Pregnancy Weight Gain - How Much Should You Really Gain?

Pregnancy weight gain is essential during pregnancy. It is critical to the health of your baby that you gain the appropriate amount of weight during pregnancy. Different people need to gain different amount. I am going to break it down as best as I can so that you don't have to guess when it comes to pregnancy weight gain.
Weight gain really differs from person to person. If you start out at a healthy weight when you get pregnant, you should look at gaining anywhere from 20-30 pounds throughout your entire pregnancy. If you are under weight, you should look at gaining a little more, usually in the 35 pounds range. And, if you are overweight when you get pregnant, your goal should be around 10-15 pounds gained throughout your pregnancy.
Pregnancy is not an excuse to eat anything that you want and gain weight just because you are pregnant. It is really important that you eat healthy and gain weight in the right areas of the body. This will involve exercise and healthy eating throughout each trimester. If you do not watch your weight, you can expect to gain double the amount that is recommended making labor harder and losing weight after labor really hard.
You should gain around 5 pounds during your first trimester, and around 1 pound per week during your second and third trimester. If you are underweight, you should try to gain around 8 pounds during the first trimester, and a little over a pound per week for the second and third trimesters. If you are overweight, you should gain around 3 pounds the first trimester and around 1 pound every other week during the second and third trimester of pregnancy.
A lot of women like to use the excuse that just because they are pregnant, they can eat what they want. This is very bad and can cause problems down the road and after labor. If you eat healthy and exercise during pregnancy, you can expect to have an easier labor and be able to lose your pregnancy weight faster after delivery. You will be down to your normal weight before you know it.
Some things to keep an eye on are either gaining too much weight too fast, or not gaining enough weight. If you find that you have gained over 5 pounds in one week and you are eating right, you need to get checked by the doctor. This could be a sign of preeclampsia, which is a very serious disease.
On the other side of the table, if you are not gaining any weight at all, make sure that you get checked out by a doctor. Weight gain is essential during pregnancy. It could be normal, however, to not gain any weight one week, but gain 2 pounds the next. This is still normal, but you will want to keep your doctor informed of what is going on.
Did you know that it is really easy to stay within your ideal birth weight? Get a copy of the Pregnancy Weight Guide. It is full of great info, and best of all, it is free. Good luck and congrats on the pregnancy.