I settled into the hospital bed looking down at our new daughter and sighed with relief. I had survived another pregnancy and the fruit of my labor lie sleeping in my arms. Nine months earlier when I found out I was pregnant with our fourth child, I was in the middle of a busy exercising season. A full plate of clients, classes, facilitating a pre-diabetes program and running the YMCA’s Get Fit Program kept my schedule running full steam ahead. Mothering three children ages 8-12 filled my remaining time, and I had grown accustomed to a family of five. But God had other plans. It had been 8 years since I was last pregnant, and the first round of pregnancies went fast. Three kids in three and half years, and my husband joked that I had been pregnant longer than the time we had dated. I taught aerobics through two of the first pregnancies and since trained new mothers returning to their pre-baby physiques. Now it was my turn to use all the “hands-on” experience of watching my body change, grow, and swell with expectation, and yet try not to “swell” too much.
I can say with relief that my last pregnancy was the best- what I had learned through my years of training worked! I gained the least, felt the best, and taught two aerobics classes the day she came- 3 weeks early! I wasn’t ready, but my body was. And so can yours. The tips listed below are some I have learned training through my own pregnancies. May they serve you well and help prepare you for one of the biggest chapters of your life.
1- This is a big one- Keep doing what you’re doing. If you are already into a workout routine, stay with it. A body in motion stays in motion and we want to keep it that way as long as possible.
2- Drop the intensity to Moderate during your first trimester. I continued to do the same exercises in my first trimester, but I watched my heart rate and intensity level and tried to keep it at 5-7 on a scale of 10. This keeps your body temperature lower and maintains a good blood flow to the baby.
3- Let your body tell you when it’s time to back off. I continued to run for 6 months. Some ladies are conditioned to run longer. My mantra was “I’ll just keep doing what I’ve been doing until I can’t.”
4- If you haven’t already done so, invite your water bottle to be your new BFF. Take it with you everywhere. Keep one in the car if needed or keep bottled water on hand. Staying hydrated is one of the best things you can do for yourself and the baby.
5- Be consistent with your prenatal vitamins or any supplement your doctor or midwife suggests. If taking pills is not your strong suit, see this as an exercise in discipline and maturing into your maternal role. I am a terrible vitamin taker, so my husband put one on my place mat everyday. He also convinced me to take krill oil pills during my first trimester- for the baby of course. I kept burping krill oil. It was pretty awful. When I finished the bottle I did a victory dance. (Little did I know that he had another bottle.)
6- Keep lifting. If you are already lifting weights, keep it up. Moderate intensity lifting will keep your muscles strong, lean and help keep your extra weight down.
7- Limit your refined sugars by eating low GI (or glycemic index). Consuming foods low on the glycemic index help regulate your blood sugar and keep gestational diabetes at bay. I adhered to a low GI diet as much as I could and especially during the 6th and 7th month when I underwent the glucose test for gestational diabetes. For more information on this, check out: The New Glucose Revolution
8- If you work a sedentary job, get up and move often. Bend, squat, push, walk. These exercises will keep your joints moving and blood circulating, which will reduce swelling in your legs and ankles as your pregnancy progresses into that third trimester. Find a place to go for a daily walk if nothing else.
9- Take a nap. If you have older kids, make plans to get a nap in. They can have “quiet time” while you rest. Enlist a family member, friend, someone to relieve you so you can rest. You need it.
10- Get in the water. It just feels great! Floating is an awesome thing when you’ve been carrying the load all day long. Jump into a water class or just get in for relief.
11- Take yoga, pilates, or a stretch class. Your joints become more pliable during pregnancy, especially the hips. Taking time to relax and relieve pressure on your back and feet will help you get through the tough days. Stress reduce as much as possible in your last trimester so you’re relaxed and ready for labor (even if it comes early!).
These suggestions will keep you moving, your weight down, your energy up and prime you for some of the toughest and most wonderful weeks of your life. We can’t always predict how things will happen or when they will happen, but we can be prepared. You can do it! Just one day at a time and one step at a time.
Priscilla Jones is a mother of four and co-owner with her husband of Blue Wave Fit: Home to CrossFit 1088, a family-friendly CrossFit training and perosnal training facility in Ocala, FL. You can reach her at priscilla@bluewavefitocala.com.
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