2nd pregnancy is hard

Just found this thread — just popping in to say congratulations to all the mamas! I have four babies and I can tell you: every pregnancy is different and you should not be ashamed or worried about not being able to work out. Before I got pregnant with my first, I was a total gym rat. Cathe and I were “BFF’s who never met”. I was strong and lean and worked out like a boss.
Fast-forward to my 12th week of pregnancy and I couldn’t even walk around the block without having to turn around and come home. It was so exhausting just to move around the house some days. I never had morning sickness with baby #1, I was just BONE TIRED all. The. Time. It was very different from what I’d read from other mom’s experiences.
If you can work out, do it safely. If you can’t, don’t worry. Try swimming or something else low impact and easy on your joints and tummy. You’ll get your body back!
 
Just found this thread — just popping in to say congratulations to all the mamas! I have four babies and I can tell you: every pregnancy is different and you should not be ashamed or worried about not being able to work out. Before I got pregnant with my first, I was a total gym rat. Cathe and I were “BFF’s who never met”. I was strong and lean and worked out like a boss.
Fast-forward to my 12th week of pregnancy and I couldn’t even walk around the block without having to turn around and come home. It was so exhausting just to move around the house some days. I never had morning sickness with baby #1, I was just BONE TIRED all. The. Time. It was very different from what I’d read from other mom’s experiences.
If you can work out, do it safely. If you can’t, don’t worry. Try swimming or something else low impact and easy on your joints and tummy. You’ll get your body back!

Thank you for this sweet post. It’s so crazy how much our body’s go through and we put so much pressure on ourselves to keep up a certain level. I got back into shape after my first but yet still have those doubts with my second. When I go on social media and see people killing their workouts in their third trimester I think why can’t I do that?!? But I have surrendered to listen to my body and haven’t formally exercised in 2 weeks. I miss it but it feels good to just take it easy too. Thanks again for posting. Love the support and advice
 
Hi Kari -

Well homegirl the near is in sight for you!!!! That's so exciting! The time really has flown hasn't it?!? I'm currently 33 weeks and am feeling completely overwhelmed that this is all coming to an end soon. On one hand I'm sooooo ready to be finished being pregnant. But on the other, I feel so unprepared for baby girl to be here. I guess that's normal for a FTM though. We have finished up all our classes at the hospital and are currently working on setting up the nursery. I have showers the next couple of weekends. Like you I hate being the center of attention but since this is our first child there was no way our friends/family were going to let us go without having any showers. I really appreciate everyone's generosity though so I'll just have to suck it up and deal with being the center of attention one last time in my life. LOL. My other two friends who were pregnant along side with me have both had their babies so right now I feel like I'm the lone wolf. I know I'll catch up to them before I know it though. These last 7 weeks are going to fly by. I still feel like there is so much to be done, but I know everything doesn't have to be perfect before she arrives.

I've been very blessed to be able to keep up with my workouts this long. I'm still working out 6 days a week but the workouts are definitely getting shorter. I'm on week 7 of Liift4. When I started this program I didn't actually expect to stick with it this long but honestly it's been a blessing. It's 4 days a week that I don't have to really think about what workout I am going to do. I just go downstairs and hit play and go. I do modify a lot of the hiit moves. Thanks to instructors like Cathe and Kelly I have plenty of lower impact, but still intense moves I can sub in place of things like burpees and what not. For the other two workouts of the week I have been doing whatever I want -- lately it's been Kelly workouts. Sometimes I'll add in a finisher segment to the end of one of her 30 min segments but more times than not lately I've been just calling it quits after 30 minutes. Haven't really been stressing about it, I'm honestly just happy that I've made it this long keeping up with my workouts. We will see how the next 7 weeks go though. I'm fully preparing myself to switch over to light walking at some point.

I'm jealous you are already on mat leave! I'm holding out until baby arrives. Because I'm due in November and my vacation time does not roll over into the next year I have been slowly using up all my vacation days. I have a week off planned for mid-October. It'll be right after my showers so I plan to use that time to get organized, finish getting things set up, and making any last baby purchases. The week or two before my due date I plan on working from home so that will be nice. I have to admit it is getting harder and harder to go into the office. But I just keep reminding myself that it's going to be here before I know it so I just need to relax and take one day at a time.

Good luck with the arrival of your little one! We should keep this thread going into postpartum. I know it'll be awhile before any of us are ready to get back into working out, but I really have enjoyed sharing this experience with you guys!
 
