Didn't weigh in today, but it is probably the same as it has been, around 205. I haven't worked out this week, and I'm sure I haven't eaten well either. *sigh* I thought it would be so much easier to work out at home rather than going to a gym, but at home I can find so many other things to do rather than work out (like blog, for example).
While I'm not taking official prenatal vitamins, I did start taking regular vitamins last month, and this month I added extra folic acid to the mix. So I want to do a comparison of the generally recommended prenatal vitamins to what I'm already taking, so I know where I need to make changes.
Here are the recommended levels:
-4,000 and 5,000 IU (international units) of vitamin A
-800 and 1,000 micrograms (1 mg) of folic acid
-400 IU of vitamin D
-200-300 mg of calcium
-70 mg of vitamin C
-1.5 mg of thiamine
-1.6 mg of riboflavin
-2.6 mg of pyridoxine
-17 mg of niacinamide
-2.2 mcg of vitamin B-12
-10 mg of vitamin E
-15 mg of zinc
-30 mg of iron
And here's what the comparison looks like:
Vitamin A--the current vitamin I'm taking only has 2500 IUs of vitamin A, but I just bought a different brand (which I'll start taking this weekend) which contains 4000 IUs of vitamin A. So the second brand is much closer to the recommended levels.
Folic Acid--the current vitamin I've been taking alone had 400 micrograms, as does the replacement brand, which is about half what I need if I'm pregnant. But this morning I added a supplement that has 800 micrograms of folic acid. So that plus the regular vitamin will put me over the recommended dosage. Guess I need to look at what an excess of folic acid may or may not do if I get pregnant.
Vitamin D--my current vitamin actually has double the recommended amount, but the replacement brand has 400 IUs, which is equal to the recommended dosage.
Calcium--my current vitamin only has 30 milligrams of calcium, which is about 10% of the recommended amount. The replacement brand has 60 milligrams, but that means I REALLY need to increase my consumption of dairy products to make sure I'm getting enough calcium. But along with the dairy products, I'll be sure to eat other high-calcium items, like broccoli.
Vitamin C--the vitamin I'm currently taking only has about half the recommended dosage, but the replacement brand has 60 mgs. That leaves me 10 mgs short. I need to make sure I'm getting fruits that have vitamin C in them, like oranges and such.
Thiamine, Riboflavin, Pyridoxine, Niacinamide--neither vitamin I have in my possession says anything about any of these. I need to do a bit of research into these items so I can find out what I need to consume to get these into my system.
B-12--both vitamins I have contain more than the recommended dosage. I wonder if this is a good thing or a bad thing.
Vitamin E--I only need 10 mg of this, and both vitamins I have contain more than the required dosage. Yay.
Zinc--my current vitamin doesn't say it contains any zinc, but the new brand I purchased has 5 mg. That puts me 10 mg under the recommended dosage. Red meats contain zinc, so that's a good reason to keep eating my barely cooked steaks.
Iron--neither vitamin says anything about containing iron. Again, good for me since I love to eat red meat.
So, I need to do some research into the prenatal vitamins that are on the market, and see whether I would really be better taking them rather than sticking with the vitamins I'm already taking (which are probably less expensive than the actual "prenatal" vitamin brands) and making sure the proper foods are part of my diet. Guess the next thing I need to do is look at pregnancy diets to make sure those foods are included.
Pool Time
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Monday, January 25, 2010
Do-Over Day 25 - 1/25/2010
Today's Weigh-in: 207.0
I'm just not being very successful with my whole weight-loss thing here. I don't feel like I've been eating ridiculous amounts of food, and I've been working out (sporadically), but I'm just not seeing any results. I think this week is going to be all about salad. *sigh*
Anyway, I was a bit disappointed to have my period last week. Not that we are actively TRYING to get pregnant, mind you, and certainly not that we were expecting to be pregnant, but still. I felt oddly let down by my body. Of course, it was only the first month of no birth control after fifteen years of using it regularly, so it certainly was no surprise, but still.
Since I'm not working regularly, I have some time to hang out and do my pregnancy research. One thing that hadn't occurred to me at all (since I am not by nature highly motivated to clean things) was the possibility that my housekeeping might be somewhat altered by pregnancy. But I came across an article about cleaning during pregnancy, and there were definitely a few things in it to think about. I did know about some things, like avoiding kitty litter (we don't have a cat, although I really want one) and being careful about not straining back muscles and not tiring out.
One suggestion they had was to do a lot of cleaning with natural items like lemon juice and vinegar. While I have used baking soda in some home cleaning, I hadn't really thought about using anything else. We have gotten some of the Chlorox Green natural cleaners, but I don't know how healthy those might be, so I guess I need to do some more research. There are some linked articles about natural or "green" cleaning, so I will be checking those out.
I'm just not being very successful with my whole weight-loss thing here. I don't feel like I've been eating ridiculous amounts of food, and I've been working out (sporadically), but I'm just not seeing any results. I think this week is going to be all about salad. *sigh*
Anyway, I was a bit disappointed to have my period last week. Not that we are actively TRYING to get pregnant, mind you, and certainly not that we were expecting to be pregnant, but still. I felt oddly let down by my body. Of course, it was only the first month of no birth control after fifteen years of using it regularly, so it certainly was no surprise, but still.
