Ok...so I'm new to the board (hi everyone)...but I've been doing Atkins for years and have been at my goal weight for a few years now. Which is great....however, now I want to have a baby...and I'm terrified that I'll gain all of the weight back that I've lost. Of course I want a healthy baby (I eat very healthy meals, I eat often enough...I'm very strict with what I eat...and I feel GREAT eating this way)...weight gain is actually the only concern that I have about having a baby (I'm sure once I'm pregnant, I'll have more concerns)...so my question is...is it possible to remain on a healthy low-carb way of life and not gain tons of baby weight?

Welcome to the boards!
Well, to give you the short answer: it all depends. You might gain a lot of weight or just a little bit while pregnant. It's hard to predict.
To give you some of my background, I'm on my second pregnancy (5 months along). With my first, I gained 70 lbs!!! This was not eating low carb! At the time I didn't think it was healthy to eat low carb while pregnant. Now, I'm pregnant again and I refuse to gain another 70 lbs. Unfortunately, I've already gained 20 lbs but at least it is still less that where I was at last time. I've been trying desperately to implement low carb while pregnant. The first trimester, I was too nauseous to stick to plan. Now in my second trimester, things are getting easier but I still have cravings for sweets. I thought I could include fruits but I'm afraid this little bit of carb is fueling my hunger for more sweets.
So, my advice to you, yes, you probably will gain some extra weight (even after baby is born) but it probably won't be as much as your highest weight was. Fortunately, you do lose about 15-20 lbs right after birth and if your one of the lucky ones, the rest might come off easily if you're breastfeeding (unfortunately, my weight stayed the same while breastfeeding). Also, don't beat yourself up about staying on plan during the first trimester, that is the hardest. Try to get back to LC when you aren't so nauseous. I'm hoping now that I can really stick to the plan and only gain maybe another 10 or 20 lbs max, I'd be happy with that. After baby is born, I'll probably have to struggle to lose the last 20 lbs but it's still better than before.
Hang in there. If you find you are gaining weight way too fast, you really need to stick to LC. Otherwise, I wouldn't worry about it too much. Just make sure you eat plenty of protein, fats, and low carb veggies.

I am 6 weeks post-partum. I couldn't LC while preggo because I was too sick in the beginning. Unfortunately, once I begin to eat carbs, that is all I want and it is very very hard for me to get off of them. So, I binged the whole pregnancy. I would definitely keep carbs in the upper limits, like in the maintenance Atkins program if you can do that, you shouldn't have anything to worry about.

Thank you for the responses. While I'm still in the "talking about" stage prior to pregnancy...I like to be well prepared. I lost the initial weight LCing it...quit smoking with no weight gain...I realize that pregnancy is much different. I'm a healthy eater and enjoy the way that I eat now...regardless this could be a big challenge for me. Again, I appreciate the comments.

It's totally possible to continue doing low-carb while pregnant, however if you are struck with really bad nausea/morning sickness then you'll probably have to stray for at least awhile (you still need to eat SOMETHING ). Still, you may or may not stick with it. As far as gaining, I strongly believe that every woman's body is different and is going to do what it needs to do while pregnant. Sure, you could easily gain way more than you should by eating a TON, but sometimes even when you eat healthy and don't overdo it, you'll still gain like 40+ pounds. To an extent you'll just have to accept it and let your body do what it needs.

I'm currently 30 weeks pregnant and have only gained 18-19 lbs, which I'm really excited about (I've always been an easy gainer, but my metabolism is through the roof right now). I eat pretty healthy, but not super low-carb. I'd estimate that most days I eat around 150-175 g net carbs, though I'm sure I have some higher and some lower days... I planned on eating no more than 100 net carbs, but I've been so hungry that I just can't seem to keep that up. That said, I have friends who eat pretty much as I do and have stayed active, but have gained a lot more than me. It's not because they're overeating or not exercising, it's because their body is doing what it needs to to have a healthy pregnancy...

Long story short, just stay as healthy as you can and try not to worry about it too much. You'll probably focus more on the weight in the beginning, but once you're a ways along you kind of let it go. A healthy baby is the most important thing.

Good luck with everything!!!!!

I think lower carb is the way to go while pregnant!

