Working Out Through the Trimesters

So here I am on week 37 of my second pregnancy, and still keeping active to a certain extent. Although for my first pregnancy I used to weigh myself every single week (not that it made a difference to my weight gain...), this time around I'm not as focused on the scale but rather trying to keep myself as active as I can to the extent that I can.

There are some general guidelines on what workouts to avoid during pregnancy, it's always best to check with your doctor, but I thought I'd share what worked for me personally. Everyone's fitness level is different and where you start before pregnancy will influence what you are/ aren't able to do during pregnancy.

Prior to Pregnancy

My workouts were a combination of body pump, crossfit, yoga and body balance. I generally liked some weight training and cardio, balanced with yoga.

First Trimester

Although what I read was that it was safe to continue carrying out exercises that you were normally used to. I preferred to play it safe since I'd had a miscarriage in the past, so I kept things lower key with mostly just yoga although it was vinyasa/ power yoga with some minor adjustments.

Second Trimester

By the second trimester, I was more confident picking things back up. I was starting to get a bit tired of lower impact workouts and was not feeling myself. So I picked up body pump again, and felt great to workout and get my heart rate going, I kept my bench on an incline and did some stretches instead of ab workouts for the last track. I continued to alternate this with some yoga and gradually reduced weights as I got bigger. Towards the end of my second trimester I started feeling less comfortable in body pump classes, as my bump started to get in the way of the bar, and it was especially difficult for me to pick myself back up from laying on the bench with a bar. It's really important to keep proper form to ensure that you don't get injured so as my bump grew it started getting a bit more difficult to keep the correct alignment. 

Third Trimester

As the third trimester kicked in, it was like a switch that turned off and I would just have general lazy vibes, and really could not be bothered to go to workouts at the gym anymore. I started focusing more on pre-natal yoga workouts, my own yoga routines, balance ball exercises and using some dumbells for weight training at home. Although in earlier trimesters, I would find pre-natal yoga too laid back and not enough of a workout, I started feeling more in-the zone of transitioning my mind-set to more calm and relaxing activities in preparation for birth. At my 33 week appointment I was informed that baby was transverse (laying side-ways and hadn't moved head-down yet), so I visited  spinningbabies.com and started following their recommendations for activities that could help the baby turn including; walking, swimming, handstands underwater and certain inversions.

I have another scan tomorrow, so wish me luck that baby has started moving head-down!

Are you a Fitness App Junkie?

So have you joined the fitness app fanatics with multiple fitness apps to keep track of your heart rate, sleep rhythm, food intake, water intake, workouts, footsteps, calories burned...etc..?

Ok well I have, here's a screen shot of my fitness apps, and that's only the first page!

I thought I'd share a bit on my experience with each one of them.

Cody

This app specifically has fitness classes that you can view and follow on your iPhone or iPad. The app comes with a few free classes as part of the starter kit including mostly yoga and some strength classes. They then have several classes that you can purchase online on  https://www.codyapp.com which include yoga, strength, flexibility, nutrition and weightlifting. I've visited the site several times and have been tempted to download classes but promised myself to only purchase classes if I consistently used the free ones to begin with. That hasn't happened yet. But the 2-3 classes that I have tried were enjoyable.

Wodify

This app was downloaded when I was still at Crossfit Tempo, you can register for classes, keep a log of your performance, and see your progress over time. You can also "like" other people's performances and workouts.

UP

I purchased a fitness wristband, the UP3 and this is the app that goes along with it. It keeps a log of your sleep (deep sleep, REM and light sleep), keeps a tab of the footsteps you've taken and whether your have reached your goals. You can also log in any workouts that you have done that day, and it will add those calories for you to give you a total of calories burnt for that day. Your passive heart rate also gets logged. If you've got friends using the same app, you can follow them, check their progress and encourage each other. The app also provides you with daily feedback on how you've been doing and recommendations for how you can improve on reaching your target. I'll be honest, when I first got the band I was constantly checking the updates on it, but have gradually lost the interest as I realized that I hardly ever meet my 10,000 footstep goal, and its a bit discouraging for me to keep seeing that. I've been advised by the app to set a lower target but am in denial and want to keep the same target. It would be good to be able to set other fitness goals related to gym workouts or gym classes that are not necessarily reflected by footsteps. On the other hand, getting the band has encouraged my partner who used to hate walking to walk more and meet his daily goals.

My Zone

This is a chest band that I first started using when I joined the Engine Room at Horizon. It tracks your heart rate during workouts and gives you the information on the workout zone you are in and the calories burnt. This is meant to be more accurate at calculating calories burnt than wristbands as it is worn close to your heart. I think it's pretty cool, but I also got a bit bored of strapping something on my chest, when all I wanted to do is just go enjoy a workout rather than stress over exact calories burnt and what zone I was in.

