Each woman enjoys watching her appearance, especially her figure. However, during pregnancy, everything happens differently. Appearing body fat is an essential condition for the normal development of the baby. Some women lament: “I get well during pregnancy.” What should I do in this situation? And in general, is there a norm of weight gain for expectant mothers?
How to weigh?
To track changes in the weight of the pregnant woman, it is necessary to organize the weighing correctly. So experts recommend sticking to a few tips:
- body weight measurements should be done once a week;
- the best time to weigh is the morning before breakfast;
- for accurate results, the bladder and large intestine should be empty;
- It is necessary to use the same floor scales;
- expectant mother needs to be weighed in certain clothes or without them at all;
- the received data must be recorded in a special notebook or notebook.
These recommendations will be needed only for women who are constantly weighed at home. But for pregnant women who undergo this procedure with a gynecologist, it is worth attending a women's consultation exclusively at the same time. Before weighing, a woman must empty her bladder.
Calculation of body mass index
To determine how much you can recover during pregnancy, you need to calculate your body mass index. This indicator will help establish whether the woman was overweight before and how much she should gain during pregnancy.
Calculating it is very simple. For this, body weight is divided by height (in meters) squared. For example, with a weight of 60 kg and a height of 175 cm (1.75 m), this figure will be equal to 19.59.
There are special calculators for determining weight changes in pregnant women. They indicate the following values of indicators:
- weight before pregnancy (in kg);
- height (in cm);
- the start date of the last critical days or the gestational age in weeks;
- weight at the last weighing (in kg);
- one or multiple pregnancy.
Thus, the allowable rate of weight gain is determined and how it will increase after a while.
What is the weight of the future mother?
In the case of pregnancy, a woman’s weight is not only the mass of internal organs, body fluids and body fat. In addition to them, a new person is developing in the body of the future mother. It has its own mass, which is increasing every week.
The expectant mother begins to fill up the mammary glands, which also have a certain weight. When does the breast stop growing during pregnancy? Its growth stops 10 weeks after conception. However, this is not a final process. A few weeks before giving birth, the breasts begin to increase in size again. This is due to the preparation of the mammary glands for feeding the baby.
Pregnant weight gain is due to growth:
- blood volumes (1-2 kg of weight gain);
- amniotic fluid (1 kg);
- placenta (0.5-1 kg);
- uterus (0.9-1.5 kg);
- mammary glands (0.5-1 kg);
- fluid in tissues (2.5-3 kg);
- fat reserves (3-4 kg);
- and the weight of the baby before childbirth (3-4 kg).
Therefore, the statement of a woman “getting better during pregnancy” may be the result of changes in the body, rather than poor nutrition.
What affects weight gain?
Many women are interested in the question: "How can you not get better during pregnancy?" Experts unequivocally answer that in any way. The ongoing processes in the body involve weight gain, but a number of factors affect what it will be.
- The presence and level of toxicosis in the first trimester affects the weight of the expectant mother. Since women lose a lot of fluids due to vomiting. Therefore, dehydration may occur and weight loss will be observed.
- Pathologies associated with the course of pregnancy. Such as polyhydramnios or the presence of edematous syndrome. They lead to weight gain.
- The age of a woman. Experts say that the older the expectant mother, the higher the likelihood that she will gain more kilograms: the body in adulthood is prone to overweight.
- Bearing twins or triplets leads to a more significant increase in body weight.
- The weight of the baby. Sometimes weight gain depends on the child being born. So, while waiting for a large child, the mass of the placenta increases and the total weight of the woman becomes more.
The diet and the amount of fluid consumed directly affects the metabolism of a woman, as well as the change in the mass of the placenta, amniotic fluid, uterus and the baby himself. Women whose legs got better during pregnancy note that during this period they loved to lie in bed longer and eat sweets.
Pregnancy Weight Gain
How many kilograms do women gain during pregnancy? If the expectant mother had a normal physique and the correct complexion, then the weight gain, according to the average body mass index, should not exceed 10-15 kg. If body weight was reduced, then an increase of 12-18 kg is considered normal. In case of excess weight, a woman should not add more than 4-9 kg. For better visualization, imagine the rate of weight gain during pregnancy by week in the table.
