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January 2015 Moms
KaylaK1987
member
Pregnant Runners Question
KaylaK1987
member
Hello all you Pregnant Runners! I have a question for you- this will likely be best answered by one of you who has gone through this before but I'm open to opinions from you all :-) I'm a couple days away from my 7th week and before being pregnant I ran an avg 10:30/mile pace not super slow but not fast either, the past two weeks, when I run- that pace has taken a serious decrease to nearly a 14:30/mile pace. (I'm finding that I'm having to walk the majority of the time when normally I can run 5 miles without stopping) On the treadmill I can seem to keep my pace around 11-12/miles which is still slower than normal but faster than the road. My question is- how long did it take you runners to notice a decrease in your endurance while pregnant? I'm sure the Las Vegas heat has a bit to do with it as yesterday it was 101 degrees out when we went for our weekly run, but do you think the entire 4 minute decrease in speed/mile is all to do with the heat or is it partly because of the pregnancy also already? Also last weeks time was a 13:30/mile so within the last week it's decreased another minute. I also have only been running since February so I don't have a lot of history with running either let alone running in the summer or while pregnant lol. I anticipated eventually having to slow from a run to a walk etc but I didn't think it would be at the 6/7 week mark lol. (I did also get the clearance from my Dr to continue running as long as a pay particular attention to making sure I don't overheat-which I have been doing) Any thoughts/opinions are welcome.
Thanks!
Thanks!
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Pregnant Runners Question
That said, let's talk about what the summer AND being 9 weeks pregnant has done to my running. It's almost laughable. I feel like a new runner again. This morning I ran/walked 5 miles and felt like I had done 20. My pace was 3 minutes slower than my "normal" time which is even slower than my usual summer pace. Your body is working working really hard to double its blood supply and support the baby that's growing inside of you. I regularly had my blood pressure, heart rate and temperature taken while undergoing fertility treatments. Since being pregnant I've noticed that all three of those things have increased. Obviously our bodies are already working overtime without having to sustain us through exercise. Be patient, you'll hit the second trimester where everything settles down and your body is just more used to working harder for the baby. It will get easier. Just slow it down, drink more fluids while working out and try not to focus on pace.
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That they are! lol. I do the Daily HIIT/bodyrock program every once in a while when I'm short on time. A killer workout in 20 minutes. :-)
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Yes! A post for runners by runners. I am technically part of the December 2014 group, but ventured to the January 2015 group in hopes of finding pregnant runners. Wooo hooo, mission accomplished.
I've always been an endurance athlete. Before this pregnancy, Ironmans and half-ironmans were my hobby and I couldn't go a day without working out. I was obsessed with workouts and would be a total biotch if I didn't get my second workout in after work. As I typed that, I chuckled thinking about how insane I was.
I, too, had a difficult time grasping the fact that my workouts would be cut shorter, they'd be less frequent and I would be waaaaay slower. I put my bikes in storage because cycling and being pregnant just sounded like a disaster to me. Especially since the drivers here in Hawaii are some of the worst in the world. I've cut my running down to 5 days a week, and my pace dropped from 7:30 to a 9:45 pace within the first month. Now that I'm in my second month, the pace dropped even more - I'm guessing somewhere in the mid to high tens? In a bitch fit, I flew my garmin under my bed, and I haven't used it since. My runs feel a lot more enjoyable, and I feel less stressed about missing a workout because there's a freakin amazing baby growing in me. I've come to terms with the fact that I will gain weight, that I will be utterly exhausted, and that ironmans will be put on the back burner for many, many, many years.
I've got to admit that it is a liberating feeling. I feel free (and fat. Bleh!)
Oh, and now I take a gel on a 5 mile run. Pre-pregnancy I could go 10 miles before even thinking about a gel. Now 10 miles is basically an ironman for me, and it's basically impossible.
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@kaylak1987 I'd definitely ask your OB about taking a gel here and there. I will warn you though even when I'm not pregnant, the gels aren't the greatest taste or consistency. I've tried every gel out there and the only one that I can take without feeling gross is the strawberry banana flavor by GU.
Here's a link for more information: https://guenergy.com/products/products-energy-gels/
With any brand, there will always be a selection of gels that have caffeine so be careful as to which flavor you choose. They usually say "caffeine" on the packaging.
@TiffanyJill - will your first tri be a sprint? I'm a triathlete and absolutely love the sport. Unfortunately, because of my craziness and obsession with it, my Dr. gave me a big fat "NO" when I asked her if I could continue training. She agreed with the Dr. of a previous poster - the risk of falling or crashing is too high. As triathletes and cyclists say, "It is not IF you crash, it is WHEN you crash". Be careful when riding especially during the race. There are many inexperienced riders especially at the shorter distances so you should always ride on the defense. Have fun and enjoy.
P.S. Try not to get addicted!
I've run 3 races since becoming pg. (5 weeks, 9 weeks and 10 weeks). My time decreased immediately when I found out I was pregnant. Mainly because I decided not to push myself like I normal would.
I am very ok with my decreased speed because I am still feeling pretty good running. I have a 12 mile race coming up at 16 weeks and will be very pleased if I am able to do it at any pace.
~after 34 cycles we finally got our 2nd little bundle of joy~
My IF blog
@TiffanyJill Whew! I'm so glad this isn't your first experience with that particular tri. Being staggered is so important. I'm excited for you and can't wait to hear how it goes. It'll be a really long summer for me without triathlon. Realistically, I think it'll be a long few years without it. I'm a long distance triathlete and the training just takes too much time. I can't imagine doing 6 hour bike rides and leaving the little one with my hubby. He'd kill me. Haha.
In the meantime, I'm sticking to running and swimming. I'm going to run as far into my pregnancy as my body will let me, and then I'll likely focus more on swimming. I just made 11 weeks today which means my due date is December 29th. I have found that the January 2015 mamas are much more into fitness (or at least I'm assuming based off of the topics being posted). As a result, I occasionally jump ship to the Janaury 2015 group for fitness talk.
P.S. At a half-ironman race a couple years ago the woman in front of me wore a running shirt that said, "I'm 7 months pregnant. What is your excuse?" I nearly died when I read it and then died again when it hit me that I'm behind a pregnant woman. Later I found out she's a pro-triathlete but still. Those 10 miles that I ran behind her were pure torture. How could I let a pregnant woman beat me!?!?!
I'm so excited for you!