Are you exercising?

mrsthedixon · November 2009

I'm 26 weeks now, and I've been jogging throughout my entire pregnancy (except for a month in the first tri when I felt WAY too crappy to do anything). I've been getting a fair amount of comments from people regarding my jogging - like "Should you really be running?" "You don't still run do you?" "Is it okay for the baby to run??"

I know a lot of people are just curious and don't know, but I feel like I've answered this question a MILLION times now. (Background: I ran 2 half marathon races in early-mid May, then got my positive pregnancy test in mid June, so I was running before. I'm not running anywhere NEAR the same pace as before - I'm much slower. And I take walk breaks, so I jog for 6 minutes, walk for 1, and do that over and over for about 30 minutes or so. Nothing major at all!)

Anyway - just wondering for those of you that are still exercising: what are you doing for exercise? And do you get any questions/comments about staying active while pregnant?

cutie420311 · November 2009

I'm making it to the gym 3-4 times a week, or taking long walks, or doing yoga. The only person who mentions it is my mother, but she didn't think I should exercise period, that's just her though.

I could be doing much better with my exercise, and I feel guilty for not making it more of a priority

CTL2005 · November 2009

Like you I was running 1/2 Marathons before getting PG. After feeling brutal in the first trimester I just started running again this week. I called my midwife to check if it was OK, and her response was "Of course you can. Why wouldn't you run?" Lots of people will give you lots of advice when PG, tune it out if you dont like it.

IrishBrideND · November 2009

Yes.

Much less than before, but I still am. We have an elliptical and I use it about 4 times a week.

ashleycallan · November 2009

I am a runner as well, but I stopped running around week 15. My doctor told me it was perfectly fine to run up until the end, but I was getting too crampy so I stopped. If you can jog, I do not see anything wrong with that.

knedell · November 2009

I am still exercising and cannot imagine stopping. I run about 3 miles 3-4 times a week and still do weight training 3-4 days as well and DH and I usually do a long walk (about 5-8 miles) on the weekends. I get comments from people. Yes, they annoy me. I am and have been very open with my dr about my workouts and he is all for them, so that is all that matters to me.

I think that our culture associates pregnancy with being sick or weak and people don't understand that pregnancy is a perfectly healthy state of being. It drives me nuts, but unfortunatly, I don't see that changing anytime soon. Hang in there - you will have a healthier pregnancy and likely recover much faster after birth if you keep up your regimen. And feel free to come here and complain to the rest of us anytime you need to

Ruthgers · November 2009

I take the dogs for two 20 minute walks every day and power walk for 30-40 minutes. I also stretch every other day. I used to run 5-6 days a week for 2-3 miles, but I was waaaaaaay too tired almost my entire time in the 1st Tri, so I switched to power walking.

KittyKatMom · November 2009

I walk briskly for 30 minutes on the treadmill, 5 days a week. I wasn't really exercising before I got pregnant, so I didn't want to start anything strenuous.

witoga · November 2009

I am not a runner but I did cardio and classes at the gym until I was about 35 weeks with DS...I did get comments near the end - nearly all from men - women in my classes were supportive!

I only ever did what I was comfortable with and never pushed myself too hard, but I am really, really glad I worked out until the end - I think it helped me during L&D and I was able to lose my baby weight pretty quickly after.

katesmom73 · November 2009

I also took a break from exercising in the first tri and I'm trying to do 3-5 days a week which is where I was before. I do the elliptical at the gym or treadmill when I'm at home. I do toning about once a week - I want to do it more but I just can't motivate myself to do so.

So far I haven't rec'd any comments but I usually work out at lunch and at a small gym which isn't very busy and if there are people there, they are older and I don't think they care!

mlamb80 · November 2009

I make it to the gym 3 times a week. I always do 30 minutes on the elliptical and then a few weights after. My family sometimes questions if I should be working out, but I always have and my doctor says it's fine, so I'll continue to do so. I don't know if other people at the gym wonder...they might just think I'm trying to get rid of the "beer belly" right now! I just take it easy and make sure my heart rate doesn't get too high.

Aliliv · November 2009

Not pregnant anymore, but there is a lot of misinformation out there regarding exercise and pregnancy. Basically, listen to your body and if it says "good to go" exercise all you want and do whatever you want:) Great for you for continuing to run!!! Your body and your baby, I'm sure, thanks you!!!

