Watching your Weight Gain

novaselkie

Hello Mamas! I did not see a discussion board directed to this exactly, though I did see one related to being active. I would like to have a board dedicated to the struggles we have with weight over pregnancy, for those mama's who have been told by their doctors "you are underweight and need to gain" or for those that have been told, "you are overweight, try not to go past this amount." I feel like there is a lot of misinformation out there, and I know when I was first told "try to stay in the 15-25 pound range," I had this feeling of guilt.... like I had done something wrong already     I have been working with my nutritionist who has helped me a lot and I am now in a more logical mindset! Thought this would be a nice place for people having similar struggles/thoughts to support each other and share some good habits, good news, etc. 

MY CURRENT SITUATION:
I am 182 pounds (don't feel you have to share your weight) this shocked me. I am only 5'3, but to look at me... I don't really look overweight. I have a few extra pounds for sure, but I certainly don't look what I weigh, I suppose this is due to my body fat percentage. My nutritionist wants me to try my best to have a steady weight gain in the 15-25 pound range over my pregnancy. She said controlling this is hard sometimes even if you are doing your best, because maybe your blood volume will double, maybe you will retain more fluid etc etc. So, she told me not to go completely crazy if I go a little over. I fear developing gestational diabetes, I know it happens and people get through it, but I have some personal reasons! 

Anyone else having a similar journey here?

omg1108

I have always struggled with my weight. I am overweight for my height (5'2). After my recent MMC I kind of spiraled & gained 10 pounds, plus the 10 I had gained while pregnant. Now, here I am pregnant again (over the moon excited), & I am struggling with the guilt. I tend to retain a lot of water & can already feel the bloat at 4W2D. I eat fairly healthy & the main reason I gained weight these last few months was a lack of exercise. Mind you, I was always an active person. I ran several half marathons over the last 8 years & even bucket-listed a full marathon. I was a college athlete as well. However, I am one of those people that will gain weight very easily if I don't work out. Funny thing is, I started back at the gym 3 days a week (baby steps) about 4 weeks ago!! So, I am determined to continue this path & at least walk 3-4 times a week for 45-60 minutes. I am also incorporating more fruits & vegetables into my diet & really watching the sodium. I know the doctors say that we don't need to gain that much for a healthy pregnancy, so I would like to try to make this a reality. I want my body shape to change & there to be a noticeable "bump"; not just some lumps....

novaselkie

@omg1108 hahahahaah the lumps. Yeah, I feel that. I am wanting so so badly to have a healthy pregnancy so I will be trying my very best. I am eating for gestational diabetes before I even have it just to be preventative. I have been walking and stuff... I know it is ok to exercise but for some reason, I am just so scared to do that right now! I need to shake it. 

mainemomma8316

I’m struggling with this also! When I got pregnant with my son in 2015, I was about 160lbs, which was really great for me, working out and feeling awesome... then, I gained about 60lbs while pregnant... whoops! Over the next year, I got back down to pre-pregnancy weight but that didn’t last long, now here I am, 5w2d and I’m back at 200lbs, I do not want to gain unnecessary weight over there next 9 months, but it is so hard!

keikilove

Thank you for posting this. I was the same healthy weight my entire life until pregnant with my now-3-year-old. I gained 35 pounds, I think, & it took 2.5 years for 30 of it to come off. I didn’t feel like myself because I’d never carried any weight, I hated the way I looked, my muscles turned to mush, my clothes felt very uncomfortable, and I’d stopped being super active for the first time in my life. *TW—Then, I was recently pregnant again & gained 18 pounds in 18 weeks. Since that loss I’m still carrying 13 of that 18 so *End TW* I don’t want to gain any during this first trimester.  

My recent weight gain was largely due to being very ill & not moving my body. I’m determined to not repeat that during this pregnancy so I’m planning to post weekly exercise checkins on weekends & midweek. Please join me there so we can help motivate each other to stay on track! 

omg1108

@keikilove I think check-ins are a great idea! I worked out 4 days last week & logged all my food & gained 3.5 lbs in my 4th week. This concerns me. I know it is 99% bloat. I am so uncomfortable in my clothes. I had already gained a few extra pounds & felt stuffed. I won't quit though. Moving has really helped me feel better this time around. 

novaselkie

@keikilove @omg1108  If you wanted to message me privately with your emails, I have some incredible resources for tracking. It has really been helping me. Building your plate is from an already existing program from a nutritionist I saw, and some is a tracker I built myself. It is a food journal but it allows you to tick off recommended servings of grains, proteins, fats, etc. Make little notes to yourself and stick in some exercise and symptoms - so when you go for your checkup EVERYTHING is there!

novaselkie

@mainemomma8316 Sorry I didn't tag you! Same goes for you if you want the resources, just message me privately with your email