Tips for healthy pregnancy weight gain from the creator of fitbook™ mama2b - a Fit BumpBundle featured product!

healthy baby weight gain: a goal-setting guide

think having a bun in the oven means it’s free reign to hit the ho-hos?  think again.  yes, you will have cravings. and  yes, you will indulge just like any healthy human being – in moderation. but being with child is not the time to kick your goals to the curb. in fact, it’s the perfect time to get your health dialed-in. obviously, this is not the time to be leaning out. quite the contrary, you need to feed your healthy baby bump. but putting goals in place for a healthy + active pregnancy are essential for not only having a healthy bundle of joy in just 40 weeks, but it also means you’ll bounce back quicker to your pre-baby bod.  follow this 3-step plan for staying on track with a baby-on-board:

RUN THE NUMBERS
a common question by newly expectant moms: “so, how much weight should i gain?”  that’s a fabulous question.  with an unequally as impressive answer: “it depends.”   when developing fitbook mama2b, i specifically included a healthy baby weight gain guide for this very reason: to help moms determine what’s healthy! this is no time to obsess over the number on the scale – but you should have a good idea of the range you should stay within.  how much weight you gain depends on your weight and body mass index before getting pregnant.  a good weigh (oops, way!) to determine this is by using this nifty calculator (shown here). as  you can see, if you are thin or very lean before getting pregnant, you will gain more weight (25-49lbs) because you need it to bake that little bun; on the contrary, if you are overweight prior to getting pregnant, you should actually gain fewer pounds (11-25). each pregnancy is highly individual and your doc can provide personalized guidance specifically for you, but this is a good way to gauge if you’re staying in that healthy range – emphasis on healthy!

GET SOME GOALS
now that you know how many healthy baby pounds you should be gaining, it’s time to set some goals to keep you healthy trimester-by-trimester, and week-by-week.  setting goals throughout your pregnancy will keep you focused over the next 40 weeks.  a healthy pregnancy is not just about the number on the scale – it’s about staying active and eating healthy along the way. start with setting goals on a trimester basis, then revisit them weekly. in trimester one your goals might look like this:

·         exercise 40-45 minutes 5 days per week 
·         eat 3-4 servings of veggies per day 
·         take my daily prenatal 
·         keep my water bottle with me at all times!

but as you approach trimester three, your goals might look very different:

·         walk 20-30 minutes 3 days per week + do prenatal pilates dvd 2 days per week 
·         sleep 8 hours each night + fit in a 20 minute nap when tired 
·         listen to my body!

that last point is key – and worth repeating: listen to your body!  no book, dvd, or even your doctor will know how you feel, so always be mindful. the best way to do this: track your progress. 

WRITE: REFLECT, REWARD + RELAX
after you have those trimester goals to guide you, it’s important to set smaller goals on a weekly basis to keep you motivated. mama2b counts down the number of days to delivery and gives you a little tiny illustration of a fruit or veggie showing you how big your little bundle of joy is each week. this is called: focusing on the positive!  then with weekly goals in place, the next step is to jot down your food and workouts. this daily reminder to make healthy choices is a great way to see what foods might not be sitting well and which workouts leave you with a ton of energy or feeling wiped out.  research shows that the act of just jotting this info down is key to staying on track – so put pen to paper to ensure healthy weight gain during pregnancy.  the best part of setting the weekly goals is rewarding yourself at the end of the week – and don’t skip this part. mama deserves it! it might be curling up with a new book or even a prenatal massage, but it’s important each week to reflect on your journey-to-baby, reward the mama-to-be, and relax for a stress-free pregnancy.

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About Angela Manzanares:
Creator of  fitbook™ fitness + nutrition journals, Angela Manzanares embraces the fit life and has a passion for positively influencing the lives of others. Based out of Orange County, California, her company fitlosophy, inc. is on a mission to inspire people of all ages to live a healthy, active lifestyle by motivating and supporting them with innovative products, to redefine how people integrate fitness into their lifestyle, and to change the shape of our world – literally. learn more about Angela and fitlosophy online at www.getfitbook.com.

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