How my workouts have changed- 2nd trimester
Things have definitely slowed down over here.
In the beginning of the 2nd trimester, I felt AMAZING. I was rocking out my workouts and almost felt my pre-pregnancy energy levels. Weights, cardio, flexibility- it was all there, and I wasn’t usually too tired to stick with my normal-ish routine [of course, there were some “I just need jammies and a nap” days in there too]. Towards the end of the second trimester, things needed to change a little and adapt with my growing belly + the extra weight I’m carrying around. It’s much easier to feel lethargic when you have 22 extra el bees and your heart is working even harder to get blood and nutrients to you and the little one.
Here’s a breakdown of what has changed in the second trimester:
1) Even more walking. Walking is the #1 thing that feels good right now, and since the weather has been lovely, I’ve been more likely to go on nightly walks. On days where I’m just too tired to get in a traditional gym workout, I take Bella for a long walk to shake my legs out, and it’s perfect. I can definitely see why walking is the #1 pregnancy workout (swimming is a good one, too, but alas, I would sink since I can’t swim).
2) Weights started to sound like the absolute WORST thing ever. Despite this, I’ve been committed to keep up my strength training routine- I think it’s going to be so important during labor and for bone health in general- but towards the end of the second tri, my weight workouts dwindled from 2-3 per week to 1-2 week. I focused on bodyweight exercises and more unique moves to make things a little more fun.
I’m going to have to get a little creative in the 3rd trimester with the weights, since my growing belly is only going to get bigger. It is fun to shock people at the base gym, though 😉
What stayed the same:
1) Zumba! I’ve still been teaching classes, taking classes, and having a blast. I probably won’t be able to teach Zumba for much longer, which I explain in the plan for 3rd trimester (below).
2) Resting. I’ve still been resting as much as my body tells me to, and I can imagine that it will be even more going into the third tri. It’s been really nice to enjoy a long break from strenuous workouts, so I’ll be excited and refreshed to get back into the things I’ve missed (Bodyrock and HIIT!) in January.
The plan for third trimester:
1) No more crazy ab exercises. I’ve worked my core up until this point, but I will not longer be doing exercises designed to target the core [we use our core all day, so it will still get a workout]. Having a strong core is extremely important during labor (push muscles, baby!), but I’ve read that ab exercises –especially crunches- during the third trimester can increase your chance of diastasis recti. Diastasis recti occurs when the ab muscles separate in the latter part of pregnancy, and usually go back together on their own. However, sometimes it can be severe and needs to be surgically repaired. No thank you.
2) Easing off the Zumba teaching. Zumba is my exercise drug.. I’m addicted and I love it. Sadly, I’m not going to be able to keep shaking it and bodypumping like I have been. I’m still teaching Zumba, and probably will up until November or so, unless my body tells me otherwise, but when I taught on Thursday, I started to cramp a little bit and needed to take it back. I want the guests to still get an awesome Zumba class, so if I can’t do it full out, it won’t be fair to them. After I get to the point where I don’t feel comfortable teaching anymore, I’m hoping I’ll still be able to assist the dance fitness classes (including Zumba) and just show the lower impact modifications. I’ll probably continue to take Zumba classes the whole way through and just modify my little heart out 🙂
Just purchased from Amazon:
Snazzy, yes?
I’ll take it to the midwives to make sure it’s cool to use, but am hoping that having a belly support belt will keep things from bouncing around too much.
The good news is that I’ll still be able to work up until the little one makes her debut, I’ll just be teaching lower intensity classes (lots of stretching!).
3) More yoga. I say this all the time, but as awkward and uncomfortable as I feel, I need to practice more. The best motivation is that I have a 10-class Groupon that expires in December and I don’t want it to go to waste. I have my first class back planned tomorrow…. while I’m nervous about it- I haven’t practiced in way too long- I know I’ll feel like a happy yoga noodle when I leave.
So there ya go! Not too many changes, and I’m just going to go with the flow until January.
**Here’s how my workouts changed in the first trimester + my workout pregnancy tips and tools
Hope you have a great night <3
G
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More yoga incentive: I know everyone and everyone’s labor is 110% different, but I have a friend who had a VERY easy delivery (fast, much easier than she anticipated, no need for epidural, 100% natural, etc.), and while she acknowledged part of it may have been the luck of the draw, she was convinced her multiple-times/ week yoga practice definitely helped.
you just convinced me a little bit more, friend 🙂
I agree with this 100%!! I also had a very fast labor with not epidural, and I did yoga 3x’s a week throughout my entire pregnancy! Yoga is amazing for preggos!
I think you are doing a great job, also I am sure the gym clients will appreciate you taking a back seat on teach, you know how people are!
especially these guests.. they pay a lot of money to stay at the resort (thousands of dollars) and deserve to get amazing classes
I’m so happy to hear how close you are listenign to your body! But we all knew you would be 🙂
My experience was almost identical. I started hating weights around my 3rd trimester. Hated. But stuck with them, just really low key. I did tons and tons of cardio. Walking, elliptical, etc. I also did prenatal yoga [I know you hate] 2 times a week. Or slow flow. I stopped with ab exercises around mid second trimester, but did minimum planks and yoga type stuff. There was also a pregnancy pilates routine I did a few times. I sat in yoga squat pretty much the last 3 weeks of my pregnany because someone told me their friends water broke in that position. And by the very end my husband would tease me and say he hopes my water breaks on the elliptical at the gym [he wanted to to rest and just take walks even though I was doing realy low impact at the gym].
