Plus Size Mommas

knockupthestock

Hey y'all! Is anyone out there interested in doing a plus size thread? I'm plus sized and I'd love to hear from others who are and how things are going for them, as well as any recommendations they have for beat places to find plus size maternity clothes (that has been really hard to find!) or other items that have been particularly helpful to them during pregnancy. I'm a FTM and need all the help I can get! Haha. 

elk90

Yes! I am also a FTM and plus sized, so I love this idea!

I’ve been looking online trying to find some good plus sized maternity pants but haven’t had much luck. Also, trying to find places that ship to Canada makes it difficult. I live in a small rural town on the prairies, so online shopping is basically my only option unless I feel like making a 3 hour trip to the next largest city (which I usually don’t feel like doing). 

bluguitarhannah

I ordered a few final clearance normal pants in my usual size and have had a band added.  Went up a couple sizes in shirts again found some clearance and tested with pillow.

mehugg

I'm glad to see this! I'm also plus sized, and to be honest, I'm having trouble imagining myself with a bump given my existing tummy....and yeah maternity clothes seem less than exciting.  

I'm also a bit concerned about weight gain but of course weight loss (or strict weight management) isn't what we're supposed to do while pregnant....are either of you thinking much about that?

bluguitarhannah

I’m aiming for the 11-15 lb recommended for my BMI.  I’m not crazy watching and last 2 weeks have eaten way too much holiday crap.  Hoping the bump catches up to middle stomach feel fat and blop like now.

zande2016

@mehugg you will have a bump girl don’t worry! I’m attaching my 40 week photo from each of my pregnancies so you can see plus size mamas still get bumps. 

I need to be careful about weight management because I gained way too much my first pregnancy and never lost it. I was a bit overweight going into that pregnancy but was decently overweight afterwards and breastfeeding seemed to make me gain weight instead of losing. I also had gestational diabetes last time so it’s really important for me to be careful with eating. Once I feel better from 1st trimester l’ll be counting carbs (since I’ll probably have GD again anyway) and also will track what I eat with weight watchers online. I’ll set it to maintenance and add extra points to account for the extra calories we need. 

I like old Navy for maternity clothes! 

Sorry if photos are huge I don’t know how to do the spoiler thingy!! 

rachelredhead

I struggle because I’m overweight and super short. I bought some maternity leggings and, no joke, they could definitely be worn as a jumpsuit fully covering my boobs. 🤪 I’m just gonna hold off for awhile, try to make the Bella bands work, and then shop more when I’ve got more tummy. I have started focusing more on tunics and long sweaters and I’m trying to just buy sizes I feel I have room to grow in but that I could definitely still wear after pregnancy. I hate the idea of investing in a maternity-specific wardrobe. 

I’m also trying to stick to the 11-15 for my BMI, hopefully.  First trimester for me has been really tough as far as having the energy to work out and usually I’m an avid gym goer. I ran a half marathon the month before I got pregnant and now I have no clue who that woman was. I’m trying to remind myself that this is a special season and I can focus on wellness, good food choices, and movement (though prob no distance running). I may join WW to just track in maintenance for added accountability. 

bluguitarhannah

@rachelredhead I did find some pants at motherhood maternity in petite.  Got Black Friday sale and length was good.  I’m 5’3 inseam is shorter than usual petite length.

Also, using band on work skirts.

NinnyJean

I found that, especially in the warmer months, I just lived in maxi skirts and flowy sundresses. I didn’t buy much maternity clothes at all because most of these still fit my bump!

blaf322

@zande2016 I’m so glad to hear there’s someone else considering WW to help with accountability. My bestie acted like I was nuts for considering it bc WW isn’t for pregnant woman. 

I’m not plus size anymore after losing about 50lbs with WW... but I’ve gained some back from my lowest weight and want to make sure I’m being thoughtful about what I’m eating. I’d love to say I’ll just be responsible with what I eat... but being good about what I eat isn’t exactly my strong suit... obviously 

mehugg

Thanks for the reassurance @zande2016 and the bump pics - awesome! I'd be curious to hear more about your experience with gestational diabetes. I'm worried about that and I have PCOS which has been connected to higher rates of GD, so I'm kind of expecting it (though hoping to prevent of course!)

I definitely had success with WW in the past but thought for some reason pregnant women weren't supposed to do it. Interesting. Something to consider for sure!

