Quite Ashamed & Need Advice

I am currently 7 months pregnant (this is my very first pregnancy) and weigh 301.5.. Before pregnancy hit, I had lost 60 pounds over a period of 8 and a half months. I got down to 280 basically, now I'm at an embarrassing 300 again, when I promised myself I would not let myself get over 300 but I did. Cravings got the best of me for about 14.5 pounds... Then I started consulting with my doctor over my weight gain and what foods I should be eating and avoiding. She was short and sweet about it. Of course add more veggies and no juice anymore, and I did what she told me right away. Unfortunately, doc failed to mention canned foods were really high in sodium and I should have been buying frozen instead. I ended up gaining 7 pounds in a realllly short period of time (2 weeks). Its my misconception and ignorance that has led me back here but I want to get back on track again. This doctor visit (2 days ago), I had a new doctor (occasionally switches because I go to a clinic) and she really went into detail about what I should and should not be eating. The avoid list she gave went like this basically:

-All cereals
-2% Milk
-White bread
-Sugary/really sweet fruits (ex: watermelon, oranges, red apples)
-Canned veggies
-Greasy foods
-Sugary foods
-High sodium foods
-Pasta
-Anything white (ex: potatoes and rice)
-Corn
-Instant oatmeal
-Fast food
-Condiments (ex: ketchup, ranch, mustard, any dressings)
-Peas
-Sugary juices (ex: orange juice)

Wheaties (with 2% milk), oranges and many fruits, were the majority of my diet before my pregnancy so I was pretty much bummed I had been eating extremely wrong things and in bad proportion (when it came to the fruits..) the past year. The Wheaties continued into my pregnancy, but not so many fruits as I learned they were too sugary for a diet.

Then the pro-list came:

-Boiled egg
-Whole Grain Oatmeal (ex: steel-cut oats, quick oats)
-Berries (ex: strawberries, blueberries)
-Melons (ex: cantaloupe)
-Vegetables (ex: green beans, beans, broccoli, lettuce, cucumber, carrots)
-Salad
-Fresh or frozen veggies and fruits
-Boiled or grilled chicken
-Skim milk
-Wheat bread
-Whole grains
-Green apples
-Brown rice
-Chickpeas

Now that I know what I should be eating, I'm having a really hard time coming up with meals. Basically all I can see that I should eat is oatmeal, salads, chicken, a boiled egg, wheat bread, occasional fruits, and lots of veggies. I've been eating plain salads, mixing up my veggies so its not boring since no dressings are healthy. I put fruit in oatmeal. Chicken in salad. Egg in oatmeal. Fruits as snacks. That's pretty much it since we have no wheat bread, brown rice, or chickpeas right now. I'm really disheartened by the short list of things she mentioned and want to make my meals more interesting. This is also leaving me very hungry soon after I eat, more than I've normally experienced in this pregnancy. I tried searching on CC's recipes but I haven't come across anything else and also have searched Google.

Could anyone recommend some healthy meals based on the list I was given or tell me what else would be healthy I should try out?? I'm not too picky or allergic to anything. Any and all suggestions are welcome. Especially creative ideas.

I think it's great that you are being proactive and doing what the dr says! :)  My weight is a little out of control too and I'm trying to fight those cravings with the best of them! :)  Here are some of my thought:

- you can add the chick peas to your salad.  They are really high in protien and fiber and are great in salad.  You can also drain them and fry them in a pan with a little paprika until they are crunchy for a GREAT snack!

-grab some fat free yogurt and toss your fruit in with that.  Or you can have it with your cereal too.  You can even freeze some and pretend it's ice cream.  Better for the freezing are the squeezable yogurts for kids, they are in tubes already (single serve yeah!!)

-don't go straight to skim milk.  try 1% for a week or 2 and then go to skim.  The change will be easier. :)

-you could try vegetarian subsitutes for meats for your favorite meals.  They make subsitutes for ground beef, chicken, burgers, sausage, hot dogs.  All sorts of things.  You will find that they are much lower in fat and calories and they go with all your favorites.  You just use them in place of the meat.  For example: For sloppy joes, I cook the fake ground beef for a few minutes and then add the sauce.  Viola, toss over a bun and we have sloppy joes! :)  You cook it on stove the same way you would regular meat.

Well, that was a little longer than I had anticipated, but I hope it helps!!

~Mollie :)

Congratulations on your pregnancy and for being healthy throughout! You've only gained 20 pounds in 7 months so that's great!

