Calorie deficit while pregnant?
Replies
-
Whoa no need to attack!! Of course I'm not going to put my weight/vanity over my baby's health! That's why I asked what a healthy goal is! People always say 1800-2000 is "maintenance" but if I eat that much I WILL GAIN. I don't know if my BMR is low or what, but I've been tracking long enough to know that much (I had lost 30lb on mfp before my first pregnancy- I'm not brand new to this) And of course I need to gain weight while pregnant- but I'd like to gain the recommended (for my BMI) 15-25, not 55! I'm going to go to a new OB this time and maybe I'll ask if they have a dietician. Last time she kept saying not to worry about my gain "your body will do what it needs to do". And I tried to eat healthy but eventually I stopped tracking and fell for the "you're pregnant! You deserve a snack!" line too often.
Exactly. I do not think I was eating 2000 with any pregnancy, let alone 2000+500!, and I am sure that pregnant or not, I would end up gaining a ton of fat if I ever tried this. What might be maintenance for a larger person can be ridiculously high for someone smaller. If you are concerned, see if the hospital has a dietitian. If they have a department to manage gestational diabetes, there should be a dietitian they work with. I was on a plan for managing diabetes during my pregnancies and it summed up to no more than 1700-1800 calories even in the third trimester. For my weight and height, and limited physical activity, it resulted in an average gain of 20-30 lbs per pregnancy, so obviously anything higher would have been a disaster.0 -
My brothers wife was worried about gaining weight with her first. She took it to extremes and ate at a strict and largedefecit. You could barley tell she was pregnant the whole time. She weighed less post baby than before getting pregnant! Stupid and dangerous I know. As a result baby was small and development was slower than average. Both parents are over 6 ft and naturally slim . He was very under weight for the first 5 or so years. In the nicest possible way, screw the weight loss! Baby comes first, it can really damage the baby and god knows what else later in life. You will lose the weight again! Trust yourself. You've got this xx0
-
daniellepstewart209 wrote: »My brothers wife was worried about gaining weight with her first. She took it to extremes and ate at a strict and largedefecit. You could barley tell she was pregnant the whole time. She weighed less post baby than before getting pregnant! Stupid and dangerous I know. As a result baby was small and development was slower than average. Both parents are over 6 ft and naturally slim . He was very under weight for the first 5 or so years. In the nicest possible way, screw the weight loss! Baby comes first, it can really damage the baby and god knows what else later in life. You will lose the weight again! Trust yourself. You've got this xx
Did a dr verify that this was the reason her baby was underweight? Because pre-eclampsia for example, will increase dramatically the risk for a low weight baby, and implying that a woman did something to cause this, it is both ignorant and mean.0 -
Whoa no need to attack!! Of course I'm not going to put my weight/vanity over my baby's health! That's why I asked what a healthy goal is! People always say 1800-2000 is "maintenance" but if I eat that much I WILL GAIN. I don't know if my BMR is low or what, but I've been tracking long enough to know that much (I had lost 30lb on mfp before my first pregnancy- I'm not brand new to this) And of course I need to gain weight while pregnant- but I'd like to gain the recommended (for my BMI) 15-25, not 55! I'm going to go to a new OB this time and maybe I'll ask if they have a dietician. Last time she kept saying not to worry about my gain "your body will do what it needs to do". And I tried to eat healthy but eventually I stopped tracking and fell for the "you're pregnant! You deserve a snack!" line too often.
