Any weight lifting pregnant mamas out there?

[mama in the forest]

Probably sounds a little bizarre to some, but I love it and thought I'd see if there's anyone else here that loves to work out & lift weights/circuit train. :

[stealthmode]

Well, I'm not much of a weight lifter, but I finally got around to starting a weight routine last night! I used to do a LOT more of it, but that was over a year ago. It felt good to do something that made me feel strong instead of tired and weak, which is how I've been feeling the last three months.

I am using a really nice new Bowflex machine, and I like that it forces me to use stabilizing muscles, unlike a lot of normal machines. I'm a little nervous to try free weights at this point.

[ColwynsMommy]

I don't know that I would consider myself a weight lifting mama, but I do the full circuit of Nautilus machines three times a week.. it's my favorite part of working out. I also do some triceps stuff with free weights, and some core exercises with the exercise ball.

[lifeguard]

I was really into weight lifting (powerlifting) before I got pregnant. I lifted throughout my pregnancy but feel I backed off too much too soon. The info out there is ridiculously simplisitc & uninformative when it comes to serious weight lifting & pregnancy. Good luck!!

[mama in the forest]

I'm so glad to see everyone here!

My gym carries the Cybex machines, so that's what I use. I'm not any kind of serious weight lifter....not compared to some of the ladies I see at the gym. But, I do go 3-4 times a week and like you said CM, it's my favorite part of working out. I do some walking & elyptical machines too, but it's like fighting a losing cardio battle for me as my pregnancy progresses. The Cybex machines are what keep me going. I love feeling strong and I can keep that up till the end!

lifeguard - how much have you backed off? Or, do you mean you did that with your babe already born?

There are a few machines I don't do....the leg press for one. I find that it puts too much pressure on my abdomen, and I can do the other machine (i forget what it's called) where I extend my legs out & it works the same muscles without ab strain. I do one leg at a time to minimize any strain.

I also don't do the ab machines or the back machines. Just me. I don't want to strain anything or pull a muscle there. Pregnancy's hard enough!

[stealthmode]

mama in the forest, I wonder about ab strain and weight lifting as well. I recently read somewhere that it is good to build ab strength throughout pregnancy, but I wonder how to do that safely? Supposedly those muscles are helpful in labor, but since I haven't yet given birth, I don't know how true that is! It certainly seems to make sense.

Leg press is one of my favorite exercises to do, so I'm just trying to keep the weights lower and do more reps now.

[ColwynsMommy]

Originally Posted by mama in the forest

There are a few machines I don't do....the leg press for one. I find that it puts too much pressure on my abdomen, and I can do the other machine (i forget what it's called) where I extend my legs out & it works the same muscles without ab strain. I do one leg at a time to minimize any strain.

I also don't do the ab machines or the back machines. Just me. I don't want to strain anything or pull a muscle there. Pregnancy's hard enough!

With the leg press, can you just push the seat further back so your legs aren't pushing on your belly so much? Or am I misunderstanding the problem?

I had so much back pain after Fiona was born that when I started my workout routine a few months ago, I really concentrated my effort into strengthening my core. I think it's weird to do situps and stuff while pregnant, but I'd like to keep working on strengthening my core as much as I can, hopefully to avoid that back pain. I haven't had a problem with the back machines.. I love the lat pulldown one.

For me, I tend to lose a significant amount of weight while pregnant, and it usually worries my caregivers (though my uterus always measures fine, and the babies have been healthy weights at birth). I figure doing as much cardio as I had been before (1.5-2 hrs a day) is just asking for trouble. At least with the weights, I can get stronger and : maybe even focus some of that weight loss to my arms and thighs.

[lifeguard]

mama in the forest - I was referring to my pregnancy with ds. By the end I realized I could have/should have continued with harder workouts for longer. I really regret backing off too much too soon, it meant a lot more time to get back into my workouts afterwards. I was just nervous (it took us 6 years to conceive) & the info out there is so cautionary, geared towards the majority of women who do little to no working out prepregnancy.

The big thing I learned is that you would be hard pressed to hurt the baby (but avoid holding your breath to lift) so you really just need to be aware of your own limitations.

[lizziemomofalmost4]

I did a class at my gym called body pump for the whole pregnancy. I use pretty heavy weight - usually as much or more than the instructors and the men in the class. The last two months of pregnancy I backed my weight down some - still was doing as much or more than most other women in the class. Only modifications I made for form were putting my legs wider for squats and inclining my bench at an angle for chest press and tricep work.
I did the class 1-2 times a week in combination with other cardio and yoga. My last pregnant class was the day before I gave birth (39w5d) and I resumed at 2 weeks postpartum (after my OB ok'd it).
Keep up whatever you are doing - listen to your body, it will tell you when you need to slow down or stop. I was spinning a few times a week and knew I was done with that at 38 weeks - just couldn't keep up anymore and way too uncomfortable.
Good luck and enjoy being a fit pregnant mama.
BTW you will get lots of attention at the gym when you are huge and pregnant - I have quite a few more "gym friends" that I've made who inquired about my pregnancy. It's also a great way to plug natural birth when you return to working out. Everyone wondered how I was able to come back so quickly and I always reply, "One of many joys of a natural birth - quick recovery."

[MsVyky]

I was powerlifting before pregnancy!

I had to stop on doctor's orders (history of m/c), but I can't wait to get back into it PP. I'm not much into machines though, I use free wights 99% of the time.