Pregnancy week | Weekly increase | Total increase |
1-4 | 0 g | 0 kg |
5-9 | -200 / + 200 g | -2 / + 1 kg |
10-14 | -200 / + 200 g | -2 / + 2 kg |
15-18 | + 100-200 g | + 1-4 kg |
19-23 | + 100-200 g | + 3-5 kg |
24-28 | + 300-500 g | + 5-8 kg |
29-32 | + 300-500 g | + 7-11 kg |
33-36 | + 300-500 g | + 8-13 kg |
37-40 | -300 / + 300 g | + 8-15 kg |
How much can you recover during pregnancy? If a woman is expected to have twins or even triplets, then weight gain occurs in other proportions. For expectant mothers with normal body weight, an increase of 15-25 kg is characteristic. If they have obesity, then body weight may increase to 10-21 kg.
If a woman is interested in the question: “How quickly does the breast grow during pregnancy?”, Then the answer cannot be unequivocal. In girls of normal complexion, the breasts fill up faster and gain more weight than those who have extra pounds.
Thus, thin women before pregnancy can gain more kilograms than overweight women.
Weight gain during pregnancy by week: table
To evaluate the results and analyze the increase in body weight of a pregnant woman, experts developed indicators of the norm of weight gain.
Pregnancy week | BMI <19.8 (increase in kg) | BMI = 19.8-26.0 (increase in kg) | BMI> 26 (increase in kg) |
2-6 | 0.5 - 1.4 | 0.5 - 1.0 | 0.5 - 0.6 |
8-12 | 1.6 - 2.0 | 1.2 - 1.5 | 0.7 - 0.9 |
10-14 | 1.8 - 2.7 | 1.3 - 1.9 | 0.8 - 1.0 |
16-20 | 3.2 - 5.4 | 2.3 - 4.8 | 1.4 - 2.9 |
22-26 | 6.8 - 9.8 | 5.7 - 7.7 | 3.4 - 5.0 |
28-32 | 9.8 - 11.3 | 8.2 - 10.0 | 5.4 - 6.4 |
34-38 | 12.5 - 14.5 | 10.9 - 12.7 | 7.3 - 8.6 |
40 | 15,2 | 13.6 | 9.1 |
Each of these indicators still depends on the constitution of the body of the expectant mother and her body mass index. Norms reflect weight gain for all weeks of pregnancy. Such a table helps not only the gynecologist, but also gives the woman the opportunity to understand what to expect during the gestation of the child.
The main changes in the body weight of a pregnant woman directly depend on the metabolism, nutritional characteristics and needs of the child. This only confirms the individual character of this indicator.
Pregnancy Nutrition
So that a woman does not make excuses to everyone: “I became fat during pregnancy,” we must give preference to a balanced diet.
Expectant mother needs to think carefully about her diet and create a menu for every day. In this case, the calorie content of dishes should be taken into account. For this, experts recommend using special tables that indicate the number of calories in a particular product. When shopping at the supermarket, a pregnant woman is recommended to study the composition and calorie content of the product.
Products with high nutritional value include sunflower and butter, confectionery and pastries. During pregnancy, it is not necessary to exclude them from the diet. The best option is to use such products in smaller quantities.
But carbonated drinks, fast food, chips and crackers should generally be excluded from the daily menu. They not only negatively affect the figure of the future mother, but also harm the health of the child.
While waiting for the baby, the woman is recommended to consume as many fruits and vegetables as possible. Since they are rich in fiber, they improve metabolism and remove toxins from the body.
If a woman does not want to utter a phrase like “I’m getting better during pregnancy,” then she needs to eat food several times a day, in small portions. In no case should you overeat, this can cause indigestion.
Danger of being overweight
During pregnancy, it is quite difficult for many women to overcome themselves and refuse to use sweets and other harmful products. Often they don’t want to follow the rules: do physical exercises daily, adjust their daily routine and nutrition. To pull yourself together, you need a good incentive. For many of them, this motive is becoming overweight.
Overweight leads to malfunctions in the body of a pregnant woman:
- metabolism worsens;
- shortness of breath appears;
- varicose veins develops;
- pains in the back are observed;
- blood pressure rises;
- hemorrhoids develop.
Overweight can cause complications during childbirth. Since the muscles lose their elasticity, they are filled with a lot of fat and water. In addition, the child also gains weight disproportionately and can be very large, which will lead to his difficult movement through the birth canal.
Conclusion
So that later the young mother would not say: “I get much better during pregnancy,” she needs to monitor her nutrition from an early date. She must understand that her healthy body is the key to the well-being of her future baby. And the satisfaction of all your desires in junk food will not lead to the desired results, but only add experience after childbirth.