Gain the right amount for your baby's sake

Not only does gaining the right amount of weight during pregnancy lead to better health outcomes (eg. less chance of C-section, reduced risk of gestational diabetes, healthier birth weight of the baby, etc) and a higher likelihood that you'll get back in your skinny jeans, but new research suggests that it's important to your child's future weight, too. A recent study from the University of Pennsylvania on over 10,000 women showed that gaining more than the recommended amounts during pregnancy (25-35 pounds for normal wt, 15-25 pounds if overweight) can increase the child's chances of becoming overweight in the future. They followed the children until the age of 7 and found that for every 2 pounds over the recommended guidelines that the mom gained, the odds of the child becoming overweight increased by 3%. The scientists speculate that excess weight during pregnancy can trigger certain physical processes like high blood sugar levels causing overproduction of insulin in the baby while in the womb. To gain within the guidelines, remember that you don't need to eat for two -- just have about 300-400 calories more than you normally eat during the second and third trimesters. This is equal to a PB&J or a yogurt and a banana. With your doctor's okay, either continue to or start exercising -- walking is a great option for beginners or even those who are already fit. Pregnancy is the perfect time to focus on eating right and exercising -- it will keep you and your baby on the longterm road to good health.

Walking off the baby fat

Do you know the most popular form of exercise? It's walking and it's no surprise --it can be done anywhere, has no learning curve, needs no special equipment and can be done at any level of fitness. Walking helps take off the fat because it burns a decent number of calories (approx 80-100 per mile, more on hills) and tones the major muscles of the legs.
The best way to start walking more is to measure the number of steps you take with a pedometer and then add on whenever you can. By keeping track it becomes a competition with yourself to increase the number of steps you can take in a day. Several years ago we tried this at the office where I was working. Many were shocked by the small number of steps they were taking. It led to many people going out for a walk after lunch just to up that number.
While I am pretty active during the week - taking aerobics, lifting weights, spinning and doing the elliptical trainer at the gym - walking is my favorite weekend activity because the whole family participates. My husband and I put the kids in strollers and walk about 3 miles to a playground and then back again. The path we take is wooded and serene. While 6 miles of walking may be too much if you're not currently active, keep track of your steps using our new walker tracker page and you'll see the amount of walking you can do jump in no time. (It's about 2000 steps per mile.) Finding a great destination and beautiful surroundings helps, too.

Stress affects eating

People handle stress in different ways but one fairly universal manifestation of stress is an impact on eating. For some it may mean skipping meals, for others it may be overconsuming junk, but however it's handled, stress inevitably leads to an imbalance in eating behavior. One way I know that I've had a stressful, overscheduled week is to look back at what I ate. For example, last week on Thursday I had a bag of popcorn as my lunch. I was juggling a bunch of projects at once and couldn't stop to take a break so grabbed a bag of popcorn (luckily it was light) and it ended up being my lunch. It was pretty much the caloric equivalent at 500 calories so I didn't do major damage, which could've happened if I'd grabbed chips or cookies instead. Most of my week was similar with grabbing this or that and failing to sit down to enjoy any meal at all. I could probably count the number of vegetables I had the whole week on one hand, which is really unusual for me. Luckily, things got back on track by the weekend and I had more acceptable meals that included some fruits and veggies.
Thinking about my week, it's easy to see how stress and "having too much on your plate" so to speak can lead to a downward spiral of overeating and weight gain. It's important to address stress and time management issues and find ways to "lighten the load, as in stuff to do" as we try to address eating and how to "lighten the load, as in pounds." Becoming aware of what you're putting in your mouth, how that's affected by everything else going on in your life, and a strategy for managing the stress is a good step towards a more healthful lifestyle. I've found just telling others about what's happening and how you're feeling can help in finding a creative solution to time crunches. Someone else may volunteer to watch your kids or run an errand for you, for example.
This week I have a plan so it doesn't happen again. I'm going to take a set 20 minute lunch break each day sometime between 12 and 1 - as a mom, I've learned I've got to be a little flexible with the schedule - and I have the whole wheat bread, turkey breast and baby carrots all ready to go. I'll let you know how it goes.

Update on "finding the middle ground" dieter

I talked to the patient yesterday who was having trouble finding how to live in the middle ground -- he tends to only live in extremes. I'm very happy to say that we are successfully moving to the middle, even if by baby steps! At our first meeting he was skipping eating all day long, "saving up his calories" just to binge at night and thus make up for every last calorie -- laying down to go to bed on all of that food wreaks havoc on the body as well. Now he's eating something small every few hours and he said he feels so much better. His choices are getting a little bit better too. He's having cereal in the morning with yogurt and a banana instead of his old habit of a bagel or white roll with butter at the deli. And at dinner his portions have been significantly reduced. This week he's working on trying to include more than one food group at each eating occasion. For example, his chosen morning snack has been 3 cheese sticks but it would be better to have one cheese stick and a handful of almonds or an apple. Variety and including all food groups ensures a distribution of healthful nutrients rather than just loading up on certain ones. Next week we're going to the grocery store so I can show him good choices aisle by aisle. I'll let you know the shopping list we come up with!

Not eating for Two

Pregnancy for many means, "yippee, I can eat what I want." For the sake of our waistlines, we need to change this thinking. Did you know that many women keep as much as 11 pounds from each pregnancy and some even more? I teach a prenatal nutrition class and I love the expressions I get when I tell everyone that in the first trimester you do not need any extra calories, you just need to make sure and eat really, really healthy** and take your prenatal vitamins. I also enjoy the looks of disbelief when I let the women know that in the second trimester they only need about 300-340 more calories. This is equivalent to about a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios with 1/2 cup skim milk and an ounce of almonds. In the last trimester, the number jumps to an extra 450 calories total -- so, add a piece of whole wheat toast and jelly to your bowl of cereal and almonds and you are now at 450 calories. By making sure you eat healthy** during your pregnancy, you can set yourself up for easier weight loss after you have your bundle of joy.
**healthy defined -- to learn more about how many servings of foods from each food group you should be eating during your pregnancy, go to mypyramid.com and enter your information.