Wellness

This app was downloaded when I joined the Wellness Center at The Wave, and gives you the option to add or drop classes. It's pretty easy and simple to use. I haven't used it for anything other than that. If you drop classes less than 3 hours before class, or don't show up to class, you run the risk of being black listed from classes, yikes, a bit harsh!

My Fitness Pal

This app was really cool for the 72 hours that I dedicated time to use it. You can add in your food and drink intake and it calculates that amount of calories that you have consumed. Its better than the nutrition section of the UP and has a lot more variety of foods to select from, including local favorites like Al Marai low fat laban. You can sync this with other apps including UP and get your caloric intake to be reflected on your UP and get info on workouts and footsteps from UP to be reflected on My Fitness Pal. Based on the amount of calories that you have burnt, it could give you additional calories to eat up. I somehow didn't always think that enough additional calories transferred over from UP to My Fitness Pal - so I'm not quite sure how the conversion works. While its fun to do for a short time, to get an idea of calorie busters, its simply not that practical to log every single thing that goes into your mouth. The app is also linked to the MyFitnessPal Blog on which you can find recipes and other health and nutrition advice.

Libra

Welcome to the new age of weighing scales. This app goes along with the Runtastic weighing scale, which gives you not only your weight and BMI, but also your water content, fat percentage, muscle mass, bone mass and tissue content. Over time it graphs out all of your data. 

Health

Is an app that comes with the iPhone, you can link all your other apps to it, and you can get a dashboard of your performances. I don't really use it that much, but maybe I just haven't figured out its benefits yet.

Nurture

This is a mummy to be app, which tracks your pregnancy - tells you how many weeks you are, gives info on the baby's growth hat week, pregnancy related tips and is also linked to a community board. Moreover, you can sync it with your UP and My Fitness Pall apps to keep track of your overall fitness wellbeing and see a full dashboard of your nutrition, calories, weight and other health info that you've entered from your prenatal visits.  

So in summary, although I may be a slave to downloading tons of apps and trying them out, I'm definitely no slave to the apps themselves!

Considering joining a gym in Muscat?

I always think its important to keep yourself physically active, no matter what the activity is, as long as its enjoyable to you and keeps you interested enough to keep coming back. Over the last few months I've worked out at 3 main fitness centers, here's a look at my experience at each of them:

Horizon Ladies Gym - Al Hail

Horizon is one of the oldest gyms in Oman, and has branches popping up all over the place. I got interested when they opened a bright and shiny new ladies gym in my neighborhood and decided to give it a try. The membership process was quite confusing, and they never had any leaflets or signboard that clearly indicated packages and membership inclusions. Instead, you get bombarded with information about membership and classes by the ladies at the front desk, talking to you simultaneously. You can't pay for classes as you go, and have to be a member, I was ambitious and decided to get an annual membership. I then realized that my membership did not include any of the classes, and that would have to be paid for separately. At the time, I was interested in the Engine Room, so I paid separately for that and for a personal trainer. Communication of the payment options and packages could have been better. That aside, my Engine Room personal trainer was great, and really pushed me the right amount that although the class is only 30 minutes it is very high intensity, I always left feeling like I was  pushed to my limit and got the best out of those 30 minutes, she would finish off the class with a quick massage and stretch, which was PERFECT!

Crossfit Tempo

Crossfit, sounds intimidating and that its for hard core heavy lifters, but everyone works at their own pace and fitness level. Crossfit Tempo is located in Al Khoud and is a man's world kind of gym, but you will find a few women who attend the mixed classes too. I tend to go to these classes with my husband. The crowd is a pretty mixed background who don't care how they look and can wear the same ripped t-shirt with holes that keep widening as the weeks pass. What's important is pushing yourself as hard as you can and topping the leaderboards or your previous performance levels. You also get the occasional neighborhood kids walking in to curiously see what's going on - before getting kicked out. Class registration is done through an app "WODIFY", and you can also track your progress by logging in your performance at the end of each workout and can also encourage each other by  "liking" other people's performances. You have the option of paying per class or getting a membership. The moves and WOD (work out of the day) are very clearly broken down and explained. A typical workout would start off with a warm-up, followed by practicing a skill (like lifting techniques), and then a breakdown of the WOD (Workout of the Day). They are usually high intensity workouts with lots of repetitions, that sound impossible to complete, but somehow you do make it through to the end of the class. Crossfit will definitely teach you to count and divide as you try to break down the workout with minimal breaks. The focus of each class on a given day may vary, from gymnastics, to weightlifting, or anaerobic based workouts. They have had a few different trainers that have come and gone since they opened last year, each with a different style.

