So, when I was pregnant, I worried constantly about fitness levels, weight gain, and how my body would recover after giving birth. It's not like I was a serious athlete before my pregnancy, but I was running very consistently, rock climbing and preparing for a triathlon. All that changed when I found out I was pregnant last February. I did 2 out of the 4 races I was signed up for (a 15k I did with my husband as a relay in March and an obstacle course run in June. I skipped my olympic distance triathlon I was signed up for in August, and the half marathon I had planned for October)
While I ran for most of my pregnancy, I started to notice changes almost immediately. By 3 or 4 months in, I was already struggling with hip and back pain, and my pace slowed by 2 minutes. By 30 weeks, my usual 5min kilometres had slowed to 8 or 9 minutes, and I had scaled my distance back considerably. At 35 weeks, I finally decided it was no longer a good idea to run. There are lots of people who continue running to the end of their pregnancy, but don't feel guilty for listening to your body and stopping when you feel you need to.
As for rock climbing, I did that right up until a week before I delivered, and I think it was a saving grace. It was relatively safe, I could do it roped in, and it didn't get my heart rate going like running did. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a low impact way to keep your fitness going. (here is a vid at 9 months)
SO, here is what you are all here for: assurances that your fitness will come back after baby.
There is hope! I was so worried that it would take me FOREVER to get my pace back for running, or to even get out there with baby. I stopped running a month before delivering and I struggled a lot with that decision. I dreaded going back and thinking my cardio would be TERRIBLE! After birth, I waited 6 weeks till I got the go-ahead from my doctor to run again, and although I didn't really get back into it until 4 months (when I got the clearance to run with him in the stroller) it went so fast! It took me about 6 weeks to get back to the distance I was running before pregnancy, in fact I ran a half marathon 7 weeks into bringing back long runs. Here are some of the things I learned.
I can't bring myself to take measurements yet, I know I put SOOOO much on my waist inches-wise and really not a lot on hips and underbust BUT I am fitting back into pre-pregnancy clothes albeit a bit squishilly. My belly has deflated a lot, but there is still a noticeable (to me) bulge there. I think another few months and a few more pounds and it will go away. I have a muffin top on the top/front of my jeans now rather than the sides, but suspect it is mostly my skin hasn't rebounded just yet?
I included pre preg photos, preg photos, PP photos and some of my distance graphs for running and exercise in general.
Please let me know if you have questions about fitness, pregnancy, baby jogging equipment, motherhood in general, or fitting exercise into a busy schedule later on
Good luck with your pregnancy and fitness journey! You are doing so well!!
While I ran for most of my pregnancy, I started to notice changes almost immediately. By 3 or 4 months in, I was already struggling with hip and back pain, and my pace slowed by 2 minutes. By 30 weeks, my usual 5min kilometres had slowed to 8 or 9 minutes, and I had scaled my distance back considerably. At 35 weeks, I finally decided it was no longer a good idea to run. There are lots of people who continue running to the end of their pregnancy, but don't feel guilty for listening to your body and stopping when you feel you need to.
As for rock climbing, I did that right up until a week before I delivered, and I think it was a saving grace. It was relatively safe, I could do it roped in, and it didn't get my heart rate going like running did. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a low impact way to keep your fitness going. (here is a vid at 9 months)
SO, here is what you are all here for: assurances that your fitness will come back after baby.
There is hope! I was so worried that it would take me FOREVER to get my pace back for running, or to even get out there with baby. I stopped running a month before delivering and I struggled a lot with that decision. I dreaded going back and thinking my cardio would be TERRIBLE! After birth, I waited 6 weeks till I got the go-ahead from my doctor to run again, and although I didn't really get back into it until 4 months (when I got the clearance to run with him in the stroller) it went so fast! It took me about 6 weeks to get back to the distance I was running before pregnancy, in fact I ran a half marathon 7 weeks into bringing back long runs. Here are some of the things I learned.
- Check to make sure your sneakers aren't dead! I was having some back pain and realized it was because I walked a ton in my sneakers while pregnant that my fitness tracker didn't count....
- Cut yourself some slack. Growing a human is soooooooo hard. Your body will not have forgotten what to do at the end, and you will bounce back quickly if you work slowly and diligently.
- Take time to stretch and rest. My legs were SOOO tight while pregnant and that has continued afterward. Yoga really helped a lot to ease some of the tightness.
- Try not to rush. It was so tempting 2 weeks after giving birth to jump right in. I felt pretty good, and all of a sudden, I didn't have this human being attached to myself. Remember, it's an extra few weeks in a lifetime of fitness.
I can't bring myself to take measurements yet, I know I put SOOOO much on my waist inches-wise and really not a lot on hips and underbust BUT I am fitting back into pre-pregnancy clothes albeit a bit squishilly. My belly has deflated a lot, but there is still a noticeable (to me) bulge there. I think another few months and a few more pounds and it will go away. I have a muffin top on the top/front of my jeans now rather than the sides, but suspect it is mostly my skin hasn't rebounded just yet?
I included pre preg photos, preg photos, PP photos and some of my distance graphs for running and exercise in general.
Please let me know if you have questions about fitness, pregnancy, baby jogging equipment, motherhood in general, or fitting exercise into a busy schedule later on
Good luck with your pregnancy and fitness journey! You are doing so well!!
