Latest / Fit for Hiking / Ep. 93 Staying Active and Healthy in the Third Trimester: Tips for Expecting Moms
Transcript
- Hi, my name is Brady and I'm a longtime fitness professional and Midwest girl turned mountain living hiking addict. In combining my knowledge of fitness and passion for hiking, I've helped hundreds of women get lean and strong for the trails. Think of this as your one stop shop for both education and inspiration on all things female wellness, trail talk and adventure. Hiking, female metabolism, motherhood, nutrition, travel and fitness are all topics you'll hear discussed here. If you are outdoorsy and active, looking to level up your health, unlock your potential, and become inspired to live your most vibrant life, you're in the right place. You're listening to the fit for hiking podcast. Hello everybody, and welcome back to another episode of the fit for Hiking podcast. This is your host, Brady. And I apologize today because I'm a little bit under the weather. Um, right now as I'm recording this, we are like just in the thick of sick virus season. Um, I feel like we dodged all the sickness throughout the fall, throughout the holidays and even beginning of the year. And then of course, we got hit super hard over the past week in my house. Um, and now I'm definitely suffering with all of the, uh, runny nose, the cough, the sore throat, just all of that yucky stuff that's going around this winter. So I'm going to try to get through this episode. Um, as normal. But I apologize if I'm sounding a little bit stuffy. Um, today we're going to be talking about staying active and healthy in the third trimester. So if you have been following along with my journey, um, over the last few months on my Instagram page or even on the podcast, my Instagram page is ponytail underscore on a trail. Um, that's my personal page. And I share a lot of the content that I share on here, but also a little bit more on like the personal side too. And I am currently about seven and a half months pregnant and really in the thick of my third trimester. So I have been sharing so far, um, on the podcast, I've done, uh, episodes on the first trimester and second trimester and how you can really optimize how you're feeling in each of those, because every trimester is quite different. You're going to feel very different. You're going to have different symptoms, you're going to have different energy levels and different modifications that you're going to need to make for your workouts, your nutrition, um, and how you're resting and recovering all these different components to really optimize how you're feeling. And your overall health. So as I'm recording this, I'm 33 weeks pregnant. Um, you can go and check out the episodes on the first and second trimester. So the first trimester episode is episode 70, and the second trimester episode is episode 77. So if you are currently pregnant and you're like, please give me all of the information. I am clueless on how to still keep going with the activities that I love and stay active. Maybe you're really struggling with a lot of different symptoms. I totally feel you and hopefully these podcasts will be really valuable resources for you because I feel like sometimes, especially with your first pregnancy, you're just fumbling around in the dark. You're trying to figure out, how do I still live these components of my life, like staying active, still doing the hikes that I want to do, still working out, still eating healthy when everything is kind of thrown into chaos. Um, maybe you have had a really sick pregnancy or you're having these crazy symptoms, and it's just really hard to keep up with your healthy routines. So hopefully these episodes will be helpful for you. So today I'm going to be sharing nutrition and fitness tips for the third trimester. Um, and here are some common experiences for women in the third trimester. Energy may start to decrease again. So typically in the second trimester you feel this like big boom of renewed energy around like 1415 weeks. That lethargy from the first trimester starts to kind of wear off. And you're still, you know, you're still tired, you're still pregnancy tired. But you do typically have improved energy in the second trimester. It feels amazing. You're like, oh my gosh, I feel like a person again. Um, so this unfortunately might decrease a little bit. And there's a couple reasons for that. Your body is getting larger. The baby's growing rapidly during the third trimester. But also, um, there's this really fun thing called pregnancy insomnia. And it affects about 40% of pregnant women in the third trimester. Uh, unfortunately, I have become very well acquainted with this symptom this time around. I did not have this with my first pregnancy, and it's kicking my butt this time. So, you know, not only are you uncomfortable at night, as you get bigger, you're tossing and turning your hips and your low back are hurting. It's hard to find comfortable positioning. Um, but also, sometimes your body and brain just won't shut off. Um, that coupled with stuffy nose, um, and also having to get up and pee constantly, there's just a lot of variables that can make good quality sleep difficult in the third trimester. Um, another symptom is that nausea may come back. This is not, thankfully, been the case for me. Um, my nausea is all on the front end of my pregnancy, but for some women, it does circle back in the third trimester. Um, heartburn or difficulty eating big meals is another big one because your