Just found this thread — just popping in to say congratulations to all the mamas! I have four babies and I can tell you: every pregnancy is different and you should not be ashamed or worried about not being able to work out. Before I got pregnant with my first, I was a total gym rat. Cathe and I were “BFF’s who never met”. I was strong and lean and worked out like a boss.
Fast-forward to my 12th week of pregnancy and I couldn’t even walk around the block without having to turn around and come home. It was so exhausting just to move around the house some days. I never had morning sickness with baby #1, I was just BONE TIRED all. The. Time. It was very different from what I’d read from other mom’s experiences.
If you can work out, do it safely. If you can’t, don’t worry. Try swimming or something else low impact and easy on your joints and tummy. You’ll get your body back!

Just saw your post Abveyera! Thanks for your sweet and supportive message! I'm a FTM so this is all new to me. I just try to listen to my body each day and go from there. Now that I'm in the 3rd trimester I definitely feel myself slowing down and fully expect to move over into light walking workouts soon. Being pregnant is definitely not easy and truly believe it's a time in our lives where we really have to give ourselves some grace.
 
Hi Kari -

Well homegirl the near is in sight for you!!!! That's so exciting! The time really has flown hasn't it?!? I'm currently 33 weeks and am feeling completely overwhelmed that this is all coming to an end soon. On one hand I'm sooooo ready to be finished being pregnant. But on the other, I feel so unprepared for baby girl to be here. I guess that's normal for a FTM though. We have finished up all our classes at the hospital and are currently working on setting up the nursery. I have showers the next couple of weekends. Like you I hate being the center of attention but since this is our first child there was no way our friends/family were going to let us go without having any showers. I really appreciate everyone's generosity though so I'll just have to suck it up and deal with being the center of attention one last time in my life. LOL. My other two friends who were pregnant along side with me have both had their babies so right now I feel like I'm the lone wolf. I know I'll catch up to them before I know it though. These last 7 weeks are going to fly by. I still feel like there is so much to be done, but I know everything doesn't have to be perfect before she arrives.

I've been very blessed to be able to keep up with my workouts this long. I'm still working out 6 days a week but the workouts are definitely getting shorter. I'm on week 7 of Liift4. When I started this program I didn't actually expect to stick with it this long but honestly it's been a blessing. It's 4 days a week that I don't have to really think about what workout I am going to do. I just go downstairs and hit play and go. I do modify a lot of the hiit moves. Thanks to instructors like Cathe and Kelly I have plenty of lower impact, but still intense moves I can sub in place of things like burpees and what not. For the other two workouts of the week I have been doing whatever I want -- lately it's been Kelly workouts. Sometimes I'll add in a finisher segment to the end of one of her 30 min segments but more times than not lately I've been just calling it quits after 30 minutes. Haven't really been stressing about it, I'm honestly just happy that I've made it this long keeping up with my workouts. We will see how the next 7 weeks go though. I'm fully preparing myself to switch over to light walking at some point.

I'm jealous you are already on mat leave! I'm holding out until baby arrives. Because I'm due in November and my vacation time does not roll over into the next year I have been slowly using up all my vacation days. I have a week off planned for mid-October. It'll be right after my showers so I plan to use that time to get organized, finish getting things set up, and making any last baby purchases. The week or two before my due date I plan on working from home so that will be nice. I have to admit it is getting harder and harder to go into the office. But I just keep reminding myself that it's going to be here before I know it so I just need to relax and take one day at a time.

Good luck with the arrival of your little one! We should keep this thread going into postpartum. I know it'll be awhile before any of us are ready to get back into working out, but I really have enjoyed sharing this experience with you guys!


You are doing sooooo great with your workouts! Try not to stress too much over babies arrival (easier said then done). Everyone feels the way you do especially with the first. This week I’ve had a strong “nesting” urge so I’ve been organizing and cleaning everything. I don’t remember having this with my first. Only 8 more days! I can’t believe it. I’m having low back and pelvic discomfort if I do too much on my feet. Not much sleeping going on either. Just been trying to snuggle my little girl as much as I can before her baby brother arrives. I’m lucky to have my mom 5 minutes away to help take her if I’m feeling to exhausted. We have been living in the pool as being in the water makes me feel better. I would love to keep up with this checkin! It’s nice to chat with you guys and see how everyone is doing. Do you have any social media? If you do I’m on Facebook and Instagram as Karie Hevia. Shoot me a friend request! Enjoy your baby shower. I got away without having one for baby number 2. I definitely miss working out and I’m looking forward to getting back into it come January.
 
