There's no getting around weight gain during pregnancy, of course. But it's important to understand how much weight you should gain, why your body is putting on pounds and how it plays a role in what happens after the baby arrives. So, how much weight should a woman gain during pregnancy? It all depends on her body mass index BMI before she gets pregnant. According to the Institute of Medicine IOM , women who are considered underweight should aim to gain 28 to 40 lbs. For women who are pregnant with twins, the recommended weight gain amounts are higher.
And although a weight gain of 25 to 35 lbs. As illustrated in the infographic below, pregnancy pounds also come from the placenta , the growing uterus and growing breasts, and increased blood and fluid volume in the woman's body. And yes, added fat also weighs in. In addition, some studies suggest that gaining too much weight during pregnancy increases the likelihood of a cesarean-section delivery , according to the review.
While C-sections are generally considered safe, they do carry additional risks compared with vaginal births. For example, a C-section is a major surgical procedure, and having a C-section for a first birth can often lead to repeat C-sections in future deliveries. According to the IOM, one of the major reasons women should limit their weight gain during pregnancy is to reduce risks to the baby's health.
Metabolic syndrome is a combination of medical issues that include high blood pressure, a large waist circumference and low levels of "good" cholesterol. Finally, gaining too much weight during pregnancy also may be associated with preeclampsia , the authors wrote. Preeclampsia is a serious complication that can develop during pregnancy when a woman has both high blood pressure and excess levels of protein in her urine.
It can put both the mother and the baby at risk. But the amount of weight a woman gains should not be spread equally over the three trimesters of pregnancy. The IOM advises women to gain between 1. Then, during both the second and third trimesters, women are advised to gain 0.
The IOM advises that, during these trimesters, underweight and normal-weight women gain 1 lb. But a key point for expecting women to keep in mind is that the amount of weight gained during pregnancy is associated with the amount of weight lost afterward — quite strongly, in fact.
Losing Weight After Pregnancy - How to Lose Baby Weight
Jacinda Nicklas, an assistant professor of internal medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and the lead author of the review. Oken agreed. But despite the risks associated with gaining too much weight during pregnancy , between 40 and 60 percent of women gain more than the guidelines recommend. To keep weight gain within a healthy range, a woman should certainly not be "eating for two," experts say.
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A woman needs "close to zero extra calories in the first trimester," Rasmussen said. Even so, a lot of the "overgain" that women experience happens in that first trimester, she said. Indeed, studies show that despite recommendations that women gain the least amount of weight during the first trimester, in reality, this is often the trimester when the largest amount of excessive weight gain pounds gained above the recommended levels occurs. And doing so can have negative consequences. Too much weight gain in the first trimester was also linked to higher blood pressure after pregnancy than was weight gain in the second or third trimesters.
The excess weight gained above the recommended amount during the first trimester is primarily fat, as opposed to weight from the fetus, the placenta or extra fluid in the woman's body because these weigh very little at this point in the pregnancy , according to the researchers. Unlike fluid and nonfat tissue, this fat gain is likely more difficult to lose after pregnancy, according to the researchers. For example, women who experience the fatigue that is very common in the first trimester may overeat; other women may experience nausea that's helped by snacking, she said.
And "in some cases, women might think that, 'Well, now that I'm pregnant, weight gain is expected, so I don't need to think so much about what I'm eating,'" Oken said. It's these women whom doctors especially want to educate about healthy weight gain during pregnancy, she added.
However, "many women don't see their OBs [obstetricians] until the end of the first trimester, so we need to get the word out" in other ways, Oken said. In order to keep weight gain within the guidelines, Oken recommends that women focus on eating nutrient-dense foods , including fruit, dairy products and nuts, and especially avoid "empty" calories or extra desserts.
Also, pregnant women should try to avoid drinking their calories in sugar-sweetened beverages, and instead make sure to drink plenty of water, as the symptoms of thirst such as fatigue and irritability can sometimes be mistaken for hunger, she said. Pregnancy can be stressful, and focusing so much on being perfect causes needless worrying during pregnancy, said Katherine Tallmadge, a registered dietitian and an op-ed contributor to Live Science.
It's OK to indulge occasionally, but it's still important to be smart about such indulgences in order to avoid overgaining, Tallmadge told Live Science.
Losing weight after pregnancy
So, when moms-to-be treat themselves, they should try for smaller amounts or stay on the healthier side of the "treat," she said. For example, if you're craving pizza, go for vegetable, she said. Women who have gained too much shouldn't get discouraged, because everyone gains weight at different rates, Nicklas said.
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Women who do gain too much early on in pregnancy should try to slow their rate of weight gain as their pregnancy progresses, she said. Games New Search. The secret to losing weight after delivery is to eat small meals frequently. New moms, incorporate exercise into your day.
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If you find that you are losing more than two pounds a week, you may need to add an extra snack to your day to slow weight loss down. Hello Acne! During pregnancy, there is an increase of up to 50 percent in circulating blood volume. This increased blood flow manifests itself in many places, especially in the face where blood vessels become more dilated to accommodate the extra volume. If your skin reverts to its pre-pregnancy pimply state once you stop breastfeeding, start using a retinoid or OTC retinol, suggests Dr.
An exclusively breastfed baby needs around to calories a day for healthy growth and development—if it's your milk that is providing those calories, guess where that comes from?
6 Things Every Woman Should Know About Losing Weight After Pregnancy
Don't get discouraged if you don't experience quick postpartum weight loss—the longer you breastfeed, the more helpful it is for weight loss. There are some exercises, such as kegels and abdominal bracing contracting the abs, lower back, and buttock muscles at the same time , that you can start to do immediately after you deliver.
However, it is true that you should return to your full exercise routine very gradually. The extra baggage is from a condition called diastasis recti , a separation of the outermost abdominal muscles. When the muscles separate, the connective tissue joining them stretches sideways and becomes thinner. So now the weak connective tissue is supporting the organs instead of stomach muscles, says Julie Tupler, coauthor of Lose Your Mummy Tummy. Up to 90 percent of women will experience stretch marks during pregnancy, says Dr. But you can minimize them.