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Calories in a day during pregnancy?
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Anonymous
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Did anyone ever make recommendations to you or provide guidelines about how many calories to have each day while you're pregnant? I know that for most people the tendency is to overeat, but I want to make sure that I'm not only eating healthy foods but the right amount of them. I'm very stressed out about gaining a lot of weight while pregnant - I'm starting my pregnancy out about 20 lbs more than I probably should be - so I'm kinda freaked out about gaining a lot and getting it back off afterwards.
I feel like it would help to have a healthy range of calories to stick to eating on most days so I can feel like I'm giving the baby enough, but not going overboard or underboard. I'm 5'4 and weigh about 150. Thoughts? |
Anonymous
| I would love to know this answer as well. When I was feeling very sick to my stomach, calories were not at all a concern for me. Now I am feeling better, instead of counting calories, I try to only eat foods that have a nutritional value. 100-calorie packs may be only 100-calories, but provide zero nutritional value to mommy and baby. Instead of counting calories, I just try to eat "real" food, even if it is full fat cheeses. |
Anonymous
| My doctor said something along the lines of -- it's important to remember that you are NOT really eating for two; you only need an extra 300 calories per day to provide proper nutrition for youself and the baby. |
Anonymous
| I agree with the 300 extra per day. I wouldn't add sweets though. Maybe an extra glass of milk, an apple and a cup of yogurt or a string cheese. |
Anonymous
| Definitely no more than 300, and if you're already overweight, you can probably get away with less. The fetus/baby will take what it needs first, you'll get "shortchanged". |
Anonymous
| Yes, it is around an extra 300 calories per day. I was basically told to eat 6 times per day. Breakfast, then snack, then lunch, then snack, then dinner, then snack before bed. Snacks for me were mainly fruit, veggies w/hummus, or yogurt with granola. |
Anonymous
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I've heard that you need about 300 extra calories, which *should* result in about a 29-lb weight gain over the pregnancy. Maybe you could use one of those websites to figure out what your normal (non-pregnant) calorie intake should be, then add 300 calories. Remember that if you curtail your activity level dramatically and burn fewer calories than you were before, you might gain more.
I actually had to cut my calories while pregnant, because I was so physically active before and my normal calorie intake was so high. I kept eating like I had been (while still exercising, but less strenuously) and gained a LOT of weight. Cutting calories while prego is hard! (and counter-intuitive.) |
sybersus
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| In case it is useful, here is the link to the nutrition guidelines that my midwives use: http://wisdomwhc.blogspot.com/p/nutrition-in-pregnancy-wisdom.html. Best of luck! |