A friend of mine is pregnant with her first son and she's fretting
about her weight gain. I told her that I've heard/read stories of
women who gained 100lbs or more during their pregnancies and her
weight gain is nowhere near as much. She's not convinced of what I
told her and we made a bet on the most pregnancy weight gain ever
recorded for single pregnancies (not twins). She said less than 100lbs
and I said up to 150lbs. We agreed to use Google Answers to settle
this. Please provide online references for the answer.

---

Request for Question Clarification by czh-ga on 25 Jul 2006 16:33 PDT

Hello ob1knob-ga,

I haven't been able to find any information about the world record for
pregnancy weight gain but based on my preliminary research gaining
over 50 pounds seems to be unusual. Will you accept this as the
answer? Thanks.

~ czh ~

http://www.babycenter.com/refcap/pregnancy/pregnancynutrition/1466.html
How much weight should I gain during my pregnancy?

It depends ? on your height and on how much you weighed before you
conceived. If you weighed an average amount before your pregnancy, you
should gain between 25 and 35 pounds, gaining 2 to 5 pounds in the
first trimester and about 1 pound per week for the rest of your
pregnancy.

If you were underweight you should gain 28 to 40 pounds. And if you
were overweight you should gain 15 to 25 pounds. If you're having
twins you should gain about 35 to 45 pounds. If you fall into one of
these categories, talk to your healthcare provider about how much you
should gain each month.

What about women who get pregnant and simultaneously decide to join
the world competitive eating tour?  I'd imagine your question is no
differant that asking what is the most weight gain possible in under 9
months?

I can give  you personal experience.  I have always had a very stable
weight, and would only fluctuate between 5 and 10 lbs over the course
of years.  With my second child, I was 135 at conception and left the
hospital after delivery a whopping 247lbs.  I did not over eat, I am
and was never a junk food eater.  I was tested throughout my pregnancy
for any signs of water retention, blood sugar..all consistently came
out healthy.  I was told it must have been genetic.  My daughter was
born healthy and weight just over 7lbs.  3 years later the weight was
gone, my child will be 17 in a few months and I remain 140 and
physically active.  Your friend need not worry about the gains, as
long as she is healthy, and doctors confirm she is progressing
normally.

Your friend can also talk to her doctor about various work out
routines available to help build muscle and reduce fat build up.