Your pregnant body

• Your body goes through major changes during pregnancy.
• Weight gain, breast changes and aches and pains are common.
• There are ways to deal with common discomforts and changes.

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You're pregnant, right? So you get to eat as many french fries as you want, right? Wrong! Be careful about how much weight you gain during your pregnancy. Gaining too much or too little can be harmful to you and your baby.

It's important to gain the right amount of weight for your body. Doing so will help protect the health of your baby. Women who gain too little are more likely to have a small baby (less than 5 1/2 pounds). Women who gain too much are more likely to have an early baby or a large baby. They may also have health problems themselves such as diabetes, high blood pressure and varicose veins.

In general, most women need around 300 extra calories per day during pregnancy. (One extra healthy snack, such as four fig bars and a glass of skim milk, will provide these calories. Your health provider can help you create a healthy eating plan that’s right for you.) However, the exact amount of extra calories you need depends on your weight before pregnancy.

To get an idea of how much weight you should gain during pregnancy, you'll need to know your Body Mass Index (BMI) before getting pregnant. BMI is a measure of body fat based on your height and weight.

Once you know your pre-pregnancy BMI, use the guidelines below about weight gain during pregnancy. However, talk to your health provider about your specific pregnancy weight gain goals.

If you began pregnancy at a healthy weight
You should gain 25–35 pounds over the nine months. Assuming you gain between 1 and about 4 ½ pounds in the first trimester, you should put on about one pound every week in the second and third trimesters

If you began pregnancy underweight
You should probably gain a little more than women who are at a healthy weight. That's because underweight women are more likely to have small babies. A 28- to 40-pound gain is usually best. Assuming you gain between 1 and about 4 ½ pounds in the first trimester, try to gain slightly over a pound a week in the second and third trimesters.

If you began pregnancy overweight
You should gain only 15–25 pounds over the nine months. Assuming you gain between 1 and about 4 ½ pounds in the first trimester, you should put on slightly over ½ pound every week in the second and third trimesters. While you don't want to gain too much weight, you should never try to lose weight during pregnancy because that could harm your baby.

If you were obese at the start of your pregnancy
You should gain only 11–20 pounds over the nine months. Assuming you gain between 1 and about 4 ½ pounds in the first trimester, aim for gaining slightly under ½ pound every week in the second and third trimesters.

If you're expecting twins
You should probably gain between 37-54 pounds over the nine months if you began pregnancy at a healthy weight. If you began pregnancy overweight, aim for gaining a total of 31-50 pounds. If you were obese at the start of your pregnancy, you should gain between 25-42 pounds over the nine months. (That means gaining about 1 ½ pounds a week in the last two trimesters.)

Keep in mind
Putting on weight slowly and steadily is best. But don't worry if you gain less than four pounds in the first trimester, and make up for it later, or vice versa. Also, many women have one or two "growth spurts" during which they gain several pounds in a short time period, and then level off. Again, this is not worrisome unless it becomes a pattern. The important thing is to keep an eye on your overall gain. You can use the weight-gain tracking chart to follow your progress.

September 2009