The message of a woman being conceived is harbingered by outbursts of joy from her friends as well as family alike. The mother-to- be will feel proud about her new pregnancy but then at the same time she will feel anxious for losing her hourglass figure to ungainly weight. Therefore, the present feature will bring out to you the intricacies behind weight gains and also how to keep indecent weight gain at bay.
How much a pregnant woman should gain?
A healthy pregnancy weight gain is approximately 25-35 lbs. This is all measured for by pregnancy and changes in the mother as a sequel to pregnancy. The expected weight gain distribution is 5-7 lbs the first 13 weeks, 10-14 lbs the second 13 weeks and 10-14 lbs the last 13-14 weeks.
The ideal rate of gaining weight in pregnancy
One should gain weight step-by-step during pregnancy having gained most of the weight during the last three months. Many healthcare providers suggest that pregnant women should gain weight at the following pace:
- Two to four pounds total during the 1st three months (i.e. 1st trimester)
- Three to four pounds during the 4th – 9th months (i.e. 2nd and 3rd trimesters)
The total amount of pregnancy weight gain i.e. ideally, the woman should gain during her pregnancy will depend upon the weight what she had when she became pregnant.
Women whose weight was in the healthy segment before being pregnant should gain between 25 and 35 lbs during the pregnancy. The advice is different for those who fall under the category of overweight or underweight before becoming pregnant.
Healthy routine for minimum pregnancy weight gain
- A pregnant woman should consume only 2100-2400 cal a day to gain only a proper weight
- A pregnant woman needs 75-80 gm of protein a day
- Seafood is an astounding source of protein but should not be high on iodine
- Calcium intake should be 1.2 gm a day and can be obtained from dairy products
- An evening snack with restricted calories in dinner is highly recommend
- Expecting woman should have two servings of food that contain vitamin C
- Trim excess fat from foods
- Consume natural fat
- Use lean meat an steam
- Bake or broil meat
- Use olive oil rather than vegetable oil
- Use low fat dairy products
- Avoid skimmed milks
- Avoid excess cakes, cookies, potato hips, soft drinks, sweetened juices and candy.
- Avoid artificial sweeteners
It is necessary to keep weight gain of pregnancy in check and strategies for achieving targets. If the pregnant woman gains too much weight during pregnancy, it can be hard to lose the weight after she gives birth to a baby. Most women who gained the advisable amount of weight lose it with the birth of the baby and in the months that follow.
Breastfeeding for more than three months can also help the mother losing weight gained during pregnancy and if she has gained too little weight during the pregnancy, she might have a higher risk for getting into premature delivery and/or a low birth weight infant.
It is imperative for maintaining a strict diet restriction regimen that will enable the mother to choose right calories for each food group. Furthermore, visiting a doctor regularly so they can check up on the ideal weight gain is also favorable. If a woman is gaining weight too slowly or too quick, changing the amount of food she is eating is advisable:
- The best way to eat fewer calories is by decreasing the extra amounts you are eating
- Extras are added with sugars and solid fats in foods like soft drinks, desserts, fried foods, cheese, whole milk and fatty meats.
- Look for choices that are low fat, fat free, unsweetened with no added sugars. They have fewer extras.
- Alcohol is considered an extra but you should not drink at all while pregnant
Exercise in moderation is still the best way to reduce the pregnancy weight gain
The pregnant woman should exercise at least for thirty minutes, three times in a week since her oxygen consumption will increase during pregnancy and then the intensity of exercise is to be modified. One should not push herself to pre-pregnancy limits and she should stop exercising when she feels tired. She should always precede and end each work out by a warm up and cool down periods of at least 5 min. each.
Therefore, it is always advisable to have a strict monitoring ensuring a healthy weight gain during the gestational period. The trusted dietitian must be involved and kept informed for any unnatural weight gain during the entire period of pregnancy particularly the last trimester. Not every expecting mother shall this ensure as pregnant woman has maximum chances of getting the pre- pregnancy figure back but though confirm that she will have quality time with her precious baby.
