Have I put on too much weight? Don't want to lose my place at the FBC.

[LaDeeDa]

I'm not sure if i've put on too much weight or not for my stage of pg.

I was 75kg before falling pregnant and this morning when i weighed myself I was 84kg

According to my midwife I was "obese" before falling pregnant (74kg and 5'3) so I would only be able to gain 6 kilos for the ENTIRE pregnancy before I go into a danger zone.

I am aiming for a FBC birth so I am a bit scared they are going to tell me now I am a risk and have to give birth in a general maternity ward.

Should I be trying to lose some weight? I am feeling really confused and more than just a little bit depressed.

Does anyone have any experiences or opinions!

[Rebecca77]

Dee although I can't comment on the FBC placing - I was the same as you...around 75 kg and just under 5ft 3 before pregnant. I put on around 18 kg before i got to term. I don't think you should be trying to lose weight - but try as hard as you can to minimise any gain. from what i understand it is a BAD idea to diet during pregnancy - as what you are missing out on baby is too - but a healthy eating plan should get you through.
oh and I am back down to pre-preg weight and i do not consider myself obese - just cuddly!

[paradise lost]

The "obese" comment will just be a reading from the BMI scale, though in fact you weren't "obese" at 74, you were just in the overweight band. I am 5'11" (181cm) and i was 95kg when i fell PG with DD, and about 101kg when i gave birth. I had a homebirth on the NHS. They mentioned my weight a few times, but because i'm tall i carried it well and by the end they were more interested in why i HADN'T gained weight. It was nothing i did or didn't do, i ate what i wanted, it was just how it worked out.

Ask the FBC what their policy is. The NHS has a general policy that you become high risk if you pass 100kg. I only spoke to a registrar about that. SHe mentioned it briefly at one of my post-dates monitoring sessions. I asked her why it was dangerous for a woman of my height with a BMI of 30.5 to give birth when it was safe for a woman of 5'4" to have a BMI of 38 to do it and she looked at me and mumbled "oh you are quite tall". In general they don't "let" you do homebirth over 100kg, but i simply declined to be weighed. All my midwives felt i was a better candidate for homebirth than hospital birth, and that was the only time it was mentioned.

It might help, if they have some sort of arbitrary weight limit if you ask them what specifically they are concerned by. If you're in good health and not suffering any morbidity (symptoms or illnesses) due to your weight they might be more flexible on their approach.

Bx

[Snacks]

Sorry Dee. I'm 5'4" and weighed 70kg before falling pg last time (this time I was 75) and was 94kg at the time I gave birth. No one ever mentioned increased risk to me?
Why do they weigh you anyway? I didn't think most places did that anymore?
In any case, if you are worried I'd suggest NOT dieting, or trying to lose weight, just keeping active. (I'm really trying to follow my own advice this time too!) If you do some LIGHT excersise, like frequent walks, and minimise really unhealthy stuff in your diet (course you can't go without too much of the yum stuff ) then you shouldn't put on too much weight. Plus, if you're active during pg it will help you to be more active during the birth. (I wish I had've been more active last pg!)
Finally, don't stress, babe. That wont help either you or your baby. And you are supposed to put on weight during pregnancy - it is totally normal. Where do they get that 6kg figure from?!? What if you have a 4kg baby?!?

[LaDeeDa]

hi all.

thanks so much for the responses!
I carry my weight well and in several occasions have had to prove to people that I was a size 14 because they didn't believe me. I was the only girl i know who wore a 14-16 pants and had a six pack ...LMAO

Hoobley - i guessed it's from the BMI - which I personally think is a crock - according to BMI DH is obese and he has 10% bodyfat (ex amatuer body builder) i think i will decline to be weighed now as the last thing i need is for them to freak me out


Rebecca77 - did you have much trouble losing it once bub had arrived?

Snacks - how did you motivate yourself to exercise? by the time i make it home from work it's about 6.30 and I'm wrecked that and I can't stop eating sugar - I never ate sugar before being pregnant but now I can sniff out chocolate or ice cream at 100 yards hehehehe

[Rebecca77]

DD - it fell off!! Literally! when I finally got back home after a 4 week stint away I was just too busy to eat a lot of crap - was just easier to quickly grab an apple from the fridge and it eat it than to make something up. I think i was down at least 15 kg by the time i got home. i must admit now though that i am having trouble losing the weight that i wanted to lose pre-preggers. But it may have a lot to do with my choice of contraception and I amlooking at that now.

[LaDeeDa]

rebecca77 - thats good to know!!!!
contraception can be an absolute bugger when it comes to weight loss - i was on a pill about 4 years ago that made me put on nearly 20kg!!!
you'll have to let me know how you go!!

[Rebecca77]

I will DD. Its a struggle at themoment. am on implanon and supposedly while it doesnt assist in you in puttingon the kilos it makes it extremely hard to get the kilos off! I am going to cook up a batch of soup for the kickstart diet and hope that helps me get things rolling.

[Snacks]

how did you motivate yourself to exercise?

Babes, I really wasn't motivated at all! I so know the feeling of being too knackered to feel like going for a walk. I used to walk in my lunch breaks when I was working fulltime. Now I rarely find the time to exersise and I need to get my act together - fast! I've a walker outside and have been thinking I must use it while DD is asleep during the day... But here I am on BB
So I don't know. Maybe a preggo aerobics class? Aqua-aerobics?
Re the sugar thing: I understand. Last pregnancy I lived on mangoes in the third tri. Didn't have much in the way of other deserts towards the end and that's when I put on the least weight I think. I tend to put on weight in the first because I'm constantly eating fatty stuff! I feel like potatoes mostly, but the problem is that I like them either baked (which is ok) with sour cream and cheese (which is kinda not ) or is hash brown form or oven fried
How easily I'm distracted! Ok. Can you try subbing fruit and/or low fat custard for chocolate and ice-cream?
And btw, I'm not trying to tell you you need to lose weight either. I think you're fine and pregnancy should be a time when you feel big and beautiful, not self-conscious. But, these are some ideas I've been toying with this time around, and it's only because I want to be fitter for this birth than the last one KWIM? Just so you know I'm not being all judgy-motivational-speaker-type on you, ok?

[LaDeeDa]

LOL Snacks - thanks heaps for the advice!!!!! I'm going to try exactly what you said and when i do the groceries this weekend I'll get custard and tropical fruit.
If I don't buy the bad stuff I can't eat it right?


Rebecca - whats the kickstart diet?

[Snacks]

Heh. Right.
OK. Now to purge my freezer of potato gems...

[LaDeeDa]

lol i'll take your potato gems and raise you meat pies

[Snacks]

Mmmmm... Pies...
OI! Not helping!

[Rebecca77]

DD - I dont think I should have called it a diet it is more an eating plan. Its kind of like a soup diet for the first week to start the weight shedding and then its a healthy eating plan. Today tonight have all the details on their website (Am i allowed to say that?!?!) DON'T DO IT WHILE YOU ARE PREGNANT!!!!!! I just think if i lose a bit quickly then it will motivate me to lose more. I am 75 kilos now and want to try and lose around 10!

[LaDeeDa]

hey rebecca.... thanks for the info I'll look into it for when bub's arrives.
I wouldn't even dream of trying to lose heaps of weight when I am pregnant.... let me know how you go with it!!!