Healthy pregnancy eating and exercise

[dinny]

After a few months of sickness I THINk I am starting to feel a bit better. Have been eating so badly, as could only eat certain stodge when feelign sick, And exercise has gone by the way!

want to get back into healthy eating but have lost my way a bit - please someone give me some menu and exercise ideas.... Thanks!

[ellideb]

Food

Eat little and often.

Have starchy carbs with every meal.

make sure you eat the brown version of carbs i.e. broen bread, brown pasta, brown rice.

Plenty of fruit and veg to snack on, don't limit these.

Go for low fat options where possible.

Have 2-3 portions of low fat dairy every day.

Eat low GI foods where possible.

Have treats every now and then.

Drink plenty of fluids.

Exercise

Avoid exercise that jars such as jogging in the 2nd trimester and take up cross training instead.

Go for plenty of walks.

Take up swimming or yoga.

Avoid sit-ups from the 2nd trimester onwards to protect your stomach muscles.

Avoid exercises that yo have to lie on your back to do

Don't exercise so much that you're so out of breath you cannot hold a conversation.

Take extra care when stretching.

If it feels uncomfortable then stop doing it.

Good luck!

[dinny]

thanks so much - that's v useful

[ellideb]

It can be very hard to stick to eating healthily whilst you are pregnant and feeling sick so its great that you are keen and showing an interest. Don't feel bad about the early weeks as you can rest assured your baby has been creaming off the best. It is you that will suffer! I know I found it realy hard in those early weeks, my morning sickness lasted from when I got up to about 1pm and went on until week 16! I tried in the gym but it tailed off as I got larger so I can't wait to get back to my previous fitness after baby is born! I think if you stick to those tips then you can't go far wrong. You might need some extra iron soon so make sure you eat plenty of iron rich foods such as broccoli, spinach, kidney beans etc and always have a glass of orange juice with your meals instead of tea/coffee/milk as these can hinder iron absoption. When are you due btw?

[terf]

Hi there, just to add about cross training - I was told by my physio not to go on the crosstrainer while pregnant but rather to stick to the reclining bike and the treadmill - so just make sure you dont have any back issues before using the cross trainer. I highly recommend pregnancy yoga and pilates. Took me ages to get my diet back to semi-normal (at 20 weeks I'm still not completely there yet) and to start exercising.

[dinny]

Terf - why not X-trainer?

[ellideb]

Yes, why not? I can understand your physio telling you not to if you had a bad back, but if you don't then why not? It's low impact.

[terf]

The twisting action is apparently not good for your ligaments - I've had a bad back which is why I've been told this.

[dinny]

I can see why, actually, Terf

annoying as I have a X-trainer!

[ellideb]

You don't have to use the arm things, I didn't. I just used it for toning my legs and the cardiovascular workout. The gym instructor recommened it that way for me.

[terf]

Dinny it should be OK as long as you've got a pretty solid pelvis - I've had a personal trainer show me how people use x-trainer's wrongly because they rock their pelvis and their lower backs wriggle all over the place. But I guess take every advice with a grain of salt - do what feels right for your body...

[pattymc]

I made sure weekly I ate avocados, eggs, brazil nuts and almonds, good quality muesli or porridge with added raisons, sunflower and pumpkin seeds. trout, salmon and oily fish twice a week, loads of water, steamed veg. all stuff we should try to eat pregnant or not. good quality high cocoa chocolate. exercise I walk and that's all, get a good ipod or radio from your phone, listen to talk radio or download podcasts or books to listen to to make walking less boring. pregnancy yoga and swimming.

[dinny]

so helpful, thank you!

[LCT]

I just got back from 5 days in Thailand and feel bad as I really ate badly. I ate mostly prawns and curries, not a lot of vegetables. I was a bit nervous of the salads as you don't know how well they wash the salads and since they weren't cooked I avoided them.
I have only been given one multi pre natal vitamin by my doctor, is this ok or should I be taking more? I am 15 weeks and have also gone off vegetables and fruit and my appetite has shrunk, I only feel like bread and pastries.
I do exercise 3 times a week

[IceCube]

If you are going all out on the healthy eating you would have at least 5 portions of fruit and veg per day.

To get max benefits they would include as many different colours as possible as each colour is related to different benefits, and in pregnancy it is especially important to get the orange and green ones, apparently. So carrots, peaches, apricots and brocolli, cabbage, sprouts etc.