Fitness for THREE – Top Tips for Staying in Shape with Twins on the Way
It’s tough to maintain a fit lifestyle when you have a baby on the way — let alone two babies on the way. Read how Sarah plans to stay fit for three.
Sarah blogs over at Creating a Better Tomorrow. She is expecting twins summer 2014. Once an avid runner, Sarah has had to adjust her lifestyle with not one but two little ones on the way. She still strives to keep movement and nutrition at the top of her priorities. You can follow Sarah on Twitter @CreatingBetter.
I always pictured myself running until the day I delivered. Running before pregnancy was my therapy…working out and sweating was my go to when I needed to relax. Then I got pregnant for the first time…and with twins! Boy oh boy did those visions I had before pregnant change. I am unique so know that many moms expecting twins might be able to work out a bit harder…but for me and my body I needed to tone it back! So I wanted to share a few tips with you on how I still am moving and doing my best to stay in shape with twins on the way.
Tip #1 – Listen to your body! Right before I became pregnant, I began truly listening to my body. Having trained for and completed two marathons, I can easily get into the mode of just go, go, go…harder, harder, harder. But pregnant or not, this isn’t smart. If your body says it’s exhausted – take a rest day. If your tight and feel like stretching – a yoga day. If you feel super good one day – walk/jog an extra mile! If while you are working out aren’t feeling it for whatever reason – stop, hey you did something!
Tip #2 – Walking is good exercise! When my doctor recommended not running and just to stick to walking (and swimming for cardio) and not too intense of walking I was bummed. I always thought before you have to sweat and you have to sweat hard to have a quality workout. Well, that wasn’t true before the twins and it isn’t true now. Walking is great exercise! And the best news it is pretty easy to do anywhere with little to no equipment (just some good shoes!).
My current cardio is walking 2-3 miles a day, 4-5 times a week. I tend to vary the speed and incline throughout the week. A favorite is one mile at 3.8 mph, then second mile at 3.2 with increasing incline from 5-9 every 2 minutes. I always make sure the last .25 mile is slow and no incline to cool down.
Tip #3 – Water, Water, and More Water Exercise is part of staying in shape but so is diet. A big part of that nutrition is staying hydrated. It was difficult for me at first to drink as much water as I used to… I mean I used to sweat tons and run tons…now I’m just walking so it was hard to make myself chug H2O. But that water is so key! Water prevents many complications that can occur from dehydration, and I truly believe that drinking lots of water NOW will help me post partum too!
Tip #4 Stretch it out! Never tried yoga before? You should if you are pregnant. I have gone to a few prenatal yoga classes at a studio and bought a set of prenatal yoga DVDs. Some days I honestly just feel like I need to stretch my whole body. My body is changing each and every day and I can feel it in my joints and muscles. Just like walking – don’t think yoga isn’t a workout! Modify the positions (always making sure safe for you and baby!) and you’ll still be getting some good stretch and strengthening.
I won’t lie. It hasn’t been easy adapting to my somewhat restricted exercise life. BUT you know what…every moment I start to miss the sweat and intensity…I remind myself by giving it up I’m going to be blessed with two amazing children. The best part – I’ll have my whole life post pregnancy to sweat (even if that means just running after them!).
This post is brought to you by For Two Fitness®. For Two Fitness® is the premier maternity fitness apparel brand, proudly made in the USA and available worldwide. Visit our site to explore our maternity fitness apparel and purchase for you or a loved one today.
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