I am a FAT storing machine! Argh.

[Junglemum]

This is as much a vent as anything else, but i figure someone might have some advice for me.

I am generally a reasonably fit person, no elite athlete, but like to keep fit. I have been pregnant 5 times and each time, within the 2WW i put on 4-6kgs. Nothing changes diet or exercise wise, except i start storing fat.

I put on 30kgs with the last two and am heading for that again. I don't have scales, but got on some scales at the drs the other day and if they are correct i have put on 18kgs.

Now you would probably assume i just make poor food choices. I am no saint, but by and large i have a pretty good diet.

Breakfast: Fruitsalad and greek yoghurt or natural muslie and greek yoghurt or toast and a coffee. Yes it's full fat yoghurt and yes it's full fat milk (i can't usually get skim, i'm lucky to be able to buy milk! ) in my coffee, but that's not too bad is it?? the yoghurt costs me $15 for 500g so i don't have a lot!

Lunch: Rice and tuna (90% of the time), cucumber or vegemite sandwich, or leftovers from dinner.

Dinner: anything from BBQ to curry, stirfry or whatever Olive posts on FB. But i always have lots of green leafy veg, carrots, beans, pumpkin, sweet potato because that's pretty much all i can get.

Snacks are always pineapple or pawpaw or occasionally a biscuit i have made or a caramello koala.

We have dessert about once a week, sometimes twice if there are leftovers or we have dinner guests. I live in a developing nation where the is NO fast food, NO restaurants, NO chocolate (unless you drive a few hours to get it and pay $10 for a tiny bar). I drink mainly water, or soda water. i sometimes have lime cordial in my soda water.

I vomited about 6 times a day until 20 weeks, so i did eat a few too many plain chips, maybe a small kids packet a day, but i wasn't eating much else.

But the main thing is that nothing really has changed from when i wasn't pregnant. I am not eating a lot more, yes i am exercising less, but i am still chasing after a 2 and 3 year old. I swim a few times a week and walk a bit. I have always eaten pretty much what i liked and managed to maintain a healthy weight by just exercising.

I want to be one of those pregnant ladies that looked like they swallowed a basket ball. Instead of looking like i am having triplets, one in my belly and one in each butt cheek.

Waaaaaah. Yes i'm having a whinge. Short of dieting, i'm not sure there is a lot i can do about it. I know i will lose it, but it just drives me crazy.

I guess one bonus is i don't seem to get stretch marks. Gotta have a win sometimes right?!

Anyone else a fat storing machine when preg? Tell me i am not alone? Am i in denial and my diet is actually terrible?

[Danielle_NZ]

Gosh your meal plan is like a saint compared to mine! I personally can't see where you've gone wrong... but perhaps your body needs those triplets (I cracked up at that one).

Your lucky that you can be rid of it afterwards... I put on heaps with my first two pregnancies, this one not so much but I started off bigger so about the same weight as the last two but I'm different size wise...

I hope someone comes by with some magic advice for you

[Phteven]

Your diet sounds very healthy. You're a baby growing machine and babies need fat to develop. Personally I found my fat deposits useful in the first few months. When I didn't have time to eat I just used some of my fat.

No stretch marks!! I'd swap temporary weight gain for no stretchies any time.

[PumpkinZulu]

Your diet is awesome! Maybe it's just what your body needs to do in pregnancy mode? (Don't hit me hehe!) Fwiw I was a smug biartch in early preg, lost 4kg and was looking awesome...I've now put on like 10kg...so HAHA to me...and I have some VERY clear, deep and angry stretch marks running up my belly, so I'M jealous of YOU Fwiw unless you ate, like, a house and a small family since last time I saw you, you are a totally sexy, beautiful, glowing person. (And if you did happen to eat a house and small family since then...soz )

[boomba]

Aww hun I bet you look fab...but I know what you mean though I have put on at least 30 kgs in each pregnancy....then around 12 months later it just starts to fall off. I think your diet is fine but woah on 15bucks for yoghurt! I would be in debt if I ate curry all the time I go through a whole tub nearly :P


Try not to be too hard on yourself xxx

[MrsBexie]

I put on 8kgs in the first trimester! So you are not alone! I didn't like I had swallowed a basketball, I looked like I had eaten a cake shop! lol

But your body is preparing for BF, you put on the weight so your body has something to take! That's what I told myself anyways!!!

Don't change your diet, it sounds great and you still need to feed you and a baby!!

