Running while pregnant

meganroselee

I will hopefully be pregnant at some point in my life and saw a badge that said running while pregnant on someone's signature. Since I'm sure there are a lot of AD female SM here, I wanted to get their insight-- what did you change (if anything) about your running? What guidance was given to you by your physician?.  I typically run at least 20mile/week and would hate to change or stop.   Thanks for any help anyone has!

AndreaArdelean

I've read that everyone is different and it kind of depends on the person, her doctor, and how the pregnancy is. If you're in great shape, maybe your doctor will let you as long as it's safe.

For me, I had a lot of spotting, so they don't want me to... but you could get the "okay." Good luck!

meltoine

As long as your body is used to it and you have a healthy pregnancy you can keep going as long as you're comfortable. There's a girl on MN who's a personal trainer and PG. She can probably give you some more insight. 

ufsandra85

i was high risk and couldnt do any type of exercise including running and unnecessary walking. I was in great shape before i was pregnant. It really depends on the person though and your baby. Good luck!!

catour827

As long as healthy pregnancy safe to run if you were doing so before. In fact exercising is beneficial during pregnancy. Just keep in mind that sometimes even if you want to do something the baby may not let you. I was exercising regularly zumba, water aerobics, pilates before I was pregnant. Once I was pregnant though baby had other ideas. I was so sick and I get so out of breath so easily. If that happens do not force it. Once you are feeling better ease back into it start slow. 

Good luck hope this is helpful 

Pippa84

I'm trying to run through my pregnancy. My body seems determine to force me to take it easy: I'm short of breath, I'm tired, and I get light-headed and woozy. But, I'm still running a short circuit every day or every other day. I wear a HR monitor, drink lots of water, and walk if I feel I need to.

I'd say you don't need to give up running when you get pregnant (unless your doctor advises otherwise) but you do need to listen to your body.

Dancer6978

I, too, am AD.  At 16 weeks, I was in so much pain in my back that I had to stop running altogether. However -- and this is just MY personal neuroticism -- I read so much about miscarriages and risks and how common they actually are that I stopped all strenuous exercise (stopped running at 16 weeks, stopped CrossFit immediately, etc).  

My pregnancy was never high risk, but I read a lot (book after book after article after article) about how every little thing you do and consume affects your baby, and even if you don't feel overheated, you really can't tell sometimes when you truly are, and what you do affects your baby to a much higher degree because they are so vulnerable.   I agree that you should listen to your body and continue to exercise as long as you feel well, but be aware that you may need to change your habits, even if you still feel OK.  Some women have run marathons while pregnant, and their babies turned out just fine.  That's great and all, but I can't help but wonder how they would have felt if something had, in fact, gone wrong.  It's not a guarantee that something would, but it is always a *risk.* I tried to manage and minimize as many risks as I could when I was pregnant.  I took the extremely conservative approach for all things pregnancy related.  Again, that is just my personality, but I never wanted to have to wonder if I could have done something differently.

Pippa84

Dancer6978:

 Some women have run marathons while pregnant, and their babies turned out just fine.  That's great and all, but I can't help but wonder how they would have felt if something had, in fact, gone wrong.  It's not a guarantee that something would, but it is always a *risk.* I tried to manage and minimize as many risks as I could when I was pregnant.  I took the extremely conservative approach for all things pregnancy related.  Again, that is just my personality, but I never wanted to have to wonder if I could have done something differently.

That always amazes me too. I'm not one of those hypercareful ladies - I don't think the occasional glass of wine or deli sandwich is a big deal - but I've run a few marathons before and I felt completely depleted/dehydrated afterwards no matter how much I ate and drank during. I'm sure it can be fine, especially if you''re a very experienced marathoner, but personally, it's outside my comfort level. 26.2 miles taps me out completely!

I run a few miles every day and do some light yoga or weights. I keep my HR down. For me, that's what I'm comfortable with. I'm a Marine - I'm used to pushing and abusing my body - but right now my priorities are totally different.

I also used to be a Crossfitter - that's going to be fun getting back into post-baby.

UberTroll

I ran until 25 weeks with my last pregnancy and want to go longer this time. I only stopped because the extra weight was making my legs cramp up really bad. After I quit running, I was walking 4 miles 3x a week.

I didn't change anything, I just can't always go as far as I want. I'm 23 weeks now and ran 6.5 miles just last weekend. It was slower than I'm used to, but I felt great afterwards.

So far in this pregnancy, I have run 2 10 mile races and a half marathon, and my 3x weekly runs of at least 3 miles.

When I was pregnant with my first two, I didn't exercise at all, because I was afraid. I was induced with my 1st due to pre-e and I had gestational diabetes with my 2nd, I also had bad sciatica with both. With my 3rd, I had ZERO health issues, no feet swelling, no sciatica, wasn't as achy. I felt great pretty much the whole time. I contribute that to exercising.

I get really aggrivated with women that use pregnancy as an excuse to do NOTHING. I understand if there are health issues preventing you from exercising, but a normal pregnancy isn't an excuse to sit on your ass and gain 75 pounds. I am gaining weight...I LOVE to eat, lol, but I'm also keeping my body moving.

I don't monitor my heart rate. I know how hard my max is. I don't push to my max, but I do exert myself. If you don't exert yourself, what's the point? I'm not a Dr. but I'd reccommend all pregnant women get out there and get some form of exercise.