Getting Fit before TTC?

[deductivemom]

I now have 11 months to go before TTC, and I am trying to do a little something every week to help get myself prepared for pregnancy and parenthood. This week, I challenged myself to start taking the stairs whenever I had a chance, as part of my overall plan to lose weight and get fit preconception. I'll plan to keep that up and add new things for until the countdown ends next August.

Any tips and suggestions for fitness preparation? What did you do that worked or not? Has anyone found that being more fit before TTC or pregnancy was a big benefit?

 

[CMarie]

Love this post! My wait is quite a bit longer than yours, but the main reason DH & I are wtt is because I want to lose a bit of weight. It's suppose to make labor & getting back in shape after baby a lot easier, and it's suppose to just make your whole pregnancy go more smoothly. Work on your core strength (so crunches, etc) & cardio the most, but don't start a work out regime that you won't stick to during pregnancy. I've heard many times it's even a good idea to do some workouts that are recommended during pregnancy (like swimming) before you try to get pregnant Best of luck!

 

[deductivemom]

Love this post! My wait is quite a bit longer than yours, but the main reason DH & I are wtt is because I want to lose a bit of weight. It's suppose to make labor & getting back in shape after baby a lot easier, and it's suppose to just make your whole pregnancy go more smoothly. Work on your core strength (so crunches, etc) & cardio the most, but don't start a work out regime that you won't stick to during pregnancy. I've heard many times it's even a good idea to do some workouts that are recommended during pregnancy (like swimming) before you try to get pregnant Best of luck!

Thanks for the suggestions! Adding pregnancy-friendly workouts early is a great idea. The one that really appeals to me is prenatal yoga, so I am planning to add that to my regime (as well as more walking--currently I'm an elliptical fan) a few months down the road. The main reason I don't start now is because of suspicions from family and friends They already know I'm very eager to have a family...who knows what they would think if I take up prenatal yoga!

 

[Mrs Eleflump]

I'm going to look at bikes today, and maybe even buy one if there is one I like enough! I don't think I'll be cycling to work (roads too busy and dangerous, seen far too many close shaves with drivers and cyclists) but for evenings/weekends, I want to cycle as much as possible, and will be getting an adaptor for the rear wheel so that the bike can be used inside as a stationary bike when the weather's horrible, so I have no excuse.

Hubby cycles to work every day (10 miles per day in all) and since he started doing that in April, he's lost over half a stone, just from that, and no real changes to his diet. How awesome is that?!

I used to run a lot, but high-impact exercise is a no-no for me now because of pain in my knees and feet. Even walking makes my feet really hurt Nevertheless I'm doing a 'fun run' in 2 weeks where it doesn't matter how much of it I actually run, and I'm really looking forward to it. You get covered in paint on the way round, so I'm hoping that and my friends' company will take my mind off any pain I'm in!

It will have the added bonus of beng able to really explore the area where I live much better than I have already, which will be great when we have LOs, as we will know so many more places to take them.

 

[angiepie]

4 months to go for me. I started going to the gym in February. I do cardio and weights. I go 4x a week. If I skip a day I will usually go for a walk or run. I also do lots of walking for work (I'm a nanny).

I would love to get a bike and to do yoga but no money/time. I will do yoga when I'm preg though, and possibly belly dancing.

My advice is to find something you really like. I used to hate exercise but after a few weeks at the gym and knowing how to use the machines, I grew to like it. Now it's a well formed habit. If you get bored, find something else. I got bored of just doing the aerobic machines, so I started lifting weights, doing my abs etc and have a nice mix of activities. If I don't feel like exercising, I don't push myself to. I don't want to hate it in the end. So I will either have that day off or just go for a walk.

 

[lozzy21]

Have a go at everything you listed and stick to the one you find fun! If you enjoy it your more likely to keep it up.

 

[Mrs HM]

When I was pregnant with my first LO, I was really unfit, developed SPD and piled on 3 stone. To help lose the weight and get fitter for ttc#2, I now run 3.5 miles every other day and do pilates twice a week.

If anything, I'd recommend Pilates to anyone thinking of having a baby help strengthen your core. I wasn't aware that I had a weak core and when I developed SPD at 10 weeks I could barely walk; and it just got worse as the weeks went by. The physio I was referred to said that there was nothing I could do until after the birth as my SPD was caused by weak core, but that if I didn't start practicing Pilates that next baby I'd probably end up on crutches or in a wheelchair as my core would be weaker still.

I was totally unaware that I'd have any issue like this, so I'd definitely recommend Pilates to prepare your body for carrying a baby.

 

[wombat1]

We've got about 8 months till my pill runs out and we NTNP. I want to get fitter and stronger anyway but know that it will also be great for when I'm pregnant and in labour to hopefully give myself as easy a time as possible. My partner and I go to the gym 4x a week and I mainly go on the weight machines trying to strengthen my arms, my stomach muscles and my back. My legs are already pretty strong from years of walking and cycling everywhere. I used to swim 2 kilometres once a week and want to start that up again as I always felt so lovely and stretched out afterwards, and it's definitely something I could keep up while pregnant. I'm hoping if I have a strong core the baby will just pop out when the time comes!