Weight Gain And Pregnancy

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In our weight conscious society, weight gain is something that concerns everyone and it is especially a common concern of many women who are going through pregnancy. The general rule of thumb is that women who weight more prior to becoming pregnant will typically gain less weight than those who initially weigh less before pregnancy.

Imagine someone who is small and becomes pregnant. She should expect to gain more weight, anywhere in the neighborhood of 35 – 40 pounds. A woman who is overweight to begin with for example weighing 220-230 pounds will typically not gain that much weight, possibly only 10 to 15 pounds. Pregnant women who are extremely overweight may not even gain any weight at all.

So where does all of this weight go? Obviously a portion of the weight is attributed to the baby itself. Most babies weight between 6 and 8 pounds. But what about the rest of the weight? Firstly, there is fluid around the baby that usually accounts for several pounds. Also the placenta itself weighs about 2 pounds and the uterus becomes enlarged weighing about a pound or two. Lastly there is fluid retention and excessive fat storage associated with a normal pregnancy to help the mother store energy to assist throughout pregnancy, childbirth and post pregnancy.

While we cannot control many of the factors that attribute to weight gain including the baby itself, the fluid around the baby and the placenta. However, you can control the fluid retention and the amount of fat that is stored. By eating a healthy diet and maintaining proper exercise, you can help reduce weight gain associated with pregnancy. Exercise and diet can also reduce the size of the baby itself to help ensure that the baby is a healthy and not overweight.

In general, during the first trimester, the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, most women do not gain that much weight. In fact, many women don’t gain any weight due to morning sickness which often times causes nausea and vomiting. Approximately 5% – 10% of weight gain can be expected during this trimester. In the second trimester, or up to 24 weeks of pregnancy, most women experience 25% – 30% of their weight gain. The third trimester is when the majority of the weight is gained, which usually comprises up to half of a pregnant woman’s overall total weight gain.

Naturally, it is the goal of most women to lose the weight that they have gained during pregnancy. The general rule of weight loss after pregnancy is that the more weight you gain during pregnancy, the harder it is lose. For this reason, it is important to maintain a regular physical exercise routine and to ensure that you obey a healthy diet in order to put yourself on a path to healthy weight loss.

If you have any other questions pertaining to pregnancy and weight gain, feel free to leave a comment below.