I'm with you @rachelredhead I've had zero energy for exercise. Hoping that turns around here as we get into the second tri!

zande2016

@blaf322 I was already a member when I got pregnant so I just decided not to cancel. As long as you’re not set to weight loss mode I don’t see what the big deal is, but I know WW will kick you off if you tell them you’re pregnant. You can also set it to breastfeeding and the extra points From that will probably be sufficient. 

zande2016

@mehugg I also have PCOS. My first pregnancy I failed the 1 hour test but passed the 3 hour so I was not diagnosed. For second pregnancy they made me take the 1 hour test early around 14 weeks because my PCOS plus being overweight (since I gained a lot of weight in my 1st pregnancy and entered my second pregnancy still carrying all that weight) put me at a higher risk. Failed 1 hour and then failed 3 hour. I was already on Metformin for PCOS and that helps manage the GD. I managed it with diet and exercise plus the metformin until the very end, around 36 weeks, when my fasting number would not stay in range no matter what I did, so I started insulin before bed. I kept increasing the insulin for 3 weeks every few days and my fasting number would not budge until I reached a pretty high dose of insulin. So that was kind of crazy but my other #s were good and baby was
measuring on track so they let me go until 39+6 before inducing. I was induced that day and delivered at 40+1. Baby was perfectly average at 7.11 and his sugars were fine in the hospital. Checked around 6 weeks postpartum and diabetes was gone. Taking my 1 hour test in a few weeks and expecting to fail. Honestly the diet kept me from gaining much weight....I think I gave birth 12 pounds heavier than when I got pregnant. The only part that sucks was I risked out of the birth center due to being on insulin and I had to be induced. Other than than I really won’t mind if I have it again. 

That was really long but I hope that helps! 

knockupthestock

@zande2016 thanks for the info on GD! that is super helpful. @mehugg im in the same boat, with PCOS and the concern for GD. both of my parents have type 2 diabetes and my mom had GD as well, so combine that with my weight, PCOS, and hypothyroidism, and im pretty concerned. ive had my a1c tracked for years and its always been okay. and like was mentioned before, the holidays werent helpful in limiting sugars, and the morning sickness/exhaustion hasnt helped me with eating healthy or exercising. so i am realllllllllly hoping that the second trimester will be better so i can eat better and exercise more. 

@blaf322 congrats and good job on losing that much with WW!!!

@NinnyJean i have tons of maxi dresses so im glad to have those already in my closet that should work well with a bump!

@rachelredhead i am loving the long sweaters, flowy shirts, and tunics that are in style now! i have so many of those, so im hoping those grow well with me too.

@elk90 i feel ya! i feel like im going to have to order everything online and thats annoying.

im not so much concerned with maternity tops.....its basically the bottoms. i wear leggings/pants from Torrid most days and they are starting to get a little tight at the waistband. i usually wear a size 3, and a lot of places dont go over size 3X for plus size maternity clothes, so im worried about how the 3X is going to fit if the Torrid 3 is already a little tight.    ive ordered some from Motherhood so we will see how those fit. i wanted to do Old Navy but their pants only go up to 2X, and Torrid's maternity leggings are always out of stock. i found a place online in the UK that has sizes up to 6X or something like that, and they have super cute stuff, but its expensive to ship and they dont do returns, so im holding off on ordering from them for now. 

has anyone tried Pink Blush? what are your thoughts? they have some pretty cute plus size items. 

bluguitarhannah

@knockupthestock I tried a couple of clearance items from Pink Blush.  I was not impressed with the quality for the price.  Shirt in particular was too thin.

I’m using wholesome pro as a food tracker.  It sets a daily goal and  identifies other nutrients you need.  I have used Weight Watchers before and like it.  I’m trying to shave off monthly budget so this was a good free app.

blaf322

@zande2016 I didn’t even think about maintenance mode when I considered it. I had planned to put it in BFing mode. I’ll probably see which one of those two seems to make most sense for me and go with that. 

I cancelled my subscription when I started IVF treatment (hence the gain) so I’ll need to sign back up.

zande2016

@blaf322 I just played around with it and in "healthy habits" mode (I guess that's their lingo for maintenance now), I would get 42 points....adding exclusive breastfeeding would bring it to 58...and non-exclusive breastfeeding 48. If it's set to weight loss mode, exclusive breastfeeding is 52 points and non-exclusive is 42 for me. I feel like 58 is too much, but 42 is probably not enough. Maybe I will try 48 since it's in the middle.  (oh and there are 3 different plans you can follow, this is for the green plan). 

blaf322

@zande2016 thanks!! Yeah, 58 seems like way too much.
So far, I've lost during first tri (thanks nausea ) but have started to maintain. If I see that I'm gaining in 2nd tri, I'll probably go ahead and start and will let you know if I do! With DD, I didn't start gaining until my final months and ended up gaining around 7lbs.... but my nausea/eating situation is so different this time so who freakin' knows what'll happen this time.