I personally eat old-fashioned oats for breakfast every morning. I make 1/2 cup dry oats with just over 1/2 cup water (so they are a tad dry when done cooking) and then add in a drizzle of honey and 1/4-1/2 cup of soy milk. Yum! I pair that with egg substitute (1/2 cup with some feta and hot sauce) and a banana. I did that all throughout my pregnancy and have continued through 11 months of breastfeeding. It really does keep me full for a good 5-6 hours because it's high in fiber and protein.

What kind of lettuce are you using? I find that by using spinach in my salads instead of, say, romain or iceburg, I stay full for a lot longer. I really like spinach, chickpeas, red onion, feta cheese and a drizzle of oil and red wine vinegar. Not ALL salad dressings are bad. You can always make your own with some lemon juice, vinegar, garlic and extra virgin olive oil adding any spices you like. Olive oil is high in good fats that help raise good cholesterol.

I like crumbling up either Kashi or the 90 calorie Quaker granola bars into plain, full-fat yogurt for a snack. Or, whole wheat crackers with light Laughing Cow cheese. Fruit with natural peanut butter (I like Smucker's because it doesn't have added sugar or hydrogenated oils). Low fat Cottage cheese with pears/strawberries/blueberries.

Try tofu stir fry. I know a lot of people have issues with the texture of tofu but if preped correctly, the consistency isn't bad. You just stick the brick in the freezer for a while, slice it and press it between two paper towels for about half an hour to get rid of all the moisture. Then you can marinate it in low sodium soy sauce mixed with garlic, ginger and some lime juice. Toss it in a pan with some cooked brown rice, broccoli, onions and peppers and voila! Quick and easy!

My go-to website for recipes is RecipeZaar. It has a function called the "Recipe Sifter" where you can select certain ingredients and it spits out all kinds of recipes that include them. You can also select your type of diet: low fat, diabetic, Kosher, etc. Here's the link:

http://www.recipezaar.com/sifter.php

Hope that helps a little! Good luck!

Original Post by mollie0516:

-you could try vegetarian subsitutes for meats for your favorite meals.  They make subsitutes for ground beef, chicken, burgers, sausage, hot dogs.  All sorts of things.  You will find that they are much lower in fat and calories and they go with all your favorites.  You just use them in place of the meat.  For example: For sloppy joes, I cook the fake ground beef for a few minutes and then add the sauce.  Viola, toss over a bun and we have sloppy joes! :)  You cook it on stove the same way you would regular meat.

 Hm, I could just be making this up, but isn't Tufu or substitute meat high in sodium? I am not sure but I thought I saw that once. Definitely something to check out if you go that route. High sodium while pregnant=BIG NO. Oh the misery of swollen feet and water retention. Keep an eye on that nasty sodium.

Break out the grill! There are a variety of sauces, rubs, marinades, and seasonings for chicken. However, I would definitely be measuring them out to avoid excess sodium--most of these are high in sodium. So this may or may not be helpful. Have some grilled chicken with some brown rice. The flavor in the chicken might help the awful blandness of the rice. :) And then mix in a heap of mixed Veg and you've got a good meal.

I have also heard of oats IN yogurt so if you can have those, maybe more filling?  Can you have bananas? Bananas or berries on wheat bread or in your oats.

Take heart--you ARE doing well!! As you get closer to the due date, you will have to make much smaller portions throughout the day due to lack of space in the tummy. It's weird to feel full and hungry at the same time, but it really happens. I think the eating gets easier in the 3rd trimester, but that might have just been me.

Original Post by annkatcom:

 Hm, I could just be making this up, but isn't Tufu or substitute meat high in sodium? I am not sure but I thought I saw that once. Definitely something to check out if you go that route. High sodium while pregnant=BIG NO. Oh the misery of swollen feet and water retention. Keep an eye on that nasty sodium.

I think this is true of things like Boca ground "beef"--the frozen, prepackaged items. A block of uncooked tofu has hardly any sodium in it.

Remember that eating healthy in pregnancy is no different then eating healthy in general, you just need a few more calories to support your little bean.

Don't be to strict on yourself, all of us on calorie count have learned the hard way that complete deprivation will lead to binges and failure.

Start keeping a food journal and logging your calories, for being pregnant you need about 300 calories more then what the burn meter estimates for you.  Don't try and lose weight at this stage eat maintenance calories + 300.

