Hi I am currently pregnanct with my third hild (due March12th) and I have already gained 10 lbs. (9 1/2 weeks) This scares me as I need to keep my weight under control.

I am 5'4" and 158lbs. I gain VERY easily and was wondering how everyone is doing with the low carb/mintennace while pregnanct? Especailly through the nausea?

Any help would be greatly apprecaited!!!!

First, congrats on your pregnancy! Now, since this is my first, I'm still learning all the calculations...so what are you, about 8-9 weeks along or so? I personally think it's awful that everywhere you read things about NOT gaining during the first trimester...or, if so, only about 5 pounds or something ridiculous like that. I think it sets you up for frustration. And I, too, gain very easily when I go off-plan, so I feel for you.

I'm nearing 19 weeks and up 14 pounds, so I doubt I'm any shining example of how to do this right. My rib cage and stomach (everying from below my breasts to my lower tummy) has expanded outward...making me feel more fat than pregnant. There were some points where I felt I've had a reasonable pace of weight gain, but just as many times I've had water retention spikes and scares and a lot of carb pitfalls along the way! If nothing else, I'll commiserate with you, but I'll also share my approach in the hopes it might help.

I'm trying to recall how I've gained since sometimes it feels like a blur. At first it seemed pretty good (a good pace) but the last few weeks I saw a jump that concerned me (I'm in my 18th week now). For me the weird thing was NOT having nausea during the first trimester, so I ate well and didn't experience any of that first trimester "losing" (because of barfing) that so many women talk about. It was comforting to not be experiencing such problematic symptoms, but on the other hand, it was very easy for me to eat plenty and gain consistently from day 1 as a result!

I remember starting out all worried about carb levels and shooting for a much higher amount than I'd been doing for weight loss (was doing PP and about 30-40 net and immediately shot up to 100 or so). I didn't feel right and the scale seemed to jump, so within a few weeks I just went back to eating the way I'd come to enjoy and to which my body responded well. I've had some difficulty keeping LC with lots of sugar cravings along the way, but I try hard to keep coming back to what I know and what my body likes. Specifically I don't overly worry about "maintenance" levels or anything like that. I try to be intuitive, concentrating on protein and lots of yummy fat (to satiate and keep the calories at a good level) plus veggies and LC fruits. I do step into the grain zone on occasion but try hard to make it whole grains (ala SB I guess) or something like Dreamfields pasta. I have succumbed to the lure of ice cream quite a time or two since becoming pregnant. But I do try to "mostly" eat the LC way I did before all these changes took place! Oh yes, and when I first began I was exercising pretty regularly. I got off track within the last couple of weeks (which no doubt has exacerbated my accelerated weight gain) because I've been tired and depressed, but I've managed to start back up again. (I've found if I allow myself to do whatever kind of exercise I feel like, without feeling obligated, it works better. For awhile it was pilates and water aerobics and now I'm revisiting my weight training and cardio. I figure it's all good.)

There you have it. My journey so far in a nutshell. Congrats again and good luck with everything. Remember just to focus on health the best you can and don't feel discouraged with weight spikes. As long as you're eating well and feeling good, I'm betting it will all work out.

In my experience, the people who gain the most, go back to normal most quickly. I know that it is not the "research" news, but it is what I have observed.

Janine

Have to disagree with you on that. My first I gained 4olbs and kept 20 of it. In my second I gain 20 lbs and lost all of it plus 5 more.

Purely personal, but on the two babies where I was most consciencious about eating small and often, I gained the least amount of weight. The baby where I ate when I was hungry, I gained a lot!

If you can manage it, eat a small amount every 90 minutes or so. That should help keep the nausea under control, and it means you never get really hungry, so you are less likely to go on a binge.

I had 3 babies, and I LCed for all 3 of them, once the nausea/vomiting improved. I did gain weight in the beginning of the pregnancies, but the weight gain slowed (or even stopped) as soon as I went back to LC around 5 months, and all my babies were born healthy (still are at 6,4,2 years old) and healthy weights. I was back to pre-pregnancy weight with all 3 of them in 7 days after they were born.

Good luck and congrats! Just do the best you can, it will all be OK no matter what, as long as you take good care of yourself and don't go nuts with food!