Keeping it Up

So far, I've run two MILES folks.  That's a whole lot more than I ran last month, or the month before (when I was still PREGNANT), or in any of the previous eight months.  In fact, I haven't run a mile (or even a block) since last Halloween, which happens to also be the day we officially found out I was pregnant.  We were already signed up to race the Run Thru Hell on Halloween race and it just happened to also be the day I decided to wake up, take a pregnancy test, and announce the results to Tom.  I like to mess with him a little every once in awhile... I'm not sure he was awake for more than five minutes before he was trying to decide if it was Halloween or April Fool's Day.

Anyway, we ran the race dressed up with Oren in the BOB jogging stroller thinking about how in a year we might need a double BOB.  And then I didn't run again until this week.  It wasn't that I didn't believe I could run while pregnant (I ran until I was over five months pregnant with Oren).  Nope, it was just that finding out for real that I was pregnant shredded the last ounce of my motivation after my September half ironman triathlon.  I mean really, I was about to get gigantic again... what's the point?

Truthfully, the point is that I should have kept moving to keep myself and babe #2 healthier, less stressed out, and on the way to a quicker, more smooth labor and recovery.  That's what I did the first time (back when I tried to follow all the pregnancy advice I could find).  I had devoured internet research and the book Exercising Through Your Pregnancy to learn all the benefits of maintaining a high level of fitness during a normal, healthy pregnancy.  This time around though, I was a) burnt out from my race and b) DEAD TIRED.  I mean, Mara just killed me.  I could. not. move.  This was the first time I suspected I might be having a girl instead of a boy, by the way... but then chalked it up to the differences in each pregnancy.  Anyway, I could barely keep up with Oren and Mika (our hyper active dog) so exercise did not happen.  Once I got some energy back I was totally uninterested, so I just stopped thinking about it.

The result?  I was definitely more uncomfortable in the third trimester but have no idea if that was because I didn't work out or because it was my second pregnancy or because I was two years older or because I was having a girl (in retrospect... we didn't actually find out the baby's gender) or... or... or...  I also failed both the one hour and three hour glucose tolerance tests and was asked to maintain a low carb/low sugar diet and check my blood sugar four times a day.  I worked through a lot of guilt over that one... thinking I'd brought in on myself by slacking.  Honestly though, I have a family tree full of diabetics and it is likely that between my predisposition and the normal wacky pregnancy hormones, working out might not have changed the results.  Thankfully I still had a small baby (Mara was seven pounds ten ounces, Oren was seven pounds thirteen- everyone in my family was over eight pounds), an early delivery (Mara was ten days early, Oren was seven), and had an easier delivery than with Oren (labored for over twenty hours with two hours of pushing for Oren and only seven hours with 30 minutes of pushing for Mara... we barely made it to the birth center on time!)... I've also already shed most of my pregnancy weight- only five pounds to go (which was quicker than the first time around, thanks to running around after a 32 pound toddler and nursing a growing infant).  All of these were benefits of working out while pregnant that are promised by the above research.  So I don't feel like I've shot myself in the foot too painfully.  It does mean that I do need to get back to my normal healthy lifestyle now.

And I'm plugging away.  The second run was pretty much like the first.  My favorite sports bra, made by Moving Comfort, is keeping the goods very secure which was a relief.  The brand new shoes are like running on pillows after a summer in flip flops (and I love the new color scheme!).  I did wear my watch again last night but haven't yet charged the Garmin.  Mostly, I'm glad to leave the kids behind for a few minutes and stretch out my knotted up muscles.  That part of training I have missed a lot and my legs were so happy when I finally fell asleep last night.

For those of you who have kids- did you train through pregnancy?  How long into your pregnancy did you train?  What did you do?  How do you feel it effected you, your baby, and the delivery?  Guys-  did you manage to keep up your training before and after your babies were born?  (Tom didn't do quite as well this time around but that has a lot to do with his job).  Please share!