Losing weight before getting pregnant

I wanted to start a forum for women who are planning on getting pregnant but who want to lose weight and become healthier before conceiving.

I am 26, 5'6" and currently 262 lbs and recently diagnosed with hypothryroidism. My husband and I are planning on trying to get pregnant at the end of this year (in 11 months!). I have been a member of calorie count for quite a while now and have been incorporating exercise into my daily routine and trying to eat all the right things but have found myself not losing as much weight as I would like.

So, if there's anyone else out there like me with a goal to become healthy and lose weight before getting pregnant, hopefully we can motivate eachother towards this goal!

Hi kevans!  My name is Ashley.  I'm 28, 5'5" and currently 207 pounds.  When I started in July I was at 235 pounds.  I was diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrom about 8 years ago.  Because of the PCOS the doctors say I will probably have trouble getting pregnant but if I can lose the weight it might be easier. 

I have been a member of calorie count for a while but really got serious about losing weight in July.  I try to get in an hour of exercise 5 days a week, but that is probably one of my biggest struggles.  I have been stuck at 207 pounds for a few months now and I have gotten a little discouraged! 

I definitely want to get my body in better shape before having a baby.  I know it will be good for me AND the baby if I take care of myself now.  I would love to have the support, encouragement, and motivation of other women who have the same goal to get healthy before getting pregnant!

Hi both,  I'm 27, 5'6 and getting married in August, planning to start trying at the end of this year.  Currently 152lbs, aiming to be fit and healthy, weight loss is a bonus but 140lbs would be nice.

This is me - sort of!  I'm 27, 5'6.5" and 160 (SW 238, GW 145).  My husband and I were married in December and will probably start trying for children when I turn 30.  So, we have lots of time.  I didn't lose weight solely for the purpose of becoming pregnant but it was more about me being able to prove to myself that I could be a good mother if I was able to control my weight and be healthier.  I didn't think I'd be a good role model if I was obese and I didn't want to teach my future children my bad habits.  So, I am a few years away from it, but my future children were definitely a motivation for me.

Hello everyone! I'm glad that I'm not alone in this situation. I'm 28, 5'3 and 175 lbs at this time. My husband and I are planning to conceive by the end of this year. I have irregular menstruation, so I went to my MD last September (I was 186lbs then). I was told that it might be hard for me to get pregnant and was also told that losing weight might help. I started to exercise and eat healthy as part of my new years resolution. Lost 5 lbs the first week and 4 lbs the 2nd. I'm on my 3rd week and I'm keeping my fingers crossed! Good luck to all of us!

Hello ladies! What a great idea to start a group like that! I'd love to join, if I may. My name is Aga, I'm 23, 5'4", 148 lbs. I joined CC a year ago and since then I've lost 20 lbs (27 lbs since I was at my heaviest). I've been married for 3.5 years, and I think we're gonna start trying to get pregnant around November. My beloved hubby will be turning 40 in October, so I don't think he'll want to put it off much longer :D I had a miscarriage a bit over 3 years ago, so the second time around I want to make sure I've done everything I could for my baby to be healthy. Granted, I was 20 when I miscarried and all the doctors said it was not my fault, but I figure it cannot hurt to lose weight, become more fit and acquire better eating habits before I get pregnant :) I'm aiming to lose around 15 more lbs by then. Well, good luck to us and let's keep up the good work!

Hi everyone. Wow! This is a great column. I am Sam. I'm 26, 5'9", 206 lbs. I had lost a ton of weight for my wedding. It has been 6 mths since and I have gained it all back. I have been trying hard for the past 4 months to lose weight but there has been no motivation. I read an article on getting pregnant and it suddenly dawned on me that my biological clock is ticking too. We want to get pregnant in an year's time but before that I wanna ensure that I am fit and healthy to care for our baby. I started a week ago at my heaviest ever in my life at 214 lbs. All it takes is great self control over eating. I consume smaller portions now and limit my calorie intake. If I binge on ice-cream one day, I am stricter on myself the next day. Also, I have made it a point to go to gym atleast 6 days in a week. Hafta get up at 6:30 am for that but there is no choice as I am at work the whole day and I get too tired by evening. Still, after languishing for 4 months, I am finally getting results and it is really motivating. Ladies, the secret mantra is all about controlling yourself. There is no alternate choice. Good luck to you all.

