Weight lifting?

natajane

Hello!

I've been trying out the stronglifts programme for about a month and a half, along with eating 20% below TDEE.

It has been really working for me, I've lost 5 inches off my waist in that time and 10lbs! And I've been doing it no more than twice a week because of gym problems. My strength improved so much that i can actually leg press my husbands weight now. I've been eating really well and not feeling deprived at all either.

I felt like i'd seen the light, after years of yo-yoing. I'd just found a great gym equipt for proper weight lifting near my home too, and I was preparing to start doing this the 3 times a week from tomorrow.

But last Wednesday night, I discovered that I am expecting our first baby! Great news, we've been trying for about a year. I think my inch loss helped us! We're so excited. I think I'm about 5 weeks along.

I feel quite upset with myself though - my BMI is 36. I'm so overweight, I didn't want to pass health risks to my future children. I was doing so well with this programme I thought I might be a healthier weight when I conceived.

I now don't know what to do for myself weight loss wise now, I'm not telling anyone until I'm 13 weeks so feel very alone. I've read that some doctors are now saying its safe to lose fat whilst pregnant, especially for obese women like me, and that you can still lift just not really heavy? Is that true?

I don't know what to do exercise wise now, i'm in limbo! Cardio doesn't do much for me, I feel like I need to do weights to keep shrinking.

Needless to say I don't want to do anything to endanger the baby.

Any thoughts or experiences are so welcome.

mjoslin1990

bump for you, sorry I have no input, but I'm VERY curious as to what the answer is. Congrats on the inches though!

dawnemjh

I was doing stronglifts also when I found out I was pregnant. Because the programs requires such heavy lifting I stopped it when I found out. Now I am doing more circuit training to incorporate weights, but only once week. I do 10min cardio then use empty oly bar (45lbs) and do 3sets of 10 squats, OHP, and dead s. I also try to do a Bob Harper strength workout once a week or so. I am now 20 wks...

Also I was doing SL through about 7 wks preg. Since I didn't know. Obviously you will need to check with your OB

kori333

I, too, was doing stronglifts for about 2 months when I found out I was pregnant. I kept doing the program for about 2 more weeks until extreme fatigue set in and I just felt way too exhausted to lift. I had planned to pick up some form of lighter lifting once I hit the second tri but it never happened. My midwife told me they recommend lighter lifting over heavy lifting. Your own doctor is your best resource.

vim_n_vigor

This is something you are going to want to discuss with your doctor. My doctor's advice was to eat at maintenance level, not increase any weights, and as pregnancy went on to plan to decrease the weights I was lifting, not lift anything much over 100 lbs, and not not lift anything heavy enough to cause a lot of strain on the mid-section. I was able to lift for only a few weeks before I got too hot too fast and that I got too dizzy to keep it up. Good luck!

acampbe2umd

I'm not familiar with the strong lift program, but I've done regular weight lifting as well as NROL4W and I'm 3 weeks from delivering my 3rd kid. My upper lifts didn't change much as I progressed throughout my pregnancy. I had to do some adaptations, i.e. incline press instead of bench, etc, but not until around 20 weeks or so. My lower lifts have definitely changed as I got bigger. My OB was okay with my current weight lifting structure because I had a history of lifting. My teacher in high school put me on a weight lifting program to increase my strength in track and I haven't looked back, I've been lifting ever since (almost 20 years). I'm not sure about the losing fat component while pregnant, but check with your doctor. A lot of doctors will see you between 6-8 weeks, so I would recommend keeping at your current program, but listen to your body until you can talk with your doctor. You'll know if you're pushing yourself too hard and that you need to back down.

