[Elladorine]

I finally got my first OB-GYN appointment in yesterday. After doing a bit of research I figured I'd be told to gain about 15 pounds for my pregnancy since I'm still in the obesity category.

She'd like me to gain 30!

I'm freaking out, but only a little. My first follow-up appointment is on Monday, and after that I'll be assigned an additional doctor that specializes in high-risk pregnancies (due to my age). My biggest concern right now is the possibility of gestational diabetes, but my lab results will be in by then and we'll be able to go more into detail of how my diet should look. For now I'm still eating healthy of course, and am adding in larger portions and additional snacks. Lots of fresh veggies and some fruit, greek yogurt, grilled and baked chicken, some whole grains, walnuts, etc., while avoiding added sugar and other simple carbs. She approved all the supplements I've been taking (prenatals of course, flax oil, extra calcium) and I'll continue on my water fitness, so it looks like I've got a good start.

But 30 pounds? I'll adapt since I obviously want to do what's best for the baby, but yikes! It'll be so hard to watch the scale go back up regardless of the reason.

[Radiojane]

That would be a definite yikes! But you're doing everything you're supposed to do, and if you keep eating, breathing and LIVING healthy, it will come off easily afterwards

[elvislover324]

I was hoping you'd post about your appointments as I am living vicariously through you.

I'd be freaking out about 30lbs too but I assume it's open to discussion as you get further along.

I'm so happy for you, this is going to be one of the best parts of your life and you worked so hard to get here. You are so conscious of your choices and I know that you will be one of THE healthiest pregnant women ever.

[Lyn2007]

It will just kind of happen on its own if you are eating healthy... and you won't have to really decide how much to gain or not. The baby and your body will demand what it needs That's the beauty of creating life. Remember that your body is doing something marvelous, making a whole new human with all their organs and bones and parts out of what you eat. So don't skimp on the healthy food and remember that your blood volume increases a LOT to nourish the baby so a lot of gained weight is just fluid, and another 8-10 pounds = baby, placenta, amniotic fluid. The only reason to worry about even a 30 or 40 pound gain is if it came from eating junk. Of course your doctor will know best for YOU but I am just sharing my thoughts, having had five babies myself Congrats!

[veggiedawg]

I was always shocked how easily the weight comes on during pregnancy.

Eat as healthy as you can throughout, but the last couple months, it just seems to be there! You definitely don't need to try to gain!

Maybe she just wants you to relax about losing and not be shocked if you do get up to +30lbs?

Your diet sounds awesome! Any cravings or food adversions yet?

[bargoo]

Originally Posted by Lyn2007

It will just kind of happen on its own if you are eating healthy... and you won't have to really decide how much to gain or not. The baby and your body will demand what it needs That's the beauty of creating life. Remember that your body is doing something marvelous, making a whole new human with all their organs and bones and parts out of what you eat. So don't skimp on the healthy food and remember that your blood volume increases a LOT to nourish the baby so a lot of gained weight is just fluid, and another 8-10 pounds = baby, placenta, amniotic fluid. The only reason to worry about even a 30 or 40 pound gain is if it came from eating junk. Of course your doctor will know best for YOU but I am just sharing my thoughts, having had five babies myself Congrats!

Excellent advice !

[Mozzy]

I'm shocked she told you to gain 30lbs.
When I was pregnant at your weight I was told to gain no more than 20, preferably 15.

Good luck with your pregnancy!

[Elladorine]

Thanks Jane.

I think what is really helping me through everything is that I've managed to change my mindset in the past year. I obviously want to be thinner and have worked so hard for that, but the only reason I've continued to make progress is because I'm focusing on my health first and foremost. I've got the reasons so ingrained in my head now that I think making healthy choices about 90% of the time and indulging for the other 10% is going to stick around for a long time.

I think one of my biggest fears is that this will all become a slippery slope, that I'll eventually use the pregnancy (and the incredible hunger that comes with it!) as an excuse to throw all reason out the window and indulge non-stop. But not only is that not good for me, it's not good for the baby.

So everything feels like a delicate balance right now. I have to gain, but in a healthy way. It's tough to wrap my mind around as I've spent all my life believing gains=bad!

Elvislover- thank you. I do think the gain will be open for discussion as I go. I'm going to do my best to listen to my body and reason through the choices laid out before me, and if I have to make adjustments according to lab results and the doctor's advice, so be it. I guess I can't complain about getting to eat extra.

And good luck to your efforts, I've been thinking of you!

Lyn- Thanks! I do realize that a lot of things are just going to happen, that another human is growing inside me along with building a placenta and what-not. I think I'll be ok and will just accept what comes, and I'll be good with it as long as I'm eating healthy throughout it all.

This is my first visit with my new OB-GYN so I think it'll take some time for us to get a feel for each other. She actually seemed alarmed when I told her I belonged to weight loss organization so I had to reassure her that I'm not currently trying to lose weight!

