With my first son I was completely paranoid and didn't run at all in the first trimester of my pregnancy. I tried to find some sort of guidance on running while pregnant, I searched the Internet, Amazon, for something titled "Running while pregnant." Turns out, research was limited and running while pregnant to some was still considered a taboo.
So with a heavy heart I hung up my running shoes until the second trimester, thinking I would never forgive myself if something happened. Once I was in the second trimester and I was cleared by my dr. that I would not be a high risk pregnancy, I started to run again. Although I was slow, I felt amazing.
It seems that running while pregnant has often been frowned upon by those in the medical community, particularly those with the "old school" mentality that you are week and frail when you are pregnant, and you should do nothing to over exert yourself. Now I am not saying if you have never been a runner the minute you see the two pink lines you should lace up and run a marathon. My personal belief is that when you are pregnant, if you were a runner before, running is still a possibility. The good news is more evidence is coming out as time goes on to suport this theory.
Two months prior to finding out I was pregnant Running Magazine published an article on Paula Radcliffe and Kara Goucher and how they both trained through their pregnancies. The article was very candid and explored the challenges they faced while continuing to train while pregnant. They both talked about how they just listened to their bodies and how they tailored their training program to the way they felt. They also expressed the freedom they felt no longer running to be competitive, but to maintain their fitness levels. I was ecstatic to read about these female athletes publicly speaking about their experiences openly and both had healthy babies. It let people know that running while pregnant can actually be done.
Now I know I am no Olympic athlete, and I don't have an underwater treadmill, but I wanted to BLOG about this pregnancy and running while pregnant to let other runners know that becoming pregnant is not a nine month death sentence. I am not a dr., so none of this should be taken as medical advice. I am just your average runner, addicted to the sport and looking to prove that I can run through this pregnancy and have a healthy beautiful baby!
