Have any of you gotten fit *during* your pregnancy?

@vanillasunflowers If you're able to (this is a pricey suggestion, lol) and are cleared by your doctor to do so, Pure Barre was a fantastic way to be active, feel strong, work on pelvic floor/core strength, and is pregnancy safe. Instructors will give you modifications throughout the different stages of your pregnancy. It also (in my experience/opinion) can help with postpartum recovery.
 
@kkennyb I absolutely LOVE pure barre! Unfortunately the studio closest to me is 1.5h away :( but my mom recommended Sculpt Society to me and they have a pregnancy program on their app so I think I’m going to try that!
 
@vanillasunflowers I also ate a lot of junk my first trimester and wasn’t able to do much at all, even in my second trimester I didn’t feel able to do much physical activity until the second half. This has been my favorite workout to do, it’s full body and having the lady guide the workout is super helpful. I feel like I’m getting a good workout in without doing too much. She uses dumbbells, but I don’t have any so I’ve been using 5lb flour sacks instead. I’ve also been going on long brisk walks to make sure I’m keeping up on my cardiovascular health too

 
@vanillasunflowers I haven’t gotten fitter but I stayed fit, if that makes sense.

Pre-pregnancy, I lifted 4-5x/week and did a daily 60 min walk (I have a dog that won’t go in the backyard). I’m 22 weeks now and I’ve decreased to lifting 3-4x/week and walking 60 mins 5x/week. I haven’t really decreased my weights except for barbell squats or when I had a cold. I haven’t noticed any muscle gains but I also haven’t noticed any visible muscle loss except in my belly obviously. But there is still definition in my calves, arms, back, shoulders, etc. So that tells me the fat gain vs muscle loss has been kept to a minimum.

I subscribe to the sweat app and have a home gym. But they have at-home workouts too that don’t require equipment. On days when I don’t want to do a full 60 min lifting session, I’ll pick one of the pregnancy workouts which is 20 mins long and doesn’t need to be modified to accommodate pregnancy/avoiding coning. They also have post-pregnancy workouts which focus on rebuilding core and I’m planning to do those postpartum as well.

I also notice that I get pelvic pain if I don’t workout. If I have three rest days in a row, my pelvis starts to hurt. I think keeping your body moving and loose helps a lot so I try not to do more than 2 rest days in a row.
 
@vanillasunflowers I definitely got more fit during pregnancy!! I walked daily if I was too tired to exercise, always took the stairs up to the 4th floor at my office, and I was able to fit in light strength training (I used Kayla Itsines pregnancy program it was amazing) and spin on the weekends. I was around 112 before pregnancy, gained about 15 pounds during, and currently am 104 (I lost all the weight almost immediately as I didn’t gain any fat and it was all water/baby/placenta. I’m 5’2 for reference.

I obviously didnt diet, but I made sure I was eating healthy food with good nutrition for the baby. I also gave into my random burger weekly during pregnancy. NEVER starved myself, but only ate what I needed with maybe an extra 300 calories daily for baby. I think the key is just to remember that you’re NOT eating for two (baby only needs about 300 calories in third trimester) and try not to overindulge.

After birth, I started doing light daily walks when baby was sleeping and worked a lot on deep core recovery.

It’s totally possible to get fit during pregnancy! I highly recommend it if you can as it’ll do wonders for a smooth birth and also recovery. Good luck you can do it!!!
 
@vanillasunflowers I think you can totally work on strength and overall fitness during pregnancy, so long as you do not introduce any new extremes (ex: you’ve never lifted weights but suddenly decide to do CrossFit your first trimester) and you honor your body/new limitations. I think that the necessary calorie surplus of good, nutritious food combined with moderate resistance training would not only help with overall strength and muscle development during pregnancy, but would set you up for a much healthier and speedier recovery post partum.

I’m about to be on the same journey (not pregnant yet but plan to be soon!) so we are in the same boat! Wish you luck OP!
 
@vanillasunflowers You should not actively try to lose fat while pregnant because you should not be eating at a deficit. Instead I'd focus on staying active to help keep your body feeling good and to help you reach your goals after pregnancy. But focusing on "getting fit and toned" isn't quite appropriate while your body is growing a whole other human.
 
@littlesheepinjc I’m not actively trying to lose fat… and I am certainly not eating at a deficit. I would never suggest that. Im looking to rebuild the muscles that I have not been using as much as I should be during my pregnancy. I never said anything about weight loss.
 
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