This is only my second pregnancy and I'm hoping it'll be my first successful one (I miscarried in my first trimester last year), so I know I've still got a lot of learning and wonderful new experiences ahead of me.

veggiedawg- Thanks! My doctor warned me that the biggest gains happen in the last trimester. I realize most of it is baby, placenta, amniotic fluid, and extra blood so that's pretty much out of my control. I guess what I fear most is that, like I've mentioned to others, I'll use the pregnancy and eventual cravings an excuse to go overboard. On the other hand, my husband is worried I won't be eating enough since I've worked so hard to lose in the past year so I've been working on reassuring him. I think I'll feel more reassured myself once I get the results on my gestational diabetes test and get to speak with my high-risk doctor.

Nope, no real cravings or aversions yet (aside from extreme hunger at times), although the smells . . . THE SMELLS! Everything smells like, well . . . I'd rather not say.

Bargoo- I agree!

Mozzy- Thanks! That's another reason I'm looking forward to speaking with the additional doctor about the high-risk issues; I can get a second opinion. I wonder if my age has something to do with it? Regardless I'll be taking this one day at a time.

[thnknthin1]

Yeah that surprises me as well, 30lbs! I was around your weight as well with two of my four pregnancies and was told no more than 15-20. One of them I stayed about the same weight the whole pregnancy, one of them I actually lost! I had a craving for milk with one of my pregnancies and drank about a gallon of skim milk every day, seriously! That is the one I lost weight, weird right?

[Elladorine]

Thnknthin- Wow, I bet that particular baby had plenty of calcium! And you didn't even gain through that pregnancy, wow!

The doctor specifically told me I should be gaining half a pound a week for the first 20 weeks, then a pound a week for the rest of the pregnancy. It sounded to me like she was quoting a generic answer out of some medical textbook as if she didn't even have the notion that it just might not apply to everyone. We'll see what happens though! So far my weight has been fluctuating between the same three pounds since around the time I conceived (I'm going on eleven weeks now); before that I was averaging a one pound per week loss. So the hubby is already on my case about eating more, but I'm good with basically maintaining for the moment.

I'm sure I'll get lots more feedback about my weight from the second doctor and from watching my numbers with every visit. As I mentioned to another poster, she seemed alarmed when I told her about my weight loss group and I had to take a moment to reassure her that I'm not looking to lose any weight at a time like this. I also got the impression though that she didn't like me asking about how much I should be gaining (partially so I know what to expect, and partially so I had an official document to excuse my inevitable gains for my weight loss group), almost as if how dare I ask such a question? Maybe I read her completely wrong but it was kind of awkward.

[SarahFairhope]

Solid advice:

Originally Posted by Lyn2007

It will just kind of happen on its own if you are eating healthy... and you won't have to really decide how much to gain or not. The baby and your body will demand what it needs That's the beauty of creating life. Remember that your body is doing something marvelous, making a whole new human with all their organs and bones and parts out of what you eat. So don't skimp on the healthy food and remember that your blood volume increases a LOT to nourish the baby so a lot of gained weight is just fluid, and another 8-10 pounds = baby, placenta, amniotic fluid. The only reason to worry about even a 30 or 40 pound gain is if it came from eating junk. Of course your doctor will know best for YOU but I am just sharing my thoughts, having had five babies myself Congrats!

[joefla70]

Interesting. My wife actually lost weight during pregnancy. She found out during her first pregnancy that she developed gestational diabetes and hypertension (which fortunately both went away after she gave birth). She was put on a diabetic diet -- which, coincidentally, is very similar to the diet she is on now.

[Arctic Mama]

Don't focus on the weight gain or even a lack of it, it is a very poor litmus of how healthfully a baby is growing, especially in a heavier mom. Some small gals maintain their normal eating and gain fifty pounds, some heavier gals maintain their normal eating and lose fifteen. Healthy moms and babies come about from both scenarios.

Focus on the eating and activity, eat ad libitum until you're satisfied but not stuffed (on healthful foods, your list is a bit lean for my needs but a very solid diet nonetheless ), and don't give a thought to the scale for nine months. Focusing on gaining weight your body may not need is silly - focusing on losing weight if your body is demanding more is equally so.

I'd give the OB a piece of my mind regarding any weight recommendations, given that nutrition is so much more important and very difficult to quantify on the scale during pregnancy. But that's me and I'm quite the advocate on pregnancy and childbirth, by preference and personality. If your body loses for the first half of pregnancy and piles it on for the second (or vice versa!) it's not worth stressing over, simply because it looks different than a linear pattern.

This should all go without saying, so ignore me if I'm being redundant. I'm so excited things look good for you thus far! Yay!

[Arctic Mama]

Originally Posted by veggiedawg

I was always shocked how easily the weight comes on during pregnancy.

Eat as healthy as you can throughout, but the last couple months, it just seems to be there! You definitely don't need to try to gain!

Maybe she just wants you to relax about losing and not be shocked if you do get up to +30lbs?

Your diet sounds awesome! Any cravings or food adversions yet?

The bold was kind of my thought, too. Especially if she knows you've lost a bunch of weight, it makes more sense she'd be cautioning about, rather than advising, gains. Us dieters can be a bit neurotic when it comes to pregnancy