tomorrow a new point of view…

wondering wednesday :: running while pregnant

is it safe to run while pregnant?

i am not a doctor. but i know a few. and from what i have read and heard, it seems to be safe to run while pregnant. well, at least for me. you have to take in consideration each person’s body and pregnancy. they are all very different and hold their own set of strengths and challenges. since i had been running for a while, (i ran the chicago marathon weeks if not days before getting pregnant) my doctor gave me the ok to continue running. you should NOT begin a running program if you have not ran before. that would be silly.

but, pregnancy running is way different. i don’t know if you can call it running. it is more like waddling. your center of gravity is skewed, you feel yourself leaning forward instead of upright, and your balance is off. so, it takes more thought and concentration than normal. also, it is important to listen to your body and watch for unusual pains or discomforts. i try to take walk breaks between familiar landmarks and regulate my breathing. since my body is producing so much more blood, i have noticed i am short of breath quicker. definitely something to pay attention to.

i just signed up for my 7th half marathon on april 30th, i should be around 28.5 weeks (about 7 months). this week has been the first week of training and i am working out about the same amount since the start of my pregnancy. i put myself on a walk/run modified schedule from fitness magazine. the workouts are very basic, and easy. obviously, i won’t be incorporating speed or tempo workouts.

i realized that my ever growing figure is uncomfortable in jasen’s workout clothes. so, i researched “maternity running clothes” and was happily surprised with what i found.

runningskirts.com had a variety of colors, choices and a maternity line. they are not super inexpensive, but the comfort of 8 training weeks should justify the splurge.

{i bought black, of course. big sprawling patterns does not seem like the most flattering choice, if you know what i mean.}

i found this video from their site. you should watch. it’s pretty amazing.