You are doing sooooo great with your workouts! Try not to stress too much over babies arrival (easier said then done). Everyone feels the way you do especially with the first. This week I’ve had a strong “nesting” urge so I’ve been organizing and cleaning everything. I don’t remember having this with my first. Only 8 more days! I can’t believe it. I’m having low back and pelvic discomfort if I do too much on my feet. Not much sleeping going on either. Just been trying to snuggle my little girl as much as I can before her baby brother arrives. I’m lucky to have my mom 5 minutes away to help take her if I’m feeling to exhausted. We have been living in the pool as being in the water makes me feel better. I would love to keep up with this checkin! It’s nice to chat with you guys and see how everyone is doing. Do you have any social media? If you do I’m on Facebook and Instagram as Karie Hevia. Shoot me a friend request! Enjoy your baby shower. I got away without having one for baby number 2. I definitely miss working out and I’m looking forward to getting back into it come January.


Oh my goodness!!! I can't believe your due date is next week!!! That's so exciting! I must admit I'm a little jealous. While I'm not ready for baby girl to be here yet I'm so ready for pregnancy to be over. I do have social media and just sent you requests on both FB and Instragram. I haven't been posting a lot online during the pregnancy, but I expect that my hubby and I will be posting quite a bit once baby girl gets here. I have my last shower (unless my work surprises me with something) on Saturday. Once that's done I plan on taking an inventory of what all we've received so I can figure out what is still needed and what not. I expect at that point I'll go into full on nesting mode. LOL. And it sounds like we are both blessed to have our moms so close. My mom also lives 5-10 minutes away so I know she'll be able to help me out during my mat leave. I'm absolutely terrified of the first week which everyone says is the worst, but I just keep reminding myself that yes it'll be tough at the beginning but it will get easier with time.

I'm finishing up the last week of Liift4 this week--still can't believe I ended up doing all 8 weeks. The pace and overall timing of the workouts have been great for pregnancy so I'll probably just start the program over next week and see how much further I get. Our treadmill at home has been acting up so my hubby got that fixed last night. I'm super excited because I have a feeling the closer I get to my due date the less I'm going to want to work out and the more I may be turning to something gentler like walking (assuming my back allows it).

Keep us updated on baby boy's arrival. I'll be thinking of you and will be praying you have a safe and uneventful delivery!!!
 
Oh my goodness!!! I can't believe your due date is next week!!! That's so exciting! I must admit I'm a little jealous. While I'm not ready for baby girl to be here yet I'm so ready for pregnancy to be over. I do have social media and just sent you requests on both FB and Instragram. I haven't been posting a lot online during the pregnancy, but I expect that my hubby and I will be posting quite a bit once baby girl gets here. I have my last shower (unless my work surprises me with something) on Saturday. Once that's done I plan on taking an inventory of what all we've received so I can figure out what is still needed and what not. I expect at that point I'll go into full on nesting mode. LOL. And it sounds like we are both blessed to have our moms so close. My mom also lives 5-10 minutes away so I know she'll be able to help me out during my mat leave. I'm absolutely terrified of the first week which everyone says is the worst, but I just keep reminding myself that yes it'll be tough at the beginning but it will get easier with time.

I'm finishing up the last week of Liift4 this week--still can't believe I ended up doing all 8 weeks. The pace and overall timing of the workouts have been great for pregnancy so I'll probably just start the program over next week and see how much further I get. Our treadmill at home has been acting up so my hubby got that fixed last night. I'm super excited because I have a feeling the closer I get to my due date the less I'm going to want to work out and the more I may be turning to something gentler like walking (assuming my back allows it).

Keep us updated on baby boy's arrival. I'll be thinking of you and will be praying you have a safe and uneventful delivery!!!


Hello! What a whirlwind these last few days have been! Today was my scheduled c section date but little man decided he needed more room and came this past Saturday. I woke up in the morning and the second I stood up from my bed my water broke. I was in shock to say the least lol. I had no contractions. At that moment I realized I should have listened to my husband over the past few weeks to get my hospital bag ready lol. So I ran around like a crazy woman packing my bag and as soon as my mom came over to watch my daughter we were off to the hospital. I checked in at 7:50 am and he was born via c section at 10:32 am.

