(beside the subject- jaime I think you look beautiful in your profile pic. you look completely porportionate)
also jaime- you are getting close to 3rd trimester. with all 3 of my pregnancys- toward the end of the 2nd trim i began to lose momentum and the fatigue started setting in.
so now i am in my 3rd trim and i have cut back bc of fatigue. i have to pick the "more important" task to do at the end of the day, which is when i usually workout. a lot of days i only have energy to go pick up my 2 toddlers and go home to cook and get them ready for bed (sometimes a workout itself) . in the 2nd trim i had energy to pick them up, workout for 45 min- 1hr, go home and cook, do bedtime, ect. in the 1st- i cut back for 3 terrible weeks bc of fatigue but for the most part maintained a strenuous workout routine of ab 4- 5 hours a week. so now, i just power walk. 20 -30 min 3-5 days a week. i wish i had the energy to do more, but i have found it is a better balance for me to not push myself too hard so that i can maintain a little more consistency.

here's my uneducated, only speculating opinion- first and foremost- listen to ur body. if u feel like u need a lighter workout in bt days, do it. some is better than none and nothing is worth harming ur self/ baby over. also i would ask ur ob to help u estimate an average of how many calories a day u should take in to support a healthy pregnancy. also ask ab what, if any, portion of calories you should eat back of days that u do burn 500-700 cals.
i think if i were u i would cut back to 30 -40 min high- mod intensity (if u feel like it) 5-6 times a week AND adjust ur caloric intake to make up for the calories that ur not burning. like if u can burn 700 cals in 45 min workout (and ur getting exhauseted afterwards), cut back a notch- aim to burn 450-500 in 30 min and just cut a few portions down by a little bit or cut a junky snack/ treat out of ur day or better yet replace a couple snacks with something more healthy. just little stuff here and there, ya know. so that ur making up for not burning as many calories through exercise through ur diet. does that make sense? i am not the best with explaining things online or in general
like what i am doing right now is- i am averaging around maintanance (a tad, 100-200 cal over, somedays) and i am not logging exercise (which is not that significant bc i prob only burn 200 cal 4 or 5 days a week)
during my sencond trim when i did burn 500 cal 3-4 times a week, i was eating at only a slight deficit (maybe 100 cal a day) and i would eat back exercise cal as i felt hungry/ needed. id say i prob ended up eating 3/4 of them back over the course of a week. * i always kinda calculate calories in/ calories out on more of a weekly basis- my body naturally wants to "zig zag" calories.

really the most valuable info i can share that i have picked up during this pregnancy is that balance is key. balance bt diet and exercise. diet- i can pretty much control it pregnant or not. but with exercise it is a df story. when i am not preg i can control my exercise in almost every circumstance. i had a good idea of my personal endurance and had several friends that had endurance levels similar- better than mine that were pushing me every week to keep going stronger and longer. but now, being pregnant, i cant continue with that level of intensity and i also cant predict how i am going to feel when it comes time to workout or while i am working out. my endurance level took a serious blow during the 1st trim. i built it back up some during the 2nd. and now in the 3rd it is going downhill again. so bc of that imbalance in the "diet : exercise equation", i have to focus more on adjusting my diet more consistently to make up for the lack of/ less exercise.

i hope that makes sense and might help some. sorry its so wordy. im by no means claiming to be an expert but this is what has worked for me so far. i really am 95 % happy with how i have faired during this pregnancy so far. i would love to be able to sustain my energy enough to keep doing bootcamp and running but its just not happening!

What I've realized.... lots of easy exercise is worth just as much as one intense session.

A couple of months ago, I got a FitBit. This little device tracks my calories burnet, steps taken, miles travelled, etc.
I used to run about 5-10 km EVERY DAY. Which was an exhausting workout. I then would sit at my desk for the rest of the day and work (I work in an office). That was my workout. 5-10 km and the occasional rec. sport session with friends was my fitness. My runs would last between 30-60 mins. Plenty, right?!

Well, I realized that running 5-10 km everyday and sitting on my bum for the rest of the day will burn just as many calories as walking that 5-10 km every day. Instead of doing an intense 5-10 km in one shot, I take LOTS of walks. I still do the occasional run....but the frequency of my runs has def. declined since I've gotten pregnant. I simply had so little energy in the first trimester and running now in the second trimester seems to be getting more and more difficult.

So, in the morning, I got for a 30 min walk. At my coffee break, I go for a walk. At lunch, I go for a walk. After work, I go for another 30 min walk. Keep in mind that my dog is LOVING IT! I try to walk as much as possible instead of doing an intense workout. My calorie burn is about the same as when I would run everyday and I feel a lot less drained

Studies on running/walking have also shown that it is not the intensity of the run that will burn more calories, but the distance that is travelled will burn the same amount of calories whether it takes you 5 mins or 10 minutes to complete.
I still try and squeeze in a 5-10 km run once per week when I feel like I'm up for it and want to get those swet glands activated.

I don't know why my phone posted my reply twice...

Welcome to the 3rd trimester!

At 35 weeks, my body is exhausted and achy.

I can handle an hour of water aerobics, an hour of prenatal yoga, or an hour of walking. 4-5 days per week. Anything beyond that and my body gets mad. I was a hardcore zumba/spinning addict up until I was 4.5 months pregnant (then I got bronchitis and had to stop).

BUT - I am not gaining weight as fast as I did in the second trimester.

My non-medical, first-time pregnant advice is: listen to your body. Don't obsess over calorie numbers and exercise calories. Eat healthy, move as much as you can and do what feels nice for your body. Your body has a plan and knows what it's doing.

I think your determination to be fit will carry on after your baby is born, and you'll have no problem shedding any extra pounds. You look awesome now

Jamie, I love the topics you post about! And, by the way, I agree, you look great in your profile pic--very proportionate. And your bump is so cute and perfectly round. I'm not ready to post any bump pics yet. I swear mine looks more like a beer belly than a bump!

Anyway, I am not exercising anywhere near the intensity that you are, and I am still tired (and I think we are due right around the same time with Christmas babies). I think some people just don't get that "burst of energy" they talk about during the second trimester. I mean, I used to pass out from fatigue in the first trimester--so tired I literally could not keep my eyes open and had to take a nap in the afternoon no matter what. These days, I haven't had so much of that. And perhaps that is the "burst of energy."

I dunno. I am just counting myself lucky I am not one of those women who has morning sickness throughout her whole pregnancy. That would be the suckiest.

One other poster said it and I agree - I don't think you should be so focused on buring X number of calories during pregnancy. This isn't the time (especially 3rd tri) to worry about creating any deficit. A 1000 calorie daily deficit is fairly high when you are NOT pregnant. You are probably starving at night after exercise, because you aren't getting enough food during the day.

I say this as someone who LOVES to exercise. I exercise daily for about an hour. I go a little longer on the weekend due to a long run. I take one full rest day. That said, it is great to be fit and eat healthy during pregnancy, but this is the time to put the weight loss mentality aside. Get your daily exercise as you see fit, but don't obsess about trying to burn 700 calories a day. If you have 1000 calorie deficit per day, you can skip the exercise altogether, not cut any food and be just fine. If your body is exhausted, REST. If you are hungry, EAT.

This is my second child and the tough newborn times are coming soon for you. You will soon be more tired than you can possibly imagine. Don't go into it already exhausted from 2 months of pushing yourself unnecessarily. Honor your body because it is working very hard for you and your baby right now.

I hope this doesn't come across as harsh. I just felt a little concerned when upon reading your posts!