For the first 16 weeks I ate whatever I could...and gained a lot in those weeks, but I couldn't do anything else. Once I started feeling better and exercising regulary, my weight gain stalled and it goes to baby. Saying all that...I will end up with a gain of 35 pounds. Next baby, I will try SO hard to eat really healthy in the beginning weeks because that is when you really don't need to gain any weight (you will retain some water, your breasts will get larger) and I believe that I will be able to stick to the 25-30 pounds.

My friend just gave birth to a baby boy and he is one month old. She has lost 23 pounds of the baby weight (but her breasts have grown dramatically since giving birth from engorgement with breast feeding.) So she has lost about 25 pounds of the 35 she gained. She still can't get all of her wedding bands on...so she is still retaining water. I think if you gain 35 or less it should be gone rather quickly (3 months or shorter.)

Just eat for a healthy baby and try to not gain a ton in a short period of time!

Ohhh my gosh, thank you so much for writing that! I've been an eating machine. I kept telling myself "This pregnancy will be different - I'll be in control & wont eat as much" but I have been SO ravenous! Nothing is enough!

I've been averaging 50-80 carbs/day, but I've been eating fruit - I had avoided sugars prior to pregnancy, but now all that "sounds good" are eggs, MEAT & fruit.

TMI: the positive side is between the fruit, the beans & baked yam I ate the other day ( ) my 1st trimester constipation is cured! Hooray!

I'm so worried that at the rate I'm eating, though, I'll be 30lbs by the end of my first trimester! I'm already looking pregnant at 2 months

I track my calorie/nutrition using an online program, but seeing how much I'm eating doesn't quell my hunger. I'm totally in F-it mode. For instance, yesterday I had my big breakfast - bacon egg scramble - the same for lunch - but I had to have a late dinner so I was STARVING in between! I had no protein so I ate 1 pint of figs, 1 nectarines, carrots, celery & peanutbutter.. it was never ending!

When it came to dinner I was "all about moderation" until I saw that delicious chicken... mmmm.... I ditched my self control & ate 2 legs & 2 thighs! about 2400 calories for the day!

I need a pep talk! I think I need to have more meat around for when I'm starving. It seems like when I eat vegetables or fruit I'm still ravenous - but man! This pregnancy could get expensive!

I was fine with hardboiled eggs for a while... but now those are just wrong!

Suggestions?

Well, I wasn't low carbing with either of my pregnancies and in hindsight, I should have been! I ate crap because I "needed to eat something" and crackers and bread (and chips and other crap) seemed ok... till I was gaining 8lbs every month (even in the beginning) AND to boot - I was severely nauseated (had to take meds).

I don't see any problem with eating low carb during pregnancy - of course Atkins does say in his book that the induction phase isn't recommened for pregnant women - I see nothing wrong with eating meats, eggs, veggies, fruits... seriously, it's what they used to eat in the beginning of time, right?

Protein can ward off nausea, fruits and veggies will keep you from getting bunged up, and meat has iron that you need for baby (well, you as baby is taking all yours!)

Personally - I would probably not eat as high of fat... but that might be just because I haven't looked into it much - it might be fine.

You could always take a list of food to your doc and day that is what you eat and see what they say?

I<3splenda - I would have more protein snacks around for sure!!! You will naturally be hungrier while pregnant and that's ok! It might even level off for you after 3 months or so... so as long as you're putting good food into your body, you will do great!

I wouldn't concern yourself too much with the 20-30lbs of weight gain... it can become something you obsess over - I would just focus on eating the right kinds of good food for you and your baby. If your blood pressure and urine tests are good at your appts, be happy that you know you're doing the right thing!

Since this will be your first pregnancy, you never know how your body will react. I assumed that I would gain a ton but I only gained 13 with my first and 17 with my second. Most of it was lost during delivery. (Unfortunately, I gained during breastfeeding, so everyone is different.) The point is that you can't just assume that you will gain a lot. Good luck!

i<3splenda-- I would make a huge tray of frittata: http://sugarmagnolia.wordpress.com/...-allium-family/ (recipe on my blog) and then just kep it in the fridge and cut away pieces when ravenous. it is good hot or cold, and if you throw some meat or bacon in you can bulk up the eggs. its also pretty portable, and probably as close to the convenience of a sandwich one can get on this diet !

you could also make soups! my simple formula for soup is bacon and onion, fried + any vegetable + stock , blend = awesome!!

Hi! I just found out I'm expecting baby #4 and am SO glad I found this thread! Is there anyone else out there still in their first trimester???