I'm not a runner, but I did regular pilates exercises (on the back and everything) until 28ish weeks and then I started to modify some of the exercises (still exercised on my back though,obviously not the whole session - it's myth about the whole exercises on your back thing - it's not like people exercises for an hour strictly on their backs!).

katater · November 2009

I do *very* brisk 30-45 min walks 5-6 days a week, plus I lecture standing up and walking around 9 hrs a week, plus I do prenatal yoga and chase after a toddler. Not "gym" exercise but still plenty of it. It feels great and I can't imagine stopping anytime soon.

mrsthedixon · November 2009

knedell:

I am still exercising and cannot imagine stopping. I run about 3 miles 3-4 times a week and still do weight training 3-4 days as well and DH and I usually do a long walk (about 5-8 miles) on the weekends. I get comments from people. Yes, they annoy me. I am and have been very open with my dr about my workouts and he is all for them, so that is all that matters to me.

I think that our culture associates pregnancy with being sick or weak and people don't understand that pregnancy is a perfectly healthy state of being. It drives me nuts, but unfortunatly, I don't see that changing anytime soon. Hang in there - you will have a healthier pregnancy and likely recover much faster after birth if you keep up your regimen. And feel free to come here and complain to the rest of us anytime you need to

Thank you for this! You just made me feel awesome! I agree with you - sometimes people treat me as sick... the office manager at my work even said that pregnant women can be considered disabled because we waddle, and aren't required to participate in the office fire drill!! I bet I could walk down 11 flights of stairs a lot easier than some non-pregnant people!

Thanks again for your support. I appreciate it.

mrsthedixon · November 2009

Aliliv:

Not pregnant anymore, but there is a lot of misinformation out there regarding exercise and pregnancy. Basically, listen to your body and if it says "good to go" exercise all you want and do whatever you want:) Great for you for continuing to run!!! Your body and your baby, I'm sure, thanks you!!!

I'm not a runner, but I did regular pilates exercises (on the back and everything) until 28ish weeks and then I started to modify some of the exercises (still exercised on my back though,obviously not the whole session - it's myth about the whole exercises on your back thing - it's not like people exercises for an hour strictly on their backs!).

Thank you! I think you're right. Smile

missyjg · November 2009

I still run 4 times a week for 5 miles. I've cut down since BFP. But I wear a heart rate monitor and if my h/r gets up over 140 I walk. But I've been running most of my life and the doc told me that I should only stop if I get crampy, hr gets up over 140 or if I get significantly winded. None of which has happened yet. But I've slowed my pace way down so I don't walk much. I'm not showing enough to get the comments thank god, I just look like I have a beer gut! I love running, it's a major stress relief for me. My family hasn't said a thing to me, it's just what I do. Just put your i-pod up really high to block out the comments! But I run in central park and you should see all the pregnant ladies running:-) I feel right at home!

Sarah343 · November 2009

Just yoga for me. I wasn't really doing much before I got pregnant so I didn't want to put too much stress on my body. I try to do yoga for 50 minutes a day...it just feels good.

Orchid86 · November 2009

This is interesting to me because my husband suggested we go for a run when I was 3 mos pregnant and I was horrified. Let me say though that I was not a runner per se before pg. I hate distance running but love sprinting. Anyway, I've come to learn over the course of my pregnancy that many women runners continue to do so. I think it's awesome, but just be careful b/c as you get farther along your center of gravity shifts and you obviously don't want to fall. It's interesting to me too that early in my pregnancy I could hike up a bluff without hardly breaking my sweat. Recently I couldn't even make it to the top because it's harder to breathe with my squeezed lungs, etc. Also, I've noticed that anything I do - be it walking or lifting weights, I can't do nearly what I could pre-preg or early on in the pregnancy - and I don't try to.

nattyncbride · November 2009

Yes, still exercising and get Qs every day from people. One co-worker brought me into a room and told me that I was "killing my fetus". And yes, it was a man. I still run 3 times a week, and lift 1-2 times a week. Sometimes I sub lifting with yoga or swimming. It makes me feel so good, and allows me to indulge in sweets! I also ran a 1/2 marathon at 20 weeks (approved by OB), and although I enjoyed it, I did get a lot of disapproving looks from bystanders. Keep running, girl!!

boxie · November 2009

Nope. Just I have even more "excuses" than before I was pregnant not to work out.. I think about getting on the trolley though because the guilt is killing me. Ugh.

Mrs.Syntax · November 2009

I'm so glad you're still running, OP! I had some bleeding in the first tri after running a 5k and decided to switch to lower impact stuff. Now I go to the gym and do the elliptical and stationary bike, as well as some weights (not as much as I used to lift though!) I also walk about a mile each way to and from work, which keeps me feeling human on days I cannot get to the gym.

I also do workout DVDs and I posted about them in a more recent thread.

One of my co-workers (a 62 year old woman, so, a different generation) told me I was going to shake my baby loose. Hmm Other than that, I don't get any comments. Just DH - bless his heart - saying how proud he is of me for being all hardcore and still working out

galwaybabe · November 2009

Yes. I ran before I got pg, but it didn't feel so great during my first trimester, so I switched to power walking. I do 1.5-2 miles about 4 x a week with the dogs, and just bought a prenatal yoga DVD to work into the routine.