organs are just completely stuffed up. There's not a ton of room in there. The baby's growing. Um, so you might find that you can't eat as much as you could eat in the first or second trimesters. Um, because you just don't have the space. And if you eat too much, then you're getting really bad heartburn. Um, this is something that I definitely do experience, especially if I'm eating late at night or really large meals. So I just have had to kind of space out my meals more frequently and smaller amounts, and really try to minimize how much I'm eating late at night. Even liquids, like even just drinking water or tea late at night can make my stomach feel too full, which leads to heartburn and difficulty sleeping. Um, movement is doable for the most part, but slower and a bit more awkward. So the third trimester, you're just going to be gaining weight. You're going to be seeing a whole lot more belly happening and, um, movements just going to start to slow down. You might notice that you're taking the stairs a little bit slower, or that you're not as quick to be able to hop out of bed in the morning. Um, if you're still working out, you might notice that you your transition time from exercise exercise is just slower. And that's okay. That's a natural part of this process. And you're going to need to just be mentally giving yourself some grace with this slow down. You also might be getting more winded easily depending on the position of the baby. So if you're carrying high, then you're probably going to notice that you are more winded. Um, and you're just having a hard time getting deep breaths in, especially if you're doing any sort of like aerobic activity or working out. Um, if you're carrying lower, you might not notice this as much. So me personally, I carry very low in my pregnancies. Um, so I have way more pelvic pain, but I don't have difficulty breathing, so it's kind of like, pick your poison. Um, if you do carry lower, you'll probably have less of an issue with the oxygen part. Um, you also, in the third trimester, have to be careful when it comes to your back. So when you're bending down and picking things up, when you're picking up heavy objects, when you're lifting things overhead, things like that, you are probably going to notice more of a strain in your low back or your belly. And you kind of have to see, okay, what's my limit here? What bothers me? And how can I, um, modify these movements? How can I ask for help when I need it? Um, this has been a big one for me because I have a £28 toddler that wants to be picked up a lot and carried around, and I've had to really learn my limits because on days when I do a lot of carrying her, then I notice my back pain is exponentially worse that evening. So, um, just be careful that you are not doing movements consistently and frequently that are aggravating your low back or your belly. And finally, you're going to be feeling the baby move a lot more and probably starting to notice some Braxton Hicks contractions. Um, these kind of feel like almost like period cramps and a tightening in your belly. So this is something that you'll potentially feel all the time randomly throughout the day, sometimes more so in the evening. I notice it more when I'm dehydrated or if I've been on my feet a lot. Um, and it's nothing to freak out about. As long as they're not progressing, they're usually just a little bit uncomfortable. But they're not like full on painful labor contractions. And when I was in my first pregnancy, I was always like, well, how do you know I haven't done this before? I don't know what labor contractions feel like. And the main thing I can tell you is that when you're really in labor, you're going to be feeling very in pain. You're going to know, okay, this is different than what I've been feeling. Um, and it's going to be a noticeable pain difference than Braxton Hicks. So it shouldn't. Braxton Hicks should never feel like you are having to, like, bare down and breathe through it. And it's like, oh my gosh, this is so painful. I feel like my insides are just absolutely getting demolished right now. Okay, so if you are feeling that sort of contraction where it's like you're timing them, they're frequent, they're really strong, they're progressing, then that's when you're getting into labor contraction territory. Okay, so let's get into some nutrition tips for the third trimester. So these are really just to optimize how you feel through the foods that you're eating. How we eat really affects our energy our nutrient density that we're getting on a daily basis, which will affect how we're feeling, um, our gut health, everything, and also the health of our baby at this particular time in life. So, um, here are some tips for how you can eat in the third trimester to feel your best. So one is getting enough lean protein. So things like chicken, turkey, lean beef, fish that's low in mercury. Ideally um, eggs, tofu, legumes, things like that. Um, protein is important for the growth and development of your baby's muscles and tissues, and it's going to be helpful for you to actually maintain your muscle mass. It can be really easy to lose muscle mass while you're pregnant or postpartum, especially because you have to take six weeks off of working out in the first few months postpartum and you're breastfeeding potentially, which can also lead to fast muscle loss because your body is expending tons of calories. So there's just a lot of good reason to try to maintain as much muscle as possible. And eating