As most of you know, the old adage, “eating for two” isn’t really what you should be doing. In fact, if you are pregnant with a single child you only need an average of 300 more calories per day. I learned, the hard way, with my second pregnancy that caving to every craving, and “eating for two” did nothing but land me a whole lot of weight to take off after that little bambino was evicted.
So today I want to talk about nutrition. Specifically, nutrition for us and our babies, without growing a butt the size of New York. I am already packing a little junk in the trunk, so I feel like it is especially important this pregnancy for me to stay on top of my nutrition. While that sounds like a good plan in theory, it would that this baby seems to REALLY LOVE junk food. Just last week I was >< close to chewing off my own arm in exchange for some of those famed chicken nuggets from an un-named, ubiquitous fast-food franchise. The other complication with the execution of this plan is that I have been trying to manage some awful morning sickness. I have to stay on top of eating, yet I also have to maintain this delicate balance of not eating too much, but eating enough of the right foods to keep away the sickies.
So what does this mean? I have found that, just like being on a diet, tracking my food is a great way to keep myself on track for staying within a reasonable amount of calories for the day. I had planned on signing up for Spark People for an easy online solution for tracking what I am eating, but then I was directed to Spark People’s sister site, BabyFit.com. This site, just like Spark People, is free and is also a great tool for tracking exactly how much of each food type you are getting each day. There is a wonderful water glass at the top of the screen to visually keep track of my water intake, and even a spot to mark taking my prenatal vitamins. It is truly a fantastic site, and a great way for me to stay accountable, while being able to meet other pregnant moms.
As for what you should be eating: the fruits, veggies, lean protein, and calcium are all very important. However, that does not mean that you can never have the occasional treat, or give into your cravings. It just means that, like dieting, we have to be mindful of what we are consuming, even when you have a small, bean-sized voice telling you otherwise.
On the flip side, just because you think you are eating very healthy, certainly does not always mean that you are eating the right foods. In my last pregnancy, I was eating nothing but fruits and veggies. It’’s all I wanted (it was awesome, I gained nothing until I was 7.5 months pregnant. The problem was, as healthy as I thought I was being, I was still lacking in my intake of good protein. I became anemic, and was so tired I had that 1st trimester exhaustion all the way into my 3rd trimester. As you can see, you need balance, a delicate balance, because just eating “healthy” isn’t healthy if you are skipping food groups.
So enjoy your food, but remember that food is fuel and eat responsibly.
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