I feel like I am expanding a little too rapidly at the moment but I believe when you’re pregnant you should eat if you’re hungry and not limit yourself. If you are craving carbs you should have carbs and if you’re craving chocolate you should have chocolate! You get the gist.  In short, I believe that if your body is craving something then there’s a reason for that particular craving and your body is telling you that you need it!

I haven’t had any strong cravings during this pregnancy. Though I do find that I am put off certain foods easily and find it very difficult to decide what to eat…I know I fancy something but I can’t always put my finger on it.

As I am doing very little and am not allowed to exercise or even walk any distance, I have found that I am putting on weight a lot quicker than I did the first time around. So I have been thinking a bit more about what I am eating.  As I said, I won’t restrict myself if i’m hungry but where possible I am thinking about healthy options. I am certainly not a nutritionist but I have felt really good the last week or so and I think that might be because of my slightly improved diet.

I enjoy cooking but cooking is not easy when you can’t spend long on your feet and so I make sure my food choices are quick and easy to make, especially during the daytime when I am home alone.  In the evening my husband and I will generally have barbequed fish/meat and vegetables and he can do any of the leg work!

I definitely have a sweet tooth at the moment and so have bought miniature chocolate bars for when a craving strikes. Of course there are days where I need to have several miniatures to get close to satisfying my sweet tooth but I know if I had huge amounts of chocolate in the house I would totally overindulge. I am also a big fan of dark chocolate infused with orange. Amazing!

So here are some bed rest easy food options:

I am big on smoothies right now. This is a banana, strawberry yoghurt, blueberry and milk smoothie. It’s a great way to get a lot of your fruit intake for the day and takes less than a minute to make.

As I am getting up later than usual, I find that I wake up very hungry. Therefore, I make sure I have a filling brekkie. Having a filling brekkie means I am less likely to snack and I find that granola, yoghurt and fruit is perfect.

Another great breakfast option are boiled eggs. They are filling and easy, just leave them to boil whilst you have a sit down. I love dippy eggs but I have been a bit stricter since getting pregnant and so make sure they’re cooked through.

I am obsessed by avocados at the moment. I crush mine and add a tiny bit of chilli and some sea salt. This time I had a slice on olive bread toast with a side of blueberries.

Eggs again, this time on olive bread toast. Yummy! This took me minutes and filled me up for a long time. Plenty of seasoning is the key to this brekkie (or lunch) dish.

Another easy and tasty dish. I’ve had this as a side to some meat or fish or as a lunch option. I add green pesto and season well. I had this with a carrot and tomato juice – I may have needed to eat up lots of tomatoes that day!

I said I was obsessed with avocado. This time I had it as a side to some left over chilli. The chilli was easy to make, i just shoved everything in a big pan and left it to simmer. It lasted for a good few days and so is a great bed rest option.

I made this vege burger by grilling some hallumi, portobello mushroom and then I added some avocado (the obsession continues!) and salad. I had it with a side of quinoa. My husband hated the quinoa and i’m not the biggest fan but it was filling at least!

I love jacket potatoes but have had quite a few recently and its made me feel bloated as I can’t work off the carbs. So I have replaced the jacket potato with a sweet potato. Again, an easy one and it’s very versatile, just add whatever topping you fancy.

Although I have been juicing less than usual I do love a fresh orange juice. This time I had it with a side of cookie! As I said, you shouldn’t deny yourself what your body wants when you’re pregnant. Just try to make healthy choices where possible.