The main reasons why I felt great during pregnancy were directly related to my fitness and diet. If you are skeptical about weights or exercising throughout your pregnancy, open your mind and start small, it is only going to help you as you rapidly gain weight and your body changes.
I gained 35-40 pounds with each of my babies. But I was active and ate healthy so I wasn’t worried about the pounds on the scale and neither was my doctor. When I found out I was pregnant with my second babe, I was only 5 pounds heavier than my starting weight with my first. I went to the gym 4-5 times a week doing weight training and cardio (incline walking, normal walking on a treadmill… I am SO not a runner ) and also did prenatal yoga once a week.
If you don’t have access to a gym or just want some extra tips, here are some ideas for staying active throughout your pregnancy:
– Take the stairs (within reason of course)- it’s an easy way to get some cardio without having to be on a treadmill
– Do some bodyweight exercises (squats, lunges, etc) throughout the day while you’re folding laundry or doing the dishes
– Wall push ups – regular push ups become more and more difficult as your belly gets bigger and aren’t recommended as they can cause/worsen abdominal issues such as diastasis recti (ab separation)
– Active play with your children/dog
– And of course adult active play with your significant other;)
Please listen to your body and your doctor. If you don’t feel well or are light headed, take it easy and get some rest, your body needs that too! Make sure you are drinking lots of water, eating enough and eating healthy whole foods for you and your baby.
Pregnancy workout truths:
~ You will get stared at in the gym, like AWKWARDLY stared at
~ You will have to pee a million times during cardio, people will think
your water broke as you race to the washroom, just go with it, their
faces are priceless
~ Keep in mind that if gym equipment is tight in your gym, map out a route
to where you want to go, getting your belly stuck between treadmills is
kind of embarrassing;)
Looking for a pregnancy workout? Contact me:)
~Dani
I used to take a belly pic every week before or after a workout. This pic was taken only a couple of weeks before my first born. As you can see, this was before kids when I still had time to do my hair.
