Exercise and exhaustion in the first trimester
artsycella
Posts: 121 Member
Hi everyone!
I haven't introduced myself before, though I've been in this group a few weeks now. But hi, I'm in my eighth week and now I have a question about exercise. But first, a little background...
I started seriously using MFP last April, in part because my husband and I started to talk about having a baby and I wanted to be in better shape. It worked on both counts--I lost a little over 50 pounds by eating at a modest deficit and doing strength training and a little bit of low-impact cardio (mostly walking a lot over lunch breaks). And I got pregnant, pretty quickly and easily, yay!
I'm now about 8 weeks along, and my routine since I found out I was pregnant (about 5 weeks) has been all over the place. Right after I found out I was pregnant, I got a yucky cold for two weeks and couldn't exercise at all. Then, as soon as I recovered from the cold, I changed jobs. I've been at the new one just a week, and I'm still figuring things out.
One thing I've been really looking forward to at the new job has been access to a swimming pool for lunch breaks. I've always loved swimming, but don't have a fitness-friendly pool near my house. So I've been really excited about starting to swim soon.
But here's my question: I'm totally exhausted all the time. I assume this is pregnancy-related, because I'm tired morning noon and night even when I sleep 10 hours and (on weekends) take a midday nap. With this level of exhaustion, I'm worried that trying to add in even low-to-medium-intensity exercise will basically put me in a sleep coma all day. And at a brand new job, I definitely can't afford that. Unfortunately, though, I don't really have the option to swim after work given scheduling challenges.
I know I can just try it out a few times and see how it goes, and I'll probably get around to that. But in the meantime--any experience trying to exercise while you're super tired all the time? Did it help (some of the reading I've done has suggested it might), or did it just leave you wrung out and useless?
I haven't introduced myself before, though I've been in this group a few weeks now. But hi, I'm in my eighth week and now I have a question about exercise. But first, a little background...
I started seriously using MFP last April, in part because my husband and I started to talk about having a baby and I wanted to be in better shape. It worked on both counts--I lost a little over 50 pounds by eating at a modest deficit and doing strength training and a little bit of low-impact cardio (mostly walking a lot over lunch breaks). And I got pregnant, pretty quickly and easily, yay!
I'm now about 8 weeks along, and my routine since I found out I was pregnant (about 5 weeks) has been all over the place. Right after I found out I was pregnant, I got a yucky cold for two weeks and couldn't exercise at all. Then, as soon as I recovered from the cold, I changed jobs. I've been at the new one just a week, and I'm still figuring things out.
One thing I've been really looking forward to at the new job has been access to a swimming pool for lunch breaks. I've always loved swimming, but don't have a fitness-friendly pool near my house. So I've been really excited about starting to swim soon.
But here's my question: I'm totally exhausted all the time. I assume this is pregnancy-related, because I'm tired morning noon and night even when I sleep 10 hours and (on weekends) take a midday nap. With this level of exhaustion, I'm worried that trying to add in even low-to-medium-intensity exercise will basically put me in a sleep coma all day. And at a brand new job, I definitely can't afford that. Unfortunately, though, I don't really have the option to swim after work given scheduling challenges.
I know I can just try it out a few times and see how it goes, and I'll probably get around to that. But in the meantime--any experience trying to exercise while you're super tired all the time? Did it help (some of the reading I've done has suggested it might), or did it just leave you wrung out and useless?
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Replies
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Hm... just realized that was unnecessarily long. Let's try again...
tl;dr
I'm 8 weeks pregnant, used to do a lot of lifting, but for various reasons have been unable to exercise for the last 3 weeks. I want to start swimming but the pregnancy is causing me to be totally exhausted all the time. Do you think exercising will help with the exhaustion, or make it worse? Personal anecdotes welcome.0 -
I think you really need to listen to your body especially as you are only 8 weeks pregnant. This exhaustion is completely normal in early pregnany and won't last forever. If you can manage some really light exercise like a 15 min walk a day this may help your tiredness
But don't push yourself to do something your body is too tired to do. In another month or so your energy will make a come back. Good luck!!0 -
I know where you're coming from!
