Twin Pregnancy Belly Week by Week Photos
I remember the moment we found out we were pregnant with twins. After I went through all the obvious questions, like “How on earth will we be able to do this??”, another thought bubbled up in the back of my mind: “…what will my body go through in a twin pregnancy?”. So, I compiled my twin pregnancy belly week by week photos – to share a real, first-hand progression of what a body goes through when it’s carrying twins.
Carrying twins is hard, exhausting, at times painful…yet it results in two incredible humans that you get to call yours. As intense as a twin pregnancy is, it’s absolutely, entirely, 100% worth it.
Twin Resources to Help you Live Your Best Life
Having made it through a 37 week twin pregnancy and lived to tell about it, I’ve written lots of articles to help other twin moms go through it. If any of these can help you along your own experience as a twin mom, you’re welcome to them all.
- Twin pregnancy week by week experience
- Minimalist Twin Registry Checklist
- Twin Pregnancy To Do List
- How to Get Twins to Sleep
- How to Survive Twins: the First Six Months
We also run a course at Twin Winning called How to Thrive with Twins. It covers bringing twins home, feeding two, twin sleep, coping, support, twin gear, and so much more. It only opens a few times a year, so if you’re interested, get on our wait list by signing up for our emails today!
Without further ado, let’s dive in!
First Trimester Twin Pregnancy Belly Photos
Week 4 – Week 6
In the early days, I didn’t even know I was carrying twins. I simply started taking week by week pregnancy photos and writing a week by week letter to my new baby, so they could look back on it when they were older. Little did we know what was to come!
So naturally, at this point I’m still wearing regular clothes. Well, minus week 6’s costume day at work, that is (side note, hiding a twin pregnancy would be way easier with more costume days).
My four week twins bump photo might look like it has a small baby bump…but really, it was actually filled with treats from a Halloween party. That’s a Tinkerbell costume, if you were curious.
Week 7 – Week 9
So, if the baby bump didn’t come in week four, when do you start showing with twins? For me, a teeny baby bump started to emerge in the next few weeks, as you can see in the week 8 photo.
But, still thinking I was carrying only one, I still chalked it up to more of a “food baby” bump in my week 8 twin pregnancy symptom recap. In reality, there were double the babies growing bigger by the day in there.
Week 10 – Week 12
In the coming weeks, we found out we were having twins. The best word I could use to describe that moment was shock. Sheer shock.
If you want to read more about our reaction, read my week 10 twin pregnancy recap and week 11 twin pregnancy recaps. Here’s a preview: it was like being on top of a roller coaster.
As we neared the end of the first trimester, my maternity pants were already out and being used in full rotation.
Second Trimester Twin Pregnancy Belly Photos
Week 13 – Week 15
As we started the second trimester, I was still trying to keep our pregnancy under wraps. As my boss and I worked a plane ride away, I didn’t want to announce it until we had a chance to meet in person. Looking back on my week 15 twin pregnancy belly photo, I was grateful that long tops & leggings were in fashion.
By 14 weeks, you can see it was already becoming hard to hide, so it was just after then that I started sharing the news of my pregnancy with my colleagues.
Week 16 – Week 18
Nearing the halfway point (which is 18 weeks in a twin pregnancy) was a mix of work and play. We went on a twin babymoon to Hawaii with our almost two-year-old little girl, knowing that it could likely be the last big vacation for a while. It was there that we opened the letter that said we would be having a boy & girl on a sunny Hawaiian beach.
I also realized, while on those sunny beaches, that a great part of pregnancy is feeling a freedom in your bump. This was the first time in a looooong time that I didn’t think once about sucking it in while wearing a bikini!
Week 19 – Week 21
Back from the babymoon, it was a return to winter and heavy coats, and I started to feel like time was flying. As you can see in the photos, my twin bump was no longer fitting inside of my coat.
I thought about buying a coat extension, but there were only a few weeks left of cooler weather. And if you’ve read this blog before, you know I aim to be a minimalist – check out my minimalist twin registry checklist if you need help knowing what to buy and what you can actually get by without.
Around 21 weeks, though, nesting really set in. For me, it manifested in the desire to throw out most things we own; thank goodness for level-headed husbands.
Week 22 – Week 24
In the middle of the second trimester, I was already looking overtly pregnant, as you can see in weeks 22 – 24. I was already having this conversation on the regular:
Stranger: Congrats, when are you due!?
Me: Oh…still another trimester left to go…
The cravings started to pick up around then as well, as the babies started demanding food. It totally wasn’t just me craving chocolate and french fries…right?
Week 25 – Week 27
Nearing the end of the second trimester, my twin belly size started to grow…and grow, and grow.
It was the last time I had any chance of wearing my non-maternity clothing. After week 26, even the stretchiest of normal clothes couldn’t contain my growing twin belly. It was progressing even faster than I expected it would!
Third Trimester Twin Pregnancy Belly Photos
Week 28 – Week 30
Hello third trimester, and hello uncomfortable! As I entered the third trimester with twins, I was nearing the size of a full term pregnancy. In my week 30 twin pregnancy experience, I was even busting out of maternity clothes as you can see in the week 30 twin belly photo below.
