My Pregnancy Food Diary: Introduction

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Eating well during pregnancy is hard.

Before I got pregnant with my first child, I thought it was a no-brainer. Of course I'd want to eat as healthfully as possible and avoid the junk that wouldn't nourish his growing body or mine. But it's not always that simple. You're tired, nauseous, achy, and dealing with the demands of normal life on top of being pregnant. You may want to eat well, but it's a different thing entirely to follow through on that desire. Though I've eaten mostly well during both my pregnancies, I confess to a few frozen pizzas, a couple trips to Subway, and one excursion to fulfill an intense fried chicken craving. During my first trimester of both pregnancies, there have been a couple stretches during which I ate little more than french toast and crackers and cheese. Not exactly a diverse diet of super foods. :)

I make much better food choices when I do two things: 1) plan meals ahead of time, and 2) write down what I've actually eaten.

I discovered the second one while spending a week recording everything I ate on a worksheet provided by my (amazing) midwife. It included a handy checklist at the bottom of each day to help you make sure you're getting enough of various foods. I realized that I was eating a lot better just because I knew I'd be writing down what I ate!

So I'm going to start sharing my food diary with you. My goal is to post each Monday with the foods I've eaten one day during the prior week. It will motivate me to make good choices about what I eat, and it will motivate you to eat well, pregnant or not!

Every week I'll let you know how I'm doing according to these guidelines given to me by my midwife. Here are the recommended number of servings of various foods:

Protein: 4

Eggs: 2

Dairy: 4 

Butter: 3
Grains: 2
Veggies: 3-4
Greens: 2

Fruit: 1

Citrus: 1

Here is what I like about these numbers:

1. They show the importance of protein and healthy fat during pregnancy.

2. They emphasize nutrient dense foods, like eggs, dairy, butter, vegetables, greens, and citrus.

3. They do not over-emphasize the role of grains in the diet, which should be eaten in moderation even if whole and properly prepared. 

4. They keep fruit in balance, which, though nutritious, is high in natural sugars and should be eaten in moderation.

Those might be different than recommendations you've seen elsewhere for what to eat during pregnancy. And that's precisely why I like them. At my first visit to the OB with my first pregnancy, the nurse practitioner handed me a food pyramid and told me all I needed to do was add a little more calcium to my diet (but definitely not by consuming raw milk!). Of course there was no mention of avoiding processed foods, trans fats, refined vegetable oils, or white flour and sugar, and including nutrient dense animal foods and vegetables into my diet. But I've learned a few things along the way about what is important to eat and avoid. And I'm excited to share them with you! I'm still learning and I'd love to hear from you about what you think it's important to eat (or not eat) during pregnancy.

What do you think about these dietary recommendations? Would you add or change anything based on your knowledge of nutrition during pregnancy?

On Monday I'll post the first entry in my food diary, along with some info about why I'm eating what I'm eating. See you then!

This is part of Fight Back Friday.

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