I know I haven’t shared much about my pregnancy up until this point, but it’s never too late to start! There’s been a lot going on (mainly moving across the country and caring for a toddler), and this pregnancy has been flying by. I’ve barely had time to sit and think about it or how I’ve been feeling.
It feels very different being pregnant with baby #2 when compared with baby #1 where everything was new, confusing, and also sometimes scary. Also when I was pregnant with Millie I was mainly unemployed since we had just moved to Portland, so aside from teaching a few fitness classes each week I had tons of time (too much time) to focus on every little ache and pain I was feeling.
Even though the time is flying by, I still want to document and share a bit about the experience. I’m a couple of weeks into the third trimester so today I’m looking back and recapping how the second trimester went. Here are some quick details.
Second Trimester Recap
Fitness
Even though my body feels quite large and quite slow, regular movement makes me feel so much better. If I don’t work out for a couple of days in a row my body feels stiff and extra uncomfortable. I’ve been trying to work out every other day and it’s a combination of Peloton cycling workouts and strength workouts, plus some workouts from the Expecting & Empowered workout guide.
I’m going to share a lot more about the Peloton experience when pregnant. I’m so glad to have a way to do cardio at home since I’m not a fan of running while pregnant. I’ve been consistently cycling during the entire pregnancy and though my numbers continue to decline each week, it still feels so great to move my body and work up a sweat.
Body & Weight Gain
I’ve come to terms with the fact that during pregnancy I get pretty large. With Millie I gained around 40-45 pounds. I’m 5’2 so that’s a lot of weight on someone my size. Even though I exercise and eat relatively healthy, I seem to gain a lot of weight during pregnancy.
When I started this pregnancy I was really hoping not to gain 45 pounds, and though I still hope to taper off before I hit that point, I’m also OK if that’s how things end up. The body does what the body does. That being said, I am going to try to cut back on my sugar consumption because I’ve been going a little overboard in the cookie department the last few weeks. Even though my body feels big, it definitely feels mainly contained to my belly.
Clothing
I started wearing maternity clothing probably around 12 weeks with this pregnancy. It’s common for your bump to get much larger much faster following your first pregnancy, and I found this to be very true. Plus, since I had the maternity wear, I was happy to just be comfortable from the get-go. I haven’t worn jeans in quite a while and I’m enjoying my maternity leggings and joggers while working from home.
Discomforts
With my large bump, sleeping has become harder, though I use my pregnancy pillow system and that helps. I’ve had a few middle of the night wake ups where I end up being awake for a few hours at a time, which isn’t super fun but is common. I’ve had a few small heart burn and acid reflux attacks at night but it really has not been that bad (yet). I had terrible heart burn during my first pregnancy so fingers crossed it doesn’t get much worse (but I won’t be surprised if it does).
In general, I feel pretty good! With Millie I had a lot of back and side-rib pain. This time around I haven’t had much of that, and that’s even including all the time I spend carrying around a 19-month old. I’m really grateful to feel so good. Honestly aside from the enormous basketball in my belly, I feel pretty normal somehow.
Those are pretty much the highlights of where I’m at so far! If you have any questions about the second trimester or how to deal with certain aches and pain, drop them in the comments and I’ll share whatever helpful tips I can.