We had a bit of a bumpy start. I was on the higher side of the amount of amniotic fluid so his lungs had too much for him to be able to get out on his own so he had to go to the nicu. He had to be on a respirator and have a feeding tube. It was a very scary and emotional experience. The nicu doctors and nurses were absolutely amazing! I didn’t get to officially hold him until a day after he was born. He stayed in the nicu for 2 nights and once he was weaned off all the machines he was able to stay in my room the final night.

We were both discharged yesterday (Tuesday) and it feels soooooo good to be home. Last night went very smooth as far as sleep and I can only hope and wish it stays that way most of the time. My daughter loves her and I have been trying to keep her routine as normal as possible while creating a new routine for all of us. Every time I feel anxious I just remind myself that this is a learning process and I have to take time and figure out what works best for our family.

I’m feeling pretty good pain wise as long as I stay on top of my ibuprofen every 6 hours. They gave me morphine the first 6 hours after the surgery which always makes me nauseous and dizzy. I’m also prescribed Percocet but don’t like how I feel with them either. The ibuprofen works just fine.

Sara: you look so darn cute at your baby shower! I’m so excited to see your little girl when she arrives. I can’t wait to workout again but that won’t be for another 6 weeks. You are doing great keeping up and modifying as needed. I definitely want to keep checking in. We are all going through huge life changes so it’s always nice to have support by people going through the same thing.
 
Hi Karie -

Wow you had quite the labor experience this time around! Sounds like baby boy was ready to come out and he wasn't keen on waiting any longer! That is scary about the amniotic fluid and him having to be in the NICU for a couple of nights. So glad you are both now safe, healthy, and happy to be home!

How have things been going...I think you are going on your second week at home now, correct? I love seeing all your facebook posts. Your adorable daughter seems to be adjusting well to being a big sister. :)

I'm officially 36 weeks as of today. I had my first cervix check on Monday and was fully closed so it doesn't look like baby girl will be making an early appearance....at least not any time soon. I'm okay with that though! I still feel like there's so much to do in preparation for her arrival. I took this week off so I could spend the week "nesting". I haven't gotten as far as I would like so far, but I keep reminding myself everything will be okay and things don't have to be "perfect" before she arrives. The FTM anxiety is getting pretty high too. I keep waking up at 3am each day and immediately start stressing about all stuff baby. I know a lot of this is just due to me having never been through this before. I know my husband and I are in for a HUGE shift in our lives/lifestyle when she arrives and that's a little scary! Just have to keep reminding myself that while things will be different (and probably pretty hard at first -- I hear those first few weeks at home with a newborn are super tough), that it'll all be worth it.

I'm still trucking along with my usual workouts. I'm on my second week of my second round of Liift4. Plan on keeping up with this until my body tells me otherwise. I find I feel better after working out/moving around vs. when I'm more sedentary (like at work). Already thinking about what kinds of workouts I'll start out with postpartum (after I've been cleared to work out again). Thinking about trying Sara Haley's Expecting More the 4th trimester workouts. I recently discovered Sara randomly on instagram and I like the looks of her postpartum program. She also has a prenatal DVD as well as an online prenatal program that I sort of wish I could have tried earlier in my pregnancy. At this point, I just don't fee like investing any more $$$ in prenatal workouts....I'm just too far along in my pregnancy. I tried to see if any of my local libraries had her DVD's, but alas they don't so I'll probably just hold off and maybe purchase the postpartum set when I'm ready for it. I'm also excited that Kelly Coffey will be eventually launching her own workout app that's supposed to have her RAW workouts as well as her entire DVD collection. I've really enjoyed incorporating some of her workouts into my regular rotation this pregnancy so exploring the rest of her DVD collection in postpartum might be fun--especially since they are typically 30 min or less.

Alright time to get back to my never-ending to-do list for my "nesting week". Hope you are doing well!
 
Hi Karie -

Wow you had quite the labor experience this time around! Sounds like baby boy was ready to come out and he wasn't keen on waiting any longer! That is scary about the amniotic fluid and him having to be in the NICU for a couple of nights. So glad you are both now safe, healthy, and happy to be home!