Hello, Everyone,

I was on CC pretty seriously last summer and saw some results, but then I fell off the exercise wagon. My husband and I would like to start trying to conceive by this summer, but I would like to lose some weight and be in better overall physical health before.

I'm 5'3" and 145 pounds. I'm aiming for 130 pounds by the end of April. Food is not as big of a problem for me as is getting motivated to exercise, though counting calories on this site definitely helps! I want to have a healthy exercise routine in place before TTC (trying to conceive), so that I can continue when I do conceive. They say it's healthy to continue any activity you've been doing before conception, but that you can't start new activity once you conceive. So, I'd like to get back into running, yoga, and tennis, my three favorite activities. 

Nice to be here! We can help keep each other on track.

i know you wanted women to reply but i just had to pop in my two cents...what a great reason for wanting to get healthy!!! i am a father of 2 and it is the most rewarding thing i have ever done!! although i am not a woman and cant give you womanly advise i wanted to encourage you and give you a pat on the back..good luck to you and your family!!!

Hello everyone! Today is my weekly weigh in. Im glad to tell u all that I lost 3lbs since my last weigh on Thursday (that's 12lbs in 3 wks!) . My efforts are finally paying off! I got more confidence and I feel better. I just hope that Im not losing weight too fast. Good luck to everyone!

P.S

To skillz794 - I don't think that the girls mind having a man in our forum. We need all the help that we can get.

Hi All,

This is a good question to discuss. I as read through the post, I noticed that almost exveryone of us has two major targets - either loose weight or maintain it successfully. My question is that when we know that excess weight is not good for us, why don't we follow that in our diet? May be due to ignorance or lack of self control - So to all those friends of mine who give up easily, I would like to tell them that they should stop being emotional eater.

Now is the time to take control of your eating habits, so start this new year(though 23 days of 2009 have already passed) on a bright note : 'I will make difference this year' and then follow it rigrously. Sharing experiences and reading motivational writings always help. I sometimes visit (http://offbeatspirituality.blogspot.com/) ocassionaly & try to stay motivated everytime in all the tasks that I do. Now I am on track to exercise, walk and gym. This is a great source of inspiration and I suggest that you should also go through it once.

Naina 

Hi all I'm Kat, I'm 30 and I weigh 212lbs. I was diagnosed with PCOS June of 2005 and was afraid to go back to the doc because I got scared. June of 2008 I lost my best friend (My Dad). From all the stress I developed Hypothyroidism. I just went back to my gyno because recently my hubby and I been talking about having a baby. And to find out i should be going to a endo/gyno.  I've been trying for the past 3 days to get an appt with the new doc but they haven't called me back but they are supposed to be the best in NJ. Anyways my reg endo told me to lose weight I've been trying really hard this past week. (it's when I got motivated) I've been on the treadmill for 1hr at fat burning pace and then i go on the bike for 30 min. I lost a lil weight but been going up and down in weight.  But as for baby.....I just hope all the work and the meds that I'll be on is going to work. I'm also moving In march to Idaho. Which would be really nice to conceive before we go but I know that ain't gonna happen!

Hi ladies. I'm Jackie and will be 25 next month. My husband and I got married in June and have been trying for a baby ever since but have had no luck on our own as I was diagnosed with PCOS when I was 15. I recently tried Clomid only to find out that it had no effect. I decided that I need to try and lose a good amount of weight before we proceed with any other assistive techniques and my husband has been supportive. I am 5'3 and am currently at my heaviest of 214 and feel gross and awful. I'm hoping to lose at least 60 pounds before getting serious about fertility help. I feel so broken and don't like what I see in the mirror anymore. I wish everyone luck in weight loss and baby making!

Wow!! I had no idea there would be this big of a response for my post! This is very encouraging, and thank you skillz794 for the extra support :) I have been keeping a log of all of my calories and try to use our treadmill 5 days a week. I have been noticing very slow weight loss (2 lbs last week). After keeping a detailed log of my calories I'm noticing that I'm not getting nearly enough protein as I think I should be.

