Meeting protein and calorie needs

Ok so since I didn't find out until 19 weeks that we are having twins, no one was really watching my weight too closely. At that point I had gained a pound (I was REALLY sick for 20 weeks with m/s). So as soon as my OB saw it was twins, she told me to double my calorie intake to 5000 calories a day!

I've been reading through the Dr. Luke book about protein requirements - for my BMI prior to pregnancy, I should be taking in 176g of protein per day! Like that's possible! lol I saw a post awhile back where several of you were saying it's impossible to do what she recommends with diet - now I see what you meant! lol

Anyway, because of the borderline TTTS, I'm still trying to do as much as I can for protein. I get 45g per day from the 3 boost drinks, and I really like yogurt so I'm trying to eat a lot of that and drink milk.

But how bad is it to eat fast food that's high in protein? I never come close to even 3000 calories a day, let alone 5000! So I'm thinking about having a roast beef sandwich and mozzerella sticks from Arbys every day! lol Sounds terrible... but has a ton of calories, and the sandwich has 32g of protein and the mozz sticks have 36!!

So how bad are "empty" calories if there's a lot of protein in it? Or even if there's not... do any calories count even if it's not veggies and meat and things that are good for you??

 

Ok so since I didn't find out until 19 weeks that we are having twins, no one was really watching my weight too closely. At that point I had gained a pound (I was REALLY sick for 20 weeks with m/s). So as soon as my OB saw it was twins, she told me to double my calorie intake to 5000 calories a day!

I've been reading through the Dr. Luke book about protein requirements - for my BMI prior to pregnancy, I should be taking in 176g of protein per day! Like that's possible! lol I saw a post awhile back where several of you were saying it's impossible to do what she recommends with diet - now I see what you meant! lol

Anyway, because of the borderline TTTS, I'm still trying to do as much as I can for protein. I get 45g per day from the 3 boost drinks, and I really like yogurt so I'm trying to eat a lot of that and drink milk.

But how bad is it to eat fast food that's high in protein? I never come close to even 3000 calories a day, let alone 5000! So I'm thinking about having a roast beef sandwich and mozzerella sticks from Arbys every day! lol Sounds terrible... but has a ton of calories, and the sandwich has 32g of protein and the mozz sticks have 36!!

So how bad are "empty" calories if there's a lot of protein in it? Or even if there's not... do any calories count even if it's not veggies and meat and things that are good for you??

 

Well, in Dr. Luke's book she talks about eating fast food, just trying to avoid the fries, and she apparently takes her hospital bedrest pt's egg mcmuffins for breakfast, so I would think it would be okay as long as that is not the only thing you are eating.

 

It IS really hard to get in what we're "supposed" to. I think it's fine to eat fast food kind of stuff, and I wouldn't say a roast beef sandwich is "empty" calories. It DOES have good protein as do hamburgers, etc. Plus, you're getting two servings of bread...can you ask for wheat bread? I'm sure mozz sticks are a good source of calcium as well.

I tend to focus on the protein and calcium right now, even if I'm not getting as much fruit and veggies. Juices are a great way to get your fruit servings because they're not as filling. And potatoes are something that I've eaten well from the beginning...I sometimes have baked potatoes with cheese for some added protein/calcium. If you're a smaller person to begin with (I am), it's actually good to have some fat.

Have you tried protein shakes? The protein powder I have isn't the best, but I try to have one every once in a while. They are usually good sources of protein, fruit, and calcium!

Just do the best you can!

 

OMG I LOVED reading Dr Luke saying McD's is ok!!!! I ate there once a week during my twin pg! I do not think it is empty calories if it is full of protein too. I had a milk shake with added protein powder every night too

 

i'm not a fan of Dr. Luke's book or diet...I recommend focusing on getting good sources of protein. I drink the shakes, but they are high in sugar (fortunately I don't have GD) - and eat a lot of red meat. Milk is good, but also high in sugar.

I haven't been eating fast food because of the fat....and I'm nowhere near 5000 calories a day - I think that's ridiculous. There are plenty of people on this board who didnt' gain much weight and had healthy babies and others who gained a lot and had smallish babies (not being critcal just reporting what i've seen).

Others may disagree with me - just my pov.

Miriam

 

Yikes - i can't imagine where you're supposed to FIT 5000 calories plus all the fluids we're supposed to drink!

