Weight gain during pregnancy: how to lose weight with obesity of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd degree
The human body is designed in such a way that important organs are protected from temperature extremes by a fatty layer. In conditions of insufficient intake of nutrients, along with food, subcutaneous fat is transformed into the necessary energy. However, it happens that the body begins to accumulate fat in an enhanced mode, even without being in conditions of hunger, excess weight appears, and sometimes even the problem of obesity arises. Often with extra pounds come such satellites as hypertension, diabetes, varicose veins, atherosclerosis, various arthrosis.
Among the main causes of obesity are an unbalanced diet (for example, eating a large amount of easily digestible carbohydrates), genetic predisposition, disorders in the endocrine gland, poor physical activity associated with sedentary work, the use of transport instead of walking, lack of physical activity in general.
But if under normal conditions a woman may not attach much importance to excessive weight and not want to change her lifestyle, then you need to know that excess weight during pregnancy can be a sign and cause of various pathologies in the nascent organism.
Danger of gaining excess weight during pregnancy
During gestation, the female body goes into active weight gain, which is the norm, because. the placenta with amniotic fluid and the baby itself are constantly growing. In addition, the mammary glands increase in size, the fat layer thickens to protect the baby from the effects of the external environment and in case of a shortage of food. At the same time, doctors carefully monitor for many months so that there is no excess weight gain during pregnancy.
Normally, the increase is about 8-12 kg for all 10 months, depending on the initial weight of the woman, and accelerated weight gain may occur due to fluid retention, which is a symptom of preeclampsia and dangerous edema. In addition, excess weight during pregnancy often leads to varicose veins and hemorrhoids, which can cause not only discomfort, but a real problem, especially in the postpartum period; increased blood pressure, which is fraught with the development of seizures; the appearance of back pain and shortness of breath, which can be expressed in a lack of oxygen in a child – hypoxia; the development of diabetes; loss of tissue elasticity, which can lead to ruptures and other serious consequences in childbirth.
If overweight has turned into obesity during pregnancy, then doctors treat such women as a high risk group regarding the threat of miscarriage, weakness of labor and postpartum complications.
Pregnancy and obesity of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd degree
The degree of obesity is usually determined according to this principle: a conditional value of 100 is subtracted from the height in cm (the readings are quite accurate with a height of 155-170 cm). If the obtained value exceeds body weight by 30%, they speak of I degree of obesity, when the weight is exceeded by 50%, we are already talking about the 2nd degree of obesity, from 50 to 100% – about the 3rd degree, more than 100% – about 4th degree of obesity.
When carrying a baby, obesity can worsen even more, since at this time favorable conditions are created for the development of fatty tissue. At the same time, various complications associated with obesity of the 1st degree during pregnancy greatly affect the condition of the fetus. Obesity of the 2nd degree during pregnancy threatens with complications already in 70-80% of cases, pregnancy with obesity of the 3rd and 4th degree and subsequent births are complicated in 100% of women in labor. Excessive weight in the last stages causes late toxicosis, an increase in the frequency of anemia and acute respiratory diseases.
Despite all these facts, one should not assume that pregnancy and obesity are mutually exclusive concepts, but if there is overweight, a woman should be under medical supervision all this time. Managing excess weight through the establishment of a proper diet and moderate exercise can greatly facilitate the course of obese childbirth.
How to lose weight during pregnancy?
At an important time of bearing a child, the problem of overweight should not be left to chance. It is quite possible to lose weight even during pregnancy. To do this, you will have to break your diet into 6-8 meals and completely abandon sugary carbonated drinks, mayonnaise and other fatty and spicy sauces (you can replace them with healthy olive oil), seriously limit your salt intake. For a light snack during the day, you can keep dried fruits, crackers, yogurt on hand. Also, special fasting days, for example, cottage cheese, fruit, sour-milk days, can help in this matter. Before embarking on them, be sure to consult with your doctor. They need to be carried out under strict medical supervision, because any diets and fasting days during this period immediately affect the health of the unborn child.
If pregnancy is accompanied by obesity, then it is extremely necessary to restore and activate normal metabolism by reducing calories in food and increasing physical activity. The total number of calories can be very easily reduced by easily digestible carbohydrates (sugar, jam, sweets, cakes), which are also easily converted into fats in the body.
Nevertheless, carbohydrates must necessarily enter the body of a pregnant woman at least 100 g per day, for example, in the form of bread from coarse flour, cereals, vegetables and fruits, which still contain fiber that stimulates the stomach and intestines, and also a lot of vitamins and minerals.
Eating raw vegetables and fruits also helps convert excess fat into energy. You can not get rid of excessive weight during pregnancy due to proteins (meat, eggs, fish, dairy products), which are kind of building blocks for the development of the baby's body.
The daily portion of protein food during pregnancy should be at least 150 g. Steam cutlets, rolls, meatballs or zrazy can be prepared from lean meats. At the same time, beef and veal are also excellent sources of iron, which is necessary to maintain normal hemoglobin levels.
Physical activity with excess weight
There is an opinion among the people that the expectant mother should rest as often as possible, that any physical activity is contraindicated for her. Indeed, during pregnancy, especially in the last months, it becomes quite difficult to do even the simplest housework. However, to keep weight and muscle tone under control, at least minimal physical activity is necessary. After all, childbirth, in addition to its important psychological component, is a fairly serious well-coordinated work of the entire female body, which will really need strong muscles.
Not too difficult physical activity are daily walks in the park, but they add a lot in the fight against excess weight and in preparing the body for childbirth, training the muscles of the press and legs, saturating the body with oxygen, even simply charging with a good mood. In turn, the more oxygen the body receives, the more intense many of its processes, including metabolism, become.
The simplest physical exercises improve blood circulation in the tissues, help keep the muscles in good shape. All this contributes to the preservation of elasticity and turgor of the skin, ligaments and muscles and serves as a kind of prevention of ruptures during childbirth. Many clinics hold regular classes for expectant mothers, including water aerobics and special therapeutic exercises.
Thoughtful physical exercises under the supervision of an experienced instructor stimulate an increase in metabolism, an increase in energy consumption, and with them the activation of processes in the body aimed at breaking down excess fat. It must be remembered that even if you are overweight, pregnancy is an excellent time for the birth and development of a new life, and constant control over excess body weight will be the key to a normal pregnancy and successful delivery.