Personally I focus on getting 25g of fiber a day if I can achieve that the rest of my calories I do with as I please.  Fiber is important because it will keep you feeling full there is nothing wrong with eating a lot of fruit if you stay within your calorie limits, and there is nothing wrong with canned vegetables, they are not as nutritious and they are higher in salt but unless you have high blood pressure or some other condition which is affected by salt it's not really a big deal.

I'm 7 months pregnant as well and I can't imagine making a huge diet overhaul now, just take things one step at a time, focus on limiting your calories to maintenance + 300 to stop over gaining, focus on getting the fiber (this will have the benefit of eliminating white flour products from your diet) and once you have those things as good habits start slowly just swapping out the bad stuff for good.

I've gained 25lbs so far but it's hard when your pregnant my body has turned into a sponge a lot of your gaining could simply be related to your hormones deciding it's time to gain weight.

The subsistiues are not that much higer in sodium than thier meat alternatives.  As with most things, most of the sodium comes with the prep.  There is basically no sodium in a block of tofu. 

Original Post by berryblue031:

Personally I focus on getting 25g of fiber a day if I can achieve that the rest of my calories I do with as I please.  Fiber is important because it will keep you feeling full there is nothing wrong with eating a lot of fruit if you stay within your calorie limits, and there is nothing wrong with canned vegetables, they are not as nutritious and they are higher in salt but unless you have high blood pressure or some other condition which is affected by salt it's not really a big deal.

I'm 7 months pregnant as well and I can't imagine making a huge diet overhaul now, just take things one step at a time, focus on limiting your calories to maintenance + 300 to stop over gaining, focus on getting the fiber (this will have the benefit of eliminating white flour products from your diet) and once you have those things as good habits start slowly just swapping out the bad stuff for good.

I've gained 25lbs so far but it's hard when your pregnant my body has turned into a sponge a lot of your gaining could simply be related to your hormones deciding it's time to gain weight.

 Mollie and Bier, thanks for clarifying that. :)

berryblue, I hate to argue but regarding the salt in canned veg--it can have pretty bad effects on a pregnant person, regardless of weight. Too much sodium causes water retention--this can cause excessive weight gain and swelling in feet and sometimes hands. Nothing to really panic about but definitely not a comfortable situation. Besides, frozen veggies taste and look so much better plus you can get the steamer bags which are very quick and easy.

Plus, her calorie intake will probably different from the next pregnant person (all our intakes are different, really) due to weight and other factors. While one person might take in 2300 calories while pregnant (and this is not even be required for the entire pregnancy) someone else only takes in 1900 (this is including their 300 extra). It's really about what the doctor recommends. I'm not saying she can't have a cheating moment here and there, but she might need to watch her calorie intake more closely than others.

OP: You could make a fruit salad too? Or a grilled chicken sandwich. Can you have cheese? Perhaps sprinkling some cheese on your veggies or other items. Also, brown gravy and rice is something I eat every once in while--just pour it on like mashed potatoes. It's pretty good.

Sounds quite like the South Beach diet. You could pick up a SB Diet Cookbook from your local library - it's really a great way to find healthy foods in exciting ways.

Another suggestion would be making your own soups. Soup used to be a staple in diets world wide. They are filling and nutritious and if you make them yourself, you can cut back the sodium. Try making a soup in a crockpot if you are short on time, then let it simmer and enjoy it when you get home.

Another place to find good meal suggestions is by searching the DASH diet for recipe ideas. If it says to use something you can't eat, try to think of a way to replace it (if it says white rice, substitute brown).

From what I understand about her post she doesn't have any specific problems besides the weight gain, and her doctors response to what she should eat is a generic "eat less grease and more vegetables, more whole grains and less junk food" response.

Also cutting back salt during pregnancy to prevent swelling is an old wives tale and has been disproven in recent years.

If she is having problems with water retention and swelling the only way to cure that is to make sure at her weight to get 3L of water a day. Dehydration is the main offender with regards to ankle swelling.

But high sodium foods is also on her list of No's, which is why I mentioned those items in the first place. Also, the items I was discussing can sometimes have high amounts of sodium, which is why I recommended keeping an eye on it. I searched and could not find information that contradicted that sodium=swelling. Below is some info about salt and sodium and why it's a good idea to avoid it...

"Sodium intake is closely related to water retention and edema (swelling). Over consumption of salt is one of the commonest reasons why people retain excess fluid. Many experts tell patients with water-retention problems to eat fewer processed foods, add less salt when cooking and remove the salt shaker from the table. A good diet to follow is the DASH diet.