I too used to despair; i'm at 18 weeks and still nauseous but not as bad as before. I was drinking milkshakes with ice cream and skim milk and adding about a 1/4 block of soft organic low-fat tofu - may sound gross but you don't taste it AT ALL and it adds really good protein. If you can do fruits, do the same with milk, some soy milk, tofu and frozen bananas, strawberries, whatever kinds of fruit you can get in.

i'd think that a roast beef sand is ok - the only thing is to be careful about the nitrates and stuff that they add to the meat; i personally wouldn't do too much of that ,but i'm picky that way!

i also found a GREAT cereal at Trader Joe's, if there's one near you, it's called honey graham or something ,and it's pretty low in sugar, but best of all is it's reasonably high in protein AND fiber, which has made a HUGE difference in my four month problem with constipation!

as other posters say, although dr. luke emphasizes the importance of nutrition, the truth is that many women who don't gain a ton have big, healthy babies and many who do gain don't! So - remember, your body is made to feed the babies, even if it takes it from you. Good luck (I have to go eat now..LOL))

 

Yeah, 5000 does seem insane! I wasn't all that worried about it, but now that Nicolas has IUGR I'm trying to fit in as much as I can, and especially protein.

Obviously I haven't gotten too far in her book - I didn't realize she said fast food was generally ok. I'm off to read more now!

 

I don't think I could eat 5000 unless I was eating fast food all the time. I think you should eat what your body tells you too. I have not yet even met my obgyn, (next week finally) so I don't even know if I'm near where I need to be! Good luck. Don't stress about it too much!

 

I eat more fast food since becoming pregnant than I ever did before ... I think that the protein/iron/calcium in some fast food products outwieghs the fat content for now, and even some of the fat you need as well. I had this phase for awhile where I was LOVING Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Lattes ... turned out that each one had over 60 percent of your calcium needs and 20-some grams of protein ... sometimes your body knows what it needs!!!!

I don't see a problem with fast food during pregnancy, as long as it's not 3 meals a day to the exclusion of lots of other fresh foods. A McDonald's double quarter pounder has the most protein of anything on their menu, even a big mac - 47 grams of protein!!! Have a glass of milk and a small salad with cheese and nuts on it and you've got a ton of protein and calcium in that meal.

There's a difference between getting hamburgers, chicken sandwiches and the like for fast food and getting fries, soda, and cookies. I don't see anything wrong with it!!

And I wouldn't hold too dear to that 5000-calorie thing your doc was talking about. That seems slightly insane!!! DOn't forget, your body sometimes knows more than you do and will take care of those babies, even when you don't know you have two of them. Myself, I didn't know I was pregnant at all until about 7 weeks along, and in those almost 2 months I drank a lot, worked in a bar around a ton of smoke, got, um, plastered quite a few times ... I worried about what that might have done to these little babies I had no idea were in there, and the doctor said that the body will take care of itself - so far the babies are just fine, great weights and a good pregnancy. Just try to get as much protein/calcium/iron in as you can and you'll be fine.

One thing I did as well was to take a can of Ensure, some ice cream, some protein powder, and frozen berries and blend it all up ... tons of protein and calcium and easy to get down.

 

quote:
I don't see a problem with fast food during pregnancy, as long as it's not 3 meals a day to the exclusion of lots of other fresh foods. A McDonald's double quarter pounder has the most protein of anything on their menu, even a big mac - 47 grams of protein!!!


Kendra, thank you for your honesty in this & other comments you made in the post. Sometimes I feel like I'm the only poster who doesn't eat perfectly, sweat bullets over every medication prescribed by my dr. etc. I was starting to get an inferiority complex!! Personally I am just doing the best I can to get through each day.

 

I agree with Miriam.
Fast food is one of the worst things you can do to your body.
Once in a while is okay though.
And I also agree with her on the boost. It has too much sugar.
I think it's better to focus on eating healthy rather than fat foods.
I've never heard of a doctor actually recommending fast food!
Over here doctors and midwifes tell you to eat healthy and listen to your body.

 

Our girls had TTTS and the donor baby also had a 2-vessel cord so I had to work really hard to get her all the nutrients she needed. I basically had a list of the different food groups I needed to get everyday (like 4 meats, 3 dairy, etc.) and ate items based on the checkmarks I still needed. I usually didn't finish until 9pm or so and I wasn't hungry all day. When I think about what was most difficult for me to do during my twin pregnancy, it wasn't moving around or finding energy it was EATING. Although fast food is full of saturated fat, there is a point where getting that protein is more important. Just make sure to get some fruits and vegetables at home. A serving is actually a pretty small amount.

I had only gained 10 lbs when we found out at 19 weeks that it was twins (with complications and IUGR) but I managed to reach the milestone of 24 lbs by 24 weeks and I gained a massive 70 lbs by the time I delivered at 35.3 weeks. I definitely don't recommend that to anyone whose twins don't have complications but it can be done if it needs to be. I doubt you are going to be getting 176g of protein every day so just do your best and that will be fine.