Trimester Two
Supposedly the
best part of pregnancy… and looking back over the last 14 weeks from my 1 week
in the 3rd trimester I would agree… Although the good parts all seem
to have been condensed into about 4-6 weeks at most… so I have come out the other
end feeling a little shortchanged!
Finally the
dreaded nausea cleared up around the 4 and ½ to 5-month mark. I had been
hanging out since day one of week 13 for it to finish as all the pregnancy week
by week readings online said that was its due by date for most and I desperately
didn’t want to be one of the unlucky percentage that had it all through the pregnancy!!
Eventually I got
sick of actively willing it to pass and at that point almost over night
it did and with its disappearance the tiredness started to ease and then just like that I woke up one day and felt almost my normal self. I of course had a baby bump and it was
growing rather rapidly but it was still in that relatively comfortable stage
and I felt like a new person… Nausea free J
Weirdly running
and swimming felt a lot more comfortable despite my bump been bigger and I felt
really pretty agile, active and energetic and if I didn’t look at my Garmin to
see how slow I was running I could almost feel like a fit athlete again!
At 21 weeks with
an all clear from the 20-week anatomy scan, Marc and I headed off on a delayed honeymoon
and had the best holiday ever!
To be honest it
was the first time since I was 21 that I was heading out overseas on an actual
holiday and not with my bike or running shoes in toe to a training or racing
trip!
I did struggle
at first been at a beach and in a beautiful tropical place getting into a bikini
or wearing summer clothes when I was still trying to comes to terms wit the
massive changes that were happening to my body shape and trying to find some
confidence within those changes. But I think been away and taking that time out
from the normal stressors of my day to day life really helped me take the time
to come to terms with my pregnancy and the changes that I was going through
both physically and career wise as well.
I was able to
run, walk, swim and play in the water and be so active despite what my
body was going through and although it didn’t suddenly turn me into a glowing
pregnant mum to be… it just helped me accept the changes I was been confronted
with and be happy where I was.
Plus a good
suntan always helps one feel happier in them selves in any situation J!!
Once back in NZ,
I was still loving and enjoying some decent running, swimming and strength
sessions. I was using the swimming to get the HR up and push myself where as
the runs were slowing and were harder work and I was enjoying them but was
having to take breaks along the way on the longer ones and every now and then
walk up the steeper hills so I could catch my breath. Whereas in the pool I was
not swimming to far off my normal training times, the running was quite a bit
slower and my strength on the hills fading.
I however still
loved been out there and running. That is until at 26 weeks 3mins into a 1hr 30min
trail run I rolled my ankle and just like that the golden phase of the second
trimester was over and so was my running. I of course thought it was fine and
kept running for a bit (30mins to be exact) but I was wrong and the result was a very slow, painful hobble back through the bush to the car and three torn ligaments
- laterally, medially and in the spring ligament along with some possible
medial bone damage.
So there it was
I was stopping running at 26 weeks, roughly about 10-12 weeks earlier then I
thought I would need too…
Of course it was only a projected 7-8 weeks
off running with the extent of the damage and then a return to run program but
it didn’t take long to do the calculations in my head and wonder at what state
my ever growing belly would be at 34 weeks and would I really be able to get
back into much running at that time…
Injuries are
tough – I should know I have had my fair share of them, over the years, but
What I didn’t realize was at this stage in my pregnancy my running and my
exercise was my form of nesting
I was using my
running as my outlet for my emotions and anxieties or at least my means of
managing them. In amongst the beautiful trails and with the ever familiar
movement of my body it was my sense of normality amongst all the changes my
body was experiencing. Even though it felt far from my normal running pre pregnancy
it was still my home and my sense of relief and where I felt most myself.
I was coping
best here while I ran. I was already on some level nervous of how life could
change once the baby arrived and how much access to this running home and freedom
I would have so I was nesting and doing this as much as I could, and suddenly
way to early I couldn’t.
I suddenly felt
very left out or left behind from my normal life. I had already dealt with some
massive changes with the pregnancy but these runs were my way of dealing with
those changes. I was expecting at some point in the pregnancy to have to stop
running but the reality of stopping so much earlier then I planned was a big
curve ball to deal with and left me feeling quite lost.
So yet again in
this pregnancy I have been confronted with some big personal challenges and
sometimes this has been pretty tough. But as with in all life’s tough situations
we just find a way to get on with things, and so that’s what I have been doing.
The reality is
my baby and I are still really healthy and although I may not be as fit as I
want to be and I am missing something I love in my life- Life is still really
good.
Green Chia Bowls were the Hawaiian lunch staple
The compulsory post run beach swim!!
The baby Bump and Me :)
Nice baby bump!
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