Help - eating enough to not lose weight during pregnancy

ahaab80 · September 2014

Hello everyone,

I am about 5 weeks along, and I have been on a diet my whole life (that is how it feels) and have never tried to eat to maintain my diet. I am a heavier person (think 225-250 range) and was 45 pounds into my weight loss journey. This week I got serious about health and have changed my my fitness pal to maintain my weight versus lose, and i have to eat about 2300 calories a day to maintain. I am eating fruit, nuts, string cheese, salads, eggs with cheese and spinach on a tortilla in the morning, cream in my (decaf) coffee, microwaveable sweet potatoes with butter for a snack as well as hearty dinners (think pasta and garlic bread or lean proteins with veggie sides and a grain.) I am STILL not meeting my calorie goal. And i have even been adding a treat to help. like today i am having a can of soda. yesterday i went and got ice cream. I space my food out so that I eat when I am hungry (every 2 hours or so these days). I also want to continue working out but I am worried because it is difficult to eat enough (I cart a grocery bag of snacks with me to work everyday to ensure I eat healthy food) and I don't want to have to have a treat everyday to come close because the treats aren't healthy.

Any ideas on how to add extra calories but not staying full and bloated all the time would be great. it is weird not feeling guilty about not dieting but I worry about the baby...eating more in a healthy way is harder than I thought it would be.

blu-eyedwife · September 2014

Is there a reason you are trying to maintain your weight? Losing weight during pregnancy isn't an unusual thing, and it doesn't mean your baby isn't going to get the required nutrients. I'm on the heavier side, but I definitely lost weight my first trimester because of the increase in metabolism. My doctor didn't think it was bad, and in fact cautioned me from gaining too much during my pregnancy because additional weight can add to complications during pregnancy/delivery. And I've had several friends that lost weight while pregnant also and had perfectly healthy children. (All were overweight to being with)

I'm not suggesting that you continue to diet but in the same sense, I don't think you need to overeat or make unhealthy choices to meet calorie counts. I would talk to your doctor, or even a nutritionist about what they feel is in your best interest. My gut instinct is that you should eat when you're hungry, make those choices healthy choices, and try not to fixate on numbers or calories.

ahaab80 · December 2014

Thanks for the replies you two. I lot my thread and just found out. I have a hard time with the numbers because I have struggled with my weight for so long, but my doc (as you suggested they would) said eat what I have to eat to make it through the first tri and I will be fine. And I decided to stop worrying about it. I am almost 19 weeks and have gained less than 10, and hope to gain less than 20 overall. I just want a healthy baby and healthy pregnancy/delivery. It is so much easier to make healthy choices now that everything doesn't make me queasy!

Help - eating enough to not lose weight during pregnancy

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