Pregnancy Weight Gain: Not All Baby

Pregnancy Weight Gain

When women get pregnant, they will typically gain anywhere from 25 to 35 pounds. It’s not all baby in there, so what exactly is all that extra weight gain for anyways?

Here’s a look at what pregnancy weight gain entails:

Baby: 6-8 lbs

Placenta:1.5 lbs

Amniotic fluid: 2 lbs

Enlarged uterus: 2 lbs

Increased body fluid: 4 lbs

Increased blood: 3-4 lbs

Breast growth: 1-2 lbs

Maternal stores of fat, protein, and other nutrients: 7 lbs

TOTAL: 26.5 – 30.5 lbs

Something to Think About

I think it’s interesting to note that there really isn’t a lot of fat that needs to be gained for a healthy (singleton) pregnancy. Just 7 pounds of fat. That’s it! So how is that possible? If you are already at a healthy weight before you become pregnant, you are only supposed to consume an additional 300 calories a day. That’s really not a lot if you think about it. It’s adding a tablespoon of peanut butter with your daily apple (yum!). It’s an extra 8 ounce glass of milk. It’s not an extra full-sized meal. Maybe an extra healthy snack, but that’s it. Oh, and you don’t really need those extra calories until after your first trimester. Only 7 pounds of fat is starting to make a little bit more sense.

Focus During Pregnancy 

During pregnancy, the ultimate focus should be on the health of the baby and the health of the mom. When pregnant (and any time before and after), it’s important to live a healthy lifestyle. Eat healthy, exercise regularly, and enjoy your health!

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Source: American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists

Tags: Pregnancy, weight gain

Twinkie’s Challenge: Avoid Holiday Weight Gain

Every holiday season we are bombarded with loads and loads of extra calories that are nothing more than sugar, fat, and simple carbohydrates that help us gain more weight than we’d care to admit.

We first get slapped with Halloween, which most people are sugar loaded before October 31st even comes. A short couple of weeks later, we get to enjoy Thanksgiving which is a day we consume a single meal that has more calories than what we normally consume in an entire week, not to mention the pies and other treats for dessert. One month later we get to enjoy Christmas, which is full of holiday traditions that are full of sugary hot cocoa, stocking stuffers, and making a whole house made out of candy (and buy extra candy so we can eat as we build)!

It’s no wonder why most people gain so much weight during the holidays. As a society, we don’t have just three days to celebrate – the holidays last a full three months!

I love that the holidays are three months long of celebrations, and no, I am not all “bah-humbug” just because I refuse to make sugar a part of my holiday traditions! Quite the opposite, really. I have actually found a way to not gain weight during the holidays! If you listen to what I have to say, you can even lose weight during the holidays, even with a couple of holiday treats every now and again.

Keep Exercising!

If you’ve been exercising all year (or even just the Summer) long, good for you! Now that it’s the holiday season, it’s time to step things up and keep going!

If you haven’t been exercising at all, now is the time to start! You have three months left until the end of the year, and that’s plenty of time to get moving towards your goals. You might not reach your ultimate health goals within just three months, but you will have gotten a three month head start towards those “New Years Resolutions”! Look at you, so proactive!

Here’s a thought: If you burned 300 calories a day (for example, 30 minutes on an elliptical machine) and eat within your calorie “budget” everyday (use a useful site like Lose It!), you will set yourself up for maintaining or even losing weight – it’s your choice!

Get you Rest

It’s easy to forget how important sleep is to our overall health, including how it can effect your weight loss efforts. With all of the holiday parties coming up, it’s time you take your sleep seriously! I am not one for sleeping in (I am a morning person!), but in times where you just stay up too late (which should be the exception, not the rule!), you really do need to get your rest. Go ahead and sleep in. You can always do your workout when you wake up…whenever that is : )

Drink Water

It’s easy to get dehydrated during the cold Fall and Winter months, so make sure that you track how much water you are drinking so that you know your daily intake.

Why is it so important to drink enough water each day? Water is a great way to stay full for longer periods of time, which helps prevent you from overeating at all of the social gatherings coming up! It also helps with your metabolism and allows for your body to function properly (which helps you lose weight easier).

Whenever possible, opt for water instead of soda or alcohol since they are both full of calories that are quickly consumed and add on the pounds fast.

You Don’t Have to Eat Everything Given to You

A lot of people show their love by giving you sweets. You don’t have to eat everything in sight just because it’s homemade or a special tradition. This is just something I had to tell you, and even give myself the little reminder.

When it’s OK to Induldge…

OK, I get it. The holidays come once a year, and you want to enjoy yourself. If you are going to indulge on your favorite holiday treats, there’s nothing I can do or say to prevent you from eating them, but there is a couple of things you should keep in mind:

1) Don’t eat your favorite candy/dessert/etc. when you are hungry. It’s not supposed to be a meal, and if you eat your favorite holiday treat when you are hungry, you will be more likely to eat a lot of it, and I mean a lot more!

2) Moderation is key! If you have little to no self control, you might want to consider “calorie counting” temporarily during the holidays, to make sure that you don’t overdo it when it comes to eating treats. If you know you don’t have self control, sometimes it’s easier to never start than to try and stop eating the treats later on.

3) Don’t give into temptation all of the time. Don’t make a three month long habit of indulging because “it’s the holidays”, since that phrase is what gets everybody in trouble and regretful come January 1st when they are carrying several extra pounds of holiday weight gain with them that lasts much longer than that holiday party ever did.

