Friday, October 31, 2008
I'm one of your silent reader and i really adore the way you dressed up.. hehehe..Actually, i nak tahu u diet tak masa pregnant...u still take herbalife during pregnancy? Please tell me how do you maintain your body...FYI, im 2 month of pregnancy.. and i'm so scared kalau berat i naik melampau..kot2 i bole follow the way u eat so that berat i takde lah naik melampau..huhuhuhu..thank you sis..
Regards,
Harlina
Hi Harlina,
Congratulations on your pregnancy! :) You must be really excited, except maybe for the weight-gaining part.
Don't worry, I feel you! You're not alone... I'm gonna share what I've done so far and I hope it'd be helpful.
To be honest, when I first saw the 2 pink lines on the pregnancy test kit, the only thing that crossed my mind was "I am so gonna be FAT!". I wasn't concerned about labor, pregnancy sickness, abdominal pain or any other pains in pregnancy. But the thought of having to gain back all the weight that I managed to lose just a few months before, really bothered me. I was afraid I would turned into Norjuma during pregnancy!
But gaining weight is part of being pregnant (it took me quite a while to really acknowledge this bit of information). In fact, you are not supposed to go on any weight loss program, even for those who are over weight. Pregnancy is just not the time to lose weight! So I would really advise to those who want to lose weight, please do so before getting pregnant bcoz pregnancy is the time where you need to gain (quite a lot of) weight!
Now you do need to be careful of how much weight you gain during pregnancy. Too little or too much weight gain can be harmful to both you and your baby. So it's important to gain the right amount of weight to avoid pregnancy/labor complications. This table summarizes how much weight gain is recommended according to your pre-pregnancy weight:
Wondering where all the weight goes? Here's a Pregnancy Weight Gain Estimator tool you can try to see what your weight gain comprises of based on your height and pre-pregnancy weight. Let's see mine:
Regarding Herbalife, yes I am still consuming Herbalife but not for losing weight (I've been consuming it for 2 years now - wayyy before I was pregnant). Consuming Herbalife during pregnancy is for the nutrition benefits for both mommy and baby bcoz you need to increase your intake of protein, certain vitamins and minerals. Herbalife shake is loaded with protein especially - which is vital for the growth and development of baby, the placenta, aminiotic fluid and also increasing mommy's blood volume. Besides, Herbalife shake ensures that you don't gain excessive amount of weight, which must explains why I manage to stay within the recommended weight range even tho I eat a lot! Like seriously a lot. I can eat Subway's 1 foot sandwich for lunch and still be hungry about 2 hours later, imagine that!
It is recommended for pregnant women to take 6 (small) meals a day.
Here's roughly how my daily meal plan looks like:
Breakfast : Herbalife shake
Lunch : Usually rice + lauk2
Mid afternoon snack : Bread/cereal
Dinner : Usually rice + lauk2
Midnight snack : Herbalife shake OR bread/cereal
*The gap in between each meal is on average 3 hours. I don't usually eat 6 meals a day tho, bcoz I wake up late! ;p
Anyway, here's what I found while browsing BabyCenter.com a few months back...
Vitamin supplements are essential too and you need to take it without fail, especially folic acid (in the first few months of pregnancy), calcium and iron. I also take 2 cups of Third Trimester Tea a day just to prepare my body for whatever is needed.
It would be great if you could do a simple light exercise. But I don't really exercise tho. The only exercise I do is walking around the mall, 2-3 times a week. Oh, and going up and down the staircase everyday.
Remember, pregnancy is the time when your body demands nutrition the most. Whatever you eat goes directly to your baby. Getting enough nutrition ensures a healthy pregnancy weight gain! ;)