I just started taking prenatal vitamins, even though I'm not trying to get pregnant right now my doctor and many of my girlfriends advise that women should start taking prenatal vitamins as soon as they begin thinking they will want to become pregnant to make sure they're getting enough folate, calcium, and iron.

Keep up the good work everyone, and I hope everyone has a great week!

My hubby and I recently moved to Las Vegas and I just had my first appointment with my new ob/gyn.  She is fabulous so far.  I am going in for an ultrasound next week.  I haven't had one since I was diagnosed with PCOS in 2001, so we thought it would be good to get an idea of what my ovaries look like now.  She's also talking about putting me on a different BCP.  I've been on Ortho-tricyclen and Ortho-cyclen since 2001 and she said there are new ones out there that would be ok for me to take even with the PCOS, so we'll see.  Hopefully it will help... I don't know if it will do anything for my weight loss, but I'm willing to do whatever my doctor suggests.  She knows we are wanting to conceive at some point, and made me feel much better about being over 30 and getting pregnant with my first child.  She had her first at 35.  I know I'm only 28, but I REALLY want to lose the weight before having a baby.

Anyway, I'm really struggling right now.  I have totally lost my motivation to go to the gym.  My eating hasn't been bad, but I just can't seem to make myself workout.  I've been doing this since July and I'm burnt out, but I know I don't need to quit. 

Well, I'm so thankful for all of your posts, it's great to hear what other women in similar situations are doing to lose weight and have a baby!  Hope you all had a wonderul weekend!

kevan

Thanks so much for posting!

I am 29, I have a 2 year old son and would really like to lose about 20 pounds before TTC in May.  It's been a struggle, I honestly don't know how the weight came on! I weigh 176 and I am 5'9".

After the birth of my son is when the weight piled on....I was skinny and healthy when I was pregnant. I guess the stress of being a mom took it's toll!

I started calorie counting on Jan 2nd and I weighed 184 then. My highest ever. So...I have lost a few pounds but...it just doesn't seem to come off fast enough.

I'm in this situation, too!  My husband and I have been planning on trying beginning this spring, so in the fall of 2007 I decided to take action.  I started at 298 and am now at 203 and I'm hoping to be around 180 before we start trying. 

It's the best motivation possible and it will be worth it.  Good luck to everyone! 

Hi Everyone, what a great idea for a forum!  I'm 26; my husband and I have been together for over 7 years, just married this past summer and we can't wait to start trying for a baby! He's a teacher though so we'd really like to conceive around August/Sept so that we'll have a early summer baby and he can be home with me (though not everything always goes as planned I know).  But we have 7 months until we start trying.  My wedding was a huge motivator for me and I've lost 40lbs so far (gained back 10 after the honeymoon) and am looking to lose another 25.  I think this will be an AWESOME motivator and I'm really looking forward to giving and getting support!

SW: 186
CW: 152
GW: 125/130

kevans2882, how far in advance do you think prenatals should be started; do you think we're talking a few weeks, or months in advance?  I still have 7 months before we start trying.  Though I have stopped taking the pill (sorry if TMI) becasue I really feel that I want my system clean before we start trying.

stlmelissa,

hang in there, you're doing so great! You hav lost a lot so far and you're on your way to creating a healthy start for your future baby!

We'll have to keep in touch since we're going to try to conceive at the same time!

Blessings,

D

I just wanted to check in and see how everyone's doing!? 

i went to the doctor for my blood work and go for my ultrasound tomorrow to check out the PCOS.  go back to the doctor on the 11th to discuss the results with my doctor.  working on getting my body ready for a baby!

 hope you all have a great weekend!

Hi everybody!  I think this thread is a great idea.  I am 34 and currently 248 lbs.  I have an 8 month old son, but am planning to try for a brother or sister for him in about 8 months.  I gained a lot of weight before I was pregnant with him, due to pregnancy, miscarriage, emotional eating, then a LOT of weight when I was pregnant with him.  I need to lose about 60 lbs before conceiving to ensure a healthy pregnancy.  I am 12 lbs down now - yay!  Good luck everybody!