keeping up with cathe during first pregnancy? suggestio...

[cathefan73]

hello! i've been reading on this forum for a while but have never posted here yet. i guess now is the time bc we just discovered that we are pregnant with our first! i'm excited...but of course, i do not know exactly what to expect and i am trying to picture myself doing workouts with a big belly. it's hard to know what that will be like. i just hope i have energy and no complications preventing me from exercising. i know i have to listen to my body and i will. i just wanted to ask you guys who are going through this or who have gone through this, a couple questions bc i have been looking for info for advanced exercisers and find most stuff out there is geared towards beginners or intermediates.

1. generally speaking, which workouts do you recommend for each trimester? i own kickmax, kpc and legs and gluts, circuit max, ctx series, pub and plb, sjp, stepblast, imax2 and c and wts, muscle endurance and bootcamp and lowmax. i also preordered all the new workouts.

2. what modifications did you make to allow yourself to continue working out with cathe?

3. how late in your pregnancy did you continue to work out and approx how many days per week did you feel able to work out in each trimester.

4. can you recommend any workouts either cathe or not, that really worked for you during pregnancy?

i realize it is most important to listen to MY body and do what is right for me. i guess i am just looking for some kind of information from experienced exercisers and for some reassurance that i will be able to work out safely while pregnant.

thank you so much!

 

[shopaholic]

Congrats! Lowmax is a great one during with pregnancy. Cardio and weights is another good one. I also did well with rythymic step and some of cathe's older workouts. I used all my strength workouts but modified suppine work. I did well with my firms as well as well as workouts by gay gasper. I worked out 6-7 days per week and worked out til the end of each of my 2 pregnancies. I did high impact in the beginning than modified as my pregnancy progressed. With my 2nd pregnancy, my bladder prevented high impact work. I also had some am sickness , so I did easier workouts when needed.

 

[cathefan73]

thank you shopaholic! i appreciate your suggestions and insights.

 

[ashuhlee]

I consider myself a pretty good source when it comes to exercising during pregnancy. I worked out until my due date (and beyond w/ my 2nd) with both of my pregnancies. With the first baby, I did jazzercise on regular basis and just switched to low impact when my belly threw me off balence (which was around month 4). With my 2nd baby, I was working out at a gym and doing their boot camp, step, and pilates classes. Again, I used low weight at the boot camp class, used a ball in pilates (no prone positions), and used a lower step.

Cathe's workouts are easy to tailor in this way. Just remember, low weight, no prone positioning, and either no step or very low step.

On a side note, your exercise ball is great to use during labor...I sat on it until I was 8 cm rolling my pelvis onit while leaning on the bed. Very effective.

 

[star_dust]

Please keep in mind, I am offering my experience up as an alternative so that you can have a realistic and honest expectation of what may or may not happen with your pregnancy. Before I was pregnant, I worked out maybe 4-6 days a week depending on the week and my mood at the time. When I imagined being pregnant, I thought I would be able to continue in this way, but I was wrong. I think, for this reason, when the first trimester came I was completely unprepared for the exhaustion and sickness that followed. You absolutely can work out safely during all 3 trimesters - but everyone is different. Up until 22 weeks, I felt terrible and could barely motivate myself to drink water let alone workout for an hour.

After about 22 weeks, I eased back in and tried Cathe's low impact workouts. But, they stretched the ligaments in my stomach everytime which is painful and lasts for a few days - so I've had to literally cut back to things that require no bounce and one foot on the ground at all times. Step was also more painful in these same circumstances. so, I worked out about 3 days a weeks when I wasn't in pain. Also, it was the summer time and very hot &humid where I live without the luxury of air conditioning. I think I had to take off another 2-3 weeks due to the heat.

In the end, I found Karen Voight's Strong and Smooth moves easily adaptable - anything hi/lo was easier and put less stress on my stomach. I also recommend keeping up weight training if all else fails - just to maintain your strength. It's not really a time to increase it. I also found Christi Taylor's Totally Hot Cardio and Solid Gold Cardio easier to do because she has low impact modifiers.

I am in my third trimester now, and while I still have some ligament pain - it is better. In fact, I feel better now than I did in the first 6 months! I am also working out more. So, there is good news after all In the end, you don't know what is going to happen with your body or how it will adapt to the situation. You just have to listen to it and learn not to feel guilty if you can't be superwoman anymore. (I should take this advice too). Good luck!