ETA: It looked like they changed the plan again. Do you like it? I really liked the new (now old) plan a lot. The ability to eat so many 0SP foods if you were hungry but out of SP when you first start was a huge part of me being able to be successful.

zande2016

@blaf322 the new plan actually gives you the option of still doing the old plan. It's called blue, but from what I can tell it's exactly the same. Then there's purple, which gives you less points but even more 0 point foods (sort of like simply filling from back in the day), and green gives you the most points but less 0 point foods. I am on green because I was doing it while breastfeeding and found that I was undereating calories on the blue/old plan. I may go back to blue in 2nd tri when I am feeling better and just make more of an effort to eat more of the 0 point foods. 

blaf322

@zande2016 oh! That's great! I think the green might be best for me because I can't really stomach many of the 0SP foods anyway and might need more SP to allow for some extra carby options.
Also, it sounds like the green plan is more like the old old plan that gave you a little more flexibility with eating junky food. The plan where bananas cost the same as a 100 calorie pack so people ate the junk food instead (I hope you're picking up what I'm putting down lol). Anyway... it sounds like it kind of allows for the junky food eating a little more and just cuts back on some of the healthier/0SP foods.

modoodles

I did WW back in 2009-2010. I know there is a meeting here in town, I'm thinking after baby I will start up again. I am definitely overweight at this point, and I'm hoping (flame me) not to gain *too much this time, because I'm already starting out 30 lbs higher than my previous highest pregnancy weight.  

blaf322

@modoodles no judgement here! I'll be right there with you and I'm also hoping to gain less than 10lbs this pregnancy. I did last time with DD and my OB wasn't concerned. I'm a little heavier starting out this time so I can't imagine she'd mind if I did the same with this pregnancy.

bluguitarhannah

@modoodles No flame from me.  I'm starting too high for me and also trying to kept the overall gain on the low end.  I appreciate the WW discussion having been a prior user to think on strategies.  My main complaint with the older revised plan was I think there were too many zero point foods for me to balance those calories.

blaf322

@bluguitarhannah I loved all the zero SP foods! Eating too much healthy food has never been my issue though lol... when I first started, I ate soooooo many hard boiled eggs because I was hungry and needed to save those 4 extra SP for my evening wine Hard boiled eggs just aren't the same anymore because of it lol

In all seriousness, it helped me get through times when I was hungrier in the beginning. I ate the healthy stuff in moderation. Unlike the snacky stuff I used to eat all the time.

bluguitarhannah

@blaf322 It wasn't that I didn't love the zero SP foods.  At some point, I evidently couldn't eat as many as I tried and weigh less.   I hear you on hard boiled eggs.  Unless it's deviled I may never need to see another one.  Sweets are my downfall.  I am still depressed at how many points they wanted for skittles.  Very impressed at how well you did.  I was working out with a trainer last summer.  I guess it's somewhat my New Year's goal to make myself move more daily.

blaf322

@bluguitarhannah sweets are my downfall too! And wine. Not pregnant, I drink a lot of wine  

That's a great goal for 2020! I'm going to talk to my OB on the 21st. The MW told me, at my first appt, to keep my HB below 140... which is crazy low for running and would basically mean I can't. Also, research is telling me that rec is outdated.
My goal would be to start doing the couch to 5k again (I was doing so well on that until I got pneumonia back in May and then I fell off the gym wagon) and, if I can, get to the point where I can run a 5k before I have this baby. Obviously, no hard and fast goals that would make anything unsafe... but it would be great to end the pregnancy feeling like I'm more fit, ya know?

bluguitarhannah

@blaf322 not pregnant Vodka is my downfall.  I always wanted to go on a vodka tasting weekend. 

My Mom sent me home with one of her physical therapy peddlers (mini bike) that does arms and legs.  I have rheumatoid and a fused neck so I was really proud of how far I'd gotten in working out.  Then, the 3rd FET I let myself slide.  I know I just have to be more accountable.

I'm also going back to my arm free weights at home. 

stlbuckeye132

*lurking* @blaf322 obviously do whatever you're comfortable with, but my OB also told me the HR under 140 guideline is outdated. She told me I can continue anything I was doing pre-pregnancy and just listen to my body. My workout of choice is Pure Barre, and my HR definitely gets over 140 (especially when pregnant), but I did it through my whole first pregnancy and hope to again this time. Just listen to your body, and if you start to get light headed, take a breather and bring it down a notch.

zande2016

@blaf322 green gives you extra points for carby crap (yay) and takes away 0 point food such as plain FF yogurt and chicken (which are still low point), BUT fruit is still 0. So for me, especially now when all I want is carbs, it is the best option, though blue definitely encourages cleaner eating.

