Checkin' in...grrrr

[Meecher]

Hello again, all.

Well I hate to complain, but I'm at the beginning of my fifth month and I'm so constipated I could scream! Diagnosed with that lovely catch-all, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, before pregnancy, you can imagine how I'm feeling now. Ugh. x(

Bad "stuffed up" days prior to pregnancy made me less than willing to work out...and now, I have to admit, it takes every bit of strength to make myself do it. (Yes, I feel better afterwards, but still no relief from constipation.) I have good (energy-filled, eager) days and bad ones. I'd give just about anything for some relief!!!

(Also, I would be willing to believe that this problem could be part of the 15 pounds I've already gained!)

My body is really changing now. Though I've already been wearing stretchy maternity pants/skirts for about a month, suddenly I'm feeling fat deposits where I've never had them (like love handles...yikes!) and for-pete's-sakes, cellulite! Aaaarrggh! (Now come on, how does my cellulite help my baby!!!) I know it's not good to focus on this temporary padding, but gosh, it's tough not to!

I'll stop complaining to ask a few questions:

**First of all, if anyone has any suggestions, advice or experience with constipation they'd like to share, please do! Any ideas?

**Secondly, I've heard so many inspiring stories of folks that committed to 4-5x/wk workouts up until delivery, and while I'd like to think of myself as one of "The Fit," these bad days I've been having (where I'm pyramiding down on weight and feeling exhaust where I've never felt it before) make me wonder if that will be feasible for me. Are there any of you "Super Fit" folks out there who found that you *couldn't* keep up the admirable pace others could?

**Lastly, am I correct in believing that oblique work/ twisting/ trunk rotations are a NO-NO right now? And since I've been doing ab work on an incline, I've just eschewed lower ab work for the most part...am I correct in doing so? Is there an answer for lower abs at this point?

Thanks in advance for all your advice/suggestions!

Michelle (a.k.a. Meecher) from soon-to-be-snowy Wisconsin

 

[eclair]

Hi Meecher!
I've had similar issues since becoming pregnant. Even before getting pregnant, I always ate a small bowl of extra fiber All_bran every day, just to keep things regular. Once pregnant, that was no longer enough. Metamucil does nothing for me, and neither does prune juice. BUT, I've found that adding a few prunes or dried apricots to my "Colon Blow" cereal helps a lot, and I've been not nearly as constipated as I was a couple of months ago.

I can definitely relate to not wanting to jump around when you're feeling so weighted down. On days like that, you can either resign yourself to not working out (and truly accept it), or you can just do upper body weight lifting, which is much less uncomfortable than cardio (at least for me).

I've cut down on my workouts, from 6 days to 4, and I have been getting love handles too. Everyone tries to assure me that it goes with the territory, and that it will go away, but I know what you mean; I want it to go away now!! Well, we both know it's not gonna, so we might as well learn to live with it (and love it????!!!!), because it's there for at least the next 4 months.

I hope my little home remedy works for you. A cup of coffee (even decaf) can also be helpful.

 

[Meecher]

You know, I'm going grocery shopping tonight...I think I'll pick up some All Bran!

Thanks for the advice! I think what's most important is hearing other folks have problems too...It can really be difficult for a person who is usually so "in control" of her body to surrender in this way.

Meecher

 

[ChristinaK]

When I was pregnant with my son I developed constipation from the high amounts of iron in the prenatal vitamins. I was originally on a prenatal with approximately 100 mgs of iron. After my dr switched me to a lower iron prenatal, the constipation went away so you might consider checking into the iron content in your multivitamin.

 

[tchersue]

I thought I knew what constipation was before my first pregnancy with my son... but I was sorely (pardon the pun) mistaken. I honestly thought I was going to have to go to the hospital one night to have a bowel movement. When I did finally pass it (sorry to be graphic, but I honestly don't think that a lot of women know about this going into pregnancy), it was every bit as painful as some of my labor contractions!

After that, I added a prune regimen to my diet. I ate a few with breakfast (I also did fiber cereals... I found that oat bran did the trick) and a few before bed. I also concentrated on drinking more water. If I felt that I hadn't had enough fiber on a particular day, I would take 3 colace tablets (doctor said this was okay) with a couple of glasses of water. I was determined that I wouldn't have THAT happen again! Miserable!

So far I haven't had this with pregnancy #2... and I was recently thinking that I'd probably get back into my old regimen to prevent it all together... you sort of forget!
Susan

 

[hiitdogs]

Hi Michelle:

Constipation was a big problem for me during both of my pregnancies. Prune juice worked pretty well and my doctor suggested magnesium supplements, I had to take double or three times the usual dose, that really did the trick!!!

Best wishes and have a happy holiday!

Carola