1800 calories, while not pregnant, sure. But pregnant, your body is burning at a much higher rate, the weight gain will honestly be minimal if you stay around that point. You have to measure it from start to 1 week postpartum though because of the fluid retention. And I'm not trying to be combative or seem like I'm attacking you (not sure if I came off that way initially?), but I say this as someone who, when not pregnant, gains weight if I eat anything above 1500 calories.0 -
Hi everyone- 4m ago I finally started making a serious effort to lose my remaining baby weight. I'm tracking religiously and am in the last week of C25k. I've lost about 25lb and have 7lb to go to my pre-pregnancy weight. And...... I just found out I'm pregnant again. And I'm thrilled- but I gained way too much last time (>50lb) and I'm starting at an even higher weight now (BMI 27)..... So my question is- what should my calorie goal be? (I asked my OB last time and she had no clue). I've been doing really well with 1200 calories. And I've read that you don't need to increase your caloric intake during the first trimester. But is 1200 safe?? I just know that if I go to the "recommended" 1800-2000 I will start gaining like crazy. So, maybe split the difference? Maybe 1500? It's probably all a moot point because once that pregnancy hunger sets in, there's no fighting it. But I want to at least try to to better than last time.
You're pregnant. Now is not the time to be eating at a calorie deficit and trying to lose the rest of your weight. If your doctor is clueless on this issue, then you need to find a doctor who is NOT clueless.
I would say eat at maintenance, track your food, log everything you eat, track your cardio exercise (if you exercise) an eat only about half of those calories back because they can be overestimated. Finally, find a doctor who can refer you to a qualified dietician.0 -
Queenmunchy wrote: »I had a 15 year ED when I got pregnant. My doctors were full force about blind weighing and setting me up with a therapist (who I continued with for 3 years). I gained so rapidly it was heartbreaking for me - but I stayed off the scale and kept my team close. By her first birthday I was eating regularly and was back down to my pre-pregnancy weight...that was the best outcome I could have dreamed of. I still struggle, but so much less so, and I have a very healthy almost eight year old daughter!
This is an inspiring and incredible story.0 -
I think most people gave great advice, you dont want to eat at a deficit but you dont need to eat for two by adding a whole 1200 calories more. if you under eat, you body is going to automatically pull from your fat reserves to protect the baby and leave you with very little energy and sick0
-
Whoa no need to attack!! Of course I'm not going to put my weight/vanity over my baby's health! That's why I asked what a healthy goal is! People always say 1800-2000 is "maintenance" but if I eat that much I WILL GAIN. I don't know if my BMR is low or what, but I've been tracking long enough to know that much (I had lost 30lb on mfp before my first pregnancy- I'm not brand new to this) And of course I need to gain weight while pregnant- but I'd like to gain the recommended (for my BMI) 15-25, not 55! I'm going to go to a new OB this time and maybe I'll ask if they have a dietician. Last time she kept saying not to worry about my gain "your body will do what it needs to do". And I tried to eat healthy but eventually I stopped tracking and fell for the "you're pregnant! You deserve a snack!" line too often.
Nobody is attacking you, we are just being honest.
I'm glad you are going to the doctor again. 0 -
It's not OK. Telling pregnant women how to eat for their health and the baby's health really is their job. The lawsuit would so bite the doctor who said, "I don't know" in the butt. Well, in the US. I don't know about other countries' medical care and legal systems. Here, it would not fly. Saying, "I don't know" and letting it go...lol, no, no and NO.atypicalsmith wrote: »Let me get this straight, just in case I'm misunderstanding you. You asked the OB about how you should eat and what kind of calorie goal you should set and they just said, "I don't know," and that was it?
Is that right?
If so - and if you live in US - please ask again, just to be safe. If you get the same answer, report them to the board.
That's ridiculous. Telling pregnant women how and what to eat is important! If they cannot be bothered, they can hand it off to dietary. What they cannot do is say, "I don't know" and let it go.
That's negligent. Women and babies could suffer. Report that person.
Unfortunately, doctors nowadays are so afraid of malpractice lawsuits that they rarely give good advice the way MY doctor did for me 36 years ago. "But my doctor said it was okay to eat ice cream!" screams the patient who ate a quart of ice cream every night and blames the premature birth because she ate a quart of ice cream every night on her "doctor's orders". Never mind that the premature birth would have come no matter what, hey, LET'S SUE!!
It's really sad the way people just won't take responsibility for their own actions.
