I was really excited this time around! I had worked really hard on my body and was at a place I was comfortable at getting pregnant again. I was actually in the best shape I had ever been in. Was I at my high school weight? Not at all! In fact I was 8 lbs above that but now with adding weight lifting, interval training, and clean eating… I was seeing the beginnings of a six pack and muscle definition.
This was a great place to be at to get pregnant but also going to be my toughest mentally. There is nothing more challenging than watching your body transform after all your hard work. Yes, I knew I could get it back and I knew it was worth it… but it was still hard to watch it change! I had never been a scale watcher. In fact, I wanted the scale to go up before pregnancy because that meant I was gaining muscle! In the 1st trimester I gained 7 lbs! I was still working out and eating pretty clean, but had the addition of extra carbs and some cheats due to nausea. Didn't help that when I went to a Dr. appt the nurse said I needed to slow down the weight gain. I only needed to gain 20-25 lbs. She said to make sure I drank lots of water, which I replied that I drank a gallon. She then said to get some exercise in, which I replied I work out at least 5 days a week and I eat a pretty clean diet.
I definitely worked out longer and harder this pregnancy. I had placenta previa with my daughter and it left me with doing just yoga and pilates and I worked out until about 7 months preggo. This time I worked out until 39 weeks (had Ian on his due date) and weight trained with little cardio. With both pregnancies I gained the same weight. 37 lbs!! What I have learned is, your body knows what to do and what it wants. I did much more this time around as far as exercise and diet and I still gained the same amount of weight. It was out of my control!
As long as you eat clean and stay active.. your body will take care of what it needs! Don't get caught up in the weight gain. Concentrate on being healthy for you and the baby. Your body will do what it needs to do!
As far as what I did with my workout routine, check out www.Busymomgetsfit.com . She has a pregnancy workout routine for the gym and at home. I got the gym version and followed that 3 days a week. The other 2 days I did Beachbody programs alternating between Chalean Extreme and Combat. I stayed consistent with my clean eating with the help of my Challenge groups. They helped me stay accountable throughout the whole pregnancy. I also drank Shakeology every day! On November 16, 2013 I gave birth to a healthy 8 lb 9 ounce 22.5 inches baby boy!! :)
Awesome article. Thanks for the info and congratsn I am 32 weeks pregnant and I start to workout again around 29 weeks because my doctor told me that I was gaining.to much weight. I didnt really care before that because I was fit before pregnancy so I was thinking that it would be no big deal to go back there after delivery. But the doctor words actually made me worried and jump back into my routine after 7 months off. It was not that hard but people around me was telling me to stop because it dangerous for the baby........dont believe that by the way. Do what u can. Right now I was getting a little depress because i havent lost any weight and looking at myself getting bigger is really not easy. Thanks to your article im feeling better about it. I guess in 8 weeks I will be thankful to my workout and patience :-p
ReplyDeleteGreat post! How interesting that you gained the same amount of weight your 2nd time around-you are right that it just goes to show that your body knows what it needs and some things are out of your control. Congrats on the new baby! Your kids are adorable!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great post. Thanks for sharing! I am going to be trying for baby #2 this year and want to continue to work out all the way through, so this is a great inspiration. I was so sick during my entire pregnancy that I couldn't do any physical activity (it triggered migraines), so it was hard to "come back" after giving birth.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with your point that your body will do what it is going to do during pregnancy, so you just need to focus on staying well. I gained 3 pounds one week and the only dietary change that I had made was adding a glass of 100% orange juice (and I had given up added sugar). The doctor said the same thing as you, "your body is going to do what it is going to do!"
And, by the way, your kids are beautiful! Congrats! :)