Gaining Weight While Pregnant

If you are pregnant you will gain weight, and that is not a bad thing.  If you are afraid that you are starting to look like your mother, then maybe you need to place the entire weight loss, and pregnancy thing into perspective. 

If your mother is overweight, it is not because she had a child, it is because she ate too many calories throughout the course of her life.  Granted that the obesity issue became apparent at child birth, but the child is not the cause for being overweight.

One thing that a mother to be must know is that no matter what, the baby is going to take what it needs first, and after that mommy can have what is left.  The goal is to ensure that the baby develops to become a healthy child.  The child taking the needed nutrients is not selfish of the baby, it is just a fact that this is how a woman’s body is built. 

 

One issue that appears too often is the fact that a mother to be worries more about what not to do, and not enough on what should be done.  You know that you need to stop the vodka shots, but are you taking the time to ensure the fetus is getting the nutrients it needs?

As with any decent meal or diet plan, whether pregnant or not, that plan needs to include a well rounded selection of food choices combined with moderate exercise.  This is not only important before the child is born, but after the birth takes place.

You need to check with your doctor to ensure you are eating the correct food types in not only quantity, but also in quality.    It is during the last few months of the pregnancy that mom begins to feel as if she is overweight, and may be doomed to remain that way for life.  This obesity, and pregnancy is one issue that really does not have to happen with the proper mind set, and forethought.

How much weight you need to gain during pregnancy directly relates to how much you weighed before the conception.  If you were overweight before the conception, you do not need to gain as much weight, and with the proper diet you could be in a healthier state after the birth of the child.  If you are really thin, and become pregnant you will more than likely gain a higher proportion of body fat.

One thing you must avoid during the pregnancy is binge eating.  Do not use being pregnant as a reason to eat 7 bags of chocolate a week.  Do not give yourself a permission slip to become obese merely because you are with child.  Whether you are pregnant, or not is irrelevant to the issue of becoming obese.  If you binge eat because you are pregnant, the results will be the same even if you are not pregnant.  Do not use the child as your reason to overeat, and then use the pregnancy as the reason for the weight gain.

Also you need realistic expectations when you have a child.  You will gain weight while pregnant, but that weight does not have to be permanent.  You do not have to gain 50 pounds when having a child and whatever amount you do gain can be lost after the birth of the child.  What you do and how long it takes will all depend on the choices you make each and every day during the pregnancy.