my goal weight before I got pregnant again, but my weight loss has slowed down a bit and I'm afraid I wont. My doctor said that as long as I'm active before I get preggo that I can continue to do the same level of fitness, just not to increase the intensity of it. This is great, but I still want to reshape my body while I'm expecting.

    Thoughts on this? The plan is to continue to use MFP and track my calories, while of course adding any additional recommended calories during the pregnancy. I would never deprive whats growing inside my belly, but can I still lose weight overall? Anyone else do this while pregnant?

    How about less judgment everyone? She never said she was FOCUSING on losing weight during pregnancy as her priority. She was asking for feedback. She clearly states what her priority is - a healthy baby and that she would be eating extra calories for her baby. There is nothing wrong with her still wanting to be "healthy' and take care of herself during pregnancy.
    Ease.Up.
  • nainai0585
    nainai0585 Posts: 199 Member
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    Remember that the baby is a leech and will take everything it needs from you without asking permission first :) - I'm sure you know this, but some of the other posts I read seem not to. Also remember that the baby, is less then the size of a pin head at conception and only 6-8lbs at birth, so you don't need to inhale a huge amount of additional calories above your maintenance calories from the second trimester on. I have read post after post (from actual pregnancy forums) about women who lost anywhere from 5-20lbs during the first trimester, without trying (none where at an unhealthy weight though, all where between obese - healthy weight range) and their OB's said that it was perfectly normal.
    I will also be pregnant in 2-3 months - IVF - and plan to not go into maintenance until the second trimester. This decision is solely based on my IVF and family doctors opinion, and I highly value what they say over anyone else. So I would strongly suggest speaking with your family doctor/OB WHEN you become pregnant about the appropriate amount of calories to eat, and continue with your weightloss journey until you see those 2 pink lines :)
  • Nicholec2003
    Nicholec2003 Posts: 158 Member
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    I have had 2 healthy children. I lost weight with both just simply because I was extremely sick almost the whole time. My babies did not suffer, however, if I could have done something about it, I would have gladly gained a little bit of weight so I could have enjoyed being pregnant instead of being sick.

    That being said, I think if you concentrate on staying active as much as you can and eating as healthy as you can while you are pregnant, you should be able to easily lose any extra weight after the baby is born. Don't concentrate so much on the scale while you are pregnant. Let your doctor worry about your weight. As long as you're eating healthy and following your Dr's advice your weight should do well and go down very quickly afterward! Good luck!!
  • septembergrrl
    septembergrrl Posts: 168 Member
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    I would say, don't worry about this now. First off, you may not get pregnant for six months or so. Second off, pregnancy hits every woman differently. If you feel good and want to keep moving, go for it. If, however, you find the hormones hit you like a ton of bricks and want to spend your entire pregnancy lying on the couch eating Doritos ... well, it's not recommended, but you wouldn't be the first or last woman to do that. It's the last time in your life you'll be able to be totally selfish: Enjoy it.
  • Littlestandrews
    Littlestandrews Posts: 96 Member
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    I was not obese when I got pregnant. I was about 20-30 pounds overweight. I was so sick during my entire pregnancy that when my son was born, I weighed 17lbs less than the day I found out I got pregnant. I slowly lost weight (though not intentionally) during my pregnancy and while my doctor wasn't happy about the loss, she said that since I started out overweight (though not obese) that it wouldn't hurt my body or my son. Though I will say that during my third trimester, my doctor became incredibly concerned because my son wasn't growing on schedule anymore and began making me increase calories as much as possible...which didn't work anyway because it would just make me sick.

    Pregnancy is miserable enough as it is (or at least mine was) so I encourage exercise to feel better! Just be careful to eat what you need to eat:)
  • allshebe
    allshebe Posts: 423 Member
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    There is new evidence suggesting that if mothers to be eat "too well", they may be setting the infant up for excess weight problems later in life.
    <http://www.today.com/moms/extra-bites-mom-could-mean-future-fat-baby-study-8C11310950&gt;

    You want to be certain to eat a nutritionally dense diet, but, depending on how your weight is currently, relative to where you should be, you could probably eat at somewhat of a deficit to limit the amount you gain (extra calories do not always equal good or even sufficient nutrition). Work with your doctor on the exact goals you should be working towards (like if normal gain is 25-30 pounds, you probably don't want to gain more than that, and maybe even something less, which would mean a "somewhat" lower weight postpartum than you are currently at)
  • blagrovez
    blagrovez Posts: 7
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    My midwife friend tells me that new research (as has been pointed out previously in this thread) indicates that obese women can quite safely go through pregnancy without needing to put on extra weight. In the first trimester, extra calorie needs are nothing. In the second trimester it's the equivalent of a pot of yoghurt a day, and in the third trimester it's a yoghurt and a banana. Hardly the "eating for two" philosophy of yesteryear. She has looked after a woman who ate very healthily, put on no extra weight, gave birth to a healthy baby and was 10kg lighter post birth than she was before.
  • tiggerhammon
    tiggerhammon Posts: 2,211 Member
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    I just discovered I am pregnant.
    I plan to keep up with all the nutritional requirements (i.e. protein, calcium, iron ... etc) but not worry about calories too much. Will keep tracking my weight just to keep myself in check but expecting to gain.
    You can add me if you'd like :)
    I want pregnant buddies :)

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