enough protein is like half of that equation. Making sure you're doing weight bearing activities would be the other half. Number two is eating leafy greens and vegetables, so things like spinach, kale, broccoli, and brussel sprouts. These are rich in folate, iron and calcium, which are crucial for the baby's development and your own health in preventing anemia. So these are really great foods to be having. You can have them raw, but I would say from a gut standpoint and being able to not upset your stomach, having them cooked might be a better option, especially things like brussel sprouts and broccoli. You're probably gonna want to cook so that you can get the most out of those foods without having GI distress. Number three is whole grains. So things like oats, brown rice, quinoa or whole wheat bread, whole grains are going to provide good fiber to aid in digestion and prevent constipation, which is a common issue in pregnancy and also helps with sustained energy. When we're eating whole grain type of carbohydrates, lower glycemic carbohydrates, we're going to have more sustained energy than if we're just having like really highly processed, super sugary carbs. Um, but the constipation is real. So make sure that you are getting your fiber. General rule of thumb for women is about 35 to 50g of fiber per day. Um, a lot of women are not getting enough fiber, so whole grains and berries are a great place to start for getting your fiber intake up, especially if you are constipated. If that has been a symptom for you during pregnancy, that's definitely something to focus on. Number four is dairy or calcium rich alternatives. So things like milk, yogurt, cheese or fortified plant based milk. Um, you could also go almond or soy root. And why? Because calcium is essential for the development of your baby's bones and teeth, and it also helps maintain your bone density and health as well as your oral health. Um, I did not know this in my first pregnancy, and my calcium was so depleted that I ended up with tons of cavities after my first pregnancy, and I was shocked because I take really good care of my teeth. I use an electric toothbrush. I floss every day, I use fluoride, all these different things that should help prevent cavities. And I don't eat a lot of the things or drink a lot of the things that typically contribute to cavities. So I was really, honestly shocked and very discouraged. And they said, you know, this is super common for women who have gone through pregnancy, especially if you're not taking a calcium supplement or eating enough calcium because your minerals are just getting stripped and distributed to the baby during that time. So make sure that you are eating and drinking your calcium, as well as potentially even taking a supplement. I've been doing that this time through with this pregnancy, because I am so determined to not have tons of cavities this time around. Um, so make sure you're paying attention to your calcium intake. Um, number five is healthy fats. So things like avocados, nuts, seeds, olive oil, fatty fish like salmon, which is rich in omega threes. Um, these healthy fats are going to support, um, brain development and help your body absorb essential vitamins. So we absorb, um, the nutrients from our food better when we have good quality fats in our diet. Super important because what's the point of eating all these nutrient dense foods if we're not actually able to absorb them properly? Okay. Number six is berries and fruits. So things like strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, oranges, apples, bananas you get the picture. All the fruits y. They're super rich in vitamins, especially vitamin C, antioxidants and fiber. And they're going to help boost your immune system and improve digestion. Um, your immune system is naturally going to be a little bit weaker when you are pregnant. So you're more prone to illness, which is super frustrating because you're already dealing with so much. Um, so the more you can support your immune system, the better. And also, as I mentioned before, berries and fruit are really great sources of fiber, which is going to help with your overall gut health and digestion. Number seven legumes such as lentils, beans or chickpeas. They are packed with fiber, iron and protein, and legumes are a great plant based option for keeping energy levels up and supporting blood health. So if you are someone who has been like having major meat ick during your pregnancy, which is a very real thing, uh, maybe you just have like aversions to a lot of different types of protein that you normally would eat, like eggs or chicken or whatever it is. Um, then make sure you're getting some legumes and these are going to be a great source of both protein and fiber at the same time. Number eight water rich foods such as cucumbers, watermelon, celery or oranges. Um, basically you're just kind of killing two birds with one stone. You're getting great form of hydration, which is going to be really crucial for reducing swelling, supporting amniotic fluid levels and preventing dehydration overall in your pregnancy. Um, so making sure you're getting enough water in general, but also having some water rich foods helps to. Nuts and seeds is number nine. So things like almonds, chia seeds, flax seeds and sunflower seeds these are high and healthy fats, fiber and protein. They also provide a great source of magnesium, which supports muscle and nerve function as well as de-stressing and allowing you to relax in the evening. Magnesium