Lately I’ve had a lot of questions about working out during
pregnancy and really the general topic of a healthy lifestyle. I’ve posted
before about finding the balance between putting in the work and the good
nutrients but also taking the time to chill out and eat the crap. But now that
I have the perspective of being pregnant, I’m going to revisit this subject.
I found out I was pregnant just a few weeks before we moved
into our new house and Chris started school. Typically I would walk the dogs
about 3.5 miles 5-6 days a week and do some type of exercise routine 3-4 days a
week. Most often I was doing short circuit work outs, rotating the muscle group
focus, that took me anywhere from 10-20 minutes to complete. Sometimes I’d
throw in a longer workout but dog walking took up so much time and energy that
I counted that as the bulk of my daily exercise. Without a fenced in yard for
the dogs and without the training knowledge that Chris now has, walks were
always the priority because we thought they were needed as often as possible. On
the nutrition side of things, I stayed on a healthy eating plan all week,
barring the occasional indulgence in a treat for someone’s birthday at work and
my Friday Starbucks runs. And by healthy eating plan I mean breakfast, lunch,
dinner and snacks all consisting of whole grains, fruits/veggies and plain or
sparkling water to drink. Weekends were a free for all if I wanted them to be,
but honestly when you choose a healthy lifestyle you tend to still make those choices
even when you give yourself the option not to. If I went out to eat I’d get
anything that sounded good and typically Sunday breakfast was the big “cheat
meal” of the week. I’m thankful for pretty great genes but I definitely credit
a lot of my ability to maintain my weight and overall inside health to sticking
with a healthy lifestyle.
When we moved, we moved farther away from my job and I
quickly figured out the added time it takes to get home cuts into my regular evening
activities. But a fenced in yard provided the option for the dogs to run around
rather than be taken on long daily walks. And we learned something very
important through Chris’s training, that dogs drain tons of physical and mental
energy through training and therefore long walks all the time are definitely
not necessary. I was very lucky to have a fairly uneventful first trimester
where I wasn’t spending time with my head in the toilet or so exhausted workouts
were off the table in favor of naps. When I discovered that pushing myself to
be active after car rides home feeling sick actually kicked that nausea to the
curb, that in itself was a huge motivation to keep working out. Of course I
also wanted to continue the healthiest habits possible for myself and my
growing baby. But I know that’s much more difficult for many women.
Without the pressure of eating up a large chunk of my
evening with long dog walks in favor of training and romps in the yard, I
started trying new work out routines. I started exercising right after work
Monday-Thursday and Saturday mornings for anywhere from 25-40 minutes. This has
become my new norm. YouTube and Pinterest have been my free workout routine
sources and I especially love the Fitness Blender workouts via YouTube. I’ve tried
most of the available routines and love that there are enough to keep rotating
without getting bored or overworking certain muscle groups. I can do any one of
the workouts at home in my living room since most of them don’t require any equipment
at all and the rest just a set of dumb bells, which I have. I’ve continued to
check in with my doctor at each visit to ensure it is still safe for me to
continue with these routines and she has, so far, given me the green light. I
make modifications when necessary, but none of the workouts I am currently
doing are designed for pregnancy. It’s just that now, well into my second
trimester, I’ve gained weight. During my last prenatal appointment my doctor reminded
me that getting tired more easily or feeling sore after workouts when I hadn’t
before is completely normal because I’m basically doing them with 13 lbs
strapped to me. I really hadn’t even thought of that! I am careful to listen to
my body and switch out a move if it doesn’t feel right for something that does
or give myself extra breaks, even if the routine doesn’t call for them. I also
still swap in a long doggie walk here and there for bonding purposes as well as
switching up the exercise. We have 2 long, fairly steep hills in our
neighborhood that are perfect for working those legs. So far I’m still feeling
pretty strong in the fitness department.
About the nutrition….this is where I’m struggling a bit more
with pregnancy. I had first trimester aversions that were causing me to
physically not be able to eat a lot of healthy foods that I used to. I was
mindful not to fill the void with empty calories all the time but I was still
eating things I wouldn’t normally eat like grilled cheese and egg McMuffins on
the regular. Second trimester has brought the death of the aversions, thank
goodness, but also unhealthy cravings. I find myself indulging more than normal
because I find myself wanting to more often! There are days when I swear I
could just eat donuts all day and nothing else. I don’t though. Honestly, my
nutrition could be better. I joke about Pop-Tarts, donuts and French Toast but
it’s really not okay to eat all that stuff and blame the pregnancy. I promise
you I do eat healthy meals and snacks the majority of the time, but I also do
eat treats in between that I really shouldn’t. I am trying to be much more
mindful though, especially with my upcoming glucose test!
So basically I’m kicking
ass with exercise but slacking with some of my food choices. I’m still on track
for healthy weight gain and my blood work so far hasn’t thrown up any red
flags. It’s up to me now to keep up the fitness level and ditch a few of the
donuts. All for a good cause…RIGHT?!
#damnthegirlscoutcookies
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