I have not written anything about weight gain so far…because I am so ashamed of it.
Although I had morning sickness with my last pregnancy, I still had a tremendous appetite and ate everything in sight. So when I lost the baby at 12 weeks, I was already 5 lbs over my normal weight.
The miscarriage made me severely depressed and I ended up gaining another 5 lbs in 3 months.
So I entered this pregnancy already 10 lbs over my normal weight. And although I haven’t been eating any more or less, I still have been gaining weight like crazy.
We do not have a functioning scale at home (the one in the bathroom is broken and I still don’t know why we haven’t thrown it away) so I was shocked when at my last OB appointment, I was already up 10 lbs. That’s 10 lbs on top of the other 10.
Imagine an extra 20 lbs on a petite 5’1″ girl. NOT pretty.
Sometimes I like to chalk it up to my own body doing what it needs to do. I’m the type of person who gains anywhere from 3-6 lbs in water weight when I’m PMSing, only to lose it all when my period ends. I also like to tell myself that my breasts must account for A LOT of the weight, because not only are they up a bit more than an entire cup size, they are firm and dense.
But no matter what I tell myself, the fact remains that I am way over the recommended 2-3 lbs weight gain during the first trimester. It also doesn’t help when I keep reading stories about other pregnant ladies who aren’t gaining any weight, or actually lost weight during their first trimesters.
Purposely losing weight is not recommended for pregnant women, even if you are obese. So as much as I want to go on a diet and exercise plan to try to lose some of this extra poundage, I know that it is not healthy for the baby.
Right now, the best I can hope for is that the weight gain will taper off in the second trimester. I haven’t been exercising much for fear of losing the baby, but since the weather has gotten nicer I have started to take hour-long walks with Comang on the promenade near our house. I also plan on doing Shiva Rea’s Prenatal Yoga and Summer Sanders’ Prenatal Workout starting this week, as I enter my 12th week.
My mother told me that she gained a tremendous amount of weight with both me and sister, but was able to easily lose all the weight after birth. Since my body type is very similar to hers, I’m sincerely hoping that I’m the same way.
My doctor has yet to comment on my weight gain, which I’m seeing as a good sign. J continually tells me that I’m now more beautiful than ever and I’d like to believe him. Just as long as I’m not having any adverse side effects from the weight gain and the baby is healthy, I should be happy, right?
How much weight did my fellow mommy readers gain in your first trimester? Should I be more concerned?
All I know is that after the baby is born, I am going on a strict weight-loss plan…
