Part IV- The Light at the End of the First Trimester Tunnel

Part IV-Week 12

There is a light at the end of the first trimester tunnel.  For me it hit on Monday June 13^th, the first week of my second trimester: Week 13.  Pretty amazing timing I must say!  The books are right!  All of the madness/insanity/crazy irritability and stop-me-in-my-tracks nausea of the first trimester, which is like a complete blur, is beginning to take a back seat to the new (er, old) me.  I cleaned, let me rephrase that, SANITIZED the house from top to bottom on Monday and still had the energy to teach a killer hot yoga class that evening.  AND, I still had energy after.  Who is this individual I thought to myself? Oh wait, it’s ME! The old me! The health nut in me can officially begin to stomach some of the things that weren’t on my first trimester menu, the gym and trails are back to being my refuge and I finally feel more in control of myself.  And a beautiful thing happened, reality hit even more for Chris and I (I think Chris more than myself!); we had our first pre-natal appt. and ultrasound on June 14^th.  We heard the heart beating at a very strong 150 BPM, and the nurse confirmed that I was a bit farther than she thought- 12 weeks and 6 days.  Wow!  We couldn’t believe it.  Only 8 weeks away from being half way through when it seems like the (fun) of pregnancy just began.  Although some weeks it felt like the week was never, ever going to be over.  I’m thrilled to begin what is considered one of the best trimesters of pregnancy.  I love that I can still put on my running shoes and hit the trails or even the treadmill in the gym and not feel completely uncomfortable.  It is a blessing to be able to be a pregnant runner thus far because I have heard many women runners stories whose dreams of running with child are crushed when their bodies tell them no.  I hope to be able to continue for as long as possible and perhaps get more friendly with my nemesis, the treadmill, as the summer months get hotter even in the mornings and at night.  Physically, I can’t tolerate super hot temps.  I have already begun to feel  it while teaching hot yoga as I sweat more, quicker, and my heart rate jumps through the roof.  I have been monitoring my heart rate as frequent as I can when I work out and I can just ‘feel it’ when it gets too high.  Although in the next couple of weeks I hope to add a heart rate monitor to my garmin watch and be able to calculate my heart rate with each workout with ease.   Thanks to Chris I have an amazing way to track my mileage by foot and by bike, although it hasn’t seen as many miles as it would if I wasn’t pregnant!

Another revelation for me was accepting the fact that I could no longer squeeze my little bump into my jeans and that I had to use the belly band.  What a beautiful day it was when I realized that it wasn’t all that bad! It felt so much more comfortable to not force the buttoning of my pants and I am loving the soft feeling of elasticity over my belly verses the tight pinch of buttons. The bump is beginning to show more with tight fitting shirts which is practically all that I have in my wardrobe. There are so many options out there for non-pregnancy/pregnancy shirts that I can wear during the baby carrying phase and then after so I’m stoked to not really have to own maternity clothes perhaps.  We’ll see how long that lasts! Regardless, I have come into more of an embracing phase and am gradually able to come into accepting being  a mom and the little bundle of joy that I am carrying inside. 

New Food Loves:

·         Odawalla bars-along with an apple, they have become my new favorite mid-morning snack

·         Triscuits-I can’t seem to get enough of them with boursin cheese-double YUM!

·         Foods with a hint of spice-during the first trimester I was avoiding them but I have always loved spicy food, plus I eat less when things have a hint of spice! 

·         Starbucks shaken green tea/lemonades- I have to figure out their recipe-with the hint of tea and citrus combined with just a touch of caffine ( I’m only supposed to have 150 mg a day) its perfect for a hot summer day or to curb some of the headaches that have been onset by the pregnancy

Physically Speaking:

·         Weight Gain: 3 lbs. –according to the doctor it’s ½ a pound a week up until the middle of the second trimester and then it’s a pound. So, I’m on track and I feel the majority of it is definitely in the mid-section!

·         Energy is UP-way up in comparison and I am digging being able to focus at work, working out, focus on the business and begin the preparations to the house that will be necessary for the little one's arrival!

~Belly Week 12 (6 days)-Definitely beginning to pooch!~

~And finally what we were waiting for, a picture of Baby Premo in all his/her approx. 2 oz. of glory! ~