@pastorjohan I have been powerlifting for 8 years. My coach has worked with 3 different pregnant women throughout their pregnancies and my dr had given me these instructions:
your body is used to lifting so it is ok to continue, just reduce the intensity and listen to your body. If you have any bleeding or cramping, stop and call us.
I was able to mostly keep up my lifting routine after finding out I was pregnant. There were a few days I skipped or reduced/skipped things because of fatigue or nausea, but for the most part I felt like I felt better when I went to the gym so I've kept lifting and some moderate cardio 3-4 days per week.
At 11 weeks I was at the gym deadlifting about 75%. I went to the bathroom and was straining because I had forgotten to take Colace for a few days, and I noticed blood. I am still not sure if it was the straining from lifting or from going to the bathroom that caused the bleed. I called my dr and the nurse FREAKED OUT about how much I was lifting and talked to my dr. Then she called back and said "the dr knows about your lifting but wants you to cut back to 50%. Stop and call us if you have any more cramps or bleeding." I ended up taking most of that week off completely because I was so scared. A week after the incident I had my NT ultrasound and there was no sign of what may have caused the bleeding! The only comment the tech had was that my placenta is anterior and a little low but she said that was common this early on.
I see my dr tomorrow and will be asking her a lot of questions about what I should or should not do. I did read this comment from Brianna Battles that really helped me put it into perspective:
Pregnant athletes do not need to “train for birth,” because their baseline of fitness is already well established. They need to train their mind and body for postpartum recovery. They need awareness of the potential of, and/or current core and pelvic health symptoms...
So I am trying to find a balance and consider exercise more as a tool to make me feel good, and less about "preparing for birth" or "maintaining a strength base." Most important is to keep baby healthy and to think long term in terms of my core and pelvic floor.