on fitness during pregnancy

on fitness during pregnancy

• 9.12.2017

Most of you also know that my "fitness journey" has been a bit interesting. When Craig and I first met, it was super involved in triathlons. (In fact, our first date was quite late, starting at maybe 8pm because he had a long bike ride scheduled for that night!) I swore I would never do a triathlon and yet one year later I had completed 5 triathlons, 2 half-marathons, and a 15k race. But then we moved to New Haven and that all came to a screeching halt for both of us. The weather wasn't conducive to working out outside and cycling in the area was horrendous. I did a bit of yoga in New Haven but honestly, my health took a turn for the worse during those two years.

For the past 18 months or so, I had been teaching Barre classes at the gym we belonged to in Charlottesville. I started going to Barre classes when we first moved to town and found out that the current teacher was going to be moving. I inquired about becoming certified to teach and it didn't end up being a tough process. I have LOVED teaching my Tuesday night ladies and it was bittersweet for me to say goodbye to them when we moved.

So my pre-pregnancy routine would be to teach 1-2 days/week and then TRY to get in some additional activity - a long walk/hike with Haven on the weekends, an at-home video, or yoga.

Within the first few weeks of this pregnancy, I could do nothing. It was a miracle that I actually was able to keep up with teaching because I had no energy. In fact, I cut WAY back on how much I participated in the class because I just physically couldn't. I also started showing super early as well and ended up telling my class that we were pregnant around 10 or 12 weeks.

When I did feel like I had energy, all I could muster was a long walk with Haven. The doctor recommended getting my heart rate up for at least 30 min/day and honestly, a brisk walk around the neighborhood did just that.

As soon as we arrived in San Francisco, I got on a real fitness kick. I think because I've been growing so quickly, I'm really motivated to stay active and keep up my strength. Obviously, we do a ton more walking here and with the hills, that is an intense workout (I'm basically wearing a 20lb weighted vest all the time). I've also been really into prenatal pilates as well as prenatal yoga. I've attended a few traditional Barre classes in the area but honestly, I just have to modify so much of the class already that it's not really worth it. I got into pilates a little bit in Charlottesville and I love that I found a studio that has prenatal specific classes. I'm still able to get a great workout while doing exercises that accommodate the tiny humans inside of me.

Prenatal yoga is also great. I'm not sore or achy yet but just taking some time to move, bend and stretch feels good. It's also a great way to meet people. In the 2 weeks that we've been living in San Francisco, I've already been to 8 classes and walked to each one! I'm hoping to stay really strong and fit as long as I can to help with the recovery on the other end.