Running marathons while pregnant

[zoelda]

Hi there,

Question for everyone. How safe is running when you are pregnant? We are thinking of starting to try and get pregnant again, and I have been training for/running marathons the past 3 years, biking too -- have done half-ironman events. If we are lucky... I would be pregnant by the time my next run comes around. Should I just opt to stay with a safer half marathon distance and run for fun, not for time? I'm curious what other active people have done... and how much they have been able to do comfortably. I was not fit during my first pregnancy, so, while I worked hard, I was not working out.

Thoughts?

Thanks!
Zoelda

 

[EricaH]

Hi Zoelda,

I was running 50-60 miles/week when I conceived my daughter and up until I was 5 1/2 weeks pregnant (that's when I found out). After that, I modified to run/walks (we live in a hilly area and I walked the hills) and kept my workouts to an hour long.

I don't know if this is true or not, but I read that you shouldn't exercise hard for more than an hour because your blood flow is being directed away from the uterus to get to your hard-working muscles and that it's too stressful for the baby to go longer than that without a good blood supply. I followed that advice during my pregnancy just to be safe.

I continued my run/walks throughout my pregnancy and made sure that I stayed very hydrated while exercising. It's also important to make sure that you do not exercise to the point that you are breathless.

Good luck! I love running - it's my absolute favorite cardio activity!

Erica

 

[JulieMom]

Don't run much but found this book when I was looking for books on exercising and pregnant, may be a good read:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...f=sr_1_1/104-4289088-7861517?v=glance&s=books

 

[arogerson]

I ran throughout all my 3 pregnancies but the most I ran was 6 miles at a time, usually every other day. I cannot imagine running anything even close to a marathon. Towards the end, it was more walking than running. Your body will tell you how much you can and cannot do but a marathon seems a bit extreme for a pregnant woman, no matter how good of shape you are in.