Advice to slow down weight gain

[bloomety]

I feel so crap. I’m 12 weeks pregnant and I’ve put on 9lbs already. The first few weeks I was feeling so sick if I didn’t eat every 2 hours.

For the last couple of weeks, I’m just getting hungrier quicker. So I’ll have breakfast of say fried egg on toast at 8:30 and by 11:15 I’m absolutely starving and food is all I can think about.

Can anyone offer any advice please? I use to love my body shape, now I’m finding I can’t look in the mirror because of how big my thighs and hips are . It’s just going to get worse too if I don’t find a way to control it. I wish I could diet but obviously that’s out of the question.

I walked a lot and ate a lot of veggies later on... The first 12 weeks all I could keep down were carbs lol. I'm sure the walking helped with labour as well. Was walking right up to my due date when I went into labour. I put on 2 stone but it disappeared in the 2 weeks after my daughter was born so try not to worry.

Yes, I'd say walking would help too. Also, just making easy switches to low fat versions of stuff.

Thanks ladies. I’m not very active so you’re probably right. I’ll aim to go a walk every day. It’s this weather, I don’t like going out in the cold but I suppose it’s ok if it’s not raining.

Deliberately change your vocabulary: You're not absolutely starving, you're a bit peckish. It's normal to feel hungry before meals. Note that, and then deliberately think about something else. You'll need to keep doing it (as the mind will continue to wander), but catch the thought each and every time and redirect.

Plan what you are doing to eat to maximise satiety - I find soup filling, plus bananas. You might have other preferences, but in general high fibre food is slower transit.

Hi! I'd say definitely walk every day, keep active for an hour a day and just eat sensibly. I craved salty, fatty foods early on but I always refused and tried to have something healthy instead. It's really hard with cravings but I tried to do 'mind over matter'! I am 34 weeks now and I can't walk far so I'm finding I'm gaining weight. I tried to be as healthy as I could during 1st and 2nd trimesters as I knew the 3rd would be tough. I do feel like I'm very inactive and slow now and I miss being able to walk for more than ten mins without needing a wee or having pelvic pain! I also feel like I don't want to leave the house much with lockdown and COVID so I'd say keep being active and eating well up until the point where your body is telling you to slow down. It defo helped me, even though I have gained weight I know it would have been much more if I'd given into cravings and hadn't forced myself out for exercise during those early weeks!

I very rarely post but the answers to this (especially about changing your vocabulary ffs ) are really unhelpful. OP you are growing a person, and if you’re not hugely overeating (and it doesn’t sound like you are) there’s very little you can do about how hungry you are or the weight you put on. Despite not eating much extra, I gained a stone in the first trimester for each of three pregnancies, but I only put 2 stone on overall and lost it within months of birth. Our bodies don’t always work like it says in the pregnancy books, and if you need to eat, eat. It’s even more important when you’re breastfeeding as well. You can always lose the weight later but don’t spend the next six months beating yourself up about yourself body changing when that is exactly what it is designed to do.

I was so sick if i didn't eat every 2hours with DD, i literally had to crawl out of bed in the morning. The ONLY thing i could eat was hot buttery toast, i went through nearly a loaf daily at the beginning. I switched to rice cakes rather than pringles on my night shifts etc, i think after id gained a 1st, but ive now lost it all and some.

Ps an example of things I would eat would be...

Weetabix for breakfast.
Fruit/smoothie at like 11am.
Homemade soup for lunch (bit obsessed with making soup!) with toast.
Yoghurt and granola snack at like 3/4pm.
Salmon, rice and veg for dinner - some other things I try to have are chicken with potato and veg, Spag Bol, chilli, avocado and poached egg on toast, omelette etc - just normal dinners!!
Cereal bar/fruit/rice cakes with Nutella after dinner (my treat!)
Loads of water!

By no means perfect!! Probs a bit more sugar in there than I should! but overall, just happy I'm not getting chips and pizzas and burgers etc and stuffing my face with sweets and choc.

I found my first trimester I gained weight and it was mainly due to bloating and water retention.
Drank lots of water and kept active and the bloating left around 16 weeks.
Have 3 meals per day and 2 snacks to keep your hunger levels at bay and your blood sugar levels stable. Keep active. I found keeping active gave me good stead for labour.
Congratulations xx

protein keeps you fuller for longer, try snacking on like carrot sticks and humous or yogurt, or even a glass of milk. Stay away from sweets and chocolates, have them as a treat.
Walking is good for your overall health, especially when its cold it really warms you up. If its raining I prefer to run, but if you really can't get yourself out, walk up and down your stairs for 10 mins. I walk up and down them 5x as a warm up before doing weights, you quickly get out of breath!

I'm 31 weeks & have gained more already now than I did in my entire 1st pregnancy!
I was a lot more active last time & have SPD this time so not up to much & obviously gyms & pools closed now.
Don't worry too much unless you know yourself you're overdoing it & just try to go for a healthy alternative when you're hungry.

