Moms: What were you glad you did/wish you did while pregnant?

I wish I had not eaten tons of ice cream.... I got gestational diabetes. You probably already know this, but I didn't: pregnancy isn't an excuse to pig out.

I am glad I breastfed because it was healthy for the baby and healthy for me too.

Kept my stomach moisturized and stop scratching.

I made sure to move a little each day (something I am trying to do again now that the lo is 4 months) so even if it is a quick walk around the building during lunch break or a yoga video at home, it will make you feel more awake and make your back feel so much better!

Before I got pregnant I was in some of the best shape of my life. I was still overweight, but was 40 pounds below my all time high and losing weight at a decent rate. I was determined to not gain any excess weight during my pregnancy.

For the first 6 weeks I did great. Then the morning sickness kick in. I was lucky in the fact that I didn't have bad morning sickness, but I would get nauseous if I didn't eat every few hours. At the same time I was constantly exhausted, so instead of preparing healthy snacks I reached for convenience snacks - usually Nutri-Grain bars (my husband thinks they are healthy and always keeps them in the house). I started slacking off on logging my calories. Then the cravings hit. My baby loved his red meat so I was eating hamburgers for lunch quite often (about 50/50 between the cafeteria at work and Wendy's). Always had the side of fries with it. I had completely fallen off the wagon. I ended up gaining about 45 pounds. When I left the hospital, I was 14 pounds lighter. I then lost another 8 pounds in the first 2 weeks post-partum.

I started working out again at 6 weeks post partum. At 12 weeks PP I started counting and limiting my calories again. I had some success but was very stressed about pumping enough and worried that eating too later would impact my output. In retrospect, it was really an excuse to not count my calories - I didn't want to limit my intake of all the yummy junk I was eating.

At 8 months PP, I finally decided that I am ready to actively lose weight. I have been back at it for almost 2 weeks and still feel pretty motivated. I worry that I will start my next pregnancy at a higher weight than I started my last. Hopefully on my second time around I will have better self-control. But until then, I am just going to focus on my current weightloss and fitness goals.

tldr: I didn't want to overeat but I did and it took me a long time to find the motivation to lose the extra weight.

Kalikel wrote: »

Enjoy it more. The first pregnancy is the last time in your life when your world is all about you. Spend that time doing stuff that's all about you.

Once that baby is born, everything changes. It's never about you again.

This is superb advice.

Remember that it is much easier to not gain extra weight than lose it later. Discuss with your dr what is the ideal weight gain and aim for this (which will mean pretty much at maintenance, especially early on). If you can, breastfeed as long as possible. Not just for the benefits for the baby or your health, but because it also burns insane amounts of calories

when you get pregnant, you can still work out. with my first child, I ate whatever and whenever I wanted. with my second child I had gestational diabetes and exercised daily up until a month before he was born. With my third, I exercised, could have eaten better, but ended up losing all the weight from all 3 kids. If I could do it all over again, I would have exercised more,watched my sugar intake better and went on a fitness site for pregnant moms, babyfit.com is a great free site, even for TTC. breastfeed if you can, its good for the baby and burns calories for you too. Take your time healing after birth but eat good all along and the weight will come off easier.

I agree with another poster who said that every woman is different. But I will share my own experience anyway.

When I got pregnant last July, I was probably in the best physical shape of my life. I was really happy with my body, and I remember I bought this white dress that I wanted to wear to a trip to New Orleans, but I felt like I needed to lose five or 6 pounds before it looked really really good on me.

What happens? I get pregnant, cancel my trip, and endure the most miserable eight months of my life LOL

It was extremely difficult for me to eat within a normal calorie range while pregnant. I had no problem eating foods that were good for me and for the baby, but I had no self-control when it came to sweets. And I'm talking about eating cake icing right out from the jar.

I was extremely hard on myself, constantly weight conscious, and it didn't help that my (overweight) OB doctor wasn't happy with the weight that I was gaining. It was even more pressure on me.

I ended up gaining about 45 pounds total. After I gave birth, and a couple of weeks later after the water weight came out, I lost 15lbs. So I was really left with a 30 pound weight gain. Since my baby's birth 4 months ago, I've lost 9lbs., with 21 more to go. It was hard to get back on track right after he was born, it really took me a couple of months to get serious. Especially with him waking up every two or three hours to eat. But I did work out nonetheless, I started six weeks after his birth. So even though I was overweight, I at least felt better about myself because I was working out.

What do I wish I had done differently? Not obsessed over the weight that I was gaining and just enjoyed my pregnancy. I wish I loved my body for what it was at the time. I honestly believe that my hormones were so out of whack that it was impossible to control my cravings, and I wish I had come to terms with that and accepted it at the time. Yes, the weight gain sucks, but I'm realizing that it's not impossible to lose again. I am back on track doing better than ever now.

Edited to add, I am glad that I did work out during my pregnancy, at least until the fifth month. I would jog, and do DVDs that were meant for pregnant women. I am a teacher, so during my lunch breaks I would close the blinds on my classroom door and pop a DVD into my computer LOL I was insane. I had my yoga mat in there, resistance bands, and a set of dumbbells. I am also glad that I religiously applied Noxema to my stomach and hips, because it actually worked and I got zero stretch marks. This was something that my mother, who was pregnant three times, used to do and it worked for her!

I had hyperemesis gravidarum for 7 months. My experience was bad enough to make me never want to be pregnant ever again, even though I would have liked a second child. I know this isn't the happy news you probably wanted to talk about -- but that was my reality. My advice to you would be don't worry too much about your weight. Just focus on eating well to supply you and your baby with nutrients.