One thing I was determined to keep was my designer shoe collection. My secret weapon - Chinese red bean soup cooked with minimal amounts of water and Chinese red (brown) sugar.
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It is a common pregnancy concern when you're in your 3rd trimester. There's a lot of water retention that goes on and when you add the weight gain, it's no wonder that the feet start to swell. Couple this with the summer heat and humidity in NYC and you might as well start kissing your kicks farewell.
To combat this, my mom advised me to eat Chinese red bean soup everyday. The beans are red adzuki beans and they are a staple of Chinese cuisine even though they sound Japanese. Here's an analogy to illustrate how important red beans are in Asian culture. In the US, we have strawberry, chocolate and vanilla. In Asia, you have red bean, taro and green tea. Circling back to the red beans, they are little miracle workers - high in fiber, iron and water retention fighters!
Don't forget the most obvious trick: keep your feet elevated! At work, I always had my feet raised and I suggest you prop your feet up as much as you can (I had pillows under my feet while sleeping) to avoid a shoe fiasco.
RED BEAN SOUP RECIPE FOR PREGGERS
1 cup azuki beans ( must soak overnight in fridge, 2/3 water, 1/3 beans)
2 cups water
3 teaspoons of Chinese red sugar (can substitute with American brown sugar or white sugar but it's more fattening)
Boil water first. Add beans, lower heat and cook over low heat for 45 minutes. Add sugar towards the end. Alternative: use rice steamer with one cup of water in the steamer, add water, beans and sugar in the pot.
It is a common pregnancy concern when you're in your 3rd trimester. There's a lot of water retention that goes on and when you add the weight gain, it's no wonder that the feet start to swell. Couple this with the summer heat and humidity in NYC and you might as well start kissing your kicks farewell.
To combat this, my mom advised me to eat Chinese red bean soup everyday. The beans are red adzuki beans and they are a staple of Chinese cuisine even though they sound Japanese. Here's an analogy to illustrate how important red beans are in Asian culture. In the US, we have strawberry, chocolate and vanilla. In Asia, you have red bean, taro and green tea. Circling back to the red beans, they are little miracle workers - high in fiber, iron and water retention fighters!
Don't forget the most obvious trick: keep your feet elevated! At work, I always had my feet raised and I suggest you prop your feet up as much as you can (I had pillows under my feet while sleeping) to avoid a shoe fiasco.
RED BEAN SOUP RECIPE FOR PREGGERS
1 cup azuki beans ( must soak overnight in fridge, 2/3 water, 1/3 beans)
2 cups water
3 teaspoons of Chinese red sugar (can substitute with American brown sugar or white sugar but it's more fattening)
Boil water first. Add beans, lower heat and cook over low heat for 45 minutes. Add sugar towards the end. Alternative: use rice steamer with one cup of water in the steamer, add water, beans and sugar in the pot.
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