Is there anything I should be trying to do healthwise BEFORE TTC #1?

I never had a regular cycle for years and the doctor told me I wasn't ovulating, so I lived with the idea that I was infertile... but since I started losing weight it's become regular as a pendulum - five months straight of perfect 28 day cycles! Since it's your ovulation/hormones that trigger your period, it's very exciting, and we've decided to TTC and see what happens... I just want to get down to 200lbs first (I've gone from 265 to 205) which will probably take another month or so at the rate I've been going lately. So is there anything that I should be doing in the meantime healthwise?

Good luck to you!  Keep up the great work!  I would suggest starting to take a multi-vitamin for women with Folic acid (at least 400 mg), keep excersing, and establish heathy eating habits. 

I agree with Vanessa. Folic acid is very important and it's recommended that women take it even if they're not planning on concieving because it's so good for the baby's development. It's good to have it in your body stock up at the time of conception.

I am so happy for you, though!! Furry babies are nice (I see the kitty in your picture!) but human babies have a longer lifespan. ;p

I don't really have any advice for you, as I was wondering the same thing you are. :-) Just wanted to say good luck!

Vitamins are good, and also if you take any medications make sure they are safe.  Many meds, even some over the counter ones are not healthy when pregnant. 

Some research suggests that eating fiber prior to becoming pregnant will help prevent gestational diabetes.  Here's a link to an article about that.  It may also help prevent preeclampsia, as supported in this article.  Additionally, fiber can prevent constipation, a common problem for pregnant women, and hemorroids. 

Thanks for the tips...

I just borrowed a book called 'Preparing for Pregnancy' and it was mostly stuff I already knew, but there were a few new things in it. The one I didn't expect is that it says you should start avoiding the things that pregnant women aren't supposed to eat in case you jump the gun and get pregnant before you planned, and to make sure you don't have the bad luck to be pre-infected with something that could be bad. So no unpasteurised dairy or raw cheese and no raw eggs unless you buy pasteurised ones or egg-beaters. (doesn't worry me, they're not exactly a regular part of my diet!) But I was very surprised that it said that lunchmeat and hotdogs are bad because they might have listeria in them, so if you want to eat them they have to be boiling hot to kill it - no cold roast beef or ham sandwiches! And the other thing is don't get carried away with the liver/foi gras because they have the most vitamin A in them and too much of that is Very Bad.

It also said that you should take folic acid and calcium and not worry about special 'pre-natal' vitamins if you're eating a healthy diet (and I think most of us are with the aid of this site! I KNOW I'm eating a lot better than I was twelve months ago...) so I'm off to the vitamin shop tomorrow to get some - it said that ideally you need to take the folic acid for at least two cycles BEFORE you get pregnant to make sure you've got enough stored up...

And of course it advised eating right, getting plenty of sleep, exercising regularly, and losing (or gaining) weight to get as close as you can to 'ideal' weight but we already knew that... I've been doing a, b, and c for the last twelve months already, and as for d, if I waited to get down to 150 pounds at a healthy rate I'd be 40 before I could even start trying! If you can't get to 'normal' weight, then it suggested losing 5-10% of your body weight because every pound makes a difference, and I've done that and then some!

kajikit, did your doc never test you for PCOS? Because that's what I had - no regular cycles, etc. I lost weight and took metformin, 500mg a day, and it helped. I'm starting my 5th month of pregnancy now.

I lost about 25 pounds, still a little overweight, but that's ok. If I were you, I would keep up on trying to lose weight, but don't skimp on healthy foods, just keep really active. Take a great prenatal vitamin and perhaps find a good OB/GYN and set up a pre-conception visit.

 Honestly, if your doc noticed you weren't ovulating and didn't do any follow up on causation, I wouldn't keep him/her as your doctor!

Original Post by kajikit:

Thanks for the tips...

But I was very surprised that it said that lunchmeat and hotdogs are bad because they might have listeria in them, so if you want to eat them they have to be boiling hot to kill it - no cold roast beef or ham sandwiches!

 My doc told me that you only have to heat the meat about 10 sec in the microwave and then you can let it cool down to room temp. You should only heat the meat one serving at a time, though.

i started to eat better by adding fruits and veggies, at least 7 a day. then adding quality protein, taking a multivitamin with folic acid (1mg is prescription strength). i eliminated caffeine so i wouldn't crave it. and exercise regularly. now that i'm expecting, i find i can't run since it gets my heartrate too high so i power walk and do all my weightlifting sitting down, vs. standing up. so it's a whole lot easier because when you get pregnant, you're not going to be able to exercise the same way because your tired more!!

just start making the healthy stuff a habit now and it becomes easier when you are pregnant.

Good luck conceiving!! :)  Actually me losing weight is how i had my oops baby that was 7 months ago!! :)  I actually had to have help conceiving my other two (older kids).  So yes losing weight and being at a healthy weight before conceiving is a very good start.  Also i agree with the others you need to start taking a good multivitamin with folic acid in it to prevent birth defects.  Good luck!!


Clarice