The truth is that running during pregnancy is never going to be as good as running when you aren’t pregnant. (At least for me.) I don’t get the runner’s high like I used to and nothing feels quite as smooth or easy as it used to.
The change in hormones affects so many things and causes you to not feel like your normal self. Carrying the extra weight isn’t fun either, but my belly doesn’t bounce, and I usually don’t have much pain when running, so I figure it is the change in hormones and the fact my body is more interested in putting its energy toward making a baby rather than running. Luckily I know it is only temporary, and I know when it will end–unlike an injury which you rarely know how long will last. Nine months of being unable to do your favorite hobby –to the extent I want to!–gets to be long, but I know it will be worth it in the end.
I find myself ebbing and flowing between a week of running more, followed by a week of running less. I am running about 4 days a week but not stressing if I don’t get a run in every day. I would much rather take time off now and mentally be “all-in” after the baby is born rather than be burnt out and not excited about training. I will often get too busy with other things and not run for a couple of days, which is okay at this point in time.
Week 25 of pregnancy – July 8 – 14
Monday – 4 miles | treadmill run | 10:00 average pace + 40 minutes of lifting
I ended up doing this run on the treadmill, which feels like a crime in the summer, but I opted to sleep in and then took Cullen to the gym, so I could lift and run on the treadmill. It felt like an eternity to get to a measly four miles, but I did it.
Tuesday – 6 miles | stroller run | 8:45 average pace
I pushed Cullen in the stroller to preschool, dropped him off, and then ran back home. I don’t know why I didn’t do this sooner or more often.
Wednesday – off
Thursday – off
Friday – off
Saturday – off
I’m not really sure how I ended up taking 4 days off in a row. It was a combination of being busy doing other things, having meetings and commitments in the morning, and mostly just not making running a priority. Like I said earlier, I am not stressing if a few days go by without a run.
Sunday – 14 miles | long run | 8:50 average pace
14 miles for 14 weeks left of pregnancy!
I started off with a friend and ran a few miles, but my abdomen wasn’t feeling great, so I swung by my house to get my maternity running belt. I felt much better with it on, and the next 8 miles went by pretty quickly chatting with my friend. I then realized I only had to do 2 more miles to get to 14 miles, which would also correspond to the number of weeks remaining in this pregnancy, so I figured why not! My body told me why not later that day as I felt pretty beat up.
Total weekly mileage: 24 miles
Week 26 of pregnancy – July 15 – 21
Monday – 2.5 miles | easy run | 9:05 average pace
I ran the warm-up and cool-down with the ladies I coach.
Tuesday – 5 miles | easy run | 8:47 average pace
This morning I met a friend for a run, but I was not feeling so great. I think my body was still recovering from the 14 miles on Sunday. I got some pretty bad cramping towards the end, but everything felt fine once I stopped running.
Wednesday – off
Thursday – off
Friday – 4 miles | easy run | 8:46 average pace
One final run before the race on Sunday. I had some abdominal cramping/discomfort, so now I’m not sure if the maternity belt is helping at all.
Saturday – off
Sunday – 6.5 miles | Hightail Quarter Marathon race | 7:13 average pace
I was very happy with how the Hightail Quarter Marathon went and how I felt. I was pretty confident going into this race that I would feel okay, but I wasn’t sure what pace I was capable of running. I surprised myself by running 3 minutes faster compared to Cullen’s pregnancy, but I had a lot more discomfort during his pregnancy.
Total weekly mileage: 18 miles
I know I’m lucky to be able to run as much as I am even if it is a lot less than what I usually run. Thankfully any pain is minimal especially when compared to Cullen’s pregnancy when I had back pain, hip flexor pain, pubic bone pain, and quite a bit of cramping. At its worst during this pregnancy, my abdominal muscles will start to tighten up a bit, but I know it isn’t that bad. If anything, I still find myself getting out of breath quickly even when running about 60-90 seconds slower than my non-pregnancy pace.
I’m going to continue to take it one day at a time and hope I can run (or really run/walk) until the end of this pregnancy like I did with Cullen.
Totally get you on the difference in running during pregnancy thing! I ran up to 36 weeks but the last few months were very slow and i had to pee like every mile. Just found your blog and excited to continue to follow along.
Fortunately I’ve never had the peeing problem, but I know a lot of people who do!