Hi gang - I'm new to the PG forum but will probably become a regular...anyway... The stick came back with two pink lines this morning! This is a good thing, of course, but now that it's REAL, I'm getting somewhat panicky/paranoid about being overweight and pg at the same time. I'm currently in the two-high-teens (haven't weighed in a couple days) and goal is somewhere around 130 (I'm 5'2). Long story short, I was thin before my first DD was born, was 40 lbs over at 6 weeks PP (thank you Taco Bell!), and the scale has continued to go up instead of down over the last 6 years (thank you Mickey D's, Pizza Hut, Hamburger Helper... ).

I guess what I'm wondering is, how realistic is it to maintain or even lose a couple pounds while PG - not through "dieting" but just by actually eating proper healthy food like I should have been doing all along - gaining baby but losing fat, ya know - and end up down from where you started, once the baby and all the pregnancy gook is eliminated from the equation?

I gained about 40 lbs with my first pregnancy, cravings chicken and chocolate. Gained many many lbs after having my DD. With my second pregnancy I lost 10 lbs, and had a 10 lb son, somehow ended up 30 lbs lighter so must have lost about 10 lbs in the hospital, c-section and bad food for 3 days, plus I did do many hours of labor before the c-section. Cravings vegetable and gasoline. (Obviously I did not drink the gas, but watching Mel Gibson siphon gas in one of the Lethal Weapons was agony to watch). So if you are careful about what you eat and watch the cravings you should be able to maintain, if not lose.

Fiona! Congratulations. I remember you from the LAWL board. I am on the pg board too and it will be nice to have a familiar face. am 13 1/2 wks now and have gained at least 8.5 lbs, but it's twins so I half expected it. Try to eat healthy and not give into any naughty cravings. Maybe you'll carry high and not be able to fit too much food in at one time. That probably helps. Good luck with the pregnancy. I look forward to seeing you around again. Ever hear from Star?

Mary (aka marbear)

MARY!!! HI! Congrats, lady! I hadn't heard your news. And TWINS! How's it going, and stuff???

Nope, haven't heard from Star in ages and ages. Miss her, I do!

Got any recommendations on other pg-type boards? I haven't done this in 6 years, it's like starting over from scratch.

It's possible to lose during pregnancy, but I wouldn't recommend it. However, you could maintain. Meaning that once you have the baby, you'll have a large sudden loss of weight from your pre-pregnancy weight. If you exercise, continue. If not, start out slowly and build up to a nice pace but nothing too strenuous while pregnant. And eat healthy balanced meals.

I think with extreme dedication, you could potentially gain the minimum possible with your pregnancy. I had high hopes of this, but gave into cravings and went crazy and gained instead. I guess I didn't have extreme dedication. I hope you have better luck than me!!!!!
If you do gain weight...it's not the end of the world. Once baby comes, you can get back on track losing weight.

Fiona,
My friend did an overweight/pregnant board at yahoo groups or msn groups. I do the plus sized pregnant board on babycenter. It gets more traffic but isn't unmanageable. Lots of women on that board are losing weight or maintaining by eating healthy. I, on the other hand, am at least on track to gain 45 lbs (heighest reccomended weight for twins if you start out overweight) but I do have the hope that breastfeeding twins will help me become a skinny mini eventually.

Mary

Another one from the LAWL group, it must be contagious! Just kidding. Congratulations Fiona! I really don’t have any advice about maintaining weight while pregnant. I’m just over 16 weeks and I’m already up almost 8 lbs and I swore I was going to do better this time around. I hope to get myself under control here very soon, but in the first trimester all I could eat was crap. I couldn’t even look at fruit or veggies. It's gotten a lot better, but not up to LAWL standards yet! My DS is 5 ½ years old so I know what you mean about almost like starting over. Good luck to you!

It isn't really recommended that you "lose" weight while you are pregnant. Some women do even though they are eating healthfully-but it isn't recommended. An overweight woman's recommended weight gain, however, is lower than a woman of average weight-more aslong the lines of 15-25 rather than around the 35 or so pounds most asverage women will gain.

What must be understood-is that you are going to be gaining more than just baby during your pregnancy, so there is a reason for the gain. Besides the 5 to 10 pounds of baby you will have a pound or two of amniotic fluid, about 2 pounds for placenta, a pound or two in breast volume, a pound o two in additional blood volume, and a handful of other things of this nature.

Exactly. And I just posted on another thread...worrying is going to be worse for the baby than gaining a little weight. So don't worry. Remember that you're pregnant and will be expected to gain weight. I know it's so hard to get that mindset when you're working so hard to lose. But the thing is, continue eating right and exercising throughout pregnancy and you'll still do it after pregnancy. So you'll already be one step ahead coming out of this pregnancy. And the changes you've made in life are more likely to stay with you. So it hasn't all been for nothing. So? Weight loss is just gonna be on hold for 9 months. No biggie. How many years has it been on hold already.

I'm so happy to find this community and this board! I'm 15 weeks with my first and I'm up 8 lbs. I know it's not too much but I do worry about weight gain, I had lost a lot of weight this past year and I don't want to backslide. I try to eat really healthy meals but I do give in to cravings every now and then. I've got to have a burger at least once a week, that's my guilty pleasure but I don't eat cookies, ice cream, pizza, chinese, or anything unhealthy stuff. I'm trying to not gain more than 25 pounds as I was already about 15 lbs overweight prior to getting pregnant. I know that I'll be back to my workouts after the baby though, I miss it so much!

There's no reason why you can't continue your workouts during your pregnancy. You may just have to modify them. I continued jogging until my 4th month, and then went to Curves until my 8th. After that, I would spend an hour walking in the pool for exercise that didn't hurt my back and hips. But some people don't have the problems with their back and hips and some even continue jogging lightly through pregnancy. You'll have to adjust for what you can handle with yours. But frankly, exercise is good for pregnancy. Especially if you've been exercising prior. Also, it ensures that you don't have to "get back" to your workouts afterward...since you never really quit to begin with.

I should've explained why I stopped working out, I've had 2 major bleeds at 7 and 11 weeks and my OB diagnosed me with a low lying placenta so he cut off my workouts, I can't even go for a long walk anymore

He'll review the placenta condition and my workout restriction after the 20 wk US to see if I've made any progress

In the meantime I've done well with my eating habits, I was always eating healthy prior to the pregnancy and now I'm just more careful to not always give in to cravings.......the burger once a week is a must tho!

Ahhh. I see.

Ask your OB if water walking might be ok. It's much easier, as the water acts as a bouy and cushins the body. But it also acts as resistance on the legs. It's a light and comfortable exercise that doesn't strain you.

almostheaven,

That's a great idea and my gym does have an indoor pool but my doctor seems to waver towards the cautious side, like I said he won't even allow a nice long stroll around the neighborhood.

Basically his advice was to restric my walking from the car to my office, 1 lap around the grocery store, etc.

I only have another 4.5 weeks before the 20 wk US so I'm hoping for good news!