Nurse Practitioner is Concerned About Weight Gain

ksalley · August 2014

I had my appointment this morning and the NP who saw me was concerned at my weight gain/how quickly I'm gaining. I don't necessarily agree (but I'm not a medical professional). I plan on calling tomorrow and getting clarification.

Anywho, has anyone else dealt with this? I know that pregnancy is not a time to lose weight, but I have a hard time figuring out what/how to eat to gain weight at a pace that would be acceptable.

(I know there have been several posts lately about weight, but most of the ones I read were about what WE think of our weight gain, not the NP/doc)

CandEChicago · August 2014

ksalley said:

I had my appointment this morning and the NP who saw me was concerned at my weight gain/how quickly I'm gaining. I don't necessarily agree (but I'm not a medical professional). I plan on calling tomorrow and getting clarification.

Anywho, has anyone else dealt with this? I know that pregnancy is not a time to lose weight, but I have a hard time figuring out what/how to eat to gain weight at a pace that would be acceptable.

(I know there have been several posts lately about weight, but most of the ones I read were about what WE think of our weight gain, not the NP/doc)

This is your first post to D14... so welcome and congrats!

I would just look at your base diet. How many fruits and vegetables are you getting? In the beginning I was tracking my calories to make sure I wasn' t over doing it or overdoing it on anything.

ksalley · August 2014

Yeah, I've commented here and there, but never actually started my own post! Thanks for the welcome.

I'm getting enough fruits, probably not quite enough veggies. She also told me to cut dairy.

I have a hard time knowing how many calories I actually need to maintain weight (prior to getting my BFP, I was in the process of losing weight).

CandEChicago · August 2014

I would use Fitnesspal or something like that to get a base idea of what you are eating. I would also ask them for a target level of calories for guidance since you don't want to short your calories (but you certainly don't want to be eating 6,000 calories a day).

soulcupcake · August 2014

What is your diet like?

I try to follow an 80/20 Primal regimen, and it works well since I adopted it a few years ago. I get a good amount of fat, moderate protein, veggies, and low glycemic index fruits. I check my glucose levels with a glucometer in about a month, which I'm sure will be just fine.

drmh22 · August 2014

Going off of what PPs said, I think that keeping a food log could definitely help. Not only would it help you keep track of what your eating, but additionally you could show it to your NP and they could go off of that to give you better advice than just "don't gain so fast."

LinziLoo09 · August 2014

I agree with PPs about a food log to make sure you're getting a balanced diet. You can also join us for Fit Fridays threads where we post our workouts for the week and help push one another to keep it up. It's encouraging to know that others struggle with the same workout hurdles and to see the super fit women that I aspire to be more like as well.

That said, discuss it with your doctor further for sure. Sometimes different medical factors can lead to weight gain, and they might need to be ruled out. And I've known some women who eat well and workout plenty and their bodies still just want to gain weight. In the end, as long as it's healthy for your LO, I wouldn't worry much about it.

ksalley · August 2014

I was honestly shocked to hear her say that she was concerned. I didn't think I had been doing poorly!

I'm glad it was brought up at 22 weeks (and not much later) . The baby measured just fine (ahead by 3 days) at my a/s. I'm definitely going to call and ask the doctor tomorrow, but it's made for a really upsetting day. I hope I'm just over reacting.

Starting tomorrow, I will keep a food journal. Well, I'll find an app on my phone. Much more likely to keep track that way!

CandEChicago · August 2014

ksalley said:

I was honestly shocked to hear her say that she was concerned. I didn't think I had been doing poorly! I'm glad it was brought up at 22 weeks (and not much later) . The baby measured just fine (ahead by 3 days) at my a/s. I'm definitely going to call and ask the doctor tomorrow, but it's made for a really upsetting day. I hope I'm just over reacting. Starting tomorrow, I will keep a food journal. Well, I'll find an app on my phone. Much more likely to keep track that way!

I use MyFitnessPal as a mobile app. I found that their food database was better than Sparkpeople. I also like it since you can track your weight, your work outs (cardio and strength), and your other fitness measurements (waist, hips, etc) if you want to track those as well.

megbmeg · August 2014

I'm sorry it was a stressful visit. I agree with PP that checking in with your doc is important. I'd want to find out what their concerns were for LO based on the weight gain, and what target they were hoping for. It's great to work on eating in a balanced way and maybe being a little more active (and yes for fit Fridays as a motivator!), but I also think some practitioners are over zealous in their weight warnings. It would be good to check about that. And one last positive - if you're going to miss the recommended weight gain range, it's generally better for LO to have mom gain too much than too little. I read about that in Emily Oster's Expecting Better, which I definitely recommend!