Exercise is SUPPOSED to help with your energy level. I, however, only exercised 2-3 times/week on a GOOD week. Hopefully, if everything goes well and healthfully, your energy will return to normal (or more!) entering your second trimester.
You're building a human, that's hard work!
CONGRATS!!0 -
A little about myself - I consider myself a lifelong runner and have been running since high school. I recently completed my 2nd marathon back in December right before becoming pregnant. Also before finding out I was pregnant (end of December) I signed up and paid for a half marathon that is happening this Sunday -March 16. I was determine to run (not push myself too hard though) through out my pregnancy... until mid January hit when I was around 6-7 weeks along. Things got extremely busy at work and just like you I was completely exhausted ALL THE TIME! Running came to a quick halt. I also therefore decided not to run the race this weekend but instead cheer on my friends. I am now 14 and a half weeks pregnant and am starting to feel much more energetic. I am planning on starting slow and plan on running again this weekend (we'll see how it goes ). I was also given the advice of signing up for some prenatal Pilates classes, So I am looking into that now too. Bottom line - Listen too your body! I knew the fatigue was only temporary and now that it is fading I am planning on excising regularly again. Don't be afraid to take a break!0
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Just my personal experience (may not be the same for you and you need to listen to your own body) - I found that I was exhausted all the time too. Fall on my face tired kind of exhausted no matter what I ate our how much I slept. But, I also discovered this didnt change at all with walks or exercise. I could do nothing all day or I could have a long day at work and exercise too and I felt exactly the same at night. Just tired no matter what, but exercise didn't make it worse.0
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I was really exhausted and nauseous in my first trimester, and my eating was a bit weird, but I did push myself to exercise still. I have a 2 and a 4 year old too, so it's not like resting at home was an option, so the gym was a bit of a break! I also work part time (3 days a week) as a teacher, so have all the planning and marking to do at home.
I felt much better at 14 weeks, and now at 35 weeks I'm starting to feel exhausted again. Luckily I finished work yesterday. Doing exercise does make me feel better though, even if it's just psychological!0 -
Listen to your body. For me, exercise is the one thing that helps me relief body aches and headaches. I suffered with really bad headaches early in pregnancy and they would only go away after I walk (on the treadmill).
I don't do any other type of exercise since getting pregnant but walking is helping me a lot. I take rest days when i am overly tired and just stop walking when i feel that i should.
Good luck.0 -
I'm nine weeks and experiencing the same thing. I was a 6x/week moderate-to-intense exerciser with lots of HIIT and circuit training. But since about six weeks, my energy has plummeted. I had to nix my early morning workouts and when I manage to get one in, it's usually short and much less intense. Walking has been great, especially when the weather is nice.
I do have occasional days when I do feel good. Yesterday I did a 45 minute hike with my husband and in-laws, and I felt great! Then I was completely wiped for the rest of the day. I would say listen to your body, take advantage of any time that you do feel good, and cut yourself some slack. Our bodies are working overtime to create these new little humans, and it's exhausting!0 -
I'm at 18 weeks now and yes the exhaustion in that first trimester was completely overwhelming for me. I found if I managed to get in a quick walk before work it was good for me - I didn't feel any less tired at the end of the day but felt like my brain was a bit more alert than on days I didn't walk. In saying that, I only managed maybe 3x a week - I just did what I could during that time. I went to the occasional pilates and zumba classes too, only on days where work wasn't so bad, then when I felt better at the start of the 2nd tri I didn't feel so out of touch with exercise. I'm not back to my regular exercise routine but am definitely able to workout more regularly than during that first tri. Like the others have said, just listen to your body and do what you can manage
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Thank you all so much! It's great to hear personal anecdotes and know I'm not alone. I've always loved my sleep, and needed a lot to be fresh and energetic, but nothing like this. Hopefully I'll have that energy rebound most people experience, and maybe I'll hold off on the swimming till then. Or I might still try swimming on my lunch break, but take it really easy and aim for 10-15 minutes of very slow relaxing swimming and see how that goes, rather than trying for a real cardio workout.
Thanks again--it's great to know I'm not alone.0
