Would you like a little more?
You will probably also feel wonderful when your baby bump starts to gently bulge. Most women enjoy the fact that their pregnancy is slowly becoming visible. This also means that a special relationship with Libra begins for you and your child.
It is good that your midwife or doctor regularly checks your weight gain during pregnancy at each of your antenatal appointments. This will also give you an indication of whether your pregnancy is progressing "according to plan" or whether there are any signs of irregularities.
What does "irregularity" mean?
For example, prolonged weight loss or low weight gain during pregnancy may indicate that something is wrong with your diet. Or that you are ill. Or that your child's growth is delayed. Conversely, some pregnant women also gain weight too quickly. If this is one kilogramme or more per week, it could be due to a Pregnancy-related illness like Gestational diabetes or Pre-eclampsia hide.
What does planned weight gain during pregnancy mean?
In the first 12 weeks of your pregnancy you will only gain a little weight. Some women who now suffer from particularly pronounced Pregnancy sickness are plagued, you may even lose some weight. But by the second trimester at the latest, you will have noticeably more kilos on the scales. Ideally, a woman who becomes pregnant without being significantly overweight or underweight will gain between 10 and 16 kilograms by the time she gives birth. You might be thinking: "But wait a minute - a baby only weighs 3.5 kilos on average at birth! So where does all the rest come from?" Good question! Because your body is working at full speed during pregnancy, the weight gained at birth is distributed as follows:
- Your Uterus now weighs approximately 1.3 kg.
- The Placenta weighs about 0.8 kg.
- The Amniotic fluid weighs around 1.3 kg.
- On Water retention 2 to 2.5 kg in the fabric.
- Your enlarged Blood volume takes up around 1.2 kg.
- The Mammary gland tissue increases and accounts for approximately 0.8 kg.
- In preparation for breastfeeding, the body already lays down a Fat depot of around 1.7 kg.
Together with the baby's own weight, this results in an average value of a good 13 kilograms. However, these are all just mathematical averages for a pregnancy with one child. If there are more babies on the way, the body produces even more tissue, blood and fluid. It is clear that the weight is then higher with two or three children.
Gained too much weight during pregnancy? Or too little?
I have looked after quite a few women who have gained more than 20 kilos during pregnancy - and others for whom the scales only showed an extra eight or nine kilos. How much a woman should gain during these special 40 weeks also depends on her initial weight before pregnancy. Very petite women who tend to be underweight should put on more weight, pregnant women who are (very) overweight should put on less. In both cases, mother and child are monitored particularly carefully so that any health problems can be treated at an early stage.
My tip: If you are concerned about your weight gain, discuss it in detail with your midwife or doctor. You are also welcome to ask me about this in my online counselling contact. However, it is also important for you to know that your weight alone says nothing about how fast your unborn child is growing and how well it is doing. So you shouldn't focus too much on the reading on your scales, especially as the range of weight gain is really very wide. And neither a large increase nor a significantly small increase necessarily indicates a risk for the child.
That's healthy!
A balanced diet and sufficient exercise during pregnancy are important for healthy weight gain for mother and child. Of course, you can give in to your desire for certain treats from time to time. But in moderation - because 40 weeks of pregnancy is not a licence for unbridled feasting. In the past, it was mistakenly thought that a pregnant woman had to "eat for two", but today we know better: a pregnant woman doesn't have to eat twice as much, but twice as much. Responsible eat. In terms of quantity, however, around 250 additional kilocalories per day are already enough for her during pregnancy. Only from the 28th week onwards can she add another 250. You can find out which nutrients are particularly important for expectant mothers here here read on my blog. In my onlineWorkshops about pregnancy you will also receive valuable tips for a balanced diet during pregnancy.
In my work, I often come across the question of whether very moderate weight gain also counteracts the development of stretch marks. However, there is no clear answer to this question and there are no reliable research results to confirm or refute this. The respective condition of the connective tissue probably also plays a role. However, there are at least indications that strong weight fluctuations are more likely to cause stretch marks than continuous weight gain.
Let's take a quick look at your growing belly, which gradually shifts your centre of gravity. Many pregnant women are familiar with this: because the belly bulges forwards, they automatically compensate for this by stretching their bum backwards. However, this creates an excessive hollow back, which quickly leads to tension and back pain. Relaxation and warmth are not the only things that help to counteract this, but above all a posture adapted to pregnancy and appropriate movement sequences. You can find out how to do this and gently strengthen your abdominal and back muscles as well as your pelvic floor, for example, in my Online courses.