Since I'm not working regularly, I have some time to hang out and do my pregnancy research. One thing that hadn't occurred to me at all (since I am not by nature highly motivated to clean things) was the possibility that my housekeeping might be somewhat altered by pregnancy. But I came across an article about cleaning during pregnancy, and there were definitely a few things in it to think about. I did know about some things, like avoiding kitty litter (we don't have a cat, although I really want one) and being careful about not straining back muscles and not tiring out.
One suggestion they had was to do a lot of cleaning with natural items like lemon juice and vinegar. While I have used baking soda in some home cleaning, I hadn't really thought about using anything else. We have gotten some of the Chlorox Green natural cleaners, but I don't know how healthy those might be, so I guess I need to do some more research. There are some linked articles about natural or "green" cleaning, so I will be checking those out.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Do-Over Day 14 - 1/14/10
Today's Weigh-in: 207.0
Not great, but I know at least one reason that my weight might be up: I haven't taken my blood pressure medication in several days. I was sort of hoping my bp might be OK without it (and I'm out anyway), but unfortunately that doesn't seem to be the case. I'm waking up headachy, and when I take my pressure with my little portable cuff, it's right around 140/100, which is really bad. It should be 120/80. I went ahead and refilled the prescription (although I haven't picked it up yet). But I was really hoping I could go without it, since blood pressure meds aren't recommended for pregnant women. Not that I'm pregnant yet, but...still.
Anyway, on another topic, I visited WebMD about a recommended diet for pregnant women. They suggested all the expected stuff, like eating all the recommended items on the food pyramid, making sure you get all the right vitamins and folic acid, and stuff like that. But one thing that interested me was to consume at least 300 calories more than typical. Obviously, this is the "eating for two" concept. Which makes me wonder...since I tend to overeat anyway, would it be possible to LOSE weight at the beginning of a pregnancy? I mean, if I continued to eat what I normally consume (which is too much), would the calories going towards the baby's development thus take away from the calories going towards me? It certainly isn't a proven weight-loss strategy, but I wonder if it would happen.
Just one of the many things I wonder about...
Not great, but I know at least one reason that my weight might be up: I haven't taken my blood pressure medication in several days. I was sort of hoping my bp might be OK without it (and I'm out anyway), but unfortunately that doesn't seem to be the case. I'm waking up headachy, and when I take my pressure with my little portable cuff, it's right around 140/100, which is really bad. It should be 120/80. I went ahead and refilled the prescription (although I haven't picked it up yet). But I was really hoping I could go without it, since blood pressure meds aren't recommended for pregnant women. Not that I'm pregnant yet, but...still.
Anyway, on another topic, I visited WebMD about a recommended diet for pregnant women. They suggested all the expected stuff, like eating all the recommended items on the food pyramid, making sure you get all the right vitamins and folic acid, and stuff like that. But one thing that interested me was to consume at least 300 calories more than typical. Obviously, this is the "eating for two" concept. Which makes me wonder...since I tend to overeat anyway, would it be possible to LOSE weight at the beginning of a pregnancy? I mean, if I continued to eat what I normally consume (which is too much), would the calories going towards the baby's development thus take away from the calories going towards me? It certainly isn't a proven weight-loss strategy, but I wonder if it would happen.
Just one of the many things I wonder about...
Monday, January 11, 2010
Do-Over Day 11- 1/11/10
Today's Weigh-in: 205.6
Well, I had lost two pounds, but then my father-in-law made goulash for dinner, and the next night we had pizza. While I haven't had to face my greatest nemesis (Mexican food, because there are no really good Mexican places in Billings, MT), I still haven't done a great job on eating less and exercising more. While I have hit the elliptical machine a few times, I haven't done it with the regularity, intensity, or duration I require to lose weight. I must continue to work on it.
I must also report that I have been off my birth control pills since December 27th. That would have been the day I would have started up the next round of 21. So I'm on Day 16 of possible fertility. I am not doing any tracking of my temperatures or anything like that. It could be that it will take time to "get all the birth control out of my system", so to speak, since I've been taking it regularly for 16 years. Or, I could get a huge surprise and miss my upcoming period. We'll just have to wait and see. If it takes months and months, then I might start charting and stuff, but for now, we're just rolling with it.
I did go ahead and start taking regular vitamins. I need to do a little more research before I commit to a particular brand of prenatal vitamins. I'm also going to look into a pregnancy diet to see if there is anything that is commonly recommended.
It's a new year...let's see what awaits!
Well, I had lost two pounds, but then my father-in-law made goulash for dinner, and the next night we had pizza. While I haven't had to face my greatest nemesis (Mexican food, because there are no really good Mexican places in Billings, MT), I still haven't done a great job on eating less and exercising more. While I have hit the elliptical machine a few times, I haven't done it with the regularity, intensity, or duration I require to lose weight. I must continue to work on it.
I must also report that I have been off my birth control pills since December 27th. That would have been the day I would have started up the next round of 21. So I'm on Day 16 of possible fertility. I am not doing any tracking of my temperatures or anything like that. It could be that it will take time to "get all the birth control out of my system", so to speak, since I've been taking it regularly for 16 years. Or, I could get a huge surprise and miss my upcoming period. We'll just have to wait and see. If it takes months and months, then I might start charting and stuff, but for now, we're just rolling with it.
I did go ahead and start taking regular vitamins. I need to do a little more research before I commit to a particular brand of prenatal vitamins. I'm also going to look into a pregnancy diet to see if there is anything that is commonly recommended.
It's a new year...let's see what awaits!
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