Staying healthy during pregnancy
Let’s first start off by remembering how freakin’ hard pregnancy is! Nine longgg months of growing a human. Nausea, throwing up, exhaustion, acid reflux, leg cramps, upset stomach, Braxton Hicks, insomnia and so, so, so much more. So, acknowledge that just moving your body is HUGE! Rest when you need rest but if you can move- MOVE! Any movement is better than no movement!
How safe is it to exercise during pregnancy?
Unless you are high risk or your doctor instructs you to stop exercising, then you should continue to work out and exercise! During pregnancy, you already have a higher risk of having gestational diabetes and/or high blood pressure. Exercise can help you lower the risk.
As your pregnancy progresses, there are precautions you may need to take in order to keep your physical body safe and comfortable. Not only will your body be impacted by the gravity of your growing belly (hello, back pain) but all of your internal organs will be moving around too. As you exercise, make sure you are doing an internal audit of how your body feels. If something doesn’t feel right, try a modification.
After the first trimester you will want to try and avoid laying on your back for prolonged amounts of time. Why? Because your abdomen rests on your intestines and major blood vessels. Make sure you rotate through standing, sitting, and laying down on any exercises you do. Again, make any modifications to exercises as necessary.
If you notice your stomach significantly coning during any exercise, try to modify the movement as this coning could possibly cause more abdominal separation. Diastasis Recti isn’t something to stress about during pregnancy because you cannot completely prevent it and it is something that can be recovered afterwards, however if you can avoid making the separation farther then definitely modify movements.
Monitor your breathing and make sure you are able to continue to breathe through the movements. If you begin to feel uncomfortable, crampy, or have any trouble breathing- stop and recover! If you feel confident in continuing, then start slow and ease your way back into the workout.
Nutrition:
This is a tricky one! I always recommend continuing to eat the way you always have (healthy and unprocessed) but I also know how hard it can be to stare at a meal that you don’t have an appetite for.
First and foremost- you are eating for two, but you don’t need to eat any more than you normally do! What you and baby truly need are good wholesome nutrients rich in calcium, folate, iron, and protein. Aim for a variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
Some of my favorite things to eat during times of nausea were:
- Think Thin Protein Bars
- Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with whole grain bread, sugar free jelly, and natural peanut butter
- Wheat thins
- Apples and bananas with peanut butter
- Carrots with light ranch
- Alexia french fries baked or in the air fryer
- Corn tortilla chips
Take things you are craving and try to make a healthy version at home! While pregnant with Mason one of my biggest cravings was a crispy chicken salad from Arby’s and an Arby’s Roast Beef sandwich. Both of these I was able to make from home. I air fried some Perdue All Organic Whole Grain breaded chicken tenders and put them on top of lettuce with cherry tomatoes, shredded cheese, cucumbers, red onion, and topped with balsamic dressing. I ate this meal so many times during pregnancy. For the roast beef, I purchased roast beef from the deli, grabbed whole grain rolls, cheddar cheese, and made my own at home with a side of Alexia french fries baked in the oven!
Vitamins and Supplements
Prenatal with DHA
Along with DHA, aim for a prenatal with folate instead of folic acid. Folic acid is the synthetic form of folate, but for many women, about 40 percent, have genetic variants that make this synthetic form more difficult to absorb. Krista Lee recommends Ritual vitamins. Contact her for a referral code!
Probiotic
Whether you chose a supplement or to get probiotics naturally, probiotics can help with gut health. You also have the option of probiotic supplements that have the added benefit of vaginal health.
Magnesium
A magnesium powder supplement can help with leg cramps, keep you regular, support cardiovascular health, and help reduce stress and anxiety. I recommend Natural Vitality Calm Magnesium.
With Love,
Coach Cortney and Krista Lee
