Calorie intake whilst pregnant

[dancinglorna1984]

Hi everyone,

I am new to mumsnet as I have recently discovered me and my husband are expecting our first baby in August.

I have been reading information on various websites and forums regarding weight gain during pregnancy and found pretty much everywhere has its own opinion... I am in the process of waiting for my first midwife appointment so at present I am slightly unsure what to think.

As I fell pregnant a lot quicker than I ever expected I did hope to lose some more weight before hand and for my height I would be classed as 'overweight'. So basically I am trying (and failing) to establish how many calories I need to consume on a daily basis to maintain my weight and limit the amount I put on whilst ensuring the baby is healthy.

Any opinions and advice would be much appreciated.

Thank you :)

Yep, no actual eating for 2 is recommended. The 3rd is where you're 'allowed' an extra slice of brown toast a day or something! I'd recommend just seeing how you go. I believe you can do Slimming World whilst pg if it's of concern to you, but tbh I'd just go with how you feel. Personally I can't imagine being hungry whilst pg. if you plan on giving breast feeding a go, it's a great way of shifting those fat stores that you will naturally lay down.

However, from experience my first pregnancy I lost weight in the first month - my body was obviously putting energy into gearing up for its job. Also in the first trimester I'd wake up hungry in the middle of the night (glass of milk would sort it). I ended up from a BMI of about 25 putting on about 3 stone. I didn't have much trouble losing it, although I didn't breast feed for long. My body shape did change slightly - wider chest, wider feet.

This time I've not been anywhere as near as hungry, but I've been eating more cos it's the last I'll get away with it! I've got a slightly higher BMI but haven't put on as much as I thought I would've by now.

At the moment I don't really have much of an appetite but I am sure that will change after the first trimester. I have never been so tired in my life!

I was wiped out first time round too - bed at 9 o'clock type of thing. 2nd time I'm much better, lasting till 11pm. I don't know whether it's cos my body's done it before or my concept of what tired us has shifted somewhat. The 2nd is good though, you generally get some energy back.

Yep, that's how I have been feeling. I find that after I get in from work I don't even have the energy to make dinner sometimes. I think I may need to look at doing some batch cooking when I do have the energy to make life a bit easier.

Focus on nutrition, not calories.

Make sure you're eating foods full of vitamins, calcium, omega-3 etc. Try not to fill up on foods with little nutritional benefit. Listen to your body and only eat when you're truly hungry. Of course you can allow yourself some treats, but if you're concerned about weight gain, don't make them daily.

In my first two pregnancies, I was a lot hungrier than normal, but was sure to snack on 'good' things. In this pregnancy I honestly haven't really noticed a change in appetite: I'm 36wks now and don't think I'm eating much more than pre-pregnancy (maybe even less, since I used to workout a lot and needed to eat to replace that energy). Baby is the right size and all is well: clearly it's getting everything it needs. I'll never skip a meal, but there are days when I will just have cereal or soup for dinner: I won't force down a 'proper' meal if I don't want it.

Be sure to drink lots and lots.

And exercise!!! Move, move, move. Anything you were doing pre-pg you can continue with (unless it's contact sport or something crazy like deep-sea diving...). Otherwise walk as much as you can. This will go a long way towards controlling weight gain.

I ended up following a diabetic diet as my consultant thought I was developing gestational diabetes. You are allowed 3 meals and 2 snacks a day, all low GI. I was back in my pre pregnancy clothes within 6 weeks and my baby was a good healthy weight.
So it is possible to eat healthily and keep the weight gain under control :-)