“Oof” was starting to be heard a lot. And, if you were still wondering if a baby bump is bigger with twins, I realized this week that the answer is a resounding YES – I was measuring full term already, with months left to go.
I truly couldn’t picture how my belly would be able to expand so much!
Week 31 – Week 33
Around week 31, as my twin pregnant belly continued to expand (and expand!), my doctor suggested I go off of work. I thought she was being overly cautious…until I actually got to that point, and was so grateful she had warned me this time may come.
I was measuring over 40 weeks pregnant, having Braxton-Hicks contractions daily, and was unable to stay in any position for more than a few minutes. Literally, we went to the movies in week 31, and I had to get up and walk around multiple times to get comfortable. I realized sitting in one position for two hours was no longer possible.
Week 34 – Week 36
Weeks 34-36…well…let’s just say they were not the most comfortable weeks of life. I went back and forth between being an uncomfortable hot mess, and being so grateful to have made it so far. There were a lot of tears, likely a result of the combo of massive discomfort and massive hormones.
The odd thing is, however, I wanted the discomfort to continue, and to even get worse – because it means the babies are growing bigger and healthier. I felt huge, huge, huge (probably because I was measuring about 46 weeks pregnant). All I could do was to try and distract myself as much as possible.
Near the end, fashion choices went out the window. Anything that made me even the slightest bit more comfortable won. My twin belly bump seemed to have a gravitational pull.
It literally got to the point where people would turn and stare at my giant size as they passed. I felt like shouting “Nothing to look at here people, carry on!”.
Week 37
Week 37 was my unofficial goal. Making it to that point, knowing what we were up against, knowing that 36 weeks is the average gestation for twins…I was so, so excited and proud to have made it.
My belly was absolutely massive. My feet were puffy balls I barely saw. I couldn’t walk more than 10min without contractions starting. I was up over 50 pounds, and just telling myself to get through hour by hour.
The most important thing, though? My body had done its job.
It had given our two little ones the best chances it could, and I was swimming in gratitude. I tried to savor every day, knowing that I might not ever experience pregnancy again…but the urge to simply not be pregnant was growing larger by the hour.
And then…these two little bundles came into the world and forever shifted life as we know it.
Twin Pregnancy Weight Gain
When you look at these pictures, I know you’re curious: how much weight do you gain with twins?
What to Expect when You’re Expecting states a woman who was of normal weight pre-pregnancy should gain between 37-55 pounds when pregnant with twins, and Texas Children’s Hospital has similar twin weight gain recommendations.
I ended up staying within that range – though just barely. By week 37 when the twins came, I was weighing in at +55 pounds over my pre-pregnancy weight.
Just think about that for a moment. Imagine if you wake up tomorrow and find you have an extra 55 pounds strapped to you, squishing your insides with every move you made. Real talk – it was hard and exhausting.
An interesting thing I heard about twin pregnancy was to expect to gain 4-6 pounds in the 1st trimester, and 1.5 pounds per week in the 2nd and 3rd trimesters.
As you can see in the chart below, my twin weight gain fluctuated and did not follow a steady pattern. For example, I put on only two pounds between weeks 34-36, yet a whopping SEVEN POUNDS between weeks 36-37. I crossed my fingers that the scale might have been off that week!
How much weight I gained when pregnant with twins:
- First Trimester: No significant weight gain
- 12th Week: +4 pounds
- 15th Week: +7 pounds
- 16th Week: +10 pounds
- 19th Week: +15 pounds
- 20th Week: +19 pounds
- 25th Week: +26 pounds
- 29th Week: +34 pounds
- 32nd Week: +38 pounds
- 34th Week: +46 pounds
- 36th Week: +48 pounds
- 37th Week: +55 pounds
And did I lose the twin baby weight?
That’s a post for another day, but the short answer is YES. Through breastfeeding twins for a year, I actually ended up under my pre-pregnancy weight at the twins’ first birthday.
Looking for Twin Pregnancy Resources?
As someone who searched for twin pregnancy belly week by week photos pretty much as soon as I found out we were expecting twins, I hope sharing my journey has helped you in some small way.
I also document what our first month with twins was like. If you’re curious about what life is like after your twins arrive, check it out!
And finally, if you are expecting twins and want to be as prepared as possible, check out How to Thrive with Twins. The course only opens up a few times a year, for only a one-week enrollment window. Get on the mailing list to be notified of when it opens!
A twin pregnancy is not for the weak, but it truly is an incredible experience to go through. If you just saw those two heartbeats on the ultrasound and are now asking yourself the questions we’ve all asked ourselves, like, ”what will my twin pregnancy belly look like”, “how early will I start showing with twins”, and “how fast does your belly grow with this”, then I hope this post has been helpful to you.
Are you pregnant with twins? Want to connect? Send me a note, follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, or check out our Facebook page today!
And if you’re curious how long it takes to lose weight after twins, stay tuned for that post to come! Here’s a hint – breastfeeding twins was an awesome way to burn calories.
Read Next:
Twin pregnancy week by week experience
Minimalist Twin Registry Checklist
How to Survive Twins: the First Six Months
Follow Along on Social @TwinWinning
