I advise my clients that when they first think that they might want to have a baby that they get in the best shape of their lives. Getting pregnant can be stressful (says the woman who tried for three years and went through IUI and IVF) and being pregnant is incredibly demanding, thus exercise at this point is less about shaping up and more about its other, often overlooked benefits. Consistent exercise during pregnancy combats fatigue, insomnia, even constipation, and it releases endorphins, which are the only healthy high during pregnancy. Best yet, it helps produce healthier babies and makes post-partum recovery easier.
So why all of the advanced planning? Once pregnant, many doctors advise that you should exercise to the level that you were pre-pregnancy. So I was able to run daily and took my last spin class on my due date. But if the only time you squat is to lower yourself on to the couch, you cannot demand exercise of your body once pregnant and meet with a positive outcome (or expect the button on your pre-pregnancy jeans to meet again for a long time).
Another benefit of exercise is that it is a great motivator to change your diet, and small changes before pregnancy make the cut backs or eliminations of your favorite vices (the real reason pregnant women are irritable) far easier. A parent struggling to establish positive eating habits will also tell you that your own healthy diet will make raising a child with healthy habits far easier than trying "do as I say don't do as I do," as food preferences are established with fewer objections and thrown food in utero.
Thus before you are pregnant, you have begun to treat your body like a temple, so that as you enter what some claim is the most self-centered time in a woman's life, that self-focus is positive. Unfortunately, following nine months of being in the spotlight, many women feel thrust into the dark wearing only breast milk-stained sweats.
I spent my pregnancy not baby-proofing my house but post-partum depression proofing my life, and my first line of defense was exercise. I invested in my Baby Bjorn and BOB, both of which got me out of the house and away from Prozac, which I had on stand-by. My walks and, later, runs were a calming point in the day for my son and me, which any new mom will tell you is reason enough to do anything, but they (with a little help from breastfeeding) also had me back in my skinny jeans four weeks after giving birth.
My pregnancy came before I trained my first client or taught a class. I did it by working hard and staying motivated not by vanity but by my desire to relish pregnancy and motherhood, which I had worked for for three years. Every mom, whether on her first pregnancy or fifth, can achieve the same.
So if you are not a fitness guru or employing one, how are some great ways to get healthy and stay that way through pregnancy and beyond?
-Ask your doctor or OB; teachers and trainers who specialize in pregnancy fitness frequently advertise through their offices.
-Talk to your friend who stayed in shape through pregnancy or make the day of a new mom and ask how she did it.
-If you belong to a gym, ask your favorite instructor for guidance and speak to each instructor from which you take a class to learn how you can modify to be able to continue class through all phases of your pregnancy.
-Research gyms with childcare and great classes while still pregnant. It will provide you with invaluable time to yourself, while knowing that your little one is near by. It also allows you and your baby to set the schedule without being at the mercy of a babysitter (and it costs far less!).
-Skip the cute, impractical strollers and go straight for the BOB or other jogging strollers. They will allow you to get moving with greater ease and piece of mind that baby is not getting rattled on the ride.
-Find a walking buddy or class for new moms; both provide you with a great workout and accountability.
-Whatever else you do, do not lock yourself in the house for months after baby's arrival. Making them a part of your life will help to keep you sane through all of the changes and getting moving just might even make you happy!
My best advice is while pregnant, research and set a goal that will motivate you to get back into shape. Make it a challenge and one that will require you to commit time and energy, as this will force you to care for yourself at a time when many women feel neglected. If you feel guilty in your pursuit, remind yourself that the care you take of yourself will make you a better mom. Ultimately, though, the goal is less about the achievement and more about the challenge, as what I have learned through my clients is that a genuine love of ones body comes not from appearance but a pride in knowing what your body can do, and the best part is that no one else can diminish it nor does it fade with age.