I walked the Race for the Cure here a few weeks ago and am doing another 5K in December, and definitely get raised eyebrows from people. I think it makes people feel threatened when a 6 month pregnant woman exercises more than they do. So I just ignore it and keep going!

Thanks for this question; it's nice to hear how everyone is going! I'm also going to start training for a marathon as soon as I can after LO arrives, so really looking forward to that.

newmommyin2010 · November 2009

I ran a half marathon at 6 weeks pregnant because I was trained for it, I ran a 12 miler the day before I got my positive tests...(4 halfs and a full within the last 2 years alone) I THINK IT IS GREAT you are still running and it is an encouragement for me to continue...I am starting to show more and was just thinking as I continue to grow it may get harder to run/jog...I am just doing 30 minutes straight jogging 5 days a week and I walk on an incline fast for 10-15 minutes post run...I also do about 30 mins of resistance band excersizes 3 times a week...but it is a nice break from the 40 miles a week I was running pre-pregnancy...I feel like I have more time on my hands now. YOU GO GIRL...keep it up! I too get the comments but my doctor said it was A OK and I tell people that and they shut right up. I did a 10K about a month back and got some spotting...all was well...I took a week off and back at it and everything is fine.

smssy2005 · November 2009

I just started back to the gym last week. I do cardio for 30 minutes (treadmill, bike and elliptical) -I switch depending on my mood. I also do light upper body.

ELCJet · November 2009

Kudos on the running! After my 43 minute 5K two weeks ago, I gave up completely......it was just too pathetic for me to even think about attempting to run again.

But I do hit the gym 4-5 times a week and do 50 minutes on the elliptical. I try to swim for an hour on the weekends, and if I miss the gym, I come home and ride my bike on the trainer for 50 minutes or so. The volume is definitely down from pre-pregnancy, but I do think it makes me feel better and I stay happy being active.

I haven't had any comments while exercising, but I have had my Mom and Grandmother freak out on me a little bit, claiming that I need to "rest." My OB, on the other hand, thinks the activity is fabulous and says that it'll make labor and recovery that much easier for me AND baby. So that is what I tell people -- it makes me happy, I'm exercising at a rate of perceived exertion that is safe for the baby, and my Dr. supports my plan. That typically shuts them up.

jilicious · November 2009

I work out 4-5 times a week. I do cardio three times a week (half hour on the elliptical and a one mile run afterwards, and then one Zumba class a week), and do Pilates and these Bulletproof Your Body workouts twice a week. I walk the dog everyday too but I really don't consider walking to be a work out That's just moving from one place to another.

I haven't gotten any negative comments but I am still in the stage where I look like I have a pooch and not a pregnant belly so people are probably just like "damn girl, you need to work out MORE" haha. The only comments I've received from people who know I'm pregnant are that it's awesome I'm still active.

islandgirl79 · November 2009

nattyncbride:
Yes, still exercising and get Qs every day from people. One co-worker brought me into a room and told me that I was "killing my fetus". And yes, it was a man. I still run 3 times a week, and lift 1-2 times a week. Sometimes I sub lifting with yoga or swimming. It makes me feel so good, and allows me to indulge in sweets! I also ran a 1/2 marathon at 20 weeks (approved by OB), and although I enjoyed it, I did get a lot of disapproving looks from bystanders. Keep running, girl!!

What an awful thing for somebody to say!! I don't know how I would even respond to that. I think we would be doing much more harm to just be sitting on our butts or laying down all day.

I like to jog and power walk so have kept that up. No one says anything to me but I am not showing so strangers wouldn't know. My mom told me not to run the other day, I could slip and fall. I just agreed with her and will keep doing what I have been. It must be a generational thing.

Laxbugg1410 · November 2009

I'm still an active runner-- 6-8 miles about 5 times per week. I've definitely slowed down a lot (I want a shirt that says "Pregnant, not slow") and I take walking breaks. I'd really like to keep it up throughout the pregnancy, but I have a potentially incompetent cervix so my OB will be reassessing at every 4 week visit.

You should keep it up as long as you can-- see my post on the Nutrition & Exercise board: being in shape is supposed to help with labor and delivery.

coach'swife53 · November 2009

I was never a runner, but I love spinning. While I can't do it at the intensity that I did before I got pregnant (I wear a HR monitor), I still go to classes about 3 times per week. I was a 5-6 day gym junkie before I got pregger. Now I do 3-4 times per week. When I am not spinning I do atleast 3 miles on the treadmill (about an hr) and an hr on the ellipitical. I am walking the Houston 5k in Jan.

People are super annoying and have made comments Now that I have a bump I get stares as well. My instructors at the Y are super supportive and DH thinks that it is great and encourages me to go.

Keep it up, mama! You are keep you and baby healthy.

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