Feeling bad in my first tri . . .

C

Chrissysu

Cathlete
Hi, ladies,

Well, I'm a little past 7 weeks now, and I have not been feeling well. Most food makes me sick - even thinking about it makes me sick. When I DO eat, all I want is junk food, and I have NO desire to cook food. I normally LOVE cooking and looking through food magazines for fresh recipes, but this pregnancy is doing a 180 to me! I never thought I'd see the day that I couldn't look through my cookbooks!

I have also had NO DESIRE to workout because I feel queasy. I have not worked out in 2 weeks, and now I feel like a bum!!! My pants are tighter in the hips and tummy area (which may be normal), but I feel like I shouldn't be feeling tighter there yet because I'm only 7 weeks!

I need some advice. What do I do about the food thing, and workout thing? This is my first pregnancy, so I don't know if I will get better, or if it will be like this the entire pregnancy.

How hard will it be to lose the weight AFTER pregnancy? It almost makes me sick and tired to even THINK about having to diet . . .ick . . .

Chrissy
 
Hi Chrissy,

I think what your feeling is completely normal.

My morning sickness with my first pregnancy was my worst. I couldn't look at food commercials, cut coupons for food, look at grocery store ads - any thought of food made me sick. When I did eat, it would almost always be refined foods. I read somewhere why this is, but I can't remember the exact answer. I'm sure it was something about how your body wants more calories and makes you crave foods that contain higher calories.

Every pregnancy is really different with how long the nausea lasts. I think most women have it until the beginning of the second trimester. Some unlucky women have it throughout the entire pregnancy. Mine usually lasted until about 20 - 22 weeks and it got better, but never went completely away until after delivery.

My advice is to listen to your body. Rest if your body is telling you to - the first trimester is very hard on your body. I found that some activity usually made me feel better, though, and even helped with the nausea temporarily. As far as the food, I think you should eat what feels good for you right now.

Good luck and I hope that you feel better soon.
Erica
 
Hi Chrissy,

I feel your pain! I had a baby girl September 18, 2006 and it was my first pregnancy. I didn't get nauseaus until 8 weeks and unfortunately I was one of those unlucky ones that had it the entire pregnancy! It eased up a tiny bit around 24 weeks, but the first trimester was definitely the worst.

I ususally eat very healthy and was surprised that I was craving junk food like McDonalds. My husband actually freaked out when I screamed, "Oh there's a McDonalds! Pull into the drive-through!" He thought I was kidding. I have no idea why I wanted junk food. Maybe it eased my nausea in some way. My husband is a great cook and he would try to cook me healthy meals and the smell of him cooking would make me sick. I could smell what the entire neighborhood was cooking and it would make me sick. I felt like I had a super-hero nose and could smell things a mile away. I couldn't eat anything with any flavor or spice. Macaroni and cheese sounded good to me and I would never eat that normally. I had to have a box of saltines by my bed 24/7. I was convinced that I would be nauseous the rest of my life, but after I delivered her (c-section), the nausea was completely gone and now I can eat the foods I love to eat.

I was unable to workout much during the first trimester due to the nausea and I was so tired. I would seriously sleep 13 hours straight and then nap for 3 hours during the day. I bought some prenatal dvd's like Leisa Hart's Fit Mama, The Perfect Pregnancy Workout (loved this one) & Prenatal Yoga by Shiva Rea. Fit Mama was super easy, but I popped it in a few times in the first trimester to do something. These DVD's came in handy towards the end of my pregnancy, too. I had more energy around 20 weeks and started doing some of my Cathe's with modifications, like LoMax, Cardio & Weights, Push/Pull and did a lot of walking. I worked out with something up until I delivered.

Although I thought I would eat very healthy and exercise throughout my pregnancy like a rock star, I didn't. I gained 45 pounds. Within two weeks after my delivery, I had lost 30 pounds doing nothing. At 3 months pp I have lost all the weight & fit into my regular clothes.

So, hang in there! Most people stop feeling nauseous around 12 weeks and get an energy burst in the 2nd trimester. Listen to your body. Eat what doesn't make you feel sick, even if it happens to be french fries. If you don't feel like working out, don't sweat it. You can always try something different like swimming or walking and see what works for you.

Congratulations on your pregnancy & I hope you feel better soon!

Karen
 
Oh thank you so much for your stories. After visiting several pregnancy sites and reading about mothers on those sites who are eating tons of fruits and veggies and whole grains, I started wondering if there was something wrong with me since I am almost REPULSED by those foods right now. I normally LOVE a big salad with grilled chicken and lots of nutrient rich veggies/fruit like avocadoes, strawberries, nuts, olives, but now - YUCK! In fact, I almost couldn't type those words!!!!

