Fitness Workouts while Pregnant: Second Trimester

I am about to wrap up my second trimester of my first (so-far-successful) pregnancy. Staying physically active during pregnancy is so important for many reasons, including these:

• Maintaining your strength and flexibility, which will help throughout the pregnancy, during labor and delivery, and post-partum
• Helping you to gain weight at a steady rate to remain healthy and prevent complications such as gestational diabetes
• Promoting healthy sleep patterns which again helps baby grow!
• Helps to keep you regular! yeah, I mean that way (see my post on prunes for another way)

Check out yesterday's post on ideas for your first trimester. Today, I will discuss what I've done during my second trimester. You might hear that the second trimester is the best and so far I can confirm (mind you, I've never experienced a third...yet!) Great things happen in your second: your energy increases, hopefully your morning sickness subsides, and you get to see your baby in the ultrasound! This is the trimester to get things done and, as I've found, to increase my fitness regimen a little in preparation for the third trimester and birth!

Second Trimester - Here is what I've done during my second trimester:

• Strength Training 2-4 times per week. I have been able to increase my weights a slight amount from what I lifted during the first trimester, but I am still keeping them lower than what I lifted pre-pregnancy.
• Running 2-4 times and walking 2-4 times per week. I took a little break after my race in October, but when the Holiday Bootie Buster Challenge came around, I finally used it as a kick in the Bootie to get back out running. I definitely felt much better during this trimester, but that bladder still seems so small when you start to jog! haha!
• Yoga 1-7 times per week. During the challenge, I started incorporating 20 minutes of yoga practice at home to work on my flexibility and to help release some back pain that I'd created. 
• Group Fitness/Cardio and Core classes 2-4 times per week. With the return of my energy, and the kick in the Bootie of the HBBC, I was encouraged to get to the gym for several group classes, to include BodyCombat, CXWORX (core), cycling, and dancing (Sh'Bam and Zumba)

Now, you may add all of these up and say, "Sam, there is no way you were doing 20+ classes/workouts a week." You would be right, my activity flowed from week to week, but I have managed to be pretty consistent in just staying active and I think that is key!

Considerations:

• I've had to make some modifications to my strength training (BodyPump and CXWORX):
• I have widened my squats to account for my change in balance and I also need to modify my range of motion on squats on certain days. 
• I do most of my plank work on my knees now because I started noticing more pulls in my belly and so, while trying to maintain core strength, I don't want to injure my belly either.
• Prone lying poses are out right now. When we do leg raises or belly poses, I modify to something on my knees. For leg raises, or supermans, I kneel on all fours and do leg lifts and/or arm raises to try and mimic what the actual move is and still reach similar muscles.
• Yoga  - the second trimester is where you really need to start modifying yoga to fit your pregnancy. I will post next week on body changes and modifications.
• BodyCombat/Kickboxing - I can still do the majority of BodyCombat, but I pull back on the intensity as needed. I do not do most of the plyometric moves and just choose the lower options offered of either marching in place, lightly jogging in place, or just staying on the ground when the high jumps are involved. I also do lower kicks of all varieties so as not to overstretch my hamstrings. But I can definitely still get a good sweat and strength workout in even with these modifications.
• Cycling - Last night during cycling is the first time that I felt it really affect my belly, but that is because mine is just starting through it's biggest growth spurt. During some challenging portions of the ride, I felt some pulling in my belly that was a new sensation, not like I've felt while running. Regardless, when I felt this, I just dialed back the intensity until the feeling subsided and then i jumped back into my groove.
• Utilize your resources- If you do take group fitness classes, head to class a little early and talk with your instructor about modifications that you can make throughout the class. Your instructor will work with you to make sure you are getting a good workout, but in a safe way for both you and your little one.

Always remember to consult your physician prior to engaging in a new exercise regimen while pregnant. But remember that it is your body and you know when something doesn't feel right! Moderation and balance in fitness and rest during your second trimester will reap great benefits for both you and your growing baby!

P.S. I wrote this while actually in my second trimester....and my little CAT is now 10 months old. I forgot to actually post this! Oops! Please forgive me! :)

The Workout High

As Kelly mentioned yesterday, it’s been a long two weeks for ME and I. We packed up all last week and trekked across half the country to come back to Texas for the next few years! Yay! We are so excited to return to Texas, however, what a stressful and tiring two weeks we’ve had...and we still have! We’re still unpacking and getting settled and reorganized. I also started back up with working part time as well as starting BodyPump classes at a new gym last night. Whew! Needless to say, ME and I have been getting increasingly stressed, especially trying to keep track of the millions of keys we have, losing track of things as we’re moving things to and fro through the condo and cars and storage unit. We’ve been so exhausted from all of the moving (heavy lifting!!!) and boat cleaning (sore shoulders from scrubbing) that our daily workouts have fallen by the wayside. We thought, “No need to workout, we’re getting our workouts from all of this non-stop activity.”

 Last night, I finally returned to the gym to team teach BodyPump with my boss, at my new gym, Quality Life Fitness. I was exhausted before even arriving at the gym and was  concerned that I’d be too tired to give my all as an instructor. But, once the music started, I got Pumped up (pun intended) and even lifted heavier weights than planned (even though my legs were already sore from that heavy lifting I mentioned earlier!)