[mama in the forest]

With the leg press, can you just push the seat further back so your legs aren't pushing on your belly so much? Or am I misunderstanding the problem?

You know, I might be able to give that a try. What seems to be my deal, is that I carry very low...everything is below my belly button, so it's uncomfortable for me to have my knees up at pretty much any level past sitting. I'm tall too...almost 6 feet tall so I have to put the seat back pretty far anyway. I might check it again...the last time I did a leg press was on my 4th pregnancy. Who knows if things might have changed?

figure doing as much cardio as I had been before (1.5-2 hrs a day) is just asking for trouble.

This is freakin awesome. I wish so much I could do that much! I kind of poop out at 40 minutes.

The big thing I learned is that you would be hard pressed to hurt the baby (but avoid holding your breath to lift) so you really just need to be aware of your own limitations.

So true!

lizzie ~ all I can say is

I use free wights 99% of the time.

I want to start switching over to free weights for upper body. I'm not fitting inside the tricepts machine very well anymore, and I have this feeling that free weights are better for arms anyway.

[MsVyky]

IMO, free weights are better for everything! You'll use more muscle groups as you stabilize your body during your reps (Especially in your core)

Plus I hate *waiting* for machines, I like to stay in my groove. Wish I had my own equipment at home, but I just don't have the room for it.

[mama in the forest]

MsVyKy - I think you're right!

CM, after yesterday at the gym I remembered the other reason I had issues with pulling on my abs...after 7 babies I have a really large ab muscle separation. When I have tried to do work on my abs, well, they do not pull together & work right like normal abs. I'm going to have to have them fixed surgically after this last baby.

So, any mamas wondering about core strength & ab work during pregnancy, don't listen to me!

How is everyone doing? How are you handling your reps & weight?....maintaining or increasing?

[MommyMad]

Originally Posted by MsVyky

I was powerlifting before pregnancy!

I had to stop on doctor's orders (history of m/c), but I can't wait to get back into it PP. I'm not much into machines though, I use free wights 99% of the time.

This is me too. At this point I consider going back to working out for these last few weeks, but I'm still afraid, so I think I'll wait it out.

For me, free weights is the way to go.

[stealthmode]

mama in the forest, I was also going to suggest tilting the seat back more too. When I first started with the leg press, my back was too upright and it was wayyy uncomfortable on my stomach. Leaning the seat back helped too (I also carry low).

So, I overdid it on calf raises the other day and my left calf was KILLING me for about 3 days...I'm so out of shape it makes me sad. Guess I better ease into it a little more.

[anjanetteopal]

Originally Posted by MsVyky

IMO, free weights are better for everything! You'll use more muscle groups as you stabilize your body during your reps (Especially in your core)

Plus I hate *waiting* for machines, I like to stay in my groove. Wish I had my own equipment at home, but I just don't have the room for it.

I was just doing research on this yesterday and read the good advice that while free weights are generally more effective when you aren't pregnant because of the free range of motion, they can be worse for pregnancy for the same reason. The relaxin in our bodies can make us susceptible to strain and injury and using machines with a limited range of motion can keep us from over-extending.

[mama in the forest]

stealthmode, have you recovered?

I'm only 22 weeks but sometimes on gym days...I am so completely wiped out that night. I work out around 7:30PM & get done after 9....when I get home I am DEAD. I am completely couch-bound after that. Anyone else?

[whoabethy]

i LOVE free weights, and it stands to reason that it would actually be safer than the machines. from what i understand, the machines are built for a really specific body size/shape and people who aren't that are more prone to injury. i am short (5'2") so the machines are generally not safe for me anyway.

while preparing to ttc i was lifting 3x/week and i really think that reduced the time it took for me to actually get pregnant.

i am of the belief that childbirth is an athletic event (similar to a marathon or triathlon) and therefore i need to kick up my training before race day. but seriously, i think being in good physical condition will help me.

my big concern about continuing weights (now that i am showing more) is other people's need to comment. i am a librarian and i lift and carry library books all day but my colleagues get on my case about it. i don't want to get into arguments at the gym with people who think i am being unsafe. has anyone dealt with this?

[sugareemoma]

Well I guess it's time I join this thread. I have been on a lot of backpacking trips this summer so I haven't been able to hit the gym much but when I do I use the machines. For the last couple weeks of my break I am visiting relatives who have a bowflex. It's not quite as intense as the machines at the gym, or perhaps I'm just starting to get used to it. Anyway it feels good to be lifting something again (other than my 40lb hiking pack and my 20lb toddler for miles of hiking). In three weeks when I go back to school I will be using the gym there again daily.

[enigo]

I lifted weights throughout until 3 days after my due date with my first son (I ended up being a week late) and never felt better. After my son was born, I found it more difficult to go. Then the gym went out of business. I just started working out again after I had a M/C in Feb (wasn't working out at all at the time)
I had been lifting weights for probably 15 years at that point when I got pregnant the first time. I love it!
Anyway I just found out I am pregnant again, and you betcha I will continue. Some machines are just impossible when you are pregnant or at the very least uncomfortable. I too prefer freeweights. You can always change up exercises to make up for the belly. I also had an exercise tape of Gabrielle Reese's that is for core strength in pregnancy that I rreally liked. It was incredible. I may start doing it again.
I don't know that I will do crunches anymore though