NORLFW while pregnant - experience report - 2nd trimester

[Matmos]

This is a follow-up on my prior post on what it is like to do NROLFW while pregnant. In my previous post - an experience report of the 1st trimester - I talked about modifications to NROLFW to make it doable while pregnant (as well as the vagaries of trying to do NROLFW while slayed by severe nausea).

In this post, I'll describe my experiences in the second trimester.

In my 4th month, I did NROLFW (using the modifications discussed in the prior post, notably reducing weight, increasing #sets/decreasing reps per set, eating before, during, and after the workout, increasing water intake, and cutting out interval training) and it went A-OK. Everything was fine, all systems go.

In my 5th month, I was working for the month in a remote town with no gym facilities, so I substituted a bodyweight circuit workout for NROLFW and tried to hit the same muscles so I could get back into it when I got back. Specifically, I did the following:

Workout A
A. Overhead squats
B1. Incline push-up
B2. Band pull
C1. Prisoner step-ups
C2. Bird dogs
C3. Side plank

Workout B
A. Y Squat
B1. Dips
B2. Assisted pull-up
C1. Prisoner lunge
C2. Standing pelvic tilts
C3. TYI's (these require lying on your stomach; I accomplished this by propping myself up over the arm of the sofa)

I also walked and rode my bike on off days.

Note: I am not a fitness professional, it is my understanding that these exercises are all fine while pregnant, but your mileage may vary.

During this month, I noticed that despite my workouts my general energy/fitness level was taking a pretty serious hit. At the beginning of the month, I could make it through 5 circuits. By the end of the month, if I could make it through twice I was feeling extremely proud of myself. My motivation to work out also dipped noticeably because my energy level overall had gone down, and on some days if I did work out, then that was pretty much it for what I could do on that day. And some of the exercises began to be uncomfortable or just not feel right for my rapidly changing body. (I also got MUCH bigger in the belly department this month).

When I got back to the big city, I decided to throw in the towel on NROLFW (for now - will start again after the little one is on the outside). I am really beginning to feel the strain of pregnancy and while I definitely still need/want exercise I feel the need to do something that is more adapted to pregnancy. I have started doing water aerobics 2x a week, prenatal yoga 1x, and a strengthening DVD 1x (I found two good ones for pregnancy - Karyne Steven's "Perfect Pregnancy Workout Vol 1" and Lauren Brooks's "Baby Bells" (a kettlebell workout - good excuse to start playing with those)). Hopefully this will stave off too much fitness loss until the baby arrives.

One thing I find hard about prenatal fitness, coming off of NROLFW, is that while doing NROLFW you have the experience of continually getting stronger/increasing weights. Prenatal fitness is the opposite, despite continuing to work out you (generally) gradually get slower / weaker. Intellectually this makes sense, your body is doing more and more "baseline" work every day, so it can't handle as much on top of it. But emotionally it is harder to find the motivation when you don't have the feedback of progress to help you along, something I really enjoy about weight-lifting. Well, in a few months I'll get to go back to that. In the meantime, I'm focusing on workout activities that I enjoy and that will keep me from back-sliding too much.

Overall, I would say that NROLFW is definitely do-able (with modifications) through 20-24 weeks, especially if you don't suffer too much from nausea. I'm ready to slow down now, but that's not necessarily universal - after all, there are some pregnant women running marathons in their 8th month.

See y'all on the other side!