Dear Fitness Coach,
My husband and I want to have a baby, and I just want to make sure that I am doing everything I can to have an easy pregnancy and a healthy baby. I am also a little concerned about weight gain. Friends of mine who have had babies are struggling with losing the baby weight they gained. I do not want that to happen to me!
J.L.C.
Find out what's happening in Chelmsfordfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Dear J.L.C.,
Find out what's happening in Chelmsfordfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
A healthy lifestyle improves your chances of conceiving, decreases the risk of pregnancy complications, and helps prevent excessive weight gain during and after pregnancy. According to Dr Fuhrman, Director for the Center of Nutritional Medicine (in Flemington, N.J.), a diet rich in complex carbs, plant sources of protein and iron, plus adequate exercise, will all have a positive effect.
Most women who deliver healthy babies gain somewhere between 25 and 35 pounds during pregnancy. This varies, of course, depending on your body type and your weight before conception. If you were underweight before you got pregnant, you probably need to gain more; if you were overweight, you probably need to gain less. Being underweight or overweight throughout your pregnancy is associated with a higher risk of complications. That's why knowing your healthy pregnancy weight range is so important. Just be aware that the recommended 25- to 35-pound gain is the baby weight which is easily lost after birth within a few weeks of delivery. Anything more than that will be weight you will need to reduce your calories in order to lose.
It is never recommended to start a new exercise program when you become pregnant, but whatever you are doing prior to pregnancy you can continue throughout. You can exercise, with slight modifications, well into your third trimester and beyond. You are the best judge of how your body feels, if a particular movement or activity doesn't feel right, don't do it. If you are fit during your pregnancy, your labor will be easier and your body will bounce back quicker after giving birth than someone who is sedentary.
Got a question for the fitness coach? E-mail her at eross@goldsgym.net.
Estee Murray Ross is a Chelmsford resident. She is a AFAA certified Personal Trainer and AFAA/ACE certified Group Fitness Instructor and is CPR/AED certified through Red Cross. Drawing from her 20 plus years of cardiovascular and strength training experience, she is expert at evaluating and assessing nutrition and exercise routines and making the necessary changes in order to maximize efficiency and expedite weight loss. She currently works at Gold's Gym in Tewksbury.
