Exercise???

[jessicanicole]

so before i got pregnant i was into a pretty good exercise routine, I would often exercise 5-7 days a week and at least an hour every session... now that i am preggo what should be my limit? I will ask my doc at my appt but maybe you all know, I was jogging for most of my workouts and would sometimes add things like the rowing machine just to mix it up, i worked out today but just did the eleptical because it doesnt raise my heart rate too much, I was trying to lose weight before getting preggo, I am 5'7" and 160 lbs with an hourglass figure... but a big butt(which my husband loves lol),.. and i was just trying to get into a more althetic shape at about 145 lbs.... my weight is a normal weight but I think i would be happier a little smaller... now that i am pregnant i understand not trying to loose weight which is fine but i wouldnt mind toning up some while im at it.... is jogging safe? my heart rate get pretty high for whatever reason when i run... does anybody know a safe heart rate limit? hmmm i know that later on in the preg. i am going to have to limit it but what about the 1st tri. ?

[Deana]

you can definitely exercise during pg, my dr encourages it, esp if you have been exercising prior to pregnancy. You sound really committed to working out, getting 5-7 days a week in is incredible! I go to the gym 3x/week, and I do the eliptical for 30-35 min. I was doing weights/10-12 reps, but have changed to more body weight resistance exercises (really just to shake things up a bit). You will need to change any weight lifting to low weight/medium reps. My dr says crunches are a no-no.

The very, very best thing I can tell you is to listen to your body when doing cardio. Your ability to do cardio will change as your pg progresses. I basically took the first tri off b/c I had bad morning sickness and ZERO energy. Now I'm back in the gym, but I'm having to turn down cardio a notch to match my energy level. This is just my personal opinion, but I wouldn't do free weights, only weight machines, b/c your balance is going to be funky, even at the earliest stages of pg.

With my first pg I exercised until I was 36 weeks, and it helped me so much physically and mentally.

Good luck and congrats on your pregnancy!!

[Pregnant Without Pounds]

My name is Michelle. In April 2002, I was newly pregnant and starting to become anxious about my changing body, both inside and out.

With 15 years of experience as a Health and Nutrition Coach, a Masters Degree in Holistic Nutrition, a Personal Training Certificate and a Psychology Degree, I figured I had the whole pregnancy, body, food thing covered – BOY WAS I WRONG!

I had SO MANY Questions

• How much weight SHOULD I gain? Am I gaining too fast?
• What exercises can I do to stay toned? How can I gain weight only in my tummy area?
• What should I eat? What do I need to avoid?
• Will my stomach ever go back to normal?
• How can I prevent stretch marks, sagging breasts
and cellulite?
• Will my pregnancy mask ever go away?
• What can I do to have an easy delivery?
• What should I be doing now to speed up my weight
loss after?

I also realized that the general feeling out there is that pregnancy is a struggle and that pregnant women gain tons of weight, wear over-sized shirts, feel uncomfortable and have NO energy.

Not me! I was determined to LOOK good and have TONS of energy during my pregnancy. I was also going to be FREE of aches and pains, dress sexy and of course have an easy time losing weight after I delivered my baby.

[michamum]

I found that I was consumed with the thoughts of losing the weight while I was pregnant, I think there's a lot of pressure on pregnant women these days to maintain an ideal weight and shape during pregnancy.

Towards the end of the pregnancy I chilled out a bit, and after having my first child I just thought to myself that I wouldn't worry about losing the weight until I stopped breastfeeding, which I did at 6 months and the weight came off quite easily I found.

I also had dreaded cellulite appear during pregnancy, and after breastfeeding I researched into find a way to removed it and found some steps to help get rid of the cellulite

Now, my daughter is 1, and I actually weigh less than before I fell pregnant!

[Jen0608]

Actually when pregnant its ok to gain weight for the baby...the problem id after the pregnancy its hard to bring back to normal size...exercise can bring it back easily...too bad....