is a really great before bed, especially if you are struggling with insomnia or having a hard time sleeping. Number ten iron rich foods. Things like red meat, fortified cereals, spinach, beans and lentils are great sources of iron, and iron is crucial to prevent anemia and ensure that your body can transport oxygen to both you and your baby. Similarly to calcium, iron levels can be lower when you are pregnant. Just because your your baby is getting a lot of your iron, so making sure that you are testing iron levels. So that's something that you can ask your doctor about. This was something that I found out during this pregnancy that I was just slightly on edge of low iron, because I have had a lot of meat aversions. So things that I typically eat a lot of, I haven't really wanted to to eat that much. So I started taking an iron supplement. So it's just helpful to know. But if you are able to eat some of these iron rich foods that I mentioned, then great, you're probably going to be a okay in the iron category. Number 11. Sweet potatoes and squash. These are foods that are rich in beta carotene vitamin A, which is important for your baby's eye and skin development. Fun fact so the things that we are eating are directly translating to how our baby is developing and their health, which is pretty cool. Um, so a couple tips from the nutrition side. Frequent small meals. So due to the limited space in the stomach as the baby grows, eating in smaller meals more often will probably help reduce heartburn and indigestion. As I mentioned before, especially if you are suffering with that, then you're going to want to just have smaller, more frequent meals from this point forward, avoiding caffeine and limiting sugar so small amounts of caffeine may be fine, but obviously excessive consumption can affect your baby's development and sleep patterns. You've probably been doing this from day one. It just makes sure that you're still continuing to be mindful of your caffeine intake and then watching sodium. So especially if you're experiencing a lot of excessive swelling, keeping your salt intake in check, focusing on, um, natural foods, foods that aren't going to just like jack up your sodium intake big time, especially if you're eating out. It's harder to control that. So eating at home as much as you can, cooking and trying to eat less processed things that are just going to be super high in sodium. All right. Let's move forward to the fitness side of things. So if you are in your third trimester or you're about to enter your third trimester, here are some general tips and notes for the fitness intensity of your workouts is going to decrease. Won't want. It's just the reality. This is how it goes. It's hard for me to mentally right now. I feel, um, not my best in the gym. Just to be totally honest. I'm still trying. I'm still showing up. But you're going to have to slow down a little bit so this can look like more rest time during your workouts. So you complete an exercise and you're probably a little more winded than normal, and you just have to sit down on the bench and chill for two minutes until you go into your next set. Totally normal and really beneficial to make sure your heart rate's not getting too high. Um, just overall, keeping that intensity a little bit lower is going to help you have more consistent and positive workout interactions where you don't feel totally gassed and like crap afterward. You're not having tons of body aches or feeling nervous about, like, did I overdo it? Number two is mainly focusing on muscle maintenance during this time. Okay, so as you prep for postpartum and breastfeeding, muscle maintenance should be your main goal kind of from here on out and through the beginning of postpartum. So slower resistance training is going to be the key for those not doing tons of fast paced cardio or hit or things like that that are going to be really hard and not comfortable to do right now anyways for many, many reasons. But slower resistance training is going to really help you maintain that muscle mass as you head into this next season where you can't do any lifting for a while and your workouts are going to be inconsistent, because even once you get the green light to exercise again postpartum, you have a newborn that you're taking care of. So it's really helpful to go into that season with as much muscle as possible. Slow resistance training should be kind of your main go to form of exercise with some walking, maybe some Pilates or yoga things that are gentle. Um, so I like doing this in the form of dumbbells, bands, cables, treks. All of this helps keep the load on my joints a little bit lighter, but still provide a challenging resistance for my muscles. So right now I'm doing a lot less barbell lifting just because it feels a little bit safer to me. I don't worry about injuring my back or hurting my joints. Um, number three is that you may need to scale back on some single leg movements, particularly hinge work. So that would be like any form of deadlifting where you're hinging at the waist and you're kind of putting your low back in a position where it could potentially get injured if you're lifting too heavily without proper core support. And of course, when you're very pregnant, you're not going to have the same core support that you typically do. Also, your joints are looser to accommodate for everything moving around, so you're just not going to have the same stability that you normally do. So it's important to keep that in