Pregnancy Weight Gain & Belly Visibility: What to Expect

Question
Hi Brenda,
My wife is just going to complete 5 months of her Ist pregnancy in 1 week of March. My questions is what should be the ideal weight at that time and when can her stomach be very obvious and can be seen prominently.


Answer
Dear Mayank,

Every woman and every pregnancy is different. Each woman has a different body type and frame, so I cannot tell you when your wife will be "showing" prominently. It will depend quite a bit on her physical stature. Some women show in their 3rd month while others can hide their pregnancy with clothing well into their 8th-9th month. Typically by the 13th or 14th week of pregnancy, most women are needing to wear maternity clothes or loose-fitting clothes with elastic waists.

If pre-pregnancy weight was in the healthy range for her height according to your doctor (a BMI of 18.5 to 24.9), she should gain between 25-35 pounds total - gaining 2 to 5 pounds in the 1st trimester and about 1 pound per week for the rest of her pregnancy for the optimal growth of your baby. So, at 20 weeks, she should have gained about 10-13 pounds so far. If she started out underweight, obviously this should be a bit higher - up to 40 pounds. If she started out overweight or obese, she should try to keep her weight gain below 20 pounds for the duration of the pregnancy.

I hope this has helped you and answered your question. I wish you well.

Brenda