That's not even a question.
I am not big on frivolous lawsuits or doctor-basing. Really, so not! But that's just the worst kind of negligence. If the OP wasn't mistaken and it happens again, that person should be reported. It's unlikely that any harm would befall them, but the next woman who asks how to take care of herself and her baby would get an answer and a dietary consult.
Don't blow this out of proportion - the question posed by the OP was very specific and would be referred to a nutritionist/dietician. Your average doc has no clue what your caloric intake should be.
Over-reaction is one of the many root causes driving frivolous lawsuits.
OP - Your body is resilient and can handle a great deal of variation, otherwise entire generations of children would have been lost over the past 2k years and there would be no birth rate outside of Western civilization. Put this into perspective and stay cool. FYI my wife used MFP and kept her calories at maintenance and did TRX pretty much up to delivery. Just listen to your body and don't push yourself too hard.0 -
Whoa no need to attack!! Of course I'm not going to put my weight/vanity over my baby's health! That's why I asked what a healthy goal is! People always say 1800-2000 is "maintenance" but if I eat that much I WILL GAIN. I don't know if my BMR is low or what, but I've been tracking long enough to know that much (I had lost 30lb on mfp before my first pregnancy- I'm not brand new to this) And of course I need to gain weight while pregnant- but I'd like to gain the recommended (for my BMI) 15-25, not 55! I'm going to go to a new OB this time and maybe I'll ask if they have a dietician. Last time she kept saying not to worry about my gain "your body will do what it needs to do". And I tried to eat healthy but eventually I stopped tracking and fell for the "you're pregnant! You deserve a snack!" line too often.
If you're not sure what your maintenance level is, you can just change MFP to maintain your weight and then try to hit that calorie goal.0 -
Have you calculated your TDEE to determine that 1800 would make you gain?0
-
We're very similar. I'm pregnant too but before I fell pregnant I was eating ca. 1300 calories a day (as recommended by my doctor as I'm only 5'2") and lost about weight slowly but surely. When I realised I was pregnant, I went into maintenance mode and aimed for 1800 calories. I soon found out during the 1st trimester it was fairly pointless trying to be super strict though. I had such weird food aversions and cravings and nausea that I just ate whatever I could stomach for the first few weeks. That included lots of fish sticks, vinegar and spinach (not all bad!).
Now I'm in the 2nd trimester and it's calmed down so I'm eating better but I'm hungrier! So I think I'm probably averaging 2000-2200 calories a day. And yes I've put on weight - about 10 pounds by week 18 so it's not horrendous. I'd like to put on no more than 25 pounds but I'm not sweating it. My midwife isn't concerned about it, so neither am I.
I'm only growing this baby once. I have my whole life to lose weight once it's born.0 -
You need to eat at maintenance during pregnancy, your baby and your body needs the fuel/nutrients...0
-
I am newly pregnant with my second too. I set my goal to 1440 calories, which is my best guess at maintenance. (last time I was at 1500 I gained) I will go up to 1700 calories in the second trimester and to 1800-1900 calories in the third, depending on how my weight gain is going.
I think taking your best guess at maintenance calories is good, but I also wouldn't worry too much in the first trimester. It's normal to lose some weight during the first trimester from calorie deficit due to morning sickness, etc so I wouldn't stress too much about it. I'd worry more about the second and third trimester. That's when the weight really needs to come on.0 -
.0
-
Whoa no need to attack!! Of course I'm not going to put my weight/vanity over my baby's health! That's why I asked what a healthy goal is! People always say 1800-2000 is "maintenance" but if I eat that much I WILL GAIN. I don't know if my BMR is low or what, but I've been tracking long enough to know that much (I had lost 30lb on mfp before my first pregnancy- I'm not brand new to this) And of course I need to gain weight while pregnant- but I'd like to gain the recommended (for my BMI) 15-25, not 55! I'm going to go to a new OB this time and maybe I'll ask if they have a dietician. Last time she kept saying not to worry about my gain "your body will do what it needs to do". And I tried to eat healthy but eventually I stopped tracking and fell for the "you're pregnant! You deserve a snack!" line too often.