I’ve seen those belly support thingys but didn’t really know what the deal-i-o was with them?? I thought it was a back support? No? It’s supposed to prevent bouncing around? Elaborate?
I was also very active when I was pregnant. I would run 4 miles everyday. When I hit the 7 month mark I stopped running because my bladder could not hold it!! I would have to pull over and pee behind a rock because my bladder was out of control! My doctor recommended that I use depends but I didn’t like the idea of wearing diapers! lol! I also did yoga 3x a week throughout my entire pregnancy, and it just made me feel so good. I NEEDED it! Especially towards my last few weeks. I honestly believe yoga helped me have a 1-1/2 hour labor! 🙂
Unfortunately, things do not get any easier the further you are along. I have been an avid exerciser my entire life and ran half-marathons before I got pregnant. I haven’t been allowed to run from the beginning due to the circumstances under which we were able to get pregnant and have just basically walked the whole time and lifted light weights. At 34 weeks, the pressure even during walking became very intense and the doctor even discouraged that for about a week and a half. I am trying to maintain the exercise as much as possible, but at 35 1/2 weeks, I’m completely spent after 45 minutes to an hour of cardio. You do what you can and know that you can get back into it once she is born, that is what keeps me going :).
The second trimester energy is such a tease!! I had never practiced yoga, (but swear by pilates) and at 38 w some days my body begs me for yoga and stretching ALONE, no weights, no easy planks, no treadmill (I wonder how it knows? :)) . I am finally beginning to respect it – the days I do my full-ish workout (such as the October workout) the next day my body shuts down and wants to nap the whole day.
With 10 or so more days to go, someone told me to just walk/pretend to have active rest days from now on to a) be well-rested for D-day since I’ve been working on muscle strength and now just need energy to go through it, and
b) be well-slept before sleep becomes a thing of the past!
Thanks for this post- I don’t feel so much like a slacker any more 🙂
I hope your yoga class is awesome tomorrow! It is so true, no matter how much you think you don’t want to go, you ALWAYS feel better after, and are glad that you went!
Enjoy your walking and your yoga. That was what I did for all of my pregnancy and there were periods where I could hardly do either. And they were mostly very gentle and easy.
I did not have an easy ‘glowing’ pregnancy. I was sick and felt like death warmed over most of the time so the thought of weights or anything strenuous was just not going to happen for me…and yes, cramping, i.e. Braxton Hicks contractions, yeah, I was the queen. Good for you for listening to your body and backing off, resting, downgrading the intensity as needed.
I know your clients/guests will understand why you can’t keep teaching Zumba as your due date is approaching and I hope you don’t miss it too much as you start to hang up the zumba shoes for a bit 🙂
hi gina! i wanted to let you know i am LOVING your blog lately (i’m 16 weeks pregnant so it has been so much fun to follow along in your journey as you’re essentially a tri ahead of me!). i was also wondering whether you would consider writing up a post on the strength moves that you have been continuing with through pregnancy. i am not a huge fan of strength training, but am aware of how important it is.
oh, and i am probably going to get that belly contraption at some point, too (my workout of choice is running and i’d love to continue it as long as possible!). AND i totally hear you on feeling GREAT in the early 2nd tri. i hope this lasts as long as possible!
I’m so impressed you are still doing weights! I had absolutely no desire to lift during pregnancy, even though I vowed to keep it up (I didn’t – either time). I did keep up with spinning because it made me feel SO awesome (and actually gave me a little relief because my belly would hang down), but people probably thought I was crazy.
Wow! Keep up the good work 🙂 I always feel so great after yoga! I’m interested to know what kind of workouts you do that shock ppl at the base gym? I think that’s hilarious 🙂
I think that easing off teaching is a great idea 🙂 Once I took a Zumba class at a different gym than normal, and the woman teaching the class was just a few weeks away from giving birth and looked like she was about to burst. I was so nervous the whole class because it looked like the baby was going to pop out every time she jumped!
hahah! i could see that happening to me very quickly
When you taught zumba, did you worry about the 140 heart rate “rule?”
no, all of my doctors said that it was outdated.
I am in my 2nd trimester and am loving walking. I am still doing some running but I know that start to change more and more, feeling good about listening to my body and taking it easy if needed. I teach yoga so I am happy to say that I am keeping my yoga practice up, yoga is so great for pregnancy!
Love the blog!
Hi Gina! I love your blog and have been reading it for many months! I love your enthusiasm for working out and eating healthy…but keeping it practical! And congrats on your newest addition!! 🙂 I am actually 14-15 weeks pregnant with my first, and was wondering if you have good recommendations for workouts. I worked out – cardio and weights – pre pregnancy and have continued through the first trimester, although I have scaled back the intensity. As the pregnancy progresses, I know my workouts will change even more – any recommendations? Do you recommend any good at home workout DVDs for pregnancy? Any tips are greatly appreciated.