[sas85]

I hear ya sister! That's a super healthy diet - and full fat milk per glass only has about an extra 50cal in it (equiv 5 minutes excercise) so no, that's not making squat of a difference to you. I put on close to 20kg with both of mine which is amazing considering I vomited up so much of what I ate and barely ate anything much at all due to heartburn later on. It's the frickin hormones - same thing happens to me with most pills. No stretch marks here either, in fact I just looked like I was getting fatter until I was about 6-7 months as by that time I'd be a size 14, unfortunately it doesn't fall off me though. Have been practically starving myself and still have 5kg to go, seemed to come off very fast after I finished BF DD1 but am still BF DD2 so wonder if those hormones can play crappy tricks with your body as well? Would have loved to have been one of those people who are lighter after they pop the baby out then before, damn it.

[charliebear]

You actually sound like your breakfast isn't big enough to me, but then I am a super big eater. I personally think that full-fat is the healthiest option when it comes to dairy and prefer unhomogenised full fat and the greek yoghurt must be the 10%fat one. If your muesli has a lot of fruit that isn't great for you, but I wouldn't worry too much.

My advice would be to eat as much good healthy food as you feel like and exercise moderately and don't worry about your weight. Health is more important than how you look

[Junglemum]

How come it doesn't happen to everyone? Is it just the lucky ones who get to store the extra fat cells eh? i just want one of those bodies that doesn't prepare for birth like there is going to be a world famine. But yes Onxy, this puppy will keep my going for a good few months once i pop this baby out.

Danielle- Did you do anything differently this time around? OR is it a luck of the draw thing?

Onxy-

When I didn't have time to eat I just used some of my fat

Did you actually slice and dice it? i just typed Onxy accidently, but i kinda like it....

PZ- i shouldn't laugh........ but i did.... a house around here is more like a lean to and there aint enough fat on anyone to make them worth eating.

Boomba- My curries are with fresh coconut milk or another veg base and coconuts are only 50c. We have yoghurt rations here! The girls have fruit salad and yoghurt every morning though, i think it helps keep them healthy!

Mrs Bexie- yeah.... that's it, much more like a cake shop! My body is definitely preparing to BFm you should see the size of my cans! But other bodies BF perfectly well without putting on 30 kgs?! Damn it!

[Danielle_NZ]

Well I believe for me it's been the luck of the draw but maybe I already had enough fat stored this pregnancy... I'm an obese person and expected to put on the 30kgs this time that I did the other two times... but as I say I'm still about the same weight now and I was at the end of the other two pregnancies...

[Junglemum]

Charliebear- You sound like my OB! He says as long as you're eating well don't even worry about the weight! Guess it could be worse, he could be telling me i've put too much on.

Sas-85- I was putting on weight while vomiting everything up too?! What is with that? I am sure people don't believe me when i say that!

[PumpkinZulu]

BAAAAHAHAHA omg I didn't think of that

[Junglemum]

Maybe we all have an ideal pregnancy weight and our bodies do what it takes to get there?!

Bah. Who knows. I can't wait to get to Aus and have a magnum. Give my arse something to wobble about!

[*LittleMissSummer*]

Your diet is WAY healthier than what mine was. I couldn't eat anything until the last trimester that i didn't see again later that day. I gained a total of 8kgs and i have to say i look MUCH better pregnant than not!

Our bodies do what it has to do to grow a baby and to carry it so i wouldn't worry too much and remember atleast 10kgs of the weight is the baby plus placenta plus the fluid so you will instantly lose that once the baby is born

[Nai]

I also put on stacks (over 20kg) and I am short! I have lost it though and like you I didn't get any stretch marks either- maybe that's the key! Eat well, gain heaps and you don't get stretchies

[AnyDream]

No darling, you're just preparing the necessary infrastructure. You're a beautiful mumma, infrastructure or no infrastructure.

[Junglemum]

LMS- When i had DD1, i though, yeah, she must be big, i'll lose at least 10kgs when she's born...... She was 2.6kg!!! Turned out no, i was just huge!

Nai- You might be onto something.......

Thanks MD.

[Jennifer13]

One of my gf's was here on the weekend and we got to talking about pg. She had her third baby 6 mths ago (she was 40 at the time). She was telling me she put on 20 kgs with both of her last two pgs - five years apart. You could not tell when you saw her!! She's worried she won't be able to hand over all of her maternity clothes to me () because she got so big.

I guess it just happens to some Mums. But yay on the no stretch marks!! Was that the same for each pg (I'm hoping...)?