How fast did you gain at 1800-2000 calories?
Because fat is not fast - lost or gained.
Merely pointing it out because many will say they had increased level over say a weekend, gained 4 lbs, and think that means their maintenance can't be that high.
Water weight is though, easily.
And obviously you are about to have more of it - as described above, something as simple as blood volume.
Then as you carry more weight, muscles will likely store more glucose for use if you keep up the activity level - that attaches with water too.
So when you set your MFP goal to maintain - be honest with your non-exercise activity level - if you already have a kid and increased home activity - sedentary is obviously not correct, Lightly-Active would be.
As suggested above, first tri - eat at maintenance for non-exercise days - and if exercise is light may not need to count it or eat it back. Very minor deficit that way, and mainly from fat-burning level of exercise.
But if vigorous exercise or long - should log it and eat to new goal, so really eating at maintenance.
0 -
Queenmunchy wrote: »I had a 15 year ED when I got pregnant. My doctors were full force about blind weighing and setting me up with a therapist (who I continued with for 3 years). I gained so rapidly it was heartbreaking for me - but I stayed off the scale and kept my team close. By her first birthday I was eating regularly and was back down to my pre-pregnancy weight...that was the best outcome I could have dreamed of. I still struggle, but so much less so, and I have a very healthy almost eight year old daughter!
This is an inspiring and incredible story.
Thank you! She was my motivation to finally tackle these issues. I didn't want her to obsess about her weight the way I did, and the self-criticism for me started around 7 years old. Funnily enough, we eat extremely healthy and she looks just like I did (my mom, and grandmother too) at that age. We just carry a little more weight in the family. Healthy BMIs but "curvier" than a lot of our peers. She is incredibly confident, though. Not at all like I was and I hope that's something I've instilled in her.
I'm happy to say I'm not starving myself anymore, but it's still a daily struggle to keep up my calories.0 -
I was at a 22 bmi when I got pregnant. I was told to eat at maintenance the first trimester and then add 300 calories for subsequent trimesters. That put me at around 1600 for the first trimester and 1900-2100(depending on my weight at the time) for the other two trimesters. I'm up 29 pounds and 40 weeks and 5 days which is within the normal guidelines. I ate well, but definitely had treats and days where I went over. I was more lax than I normally am, but continued to be mindful. Also, take your vitamins and continue exercise, but not to the point of exhaustion. It's so easy to over do it. I had to slow my roll come middle of second trimester. I went from jogging to walking and barre class to prenatal yoga. Exercise throughout pregnancy Is supposed to make delivery easier and it easier to lose the weight/pick up activity again after healing from delivery. (I'll have to see if this is really accurate.) Eat lots of fresh produce, calcium rich foods, lean protein and the occasional treat and you'll be fine. I hate seeing the scale creep up too, but I can make losing the weight a priority when my healthy baby comes. You will too.
don't worry so much. Just be mindful. 0 -
Thanks everyone. I'll calculate my TDEE again and my mfp maintenance. I know I need to focus on baby and I can lose the weight after, and I will. But I'm just hoping to keep it healthy and from being a two year struggle to lose the weight like it was this time0
-
Thanks everyone. I'll calculate my TDEE again and my mfp maintenance. I know I need to focus on baby and I can lose the weight after, and I will. But I'm just hoping to keep it healthy and from being a two year struggle to lose the weight like it was this time
Good to hear, Alex. 0
This discussion has been closed.
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 393.4K Introduce Yourself
- 43.8K Getting Started
- 260.2K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.9K Food and Nutrition
- 47.4K Recipes
- 232.5K Fitness and Exercise
- 426 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 153K Motivation and Support
- 8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.7K MyFitnessPal Information
- 24 News and Announcements
- 1.1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.6K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions