We're closing in on our last one or two pre-natal Bumpdates! The little one is technically due in 3 days but I guess we'll see what happens!
PSA:
Given this may potentially be the last pre-natal post I just wanted to take some time to reiterate something I should have probably said more often throughout these last few months. This bumpdate is in no way meant to be copied or held to a gold standard. This is what worked (and sometimes didn't work) for me. Each and every pregnancy is very different and depends on many factors, most of which are completely out of our control. These factors will then determine the way you train, the way you move, your appetite, your mood, and your sleep, and will ultimately determine how you experience pregnancy. My pre-pregnancy activity levels, my medical, and my mental health history determined how I was able to spend the past 9 months. My history and my experience will be very different to the person beside me. Some women find they can be much more active during pregnancy and others much less. All I wanted to show you over the past few months is that staying active throughout pregnancy is possible. There are numerous benefits to staying active and maintaining a healthy lifestyle during pregnancy but the most important thing to do over the 9 months is to listen to your body and listen to your doctor.
I chose not to disclose my exact weight gain or the exact foods I ate over the past 9 months for the same reason. The weight gained during pregnancy depends on many factors and I feel as though focussing on the numbers on the scale is not conducive to a healthy pregnancy. I only weighed myself when I was at my doctor's appointments. I kept track out of interest but paid it no attention, I ate when I was hungry and I didn't eat if I wasn't hungry. I only followed a plant-based diet because that was the diet I followed before I became pregnant and my doctor told me it was a diet I could continue throughout pregnancy. I do not feel as though me disclosing the exact foods I ate or the weight I've gained benefits any readers though so I've opted to keep that to myself.
I want to thank you all for following the journey so far but please don't think my experience is the only way to be pregnant - it's far from it. There is no perfect way to spend these 9 months, all I can say is listen to your body, listen to your little one, listen to your doctor :)
I appreciate all the love and all the questions I've received but please remember these posts are in no way meant to be imitated.
With that, I'll get to a brief summary of the week:
- Our siblings came out of quarantine on Thursday which meant that the week leading up to their release was rather busy!
- My maternity leave officially started at 6:01pm on Wednesday evening.
- We saw the midwife on Friday for potentially the last time before Fudge is earth-side!
Training
Knowing that our siblings were being jail sprung on Thursday meant I wanted to try and get 2 weight sessions in before then. I was successful on Monday and somewhat successful on Wednesday. For the first time in a long time I averaged more than 12k steps per day for the whole week!
Monday
Started off the week with a GLORIOUS 90min walk in the cool sun. I just strolled aimlessly and eventually found myself at the studio with 90min to spare before my first client. My legs were already pretty tired and I'd trained yesterday so I took it easy:
3 sets:
A1. 15 Banded No Moneys
A2. 10 Shoulder Dislocations
B1. 10 Incline Bench Presses
B2. 12 Seated Banded Rows
C1. 8 Seated Arnold Presses*
C2. 12 Standing T Pulls
*I changed this to a standing Arnold press for the last set as Fudge wasn't too impressed with the seated version.
20 min stretch
Tuesday
T8 today :( It was maybe the most uneventful, non-T8 I've ever experienced but I also decided it wasn't worth the risk of going in. If I'd gone in, the storm would have actually turned out to be very bad and Fudge would have decided today was the day she'd want to make an appearance. BUT, because I didn't go in there was no storm at all and Fudge stayed perfectly content. Luckily my building has a gym so I downloaded a documentary onto my phone and went downstairs for 90min stroll while I watched it.
Spent the rest of the day either being pretty bored (if I'm honest) and doing some admin.
At 4pm Jack and I went for a 45min stroll, mostly just to get him out of the house!
Wednesday
Felt nauseated when I woke up so I had a small snack to see if it would help. It did somewhat. Jack and I then had a breakfast date but I only ate half my meal because I wasn't super feeling great.
I had 3 hours to kill before my first client so I went into the studio to sit and oversee a bit of renovation work before deciding to try an anti-nausea strategy I adopted in the few days of first trimester nausea: I attempted to train. In the first trimester it made me feel a lot better so I thought I'd give it a go.
I wouldn't say it made me feel better but it definitely didn't make me feel worse and it did take my mind off of it!
3 sets:
A1. 15 Standing Single Leg Fire Hydrants to Kickbacks
A2. 12 Bent Over Reverse Flyes
B1. Kettlebell Flow: 6 x Bent Over Row, Clean, Squat, Overhead Presses
B2. 10 Bent Over Y Raises
C1. 8 Bird Dogs
C2. 30s Poloff Isometric Holds
Once I stopped training I did feel worse so I decided the best way to combat the nausea today was to keep moving. Fine with me! In the afternoon I had a 2 hour break between clients so I went for a stroll.
By the time the evening came around I was too tired to do anything other than lie down and chill - which felt great!
Thursday
Sibling freedom day!
After a 10.5 month hiatus all of us were reunited and it made all our hearts happy :) Nothing else today mattered! We strolled, we chatted, we laughed, and we ate. We also celebrated Canadian Thanksgiving today (it was on Monday but we delayed it) which meant the second half of the day was dedicated to preparing food for a FEAST.
Friday
I'd clocked almost 17k steps yesterday so opted to have a quiet morning with my sister. We dog-sat for our parents and chatted for 4 hours.
In the afternoon Jack and I had our last appointment with Michelle where we chatted about about induction (generally consensus is let's just see how we get on for the next week) and then we got back to our strolling ways. We spent the better part of 6 hours walking everywhere between Wan Chai and Central, eventually ending the evening with a movie (Tenet) at Pacific Place.
Saturday
After 2 days of clocking 15k+ steps I needed a day to not do much. Today was that day. We started the morning off watching a few Yotam Ottolenghi MasterClass videos which was a wonderful mistake as it meant that by noon I was at the grocery store with my mum buying ingredients for a middle eastern veggie feast for dinner.
We started food prep at about 2:30/3pm and sat down to a 4 hour dinner at 6:30.
The 6 of us literally spent the entire day watching food videos, buying food, and prepping food. A day well spent!
Sunday
Needed to take a (last/second last/third last) bumps photo today so Jack and I popped into the studio in the morning to train. I wasn't really feeling in the mood to train and wasn't feeling super great but I knew I wanted to do some form of moving. I took it slowly and definitely took it easy.
3 sets:
A1. 12 Tempo Goblet Squats
A2. 12 Bent Over Single Arm Rows
A3. 15 Woodchops
B1. 10 Single Leg Hip Thrusts
B2. 10 Kettlebell Bottoms Up Presses
B3. 15 Reverse Woodchops
30 min stretch
Spent the afternoon doing a bit of strolling and relaxing.
Life in General
Now is the time in pregnancy where my mind is convinced everything new is a pre-labour sign. In reality, 50% of it isn't but my mind is convinced it is. Things I know for sure:
- Monday and Tuesday there was a noticeable increase in pressure in my pelvis and I think I lost parts (if not all and just didn't realise) of my mucus plug on both days
- Tuesday, Wednesday, and Sunday I was definitely nauseated
- Friday evening I experienced cramps in my left glute on and off for about 30min which wasn't painful but was incredibly annoying. The only way to get it to stop was to sit down.
- My lower back was also more sore in the evenings on most nights during the week
- Fudge was a little quieter on Saturday which is also a pre-labour sign but she was more active on Sunday which negated that
At the check-up on Friday there were a few anomalies but the our midwife was very quick to reassure us and tell us not to worry about anything unless I experienced other associated symptoms (none of which applied):
- my blood pressure was slightly higher than normal.
- my urine sample came back with a very slightly elevated level of white blood cells which is a sign of infection. However with no other symptoms of anything I was told just to continue on with life but be mindful of a few potential associated symptoms which I'd need to call in and see a doctor about if I did experience.
- my weight has also come down compared to last week. While I'm aware this is a potential pre-labour sign, I'm also very aware that I don't get weighed in the same condition (ie. some days I get weighed after 2 meals and others after only 1) or at the same time of day every time I go in. The weight loss was SO small (only 200g) so it was probably just due to these factors more than a pre-labour sign.
Other than that, I didn't expect to have any energy in the last few weeks and I'm pleasantly surprised that I do have some! I'm very aware that labour is imminent though and as much as I'd love to continue walking 15-20k steps per day I do also know I need to conserve some energy!
The nerves haven't set in yet which I also think is great but I do know they will set in at some point. I'm pretty interested to see how I handle the whole labour thing on a mental front - I guess I'll find out soon enough!
If we make it to Wednesday next week I am going in for a membrane sweep which is both exciting but also slightly daunting. If we make it to Sunday next week, I'll speak to you all then!
I will continue with the bumpdates through until the end of the 4th trimester (the 3 months immediately post-birth) but if Fudge makes an appearance on Friday/Saturday I can't promise a post on Sunday. I'll keep you posted though!
Until then, have a fabulous week and enjoy the glorious weather!