If you worked out while pregnant...

LSzwaya

I am thinking of joining the gym with my MIL. DH and I are also in the process of TTC #2. I was wondering, if you continued to work out during your pregnancy, how did your workouts change as your pregnancy progressed? I dont want to get a membership and then get pregnant this month and it get wasted. But then I also do not want to take 6-12 months to get pregnant and not have had it. 

 

 

eitaknna9

It's probably different for everyone, and how their bodies handled it. I work out and run regularly, and had for over ten years when I go pregnant. My endurance went down the drain when I got pregnant, so I just about instantly could not run any longer.

I would walk on the treadmill (at an incline, most of the time), lifted weights, took classes, and walked and walked the hills in my neighborhood while pregnant. I was able to maintain that until about 6 months. After six months I no longer had the endurance to lift anything beyond 5 pound weights and walk the neighborhood, so at that point I cancelled my gym membership.

If the terms of your membership are flexible, I say go for it, but it it binds you to x number of years, then it might not be worth it because you don't know what your body will allow you to do once pregnant. I never thought in a million years that I instantly would not be able to run once I got pregnant especially since I've run for years, but my body had other plans.

juliedooley

Do they have yoga classes you could join? Have you had a workout routine up to this point? I was rock climbing 2-3x a week at a gym through my 1st trimester, then walking and yoga a couple times a week in 2nd and 3rd tri. Being in Chicago, it would be good to have a place to do cardio when the winter finally sets in, pregnant or not!

ETA that PP makes a good point...check to see if you can suspend your membership if you find you can't work out for some reason while pregnant and when baby comes...I had a friend who was able to do that at her gym (Lakeview Athletic Club, I think). 

Titts McGeee

I did intense kickboxing workouts, and was able to do them through 7 months of pregnancy before really slowing down. My doctor was fine with this. I avoided anything that required me to lie on my stomach, and stopped doing most of the ab work when my stomach got too big for sit-ups. It's really good for you to exercise while pregnant, and as long as you don't exhaust yourself, you should be fine. GL conceiving soon!

cmhicklin

I  was doing the Elliptical 3-4 days a week before I got pregnant.  Very early on, I had to go to only walking, because everything else made me dizzy.  But I had to walk on firm ground, because even walking on the treadmill made me dizzy. 

TriciaandSean

I was very active during my pregnancy running until I was 31 weeks pregnant.  I did a half marathon, 3 triathlons and about 10 other races, mostly 5Ks.  I also did a body pump class regularly.

The biggest change was that I started wearing a heart rate monitor when I worked out, and also reduced my exertion level so that I could maintain a conversation while working out. 

I felt great though, and had a very easy pregnancy.  I didn't even really feel pregnant until 28 weeks, so that made exercising easy.

Good luck, just start now and get in a routine before you get pregnant so you have a base to start with.

zeptattoo

I didn't really "work out" per se, but I was walking about 2-3 miles a day until I was 37 or 38 weeks.  I did join our community rec center b/c the summer heat was too much for me.  They had a package where I could do x amount of visits within 2 years so that worked out well for me versus A Lifetime or Gold's membership, which I believe was monthly.

Cherryblossoms07

I am 33 weeks pregnant and I still regularly use my gym membership and plan on using it up until the day I give birth as long as my OB keeps telling me it is ok.  I was taking hour long boot camp classes before I got pregnant with DS and continued taking the class through my first trimester.  Many OBs will tell you that as long as you have a healthy pregnancy you can continue to do what you were doing prior to becoming pregnant during the first trimester.  After the first trimester you have to make some changes - you cannot lay flat on your back (you have to recline your bench), you have to modify a few routines like abs, etc.  However, as long as your OB says it is safe you can still do many things.  I was taking an hour long weight training class 3x a week and then worked out on the eliptical 2x a week up until just recently.  I gave up a weight training class because it was getting too tough (the instructor got up and down off the floor too much - lunges to mountain climbers back up for squats, etc.)  I now work out on the eliptical 3x a week and take a weight training class (making a few modifications from everyone else) 2x a week. 

I did not work out that much when I was pregnant with DD and I see a major difference.  I am sleeping much better, I have no hip or back pain yet, I passed my GD test the first time, and my BP has been staying in check.  Plus, our gym has gym child care so DD gets a couple hours a day to wear off energy with other kids - making the day much easier for me.  I love my membership!

NG2HD

I literally worked out the morning I was induced - by that time, I was walking 3 miles per day.  Before I went to walking, I was running and kick boxing.  While it did not speed up delivery, I was in labor for 36 hours ( my water didn't break) and pushed for over 2 hours and didn't find it to be a big deal, so I guess it helped.

wtiger9

Go for it!

 I ran most of the way through pregnancy with my doctor's encouragement.  I was still racing and doing track workouts in the first trimester.  The biggest obstacle was morning sickness.  I took care to eat a few crackers before running and didn't stress out if I had to cut my workout short to keep from puking.

During 2nd tri I backed off the intense stuff and just ran, mostly kept runs to 5-6 miles or less.  I did my last race at 6.5 months and wore a heartrate monitor to keep myself in check.

In 3rd tri I did more yoga and pilates and my runs turned into more of a wog (walk-jog) usually 12 minute pace for 2-3 miles and walked as needed. 

At 36 weeks I switched to mostly walking because I was getting terrible shin splints from the extra weight and my groin muscles were really hurting.  I decided it was not worth being in constant pain while exercising so I quit officially running, but would still break into a jog on some of my walks and I actually ran quite a bit the day I went into labor. 

I really loved being able to exercise and I feel like it helped me to maintain a healthy weight during pregnancy (gained 36 lbs) making it easier to lose the weight after.  Plus, maintaining my fitness made it so much easier to get back to racing.  I was running again 3 weeks after and racing another 3 weeks after that.