Hi Mommato3...how're you feeling? I suppose I should've put my advice to you here. Actually, you should start a new thread based on your due date (like "Pregnant and due Fall 2010"). I did that way back when and connected with some great people on this forum with similar due dates.

I'll reiterate what I said to you, which is that if I had to do it all over again I would totally focus more on LC throughout the pregnancy. Oddly enough I had the opposite experience when I was pregnant (son is now 2) where I did great on LC in the first trimester and then started slipping and slipping until I lived on Dunkin Donuts! UGH. Were I to become pregnant again, I would totally stick with the paleo approach ala Primal Blueprint and allow for the boosts, such as sweet potatoes and other good things. Keep the nutrients high and the variety going and do the best you can. Here's to a healthy pregnancy!

I used to be a self-described "Atkins freak" and was also a real skinny-mini. Anyhow, when preparing to get pregnant with my son, I thought that you probably couldn't eat low-carb while pregnant and I ditched my healthy, feel good lifestyle and ate almost all carbs. No wonder I was saddled with crippling nausea for 14 weeks! Then I was a sugar addict the rest of my pregnancy, and gained 55 pounds total. Yikes! So, if I had it to do over, I would have kept my eating style, plus fruits like strawberries, melon, and kiwi. If I have another baby, I am so going to do that! It HAS to be healthier than what I did to myself last time. I also almost failed my GTT and had to take the 3 hour- which I passed, but had wild blood sugar spike and then plummet- probably from all of the sugar and empty carb intake. I always felt horrible. This could not indicate healthy lifestyle. Beware- some doctors will tell you no without even listening to you or considering your food diary if you going to ask them.

I wish I had read GCBC before I got pregnant
Unfortunately I did only about 2 years after my son was born.

I still breast-fed him for 20 months and weaned him on home food - fruits, vegetables, egg yolk and yoghurt. But that's about it.

Wish I had done lots more while pregnant/breastfeeding.

1. Avoid sugar and refined flour totally. Eat lots of dairy fats and eggs. And of course lots of fatty meat, if you eat meat.

2. Good supplements of Vitamin D3 and Omega-3. At least 5000-6000 IU D3 and 1500-1800 mg EPA+DHA omega-3 supplement.

3. A good quality pre-natal vitamin.

4. Prepare for childbirth and breastfeeding while pregnant itself - once labour hits, you wont have time. Read up a lot, watch videos, research on good products (including breast pumps and baby stuff). Read up about the entire process of labour, breathing techniques etc, do the exercises which will ease labour, including pushing techniques required at the end of labour.

5. Once labour starts, dont panic. You dont need to rush to the hospital, wait until the contractions are 30-35 mins apart before you do. Don't let the ob-gyn or doula or whoever is in charge rush you through labour. There's no need to induce pains or give you any shots to speed it up etc. Let it follow its natural course. Only after 10-12 hours, if there's still no dilation etc, you can agree to speed things up, if needed. Do you breathing to ease you through the first few hours. You will need all the strength for the end, preserve it.
When fully dilated and ready (the ob-gyn will tell you when), push and push really hard to get the baby out.

6. Breast-feed the baby within an hour of birth. This is very important. If you've had to have a C-section, that's OK ... recovery takes a while, but try and breastfeed ASAP.
Breastfeeding does hurt a bit for the first few weeks. Proper latching techniques (read up, read up) do minimize this, but it still will hurt a little. But in a few weeks you will get used to it. Really, you will.

7. Continue the diet and supplement regime for as long as you're breastfeeding. Avoid sugar and refined flour totally. Eat lots of dairy fats and eggs. And of course lots of fatty meat, if you eat meat. Good supplements of Vitamin D3 and Omega-3. At least 5000-6000 IU D3 and 1500-1800 mg EPA+DHA omega-3 supplement. A good quality multivitamin.

8. Please breastfeed for as long as you can. 2+ years is good. There's nothing abnormal or unnatural about breastfeeding after 2, the longer the better. Thats the best gift you can give your baby.

Shobha- I am a huge believer in a good omega-3 (DHA/EPA) supplement while pregnant. Once my son was on whole milk, we started adding refined orange flavor fish oil to his cereal at bedtime. He still likes his cereal, so we actually still do that. I think a baby needs those fats for proper brain development. My mom said when we were babies, they were encouraged to start the baby on 2% milk at age 6 mos. She said even then she thought we needed fat and gave us whole milk.