The Wellness Center

The Wellness Center is one of the newest gyms and is the crème de la crème of Muscat gyms, really elevating the standard of service and professionalism. Its the type of place that is spotlessly clean, has a sauna and Amouage body products in the locker rooms. It the type of place that you want to walk into looking clean cut and pulled together, as the Lululemon wearing crowd definitely likes to check out who's who as you pass by. You have to be a member to attend the classes, and can choose to get a 1 month, 3 month, 6 month or 1 year membership. Registering for classes is done through an app on your phone "Wellness", and the classes are in such high demand that you may try to register a week in advance, and still be put on a waitlist. Their class cancelation policy is quite strict, and if you don't show up or cancel at a minimum of 3 hours before the class, then you risk being blacklisted from classes for the rest of your membership if it happens 3 times. I like the diversity of the classes offered and have been mostly attending the yoga and body pump classes.

I generally prefer classes over independently using gym equipment, all of these centers were enjoyable to me in their own way, it really depends what you're looking for.

Stay fit!

Bakasana to headstand I will conquer you ...

So my latest physical challenge is to get myself to go from bakasana (crow pose) into headstand.

I have been practicing yoga for around 2 years now, I started right before I got pregnant because I wanted to get myself into a regular exercise that I could continue throughout my pregnancy. Prior to that, I had been doing regular boot camp sessions on the beach, so not the ideal workout to continue while pregnant.

I started off yoga twice a week with an Iyengar yoga instructor by the name of Shipla, who works from her home in Ghubra. Her instruction uses props such as belts, bolsters, blocks and ropes to help students get into correct positions. The class mixes beginners, advanced, expecting, non-expecting students all in one class, but she groups and instructs students according to their levels. I really enjoy the benefit of the props which allow for deeper extensions, encouragement of inversions and improvement of flexibility in general. Her classes are an earful for sure as she describes the 8 limbs of yoga, and keeping your mind clear of destructive demonic forces and other such mindful teachings.

After getting pregnant , I also added on pre-natal yoga classes with Karen Wilmot at Whispers of Serenity. Her yoga classes are specifically catered to pregnant women, so it was a great way to meet other expecting mothers. The class focused on hip openers, strengthening the pelvic floor and long sessions of belly breathing. Regular belly breathing exercises made it very easy for me to switch into the mode of belly breathing during labor which I feel really helped keep me calm through contractions in labor.

I complemented my yoga practice with regular walking and even added on climbing up and down stairs as an exercise to open up my pelvis in the last few weeks leading up to my due date. I considered myself to be quite fit for a pregnant woman and didn't expect my fitness level to drop much.

What I did not realize is that although you may not feel much different from your previous self, your body really does change a lot through pregnancy. I started getting back into light exercise around 2 weeks postpartum. My super-fit mom encouraged me to get on her treadmill every now and then when Jude was napping. I can't say that I was consistent about it but it did feel good to start doing normal activities other than focusing all my thoughts and efforts on my newborn baby.

I did not feel confident pursuing other exercises right away. I did a quick self-assessment at home and realized that my abdomen had separated as a result of the pregnancy, I could literally fit 3 fingers straight through a gap in between my left and right abdomen.  Abdominal separation also known as distasis recti is quite common for multiple pregnancies , and places you at a higher risk of lower back issues and  injuries such as a hernia. Certain exercises may even make the gap wider, which concerned me.  

At 4 months, post partum , I decided that I needed to get into a regular exercise routine so that I could start feeling like myself again and stop treating myself like a patient that's still recovering from some illness. I got a personal trainer to come home and trained with her twice a week.  With my busy work schedule and rushing home to spend time with Jude before bedtime, I just did not have the energy to leave home again for a workout, so that option worked quite well for me. I was so shocked the first time I tried to do a leg raise because I could barely lift my lower legs. I had lost so much muscle strength in my abs, but I took that as a challenge. 

I also added on yoga sessions again, with another yoga instructor by the name of Tomoko whose detail-oriented instruction focuses on correct technique, flow and breathing, with a perfectly matching soundtrack for each session.  

The thing that I enjoy most about yoga, is the fact that no matter how much I progress there's always something more to attain. I've worked hard to be able to hold a headstand without wall support, this is a great achievement for me, because it makes me realize that I have managed to bring back some of the abdominal strength that I may have lost during pregnancy.

Through yoga and meditation, I have gained mind discipline. In labor, I managed to virtually levitate my mind away from my body and thus minimize my perception of pain.

My next big challenge is moving from crow to headstand, so I guess I need to work on my crow pose to feel comfortable enough to drop my head. I should add that this is just as much a mental exercise as it is a physical one. Wish me luck on progressing with this!

For more info on distasis recti visit http://www.befitmom.com/diastasis_recti.html