Plan out the days you will indulge a little, and adjust your day accordingly. You know yourself and your weaknesses, so put a strategy in place on how you plan on handling the situation and stick to your plan! For example, you can exercise more on the days leading up to the holiday party, or you can eat a big healthy meal before you look over the dessert bar! If it means you skip out on candy/desserts/treats altogether since you know you can’t stop at just one or two, then avoid the junk food and have fun socializing and being the life of the party instead!

Maintain – or Lose! – Weight this Holiday

Follow these steps, and maintain – or even lose! – weight this holiday season! You can achieve whatever you want, and whatever you are willing to work for. And yes, you can enjoy a wonderful holiday season with less (or no) junk food because the food isn’t really what makes the holidays special (I’ll let you think about that one).

Are you ready to take this challenge on?!

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Tags: holidays, Twinkie's Challenge, weight gain

Why Hugh Jackman is Gaining Weight

Is Hollywood Allowing Weight Gain?

Here’s something you don’t hear very often in Hollywood: “Gain Weight!”

Yes, occasionally, there will be a role in Hollywood where the actor or actress is asked to gain weight for the part, rather than loosing weight. As this may be viewed by some as a positive move within the Entertainment Industry, is it a step in the right direction?

Becoming “Wolverine”

Among the actors who are gaining weight for a movie role, Hugh Jackman is one of them.

In 2009 Hugh Jackman, who is 6’3″, weighed 190 pounds when he filmed X-Men Origins: Wolverine. The Director asked Hugh Jackman to add muscle to his frame, since he wasn’t muscular enough to really be the “Wolverine” we all know in the comics. He needed to look more “thick” and was asked to ”bulk up” for the upcoming film.

“Bulk up”

In a recent interview, Hugh Jackman stated that he now eats 6,000 calories a day, which he states is “rough” do keep up.

In addition to eating more, he had to ramp up his exercise routine as well.

“I do an hour and a half a day in the gym and eat a thousand calories more a day than I would normally. And I train really hard.” -Hugh Jackman

Is this Healthy?

First, are those 6,000 calories a day coming from healthy sources or from sugar and processed junk food? Not all calories are created equal. If the calories are from healthier sources, it won’t have a negative impact on his health like the junk food will.

Second, is Hugh over training himself to add muscle? A huge concern with trying to gain weight in such a limited amount of time is the possibility to injure yourself! I hope he is working with a Certified Personal Trainer (which I am sure he is), which would be able to help him workout effectively, prevent injury, and allow for proper recovery.

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Image Credit: Examiner.com

Tags: calories, Celebrity, Certified Personal Trainer, exercise, Healthy, Healthy Food, Hollywood, Hugh Jackman, muscle, prevent injury, recovery, weight gain

Just because it’s “Free”…

When “free” can be a bad thing

Just because something may be given to you for “free”, it doesn’t mean you should have it!

Every week I am offered doughnuts, muffins, pizza, Chinese food – the works! And yes, it is all “free’ to me. At first, I would eat all the “free” food I could get, because it was “free”, and I just couldn’t say “No” to it! Since someone already bought the food, I didnt want it to go to waste, so why not just eat it…it’s a free meal! Save on groceries, perhaps?

Then it all finally hit me.  I was eating unhealthy. Actually, I was eating really unhealthy on a regular basis, and I was gaining unnecessary weight.

The cost of “Free”

I finally realized that the cost of “free” wasn’t always worth it.  Just because it didn’t cost me financially, it was costing me my health! I am starting to realize that it’s OK to say “No” to all the “free” food, and move on.

Be Prepared!

The Holidays are coming up, and we all know what that means, right? People gain an average of 5-10 pounds of fat during the Holiday Season (so I have read and heard). That is overindulgence if you ask me!

So, how does everyone gain all that excess weight in such a short amount of time?

Everyone will give you a reason as to why you should try their special cookies, cakes, pies, etc. Everyone will say how much you “have to try it!”. Guess what? You don’t have to try anything! OK, so don’t be a snob about it, but kindly tell the person “Thank you, but…I can’t have it”. If someone keeps urging you, tell them you can’t have X, Y, or Z. If they continue to insist, tell them that you will get a bad reaction if you eat whatever it is that they are offering you (If it’s unhealthy food, you might gain weight, right?!). If they continue to persist,  they are obviously not respecting your wishes, and you need to move away from the conversation. Move on to other people whose primary focus isn’t on the food.

Again, just because it’s a family recipe, special occasion, or whatever the excuse may be – it doesn’t mean you have to give in to anything.

Think about it…

If you were deathly allergic to peanuts, and someone offered you something that contained peanuts, would you honestly eat it just to makesomeone else not feel bad? No! I take my health seriously, and I am sure you do too. Even thought I am not allergic…someone once offered me soda, and I politely declined their offer. That person insisted that I drink this soda. I told this person again that I don’t drink soda (well, I used to, but I haven’t for years now). I think this person might have been offended, but I am not going to lower my standards and risk my own health to make someone else feel better.

Be strong in your health beliefs, and stick to them – no matter what “free” desserts may come along your way!

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Tags: cakes, chinese food, Cookies, desserts, doughnut, excess food, Free, Healthy, holiday, holiday weight gain, Just Say No, muffin, pies, pizza, Skinny Tips & Quotes, soda, weight gain, Weight Loss