How To Lose Weight Before You Get Pregnant

With many of us spending more time at home during 2020, our lifestyles may have generally become more sedentary, with less regular exercise or less opportunities to look after our physical (and mental!) health. As a result, many of us have put on weight or struggled to maintain an active lifestyle.

If you are attempting to conceive in 2021, here are some reasons why you may want to consider losing weight before getting pregnant:

Not only can being overweight make it difficult to conceive in first place, getting pregnant whilst overweight can increase the risk of pregnancy complications such as gestational diabetes – a condition that increases the amount of glucose in your body because you don’t produce enough insulin. Gestational diabetes cannot only cause your baby to have a higher birth weight (making labor more challenging and risky), but can also increase the likelihood of premature labor and pre-eclampsia.

Tips To Get Pregnant, According To Experts

Whilst you may have a substantial amount of weight to lose, now is not the time to start crash diets, skipping meals or drastically reduce your calorie intake. On the contrary, restricting your food intake with dangerous diet fads can actually starve your body of essential nutrients and leads to crashes in mood and energy levels.

Instead, it is recommended that you speak to your physician or Ob-Gyn before making changes to your diet and exercise levels. They may recommend some advice from a Nutritionist beforehand to give you the best chances of finding a successful pre-pregnancy diet.

Not only can reducing your weight help improve your chances of get pregnant in the first place, but improving your overall physical and mental health can help your body cope better with the physical challenges of pregnancy itself.

Can Losing Weight Help Me Get Pregnant?

Lucy is a UK-based parenting and lifestyle ger who has also featured in the Huffington Post. A Mom of two daughters, Lucy is passionate about sharing the true reality of parenthood and helping others through their first experiences. In her free time she loves to write, go on day trips with her family and photography.The past year has been challenging for the whole society and in many ways. One of the challenges was: “Should I use this corona time productively, because I will never have this much free time again or should I relax and sleep in because I will never have this much free time again?”. But, overall people have been spending more time at home during 2020 and 2021, and our lifestyles in general are more sedentary, with not so regular exercising or less opportunities to look after our physical health. Because of this struggle to maintain an active lifestyle, many of us have gained weight. But if you are planning to get pregnant, how important it is to lose some kilos and achieve a healthy weight before conceiving?

While in most cases being overweight does not impact your chances of getting pregnant, though being obese does. Obesity is a medical term that is used when a person’s Body Mass Index (BMI) is greater than 30. You can calculate your BMI here.

Weight has an effect on your hormones, and for women who are overweight it is more common to experience irregular menstruation, this can as well prevent your ovaries from releasing an egg for fertilization (aka ovulation)

Postpartum Weight Loss

Irregular menstruation can also prevent you from realizing that you are pregnant right away. It is important to know that you are pregnant sooner rather than later, to avoid doing something harmful to the fetus, such as smoking or abuse of alcohol or drugs.

It is important to know that even a slight decrease of body fat (by 5-10%) can have a significant impact on reproductive health in overweight and obese women.

Gestational diabetes - a condition that increases the amount of glucose in your body because you don’t produce enough insulin. Gestational diabetes cannot only cause your baby to have a higher birth weight (making labor more challenging and riskier) but also increase the likelihood of premature labor. You are also more likely to need a cesarean delivery compared to women who don’t have gestational diabetes.

Health Changes You Should Make Before You Start Trying To Get Pregnant

Preeclampsia – “Preeclampsia is a predictor of cardiovascular disease and other metabolic disorders in later life. Identifying modifiable risk factors for preeclampsia is an important priority for preventing disease onset during pregnancy and potentially reducing longer-term health risks.”[1]

Miscarriage and stillbirth – “Obesity is a problem at all stages of reproduction, beginning with increased rates of infertility and subsequent higher spontaneous early and recurrent early miscarriages compared with women in the healthy weight range. In pregnancies achieved with the assistance of reproductive technologies, obese women have greater rates of pregnancy loss in the first six weeks than normal BMI controls. Stillbirth is a tragic occurrence and the association of stillbirth with obesity is a further reason that we need to urgently address the epidemic of overweight and obesity in our society.”[2] – Dr. Simon Craig

