I’ve always thought I’d be one of those pregnant women who could continue running all throughout their pregnancy. No worries about the ever expanding bump leading my way. I’d keep plugging along as long as physically possible. I’d run shorter races, but races nonetheless. And optimally I’d be a pseudo-@LindseyHein who still ran 5 days a week during her 9th month with baby Marshall (let’s be serious, that’s not even possible ~ she’s superhuman 
). I knew that the possibility of running continuously for 9 months may not be in the cards for me. So as time went on, my overall goal for pregnancy was to just stay active in any way possible.
I actually fared pretty darn well during my first few months. I ran my best half marathon of 2012 before even finding out I was expecting. After that, I cut back a bit but still pulled out some good mileage, running over 40 miles in November/ December.
Once the New Year arrived, I got my butt kicked by pregnancy fatigue, sickness, and overall blah-ness. So nevertheless, my running got put on the backburner. As did my overall fitness. My desire to exercise was absolutely zip. Fortunately (or unfortunately) I didn’t have to worry about my weight, as my lack of food intake took the place of my lack of exercise.
Come February, I started feeling better so I got back in the saddle again. I started going to the gym more regularly. I eased my way back into exercise with low-impact training, including the recumbent bike and the elliptical. Not exactly exhilirating like a good run would feel, but it did the job. More recently I’ve gotten back into spinning, which has been another great way to get in my cardio.
One morning at the gym about a month back, I decided to see how running felt on my ever-growing body. Not a huge physical change at 19 weeks, but certainly different. So without much hesitation, I slowly kicked up the speed from a walk to a slow jog. I got through a couple minutes before realizing that (as I had anticipated) the body I had a few months back was no longer the body I had now. Body parts that were pretty immobile in the past were now ever present. The legs and belly surprisingly felt well, but the upper torso was not wanting to be messed with (those that have seen me lately can vouch for the size increase ). It wasn’t long before I slowed things back down to a walk and finished up my low-impact workout. Since that day I’ve not tried running again.
It bums me out knowing that I’m not the pregnant runner I thought I would be. Seeing all my girlfriends training and getting geared up for races without me leaves me feeling a little empty inside. I miss those days terribly! But on the other hand, I’m completely accepting of the person I’ve become over the past 5+ months. I’m busy growing a little person inside. I’m eating healthy (and finally keeping it down). I continue to work full time and I’m staying active in one way or another. And from our last ultrasound, apparently it’s working as everything is looking just perfectly. Baby’s got a good looking set of running feet too. The kicks are confirmation 
So even though I’m not running now, have no fear. My running gear has not been tucked too far away. I plan on being a running mommy as soon as I’m given the post-baby clearance. I just have some bigger fish to fry at the moment. But I’m already excited to return to my roots. Anyone have any jogging stroller recommendations?!
PS, check out my featured runner post on Mindy’s blog today where I talk about all things running! Read HERE!