mind. Um, and so if you have been noticing some low back pain or twinges with single leg work or hinge work, then this might be a good time to mainly focus on doing things with both feet on the ground. Um, and just kind of like scaling back with the intensity there. Remember, the goal is maintenance. You're not trying to hit PRS right now. It's okay to modify number four. When in doubt, try to get walks in or prenatal yoga. Any form of gentle movement that feels good for your nervous system, feels good for your body, where you're able to still keep moving, but you're not doing anything crazy. That's going to send you into tons of Braxton Hicks or dehydrate you or, um, you know, cause any sort of discomfort, some movement is better than nothing for your mental and physical health. So just keep that in mind. Um, and one really awesome benefit of continuing to move, even in the form of walking during pregnancy is reduced risk of pregnancy complications. So studies have shown that regular physical activity, like walking has been shown to lower the risk of things like gestational diabetes, high blood pressure, and preeclampsia. So there are a lot of amazing benefits not only for your mental health, um, and your baby, but for your own personal health while you're pregnant. Um, hiking is also a great option for a gentle, steady state cardio. So if you. Love walking, but you kind of want a little bit more, a little bit more of a challenge, but nothing too crazy. Um, hiking is great for this because you're able to get a little bit more of, um, you know, your heart rate higher, more of a workout without it being hard on your joints necessarily. And, um, you can do this by just choosing trails that are about four miles or less. I really wouldn't recommend doing anything higher than that in your final trimester. Um, and not exceeding about 1000ft in gain. Um, and you want to stay below about 12,000ft elevation. If you are living in a high altitude state, then you do need to take that into consideration. Um, also be mindful to not go too far off the beaten path. So choosing trails where you are, um, potentially still in service, maybe bringing a friend with you instead of going by yourself, um, and just being, um, around people not too far from your hospital, things like that, just in case, especially as you do get further along in your pregnancy. You just don't want to find yourself in a bad position. Um, okay. And then our final fitness tip here is to avoid heavy barbell lifting if it's no longer feeling good or advised by your doctor. Um, another thing to avoid would be like sit up or crunch type of movements for your core. Um, you actually still can't do some core exercises, but you want to be choosy about which ones you're doing, anything where you're trying to sit up off of the floor or crunch off of the floor is going to just not feel good on your abs cause some coning. And it's not a positive experience when you are this pregnant. Um, any exercise when you feel excessive straining in your belly is a no go. So for me, I always have felt that when I'm pregnant with push ups, it's because I'm bracing so hard with my core and you just can't quite do that the same way when you are this pregnant. So if you notice anything like that where you're like, oh, that doesn't not feel good or that's very uncomfortable on my stomach, just skip it. It's better to err on the side of caution. Also, a quick note when you are working out, when you're getting up from a line position. So say you're doing like chest flys or chest press on your back or on a bench, whatever that is. You're going to want to roll to the side before initiating an upward sitting movement, because we don't want to do that direct sit up movement. This is going to help us avoid coning in the abdomen, which can lead to Stacy's recti. Okay, so, um, it's harder to do on a bench. Therefore, I would recommend if you don't have somebody who can help you roll to the side from a bench and kind of help you up from that position, then do all of your line on your back work from the floor instead. So you do have the space to roll to your side and then get up from that position. Okay. Finally let's talk about stress management because this is really important always in life. But especially when you are pregnant and growing a human inside your body. Um, stress affects hormone levels, which can impact fetal development, early labor, and blood pressure. It can also exacerbate negative symptoms or conditions, cause sleep disturbances or gut issues. So it's going to affect a lot of different areas. It also affects placental health and blood flow to the placenta overall. So it's really important to be mindful of your stress during pregnancy. Um and have some positive coping mechanisms because yes, we'd all love to just like sit around and have this very gentle and stress free pregnancy experience. But for most of us, that's not realistic. A lot of us are going to be working right up until having the baby. Maybe you're chasing around other kids. I know for me, in the second pregnancy, it's been quite a different experience because I am chasing around a two and a half year old and there is no chill. There's not downtime. I don't get to nap. I don't get to have all this zen time to focus on de-stressing like I could in my first pregnancy. So it's important to have coping mechanisms to help you bring stress down, especially when you're noticing that you're just in this heightened state for a while. So a couple of things you can do deep