Good luck. Let us know what you find out.

hollieandaaron2012 · August 2014

Mine said I was still in the okay range and am fine depending on what I am eating. If you are eating well balanced foods and drinking plenty of fluids then it is okay to gain some extra weight. If the extra weight is coming from junk food that it is not okay. I told my DH this and his response was so no more Cheetos!

marriedinaugust · August 2014

I gained a lot last time and my OB/midwife weren't concerned at all. This time I think I've gained less but still more than average and my midwives are not concerned. I'm just hungry all the time when pregnant and try to make healthy choices. I'm also staying active so to me it is what it is and if will come off when I'm done.

dnbitner · August 2014

If you are looking for a target caloric intake, this is really helpful https://www.freedieting.com/tools/pregnancy_calorie_calculator.htm

rshamos · August 2014

Like what @AJIrishMama‌ said, as long as you are staying healthy, you should be fine. I would only get concerned if your labs came back abnormal, or were abnormal to start with. Everyone gains differently, as we have seen from all of the weight gain threads. I hope you get some clarification from your doc!

perfectlove09 · August 2014

You may have had enough advice already but thought I'd try to help too. I've looked at a lot of apps in the past and my absolute favorite is MyNetDiary. You can just scan what ever foods barcode you're eating and put the serving size you ate. For meats and veggies, fruits, things that don't have a barcode, it's still really easy to add. You can make meals of things you eat regularly so once you've entered it it's east to find.

It also has logs of pretty much every restaurant out there.

Also, find a website to enter your pre:pg weight and height. It will give you your BMI and then will give you guidelines of how much you should gain and a calorie amount. This should help you at least track your food.

The app also let's you enter exercise.

newmommy61713 · August 2014

I'm afraid to get weighed my next appointment. It's common to start packing lbs during the end of your pregnancy. Your doctor just wants you to be healthy and watch how much you gain. It's hard but you'll appreciate it when it comes time to take off the baby weight

nolanova85 · August 2014

Don't need to repeat what most others have said, but logging can be very helpful.

Not to be overly babycenter-esque, but I can commiserate with you and I encourage you not do be too upset! Though I started pregnancy at a normal weight, I have been overweight previously. I mentioned at my first appt that I was concerned & sensitive to the weight gain issue, so that it would be noted in my file.

I am already a few pounds over what would be recommended for this stage in my pregnancy. I attribute this to 2 things - 1) I was never sick or experiences loss of appetite and 2) my self control with sweets has definitely weaned since finding out I was pregnant. That said, I'm stayed very active - probably more active than in my non-pregnant life, and I'm making sure I get plenty of nutritious food - not just sweets. I have a hard time not freaking about it, but my office assured me they're not that concerned, as long as I'm active. But the many posts about not gaining enough weight are tough for me to read.

Not sure if this will help you, but I've already signed up to start Weight Watchers about 10 weeks after my EDD. Weight Watchers was how I finally lost the weight before, and it feels so good to know that I already have a plan in place. Not saying WW is right for everyone, but knowing I have a plan in place has done wonders for my mentality on the whole situation.

ksalley · August 2014

nolanova85 said:
Don't need to repeat what most others have said, but logging can be very helpful.

Not to be overly babycenter-esque, but I can commiserate with you and I encourage you not do be too upset! Though I started pregnancy at a normal weight, I have been overweight previously. I mentioned at my first appt that I was concerned & sensitive to the weight gain issue, so that it would be noted in my file.

I am already a few pounds over what would be recommended for this stage in my pregnancy. I attribute this to 2 things - 1) I was never sick or experiences loss of appetite and 2) my self control with sweets has definitely weaned since finding out I was pregnant. That said, I'm stayed very active - probably more active than in my non-pregnant life, and I'm making sure I get plenty of nutritious food - not just sweets. I have a hard time not freaking about it, but my office assured me they're not that concerned, as long as I'm active. But the many posts about not gaining enough weight are tough for me to read.

Not sure if this will help you, but I've already signed up to start Weight Watchers about 10 weeks after my EDD. Weight Watchers was how I finally lost the weight before, and it feels so good to know that I already have a plan in place. Not saying WW is right for everyone, but knowing I have a plan in place has done wonders for my mentality on the whole situation.

Weight watchers is something I've been successful with in the past, so I might give it a try after I give birth. I'm not going to set a specific time frame but I will probably venture back.

In regards to an update. I did call the office today. They made it seem like it wasn't a huge deal. They just don't want me gaining that much every month (although if I did, I would still fall in a normal range). I just don't think I cared for the way the NP worded it. And how it made me feel. Thanks everyone for the support.

Meether · August 2014

Ugh I hate the nurse practitioner at my dr's office. She gave me crap for gaining 11# during weeks 16 to 20, with a total weight gain of 15# total. She was concerned that the older (I'm old at 28) you get, the harder it is to lose the weight, not about the baby. She told me that I thought I was eating little but in reality it's more than I think. So I told her I'd use my fitness pal.... Well what do you know? I eat on avg 1200 cals during the week and 1200-1500 cals on the weekends. I knew this was my avg because prepregnancy I tracked my calories and they were on the lower end. So I called and complained to my dr about her giving me anxiety. I do drink 1.5-2 gallons of water per day, so i could just be retaining lots of water. I was just never a huge eater. So don't worry about it, enjoy your pregnancy. I gained 60# with dd1 and lost it all within 6 months. This time around, I'm done worrying. Safe to say I already told them never to schedule me with her.

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