I
think everyone is unique. If you are not gaining weight as recommended don’t be
scared or sad. I would like to share my experience. May be it will be helpful
for you.
First
of all I just want to inform you about my weight before pregnancy. I have never
been skinny. My BMI was around 20-22, I have been watching my weight and exercising
regularly 3-4 times a week since I was 20 except during my pregnancy.
During
our first visit to our OB-GYN in week 10, they informed us about
pregnancy. One of the topics was weight
gain. They told me that I should gain between 25 and 35 pounds totally; 1 to 5
pounds in the first trimester and about 1 pound per week for the rest of my
pregnancy for the optimal growth of my baby.
Between
weeks 8 and 22, I had nausea and no appetite, the reason I was eating was just
to feel better. During these 14 weeks, I ate mostly pasta, rice, potato,
cheese, yogurt and fruit. My weight was
120 pounds before pregnancy, at the week 24 my weight was 137.7 pounds, in
other words I gained 17.6 during 24 week. I was scared gaining weight more than
needed. Because everyone told me that I will gain weight especially on my third
trimester. During my visit to OB-GYN in week 20, the doctor told me that I need
to be careful because I was gaining weight more than expected. But after week
24 I was feeling really better. I was heavier but more vibrant and the baby was
bigger that’s why I was feeling more full so I couldn’t eat a lot. I ate small
portions and almost every hour.
My
daily eating routine was like below:
- 7:00 am: half toast and an egg
- 9:00 am: half toast
- 10:00 am: fruit and some nuts or half toast or some cracker (Example for my portion for fruit and some nuts: 2-3 strawberries with 2-3 almonds or 1/ 8 cup raisin with 2-3 hazelnuts.)
- 11:30 am: fruit and some nuts or half toast or some cracker
- 01:00 pm: 400-500 calorie lunch
- 04:00 pm: fruit and some nuts or half toast or some cracker
- 06:00 pm: fruit and some nuts or half toast or some cracker
- 07:00-08:00 pm: light dinner like salad with some bread
- At least 8 glasses of WATERS
This
wasn’t like a diet plan; this was my daily eating routine. By eating small
frequent meals I wasn’t feeling full or sick, I was feeling better and lighter.
After week 24, I was feeling more vibrant so I started walking and
swimming at least 4 days. I was lucky because in my third trimester it was
summer so the weather was perfect. If it wasn’t raining we were going to
swimming and I was swimming non-stop 600-800 meters for 20-30 minutes, or we were walking about 2-3 miles for 30-40
minutes.
At
the end of my third trimester I was 147.7 pounds. So I gained 10 pounds after
the week 24 until my delivery. I suppose to gain more than the other trimesters
but it was not like that for me. This was normal for my doctor, the baby was
growing perfect. And she told me that some of pregnant women’s bodies prepare
themselves for the baby in early pregnancy maybe that’s why I gain most of the
weight in my first and second trimester.
You can see my pictures at 6, 18,30,34 weeks below.
Eventually I started with 120 pounds and ended with 147,7 pounds. I gained 27,7 pounds. I gained weight as recomended but in the first and second trimesters it was a little bit more than recomended as you can see from the chart below.
the comparison chart between recomended pregnancy weight gain and my pregnancy weight gain in pound
After
our little one arrived I wasn’t thinking about my weight anymore J . I was enjoying with my
little girl. And at the end of the first month of our baby arrived I realize
that I lost most of my pregnancy weight. I was 127.8 pounds in other words I
lost 19.8 pounds in a month. And the day
we celebrate our little baby girl’s 6th Month, I was at my pre-pregnancy
weight. And I hope to lose more J
I just want to let you know I am breastfeeding and still I couldn’t start
exercising regularly. But summer is close right now, so I planned to walk
regularly and my baby will enjoy it too.
I
just want to say if you are not gaining weight as expected but if your health
and baby’s health is ok don’t be stressed. Trust your body, it arranges
everything for you. (But sure I am not saying eat everything and don’t do any
exercise still your body will destroy your extra pounds J ) If there is something
wrong your healthcare provider will help you.
I always love hearing from you and always welcome submissions of your experience.
Update: Now our little one is 1 year old and I am 111 pounds. This is the lowest weight that I reached until now :)
You can see my pictures at 6, 18,30,34 weeks and 1 year after our little one was born.
Update: Now our little one is 1 year old and I am 111 pounds. This is the lowest weight that I reached until now :)