breathing exercises, especially in nature. So I do this by doing, um, deep breaths on my walks. So I try as often as I can, especially with the weather right now to get outside for my walks alone, even if it's just for like ten minutes. And while I'm doing that, I'm trying not to look at my phone or have other distractions, and I take deep breaths. Um. So big, deep breaths in through the nose and then out through the mouth where I'm really trying to do diaphragmatic breathing. I get my nervous system into a calm state. Another thing you can do is silent walks. Um, silent walks. It sounds kind of silly, like, um. Well, yeah. Aren't all walks silent? But the reality is that a lot of us are listening to things like music or podcasts or we're talking on the phone, or we're multitasking, or we're scrolling our phone, there's some sort of stimuli happening. Um, so Silent Walks is really just trying to be mindful of being present. You can still take those deep breaths during your silent walks. It usually will work better that way if you don't have all the distractions. Maybe not bringing your phone or just putting your phone on silent, um, or a walk with a loved one. So if if that works better with your day, then having some conversation with a loved one, getting to get some dopamine from being with somebody that you care about, maybe holding hands with a significant other as you go for a walk, um, things like that will really help calm your nervous system. Um, exercise. Obviously a really great form of stress relief. Prenatal yoga, just gentle prenatal style yoga classes. You can find some on YouTube, too. Um, this is a great thing to do. Bonus points if you do it outside. If you live somewhere where you can do that, um, amazing. Then you're going to hear some nature sounds. You're going to get the fresh air. You're going to get the sun. So many positive benefits. And then doing your best to rest enough. Um, obviously this is going to be dependent on a lot of different factors, and it's always easier said than done. Right? But having a good nighttime routine with self care and eliminating stimuli around your bedtime will make a difference. Um, so making sure that you are having a few rituals in the evening that help you wind down, eliminating harsh overhead lighting, eliminating screen time. Um, trying not to just doom scroll your way into into sleep. Maybe putting your phone down and off to the side, out of sight, out of mind for the last hour, or wearing blue light blocking glasses. If you are looking at screens leading into bedtime, having some sort of rituals that help your body know, like, okay, I'm winding down and I'm relaxing my nervous system and I'm prepping for bed. Um, that is really important for getting good quality sleep. And yes, your sleep is going to probably be a struggle best in the third trimester, but everything that you can do to help it be as good as humanly possible sleepy time teas, magnesium before bed, things like that really does add up. Okay, so have a few things that you can do in the evening to help set yourself up for a successful evening so that you get as good a quality sleep as you possibly can. All right, you guys, I hope that you have enjoyed this conversation around the third trimester and how to keep kicking, but staying active. Feel your best, both physically and mentally. I know that the mental side can be a roller coaster. When you are pregnant, you don't necessarily feel your best physically or you know, seeing the changes in the mirror can be really hard. Um, but you are in the home stretch and taking care of yourself is never in vain. You will be so happy when you are on the other side of this that you did not just throw in the towel with your health, um, throughout your entire pregnancy and postpartum. Like, this is such a great way to stay grounded and to maintain such an important part of yourself as you are pouring into the cup of your baby and starting your journey in motherhood. Um, it's so important to have these standards for yourself to say, no, I'm not just going to give up on all of my self-care and health practices because I am becoming a mom. It's actually just as, if not more important now, because I have to be my best self to raise other humans. And you cannot do that if your cup is empty and if you feel like crap about yourself mentally and physically. Um, I can definitely say from doing this one time already that working out, continuing to eat healthy, having self-care practices for myself, stress management, all of this absolutely makes a difference. When you transition to postpartum, um, in your mental health and your physical health and, and how you feel on the kind of like the bounce back part of all of this. So I hope that this is helpful. If you guys have questions about any of this or want to have a conversation, you can send us a message at the Fit Underscore for Hiking Instagram page. We'd love to chat with you there. Um, thank you so much for tuning in today and I will chat with you. And thanks for tuning in to this episode of the fit for hiking podcast. As always, I hope it leaves you feeling inspired and informed on how to take your health and adventure into your own hands. For more content like this, be sure to follow along with my daily posts at Ponytail Underscore. On a trail that's ponytail underscore on a trail. You can also stay up to date on my new episodes being released at Fit Underscore for hiking, and find more free resources at Pony Tail on a trail.com. Happy and healthy trails.