How have things been going...I think you are going on your second week at home now, correct? I love seeing all your facebook posts. Your adorable daughter seems to be adjusting well to being a big sister. :)

I'm officially 36 weeks as of today. I had my first cervix check on Monday and was fully closed so it doesn't look like baby girl will be making an early appearance....at least not any time soon. I'm okay with that though! I still feel like there's so much to do in preparation for her arrival. I took this week off so I could spend the week "nesting". I haven't gotten as far as I would like so far, but I keep reminding myself everything will be okay and things don't have to be "perfect" before she arrives. The FTM anxiety is getting pretty high too. I keep waking up at 3am each day and immediately start stressing about all stuff baby. I know a lot of this is just due to me having never been through this before. I know my husband and I are in for a HUGE shift in our lives/lifestyle when she arrives and that's a little scary! Just have to keep reminding myself that while things will be different (and probably pretty hard at first -- I hear those first few weeks at home with a newborn are super tough), that it'll all be worth it.

I'm still trucking along with my usual workouts. I'm on my second week of my second round of Liift4. Plan on keeping up with this until my body tells me otherwise. I find I feel better after working out/moving around vs. when I'm more sedentary (like at work). Already thinking about what kinds of workouts I'll start out with postpartum (after I've been cleared to work out again). Thinking about trying Sara Haley's Expecting More the 4th trimester workouts. I recently discovered Sara randomly on instagram and I like the looks of her postpartum program. She also has a prenatal DVD as well as an online prenatal program that I sort of wish I could have tried earlier in my pregnancy. At this point, I just don't fee like investing any more $$$ in prenatal workouts....I'm just too far along in my pregnancy. I tried to see if any of my local libraries had her DVD's, but alas they don't so I'll probably just hold off and maybe purchase the postpartum set when I'm ready for it. I'm also excited that Kelly Coffey will be eventually launching her own workout app that's supposed to have her RAW workouts as well as her entire DVD collection. I've really enjoyed incorporating some of her workouts into my regular rotation this pregnancy so exploring the rest of her DVD collection in postpartum might be fun--especially since they are typically 30 min or less.

Alright time to get back to my never-ending to-do list for my "nesting week". Hope you are doing well!

Hi there! Coming down to the home stretch! I wish I could say something to calm your anxiety but it’s totally normal for the new and unexpected. The first few weeks are the hardest but then it gets easier. I actually forgot how exhausting it is and this little man has reminded me. We have been home for 2 weeks and I forget how short of time it is as I’m expecting myself to already have everyone on a schedule and to be able to balance it all. I’m a type A personality so not having a schedule or routine gets me anxious. I’m just trying to take a deep breath and take it one day at a time . We have had some good nights (up every 3 hours to eat and goes right back to bed) and we’ve had some not so good nights (up every hour or up for 4 hours in the middle of the night). But overall he is a good baby that doesn’t cry much. My daughter seems to be doing ok with him but definitely has had some outbursts which I know is due to her adjusting to another sibling. This time around has been harder for me recovering from the c section because I have a toddler to take care of.

I follow Sara Haley as well. Love her! I was going to get her Pregnacy workouts but like you, found it at the end of pregnancy so it’s not worth the money. I can’t wait to be able to workout again! Will probably be cleared at 6 weeks. So now just walking a lot. Did you ever buy that newborn program from takingcarababies? I did and have watched it. Has some good info. Doesn’t start until 4 weeks. Her advice for the first four weeks is to just survive.

You are going to do great and your husband will be a huge help too. We all get through it even though at times you don’t think you will. Can’t wait to see your adorable little girl ❤️
 
Usually, the second birth passes easier than the first one because you already have an amount of experience, you know how to do many things, and it passes well. It is essential to have a healthy mind and stay positive. The nerves could harm your and the baby's health. Healthy mindsets are necessary for healthy relationships and a positive social environment for children. I asked the Austin doula center to help me solve my problems, and I was happy they managed to help not just me but my husband too.
 
Last edited:
33 weeks, but already such a cutie pie!
I am pregnant with my first, 46 weeks, already, big boy!
Tell you the truth, I am having a pretty tough pregnancy. I can't eat basically anything. Even the smell of an apple can make me puke on the worst days. But, my doctors said that it's something normal since my mom was having the same issues while pregnant with me. It seems that it's the body's reaction to hormonal changes.
Anyways, I can't wait until I see my newborn baby. Baby momma already ordered some hospital outfits for that special day, lol !
 

Our Newsletter

Get awesome content delivered straight to your inbox.

Top