Pregnancy Fitness... My Journey 5 months in...

Where I started

Prior to my pregnancy I was very active. I was not at my ideal weight, but at a comfortable weight that I was able to maintain easily. I am really not one to focus on the number on the scale though anyway (not anymore). My activity consisted of teaching 2 Boot Camps per week, teaching 2 Kick & Pump Classes per week, and 1 evening of PiYo Strength. Those really were my workouts as there really wasn't time for much more except an outdoor run about twice per week (I was training for a half marathon). 

I found out I was pregnant about two weeks prior to the half marathon I was training for. I went back and forth with running the half marathon, right up until the morning of the event. My doctor had approved me to run (over the phone), and that made me nervous. I have never been pregnant before, and my longest run was just over 10 miles (the half marathon is 13.1). So the morning of the half marathon came, and I was all dressed and ready to go. I got in the car and was en route to pick up my running partner. Half way there, I realized I forgot my race # bib at home. I took that as a sign that I shouldn't run, and tearfully drove back home. I cried the entire day. It wasn't about the money I had spent or that I wasn't thankful to be pregnant, it was all the time and training I had poured into the event, it was a goal I had set months and months before, and crossing that finish line, earning that finishing medal was now just something I felt I had thrown out the window. In fact, that summer... I had ran one of my best 5K's, I just felt like I was on a roll with hitting some wonderful running goals! 

I continued to teach classes, but with the exhaustion the first trimester brought and the dry heaving and nausea, I reduced my schedule and stopped teaching the boot camps. I also stopped running for the most part. 

My doctor assured me I could continue with the same activity level I had prior to becoming pregnant, but I didn't realize that it wasn't just that "easy" to continue with what I was doing before. I had always envisioned a really REALLY healthy pregnancy, continuing to eat a really clean diet, continuing with my activity level, etc. But that wasn't a decision I could make, it was a decision my body had to make and then tell my brain what I felt like doing. I think the eating was the hardest part. So many "healthy" foods I ate before- salads, scrambled eggs with egg whites and spinach, turkey burgers, veggie burgers, sweet potatoes, all made me want to vomit. I had to eat what I could manage and what sounded okay (they weren't cravings, just things that sounded better than anything else): cereal, anything bread related, and multiple dinners consisted of: pizza or mac and cheese! UGH. Things I NEVER ate prior to being pregnant. 

A Minor Setback...

Just as I was hitting the second trimester and starting to feel better, I had an emotional setback. I was starting a brand new job, which I was extremely excited about... but something in my personal life popped up that I never expected, and put me out of commission for awhile. So much to the point of having to give up teaching classes. It's so strange how one event can change your life so dramatically. I probably went a good three weeks without working out (at least)! 

Where I am now...

Slowly, as the healing process began in my personal life... I felt well enough to begin working out again. I knew I wouldn't be able to pick up where I was prior to my pregnancy, but I could continue to be active. 

I workout when I feel up to it, and some days, I make a point of working out even when I don't feel up to it, because it actually HELPS me with the fatigue... I end up feeling 100 times better after I workout. 

My workouts are no more than 1 hour, but most of them are 30 minutes. I alternate between treadmill walk/ jogs for 30 minutes (once a week or every other week), a 30 minute turbo kick cardio workout at home, a 30 minute "pregnancy" workout at home (a dvd I purchased from Target that also incorporates weights), and one of my favorites 30 minutes of Turbo Sculpt or Turbo Tone (this DVD utilizes a resistance band with medium resistance). I modify some of the moves so I can stay comfortable during every workout. I am no longer doing any "floor ab work" as protocol after the first trimester. But guess what? There are still things you can do for your abs during the second and third trimester, which are safe for you and baby! 

My eating still is not perfect. Of course, I always think about the nutrients I am giving to the baby... but I am also not pregnant every day. If I indulge every once in awhile on a slice of pizza, I don't beat myself up about. I do the best I can. I especially pay attention to getting enough water! 

Where I want to go...

I have no "fitness goal" for my pregnancy, although keeping some of the definition I worked so hard to get in my arms over the past 2 years would be a nice bonus. All I really care about is that I have a healthy pregnancy, and a healthy baby boy come June. I will workout until my body says I shouldn't or my doctor tells me I shouldn't. I never "over do it", and listen really well to my body when I am working out. 

My goal is to use the exercise to help me a little with the labor process, the BIGGEST physical test of time my body will go through. Maybe it'll help me get back into exercising a little easier post pregnancy? Who knows?

And guess what?? Holding that baby at the end of the BIGGEST physical test my body will go through will be MUCH more worth it than any half marathon medal I could have earned!!!