Edema During Pregnancy
Hormones released in pregnancy encourage the body to hold onto excess fluid. Pregnant women typically retain a significant amount of sodium and water. Some of this excess fluid is needed by the fetus and placenta. Swelling in the face, hands, lower leg and feet is typically seen in pregnancy." --wikianswers

"Salt does not cause your body to gain or lose fat. In fact, salt has no calories. High consumption of salt only results in temporary weight gain as it causes your body to retain water. Conversely, low consumption of salt can result in temporary weight loss as it causes your body to expel water.

Though the terms are often used interchangeably, salt and sodium are not the same thing. Sodium, which is found naturally in most foods, accounts for approximately 40% of table salt. Therefore when salt is added to food, the sodium content increases by approximately 40% of the amount of salt added." -Caloriesperhour.com

---I couldn't find any information regarding dehydration causing swelling (I searched for it specifically as well). Though I did find that hydration "Helps keep pregnant women from being constipated -- and it can also help the body flush away excess fluid that can lead to bloating and edema (swelling)." according to saferchild.org--an article on dehydration.

babycentre.com: "Oedema is caused by increased pressure in the veins of your legs, and by pressure from your growing baby compressing the big veins in your groin. Water retention adds to the problem." So I guess this means we are both wrong. lol

I'm not trying to start an arguement or anything, so I hope you don't take a offense. If you have information regarding dehydration and swelling, I would be interested in it--learning more about pregnancy is a topic I'm pretty fascinated by.

Thank you for all the input, everyone!! I really appericate all the replies and ideas I was given.

Sadly I have a very bad problem with drinking water! I don't find it nasty or anything, but I hardly can force myself to drink much at all of anything. I'm trying to get atleast 60 oz in everyday but its still a lot for me (even though my body needs a whole lot more..). I find myself sometimes not drinking even half that most days. 3 liters of water is such a scary number. =S I wonder if I'll ever drink that much. I've tried constantly sipping water throughout the day but its still a problem for me. Gah

you just need a "fancy" cup.  Go out and splurge (within reason!!) on a good insulated cup/travle mug/whatever catches your eye.  Mine is a pink travel mug that can have either hot or cold beverages and even came with a pink straw.  I'm all about pink! :) 

Although most of what you drink should be plain water, you can also shoot for "clear liquids" in general and wean yourself to all water.  Go with some weak lemonaid or something like that.  You can also squeeze some fruit into your water.  Put a slice of lemon, lime, orange, berries, anything into your water.  Then it won't taste like water.

Crystal Light has those little single-serving packets to flavor water. I had an aversion to water during my second pregnancy so I got all different flavors of Crystal Light and used them in my water-filled Nalgene. They don't have sugar so you don't need to worry about that!

Original Post by aihimeko:

Thank you for all the input, everyone!! I really appericate all the replies and ideas I was given.

Sadly I have a very bad problem with drinking water! I don't find it nasty or anything, but I hardly can force myself to drink much at all of anything. I'm trying to get atleast 60 oz in everyday but its still a lot for me (even though my body needs a whole lot more..). I find myself sometimes not drinking even half that most days. 3 liters of water is such a scary number. =S I wonder if I'll ever drink that much. I've tried constantly sipping water throughout the day but its still a problem for me. Gah

 I drank water by the gallon before I was pregnant. During my pregnancy I struggled with it unless I filled a huge cup with ice and then put water in it. If it wasn't ice cold I couldn't swallow it. Maybe that would help?

Thank you!! That may have been my problem so I'm having SUCH easier time drinking more water cold (no where near the right amount yet). Although I am also gonna look into getting a stainless steel water bottle. Pricey though. =S

What you need in your new, healthy diet is 'flavour' and 'imagination'.   If you take cauliflower, tomatoes, potatoes and rice it doesn't sound very interesting.  But if you cook it indian-style with some whole spices it turns into 'Aloo Gobi' and then it's a really fantastic dish.  If you add minced chickpeas to some beaten egg, oats and a few flavours what you've got are 'Chickpea Burgers'.... delicious.   This Grilled Salmon with Sweet Potato Mash is very tasty, quick to cook and really easy to put together.

That's the same with all the wholefoods on your list.  On their own things like 'vegetables' and 'wholegrains' look rather dry and dull so you have to turn them into something more exciting with a combination of basic cooking skills and judicious use of herbs and spices.  When you can do that, you've got it made.

Good luck