A recent study shows that male babies who are born to overweight and obese women are 40% more likely to grow up infertile. In Demark more than 9000 adult sons and daughters were examined of women who were enrolled in a study while being pregnant between 1984‐87. “Sons born to overweight mothers had higher odds of infertility compared with sons of normal weight mothers. No association between maternal overweight and infertility was observed in daughters. Prevention of overweight during pregnancy may be an important tool to preserve fertility in future generations.”[3]

Safe Ways To Lose Weight While Pregnant

A previous study from the US found that boys — but not girls — born to obese mothers had worse motor skills at the age of three and lower IQ scores at seven.

However, pregnant women who are obese are not recommended to attempt losing weight as this can be dangerous, and, furthermore, there is no evidence that losing weight while pregnant reduces the chance of complications.

No matter of your weight, it is important to visit a healthcare professional before trying to get pregnant. That way you can be sure that you are healthy. You can also discuss any risks or problems you may face before or during pregnancy and be in contact with a specialist if you have any questions during the process.

Safe Weight Loss Tips For A Pregnancy With Obesity

[1] https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.118.10999 - Pregnancy Weight Gain Before Diagnosis and Risk of Preeclampsia by Jennifer A. Hutcheon, Olof Stephansson, Sven Cnattingius, Lisa M. Bodnar, Anna-Karin Wikström and Kari Johansson

[3] https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/aogs.14045 - Maternal pre‐pregnancy overweight and infertility in sons and daughters: A cohort study by Linn H. Arendt, Birgit B. Høyer, Anne F. Kreilgaard, Bodil H. Bech, Gunnar Toft, Karin S. Hougaard, Jens P. Bonde, Jørn Olsen, Cecilia H. Ramlau‐Hansen

According to a recent study from Stockholm University and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, female eggs use different chemical signals to attract different male sperm. These signals are supposedly released to choose a specific man’s sperm.When you’re pregnant, it’s important to eat enough to give your developing baby the vital nutrients they need to grow strong. Most doctors encourage women to gain a little weight during their pregnancy, but what should you do if you already have obesity?

Why Is It So Hard To Lose Baby Weight? (and What To Do About It)

Women with obesity have a greater risk of pregnancy complications such as preeclampsia and gestational diabetes. Their babies also have a higher risk of premature birth and certain birth defects. In the past, doctors didn’t want to promote weight loss during pregnancy for women with obesity because they were afraid it would hurt the baby. But new research shows that women with obesity can safely exercise and diet to lose weight without any negative impact on their baby’s well-being.

If you have obesity, you can still have a healthy pregnancy and delivery. Read on to find out tips for how to lose weight safely and effectively during pregnancy.

Found that women with obesity who were offered diet and exercise counseling during their pregnancy had better outcomes for both mother and baby. The women received information on eating a balanced diet, keeping a food diary, and engaging in light physical activity like walking.

How I Lost The Baby Weight...and Then Some (part 2)

The study found that these interventions, especially dietary changes, were associated with a 33 percent reduced risk of preeclampsia and a 61 percent reduced risk of gestational diabetes. Eating healthfully also reduced the risk for gestational hypertension and preterm delivery.

You’re considered to have obesity if you have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher. BMI is calculated using your height and weight. You can enter your information and find out your BMI with an

These problems can also happen to any pregnant woman, whether she has obesity or not. But with a higher BMI, the risk increases.

Best Fertility Diet And Exercise: How To Get Pregnant

Whatever you do, do it in moderation. Now isn’t the time to experiment with a strict fad diet or an intense exercise program.

Talk to your doctor before you begin an exercise program while pregnant. They can help you come up with a routine and answer any questions you may have. Your doctor can also refer you to a dietitian or trainer for assessment and personalized advice on healthy eating and exercise during pregnancy.

Pregnancy can be a great time to start an exercise program and change your diet. Pregnant women are more likely to visit their doctor

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