@modoodles zero judgment here, I gained 50 pounds with # 1 and he's 3.5 and I NEVER lost it. Womp womp. Also starting this pregnancy 15 pounds heavier than # 2, I weigh the same now as I did when I delivered baby # 2. So honestly I'd love to only gain 10 pounds this pregnancy but we'll see. 

blaf322

@bluguitarhannah It sounds like you're taking the right steps towards your goals! I'm here to help with motivation or to tell you to get moving when you'd rather be lazy, if you ever need it

@stlbuckeye132 I'm hoping my OB recognizes that that's outdated info and gives me the okay. If she doesn't, I may just ignore her, start slow, and listen to my body/what ACOG has on their site... assuming my pregnancy continues in a normal fashion.

@zande2016 nope! I can't do the green then! I use FF greek yogurt for EVVVVVERYTHING! Even when I'm not following WW, I use it in place of sour cream now. It's better to me. And the dough you can make with it makes the more restrictive points totally worth it b/c that stuff is amazing!

rachelredhead

I’m doing Blue. Set to healthy habits and not exclusively breastfeeding I get 33 points. That seems a bit low but I figure I’ll give it a few days, see how happy I am with the 0 pt foods, and readjust if I need to. I assume if I said I was exclusively breastfeeding it would bump me up points wise. 

I’ve had success on WW in the past. Lost @ 85 pounds 10 years ago (which was too much, that was not a healthy/happy weight for me as I was way too restrictive) and have regained @ 45 over the last decade. I’d be happy to limit weight gain to under 15, that’s the hope. I don’t love the idea of tracking in any context these days as I struggled with bulimia/disordered eating when I was younger so there’s some unhealthy mental stuff there. So if it starts to stress me out or I get obsessive, DH is under direction to remind me to cut the WW cord again. For now, I feel pretty balanced about it so assuming that continues, I’m glad there are others using the WW tools to track calorie intake. Strength in numbers! 

blaf322

@rachelredhead is healthy habits still a weight loss mode? Or is that the new terminology for maintenance mode? At this point, you don't really need much more in the way of calories to feed you plus baby... but 33 does sound low. That said, if you're not hungry and not losing, I'd say it sounds like it's working for you!

rachelredhead

@blaf322 there were only two options, I think, Weight Loss plus Healthy Habits or just Healthy Habits. The last time I actively did WW they were using the flex/core plans so it’s all somewhat new to me! 

Having logged breakfast and lunch today, which were very typical for me, I’m doing fine point wise so far. So it seems like having a huge list of 0 pt foods may be the best fit for me, which is good. Since I’m still feeling reeeeeally meat averse, I need those zero point eggs and beans! 

zande2016

So the "healthy habits" mode is the maintenance mode now. The other option is "healthy habits plus weight loss" or something like that. On  the blue plan, the points are lower because of all the zero point food. You just have to be sure to eat a good amount of the zero point options to make sure you are getting enough calories while also fulfilling your points. So I'd say have at least one serving of the free food with every meal/snack and you'll be good. I think doing maintenance/healthy habits on its own in 1st trimester is good, then add part time breastfeeding in 2nd trimester, and maybe add full time breastfeeding in 3rd trimester if you're feeling like you need it. I searched the hashtag pregnantonww in the connect app and that seemed to be what a lot of women are following. 

blaf322

@zande2016 smart! I'd have never thought to search that way!

zande2016

@blaf322 well I really just randomly typed in pregnant and it popped up, lol 

meanjellybean

*also lurking* @stlbuckeye132 @blaf322 I've never heard that rec (probably because my exercise of choice during pregnancy is just walking occasionally) but damn that seems impossible! I had an OB appt this morning and my bp was 140 just at the anticipation of getting my bp taken   

ETA also I'm impressed by your goal, it sounds awesome and hopefully we can cheer you on (virtually) for your 5k!

mehugg

@bluguitarhannah @blaf322 I genuinely wonder if I'm managing my weight okay so far despite less healthy choices and movement just because if dropping booze lol

rachelredhead

@mehugg I definitely think cutting booze has helped me. We were in London last week and DH had a pint most dinners and some lunches. I would have done the same if I weren’t pregnant. That alone is a lot of calories saved. And even in normal, non-vacation mode, we just go out to eat less and when we do I’m not having a cocktail that then weakens my resolve on ordering the fried calamari. 😂 Booze makes a difference for me! 

blaf322

@meanjellybean HB, not BP But, 140 is still really unreasonable. My bestie is in great shape (runs half marathons and works out constantly) and she said hers gets into the 170's.  I'm 100% sure mine will get into the 140's with a brisk walk/slow jog (especially as the pregnancy progresses) so let's hope they approve more than just that

meanjellybean

@blaf322 duh, I'm an idiot, disregard! 140 does still sound unreasonable for HB!