I put on a stone by week 10 and it never occurred to me to 'slow down' the weight gain. It was natural and the best thing for the baby. That's the most important thing. I put on 3 stone in total (so the weight gain naturally slowed down despite me permanently stuffing me face!) and I was back to 9 stone less than a year after the birth.

Unless there's some back story we don't know e.g you were obese when u conceived, I'd just let the weight go on rather than trying to fight nature. If in any doubt talk to your midwife. All the best with the pregnancy.

I manage by not having much in to snack on. Sure I could have lunch at 11am, but then I'd be hungry by 2pm, and it's a long wait from then till 6pm when we have dinner, and there's nothing to nibble on in the meantime. Well, I could eat tomorrow's lunch, but then I'd be hungry tomorrow, and so on. Obviously I make sure I am eating enough, but my weight gain is on track so it must be okay.

I find drinking water or any (preferably sugar free) drink really helps ease hunger pangs.

Thank you everyone.

To the person that told me to change my vocabulary to “a bit peckish” I’m not peckish - I am absolutely starving. My stomach is growling for food. I cannot focus on anything else as it takes over everything. That’s how hungry I’m getting.

I think exercise and snacks are the way to go. I’ve got yoghurts but I don’t find they fill me up very much. I could eat fruit though and smoothies. My mistake has been having my lunch at 11:15 because I’m so hungry but then at 4:15 I’m starving again and eat a cheese sandwich or something, but then I don’t want my tea and feel sick.

I know my body is craving food so I should eat, I guess I need to make sure I’m eating the right things instead of sandwiches and crisps.

I agree that this should not read like a diet thread. Yes you can be more active and make healthy choices but your body is currently going through incredible changes, not just growing the baby but increasing the amount of blood in your body, etc etc. I was exactly the same that the only way to get through the first trimester was eating to stave off nausea, and what I needed to eat was carby. In both my pregnancies I gained close to 4 stone! And lost it all within a year or so each time. That may horrify some but I see it as a natural part of the process. I think if there’s any reframing language, it should be more looking critically at feeling so down about it - you are beautiful and doing a beautiful thing!

Thank you @Merename. It’s because my self esteem has always lain in being in control of my weight. In my first pregnancy I only gained significantly in the third trimester. I’m just panicking a bit that if I’m starting out putting on this much, how am I going to be in third? I was only 9st 12lb to start so not heavy.

@bloomety also im with you with the starving! I have my lunch at 11:30 most days and have a bagel with cream cheese at 4, and then dinner (thats 1/2 of what I usually eat since I get full). Im now waking back up at 4am starving! So after suggesting carrot sticks and humous to you, im going to take my own advise and have some at 4am 🙈 Im suffering with insomnia!
I don't think there is a normal at all. I have gained less weight than all these calculators say I should have 🤷🏼‍♀️ expecting a huge increase in third trimester

@blodyn91 I’ve been suffering with insomnia too. I’ve been waking up at 5am and wide awake. I had to take a pack of digestives to bed as after a while my stomach would start grumbling.

@Dunebuggy excellent post. Sorry, just hopping on to say that and reiterate the same message.

Following as this is a concern of mine as well recently lost 3 stone before falling pregnant so trying to not put the weight on so quickly (I definitely ate for 2 in my first pregnancy)

I'm 9 weeks tomorrow and so far put on about 5lbs. I have been keeping more active this time (managed to get my hands on a treadmill just before 2nd lockdown!) So have been doing 30 - 45 mins a day on that and making sure I walk for the school run for dd1 instead of driving (even in the pouring rain!)

I knownits natural to gain weight in pregnancy, but just trying to slow it down a bit and keep active for as long as possible

Go easy on yourself OP. I’m 3rd pregnancy here and like you feel so starving and eating can be only thing that makes my nausea go away/ energy levels go up. I find I’ll go through one day of eating far too many snacks & overdoing it, then the next (maybe I’m still full from day before?!) I ease off again. Like you I also eat lunch too early as I’m starving!! Trying to hold out to 12....
I know I’ve done this twice before, gained weight sure but lost it all over time and got back in pretty (boasting here!) great shape through exercise post pregnancy. So I’m going easy on myself even though I’m definitely already gaining weight at just 9 weeks.
Agree with Dunebuggy too and find a lot of these posts, prior to her post incredibly patronising!!

@bloomety if it helps, I am pg with 2nd and same as 1st - breakfast at 8:30/9am (porridge w honey and sometimes a croissant and coffee) and by 11:30 I was running for lunch (massive Wasabi curry). I put on weight from week 4 to about 20 and then stayed the same till birth.

I did an awful lot of exercise, more than most non-pg people do so that helped a lot.

If you can, exercise. Cycle (I prefer that to walking when pg), but anything will do really. You need about 1-2 hours a day (yes) to keep eating and healthy.

Ultimately I would eat as much as you please but try and cut out any real crap (if you can). I am extremely undisciplined in my carbs and am happy to have carbs only as I really dislike veg. I also weighted myself daily ( I don't now as I have no time and I am somewhat less worried now).

Good luck :)