I'll do my best this trimester, and hopefully when I have a bit more energy, and my food preferences change, I can jump back into fitness better and eat better foods.

I'm also a lot more hopeful about losing the weight after pregnancy. I'd really like to lose the pregnancy weight PLUS some afterwards. Originally, I was going to try to lose about 20 lbs before becoming pregnant, but now things have changed. I've heard many stories of women who lost the pregnancy weight PLUS more afterwards, so that's good news! Hee hee . . .

Thanks again!
Chrissy

PS - If you have more stores, bring 'em on!
 
Congratulations Chrissy!!!
I read your post and like the other ladies can totally relate.
It will pass most likely. This is my second time around so
I am coping better. Once you hit the second trimester you
should start feeling better, body and mind. I have had morning
sickness this time around and even the smell of perfumes make me
sick. I am only 11 weeks but I am already feeling better.
If you can't exercise maybe try yoga? It may make you feel better.
I imagine in a few weeks you will feel so much better and also
I noticed a sense of calm in the second trimester. I too noticed
when pregnant w/Jennifer right away my hips seemed to get padding
they didn't have before. I put on eight pounds in the first trimester
which my body needed. I gained 25 pounds. I did however exercise everyday and did not eat what I wanted. No fast food, junk, etc. If you eat healthy the weight will come off. If you can't exercise now don't stress.Just try to eat as healthy as you can. Of course if your like me you are starving but just eat healthy and you will be fine.
I am trying to enjoy this pregnancy since I stressed with my last one.
It is just temporary and then you will have something so wonderful you may want to do it again.
Good Luck!!!
Suzanne

Jennifer Claire 12/24/2005
? 7/2007.:)
 
Congratulations, Chrissy. I am about 9 weeks along now, and have had horrible morning sickness this time. My first pregnancy, not so much. But this time is whole other story. I don't think they should even call it "morning" sickness, because for me, it lasts on and off all day long. Saltine crackers or pretzels seems to do the trick. Like you, I can't stand the site or smell of some foods. And I have odd cravings, like even though I am a vegetarian, the other day I wanted chicken. I resisted! I have also been battling a mean case of bronchitis/viral crud/cold or whatever, so I've been slacking off on exercise, too. I exerciesd today and it felt really good, for the first time in over a week. I just don't have the stamina or endurance right now. I think that's pretty normal in the first trimester. My best suggestion is to just hang in there, eat what you think you can stomach, and take walks or do light exercise when you feel up to it. I am sure it will get better. Good luck!
 
I don't know if this will help or not, but my obstetrician recommended salt/fat combos to help with the nausea - potato chips, pizza, etc. I found that those foods helped while I was eating them, but as soon as I stopped eating I was nauseous again so I didn't bother.

I also craved meat terribly with my last pregnancy. I'm not a vegetarian, but I don't really like meat and rarely eat it, and I was eating hamburgers and mashed potatoes for dessert at night in my first trimester and savored every bite! Pregnancy cravings are amazing!

Erica
 
As you can see, Chrissy, you are not alone. I'm 21 weeks w/ #2. Had morning sickness with both. This time it was worse. It lasted a couple of weeks longer, it was a little more intense, and the cravings were insane. I felt like some junk food eating alien had taken over and was tempting me with food I either would never eat or hadn't eaten since I was a kid. My problem this time was that I would swing from nauseau to severe hungry. The hunger pangs would actually make me feel sick so eating really helped. What worked best for me both pregnancies was eating cold cereal (healthy ones!) with bananas and/or berries.

Unfortunately, I have already gained more now at this time than I did with #1. But my appetite definitely decreased once the ms subsided. As far as workouts, I had to drop to low impact cardio during first trimester and I'm still there now but really, that's what feels best. I was able to workout about 3-4 times a week. Now I'm doing about 6 but may have to drop to 5 soon. I'm still doing weight training but notice that I'm just now starting to have to modify to lighter weights on some exercises.

It took me 9 months to get to my pre-pregnancy weight goal with #1 (I gained 44lbs). I wasn't really too aggressive with the weight loss though I did go on Weight Watchers for 3 weeks to get past a plateau. I think I will have to be much more aggressive and persistent once I have this baby, just judging by how quickly I've gained.

I got back in shape pretty quickly after #1 as once I started working out I stuck with it regularly and consistently. I actually got in better shape than before. The Gym Styles helped significantly with my increased strength. My abs got stronger, as well. I'm hoping for similar results after #2!!

But don't worry about that now! Take it day by day and enjoy the rest of your pregnancy!
Diana
 
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