When I left the gym, I felt awesome...my mind was clear, I felt energized and relaxed, and relaxed and happy! I got home to find ME had just returned from the gym as well. I told him that Pump was just what I needed to relieve some stress and he quickly agreed! So, why is this?

...Endorphins! We finally got those hormones streaming through our body to give us the little pick-me-up that we’d been missing over the last weeks! Awesome! We’re pretty happy people in general, but even happy people can get down in the dumps when you’re continually tired and stressed! That’s when it’s even more important to get out and exercise to kick start those endorphins and get us back on track!

How do you combat stress? What is your go-to workout to get your endorphins fired up to get your mind and energy back to a healthy place?

~Samara

Things I’m thankful for:

~A BFF who shares her home with us

~Rain

~Team Teaching

~Motivated class full of BodyPumpers

To Observe and Learn

As you know, Kelly and I love to teach group fitness classes. At my gym, the instructors have been tasked to observe other instructors classes for two reasons; to provide constructive criticism on their class, and to maybe learn some teaching ideas from other instructors. So, I took the liberty of taking our local master Spin instructor’s class this morning between my BodyPump and yoga classes. It was such a great experience. He gave me some great music ideas and awesome new ideas on working with that music. After class, he gave me some additional suggestions about taking the class through all of the resistance levels during warm up to, in a sense, calibrate the bikes for the ride. About a month ago, I learned that something like this was needed, as I had a student come up to me after class wondering why she wasn’t getting a workout in class. She looked around the class and saw everyone sweating, only to be barely huffing herself. We determined, that her bike had been so loose that, even though she thought she’d cranked up the resistance, she didn’t have any through the whole class. I think little insights like this can only help to improve my teaching ability. I took many things from his class today and I intend to attend again in order to glean even more.

Do you find it helpful in your profession to take some time out to observe your peers? What have you learned from observing your peers?

Things for which I’m thankful:

~ Drop top weather

~ Amazing ways to prepare vegetables

~ Surprise Discounts

~ Free MLB.com game of the week – even though my team lost!

Who We Strive to Be

Who do you strive to be when you grow older? A few weeks ago, Kelly and I took a weekend trip to visit her aunt and uncle. They have always been so generous to us and took us under their wings in our lowest of times. Yet again, they shared their generosity by taking us out for a birthday celebration weekend on their new yacht…yes, you heard me correctly, yacht. We docked the boat at a beautiful resort on the Rappahannock River, called The Tides Inn. (If you ever find yourself in the area, plan a night there to pamper yourself…perhaps we’ll review the property and amenities later…) We woke up early the morning we stayed there to workout. We found our way to the fitness center, a small house overlooking an inlet. It had a decent line-up of equipment; enough to tide you over on a short weekend.

But we weren’t there to use the equipment; Kelly was finally going to give me a BodyAttack class. So, we moved aside some equipment and made some room for some serious business! We cranked up the music and proceeded to Attack over the next 45 minutes. It was an awesome, butt-kicking workout, but the best part was that mid-way through the first track, an older woman came into the gym. We think she was about 85 or so, and as soon as she saw what we were doing, she came over and jumped right in. And I mean JUMP! She did so great. She was jumping, stepping, kicking and knocking out push ups…actually better than I was! We were genuinely impressed with our new friend! When we finished, we briefly chatted with her and then she proceeded to take her printed workout over to the gym equipment and do the daily workout that she’d planned to do when she came in. Impressive! She looked great. Her physical ability was spectacular and she was full of energy!

Who will you be when you’re 85! I hope we are just like her! Living and Loving Life and Remaining Healthy and Fit!  

Do you have any role models who you use as motivation for your life?

Group Exercise Classes - Why they are great!

So, being a personal trainer who is often focused on individual clients, you'd think I'd have some issues with group exercise classes.  Some trainers feel that the lack of individual attention will lead to participants using bad form, not giving 100% or just not being pushed to their level of fitness.  While there is some validity to these points, I think the benefits outweight the possible negatives.  I am a big believer in ultimate cross training, I think a little bit of everything is good for everyone!   I don't believe that you can get by with only group classes, I think there is a place for them in your fitness routine. I teach Les Mills Body Attack, it's a sports oriented high energy class.  We launched brand new choreography this weekend and it was a great class that left me with an exercise high!   Group classes afford people the chance to jump in and try things they normally wouldn't do, take the exercises at their own level and feed off of the other participants energy.  My class this Saturday had great energy and it took us all to a higher level, the lunges were deeper, folks pushed out a few more push ups then they previously thought they could and the high knee runs were higher!  Some other reasons to include group exercise classes into your routine:
1. you can try something new
2. you don't have to think of a workout, the instructor has done all planning
3. you can meet new people
4. being around people will push you harder
5. you, along with the rest of the class really feel like you've accomplished something once that hour is finished (and you have!!)
So, I'd like to encourage all of you to add a class or two to your routine, they're fun!  Don't worry if you don't know the moves or you've never done it before, remember, everyone was new at one point!  What are your thoughts on group exercise?  What keeps you from joining a class?  I'd love to hear some comments!!