sseratt

When I found out I was pregnant, I did what I thought was comfortable for my body. I did lower my weight, but did higher reps. You don't have to quit your lifting, just adjust it. My doctor told me to continue doing what I was before I became pregnant and I would know what my limits are. She is very right. I was feeling good one day and did some of my higher intensity cardio and became very dizzy. I will not be able to do those workouts right now, but I still lift, run, zumba, and all sorts of stuff. Cardio AND weights will help you lose fat. They have pregnancy calculators out there that will tell you how much you can gain depending on your start weight. Use this as a GUIDELINE. Don't stress over it if you are not on target. Everyone is different. Continue your healthy eating habits as much as possible until your ms goes away. I couldn't look at a veggie from 6 weeks to 11 weeks. You can set your fitnesspal up as needed so don't worry too much. Sounds like you have been doing great and the weight will take care of itself. There were many days that I didn't feel like going to the gym and took a nap instead. Don't force it. One day, I was really tired and made myself go anyway. I had no energy at all while at the gym and regretted going. If you need help, add me as a friend. Congrats! PS, We didn't tell people until we were 13 weeks, which was this past friday!

freckledLeanne

You sound a lot like me.

I had started lifting a while before I found out I was pregnant, and I've continued during my pregnancy (I'm at 20 weeks now). I've been working with a trainer a couple days a week, which helps me ensure my form is good and I'm not doing anything that might impact the baby. She's awesome. I do stronglifts on the days I'm not with her (I go to the gym about 4-5 times a week). Usually I do a warm up on the elliptical, the arc trainer, or an incline walk on the treadmill for about 10 minutes. On days I'm not feeling weights, I'll do about half an hour of cardio, where I set the machine to "fat burn" and just keep my heart rate closer to that zone. It's great for burning fat, which is what I want, and it helps gets some exercise while watching where my heart rate is at (ensuring it doesn't get too high).

Talk to your doctor to find out what's healthy for you. Mine is totally supportive of what I'm doing. I've been +/- about 2 lbs since I became pregnant, which is some combination of baby, increasing lean body mass, and decreasing fat. We do measurements every three weeks, and all of my measurements (other than where the baby sits) are going down. We'll also do heart rate tests every little while to ensure nothing is stressing baby out. My trainer is very cautious, which helps make me feel more comfortable with what I'm doing as well.

I'm sure I'll have to modify some things within the next few weeks (ie. move to incline bench press), but I've been comfortable doing stronglifts (my 1RM for all the exercises is higher than where I'm currently at though, so I'm not stressing anything out at this point). The important things are really to talk to your doctor, to listen to your body, and to ensure you're keeping good form (even if it means not increasing the weight as you normally would).

I'm going to friend request you, if that's okay.

BlondAnnieOakley

Hello! Congratulations!!
I am currently pregnant with my second baby, 34 weeks along now. I wanted to encourage you to KEEP lifting throughout your pregnancy as long as you can!
I lifted with my first all the way up until the day before his birth.. but with that one, because it was my first, I was a lot more careful.. I lessened the weight and slowed it down a bit.. HOWEVER, with this pregnancy, I have been lifting almost- ALMOST as heavy as I would before my pregnancy. I am very careful not to 'strain' or bare-down, etc. but otherwise, I am lifting pretty heavy and it feels great.
Check with your doc, especially during your first Trimester you may want to take it down a couple of notches (as I did) but once you hit the second trimester, you'll start feeling a lot better and you'll be able to take it back up (health and doctor permitting.).

BE CAREFUL once in your second Trimester and beyond not to do any exercises on your back! Such as chest presses etc.
-Watch your heart-rate-
-REST in between sets, longer than you normally would.
-HYDRATE!!!

LIfting weights during pregnancy will help you more than you can know. SO many benefits!!
But always safe to check with your doc just to be sure

natajane

Thanks everyone for your replies, i feel so much better. I think I will be more confident about carrying on with my programme, albeit without adding any more weight.

I've booked my trainer to do some updated programmes, we have a session tonight - she's a mum of two and knows my fitness well.

So I feel a lot less down about it now, like I'm still making some fitness progress at least.

x

TinaBean007

Congrats!!! You're def not alone but the first tri is very lonely!

I would be extremely careful until you talk to your doctor. There are so many factors to worry about with pregnancy when you're overweight. (Blood pressure, sugar levels, etc) Your OB can help you evaluate your training program as well as watch for indicators or set healthy thresholds (ie heart rate).

Good luck.