We’re expecting our second (vegan) child any time now after a second, so-far successful vegan pregnancy. But this post isn’t just about training for pregnancy or childbirth – even though that in itself is kind of a novel idea! Derek and I both have completely transformed our approach to fitness, both for ourselves and clients, to be more mindful of what our bodies actually need to do daily, and what our bodies are subjected to daily. We’ve given talks recently that incorporate this idea of pre-hab, rehab, and flexibility training as part of a successful holistic health plan and our classes on this year’s Holistic Holiday at Sea vegan cruise will have that same focus as well.

Here I will share my experiences with pregnancy, the training plans that Derek wrote for me this time around, and my overall diet strategy to ensure my weight gain was on track.

First of all, what are the special physical challenges of pregnancy that we can prepare for?

• Increased load on pelvis and lower back
• Structural imbalances that could be caused by the new uneven weight distribution
• Balance and stability issues with uneven weight distribution
• Shortness of breath from organs being compressed
• Joint and tendon strains due to the hormone relaxin
• Ultimately: childbirth, which is the athletic event of a lifetime

Some things I learned the first time around…

The focus, in preparing for hauling around a pregnant body for many months, really ought to be on building stamina and strengthening and stabilizing the muscles that are going to be offsetting that extra load: glutes, legs, lower back, hips,  and core. In my first pregnancy, I continued to train like a bodybuilder with a focus on maintaining strength – putting a heavy load on my upper body and under-training my legs (because I wanted to keep my hard-won shoulder gains and maintain aesthetic balance). I already had serious, chronic low back pain issues and they only got worse, ultimately leaving me with scoliosis so bad that it negatively affected my labor because Miles was trapped in a transverse position, making it far longer, and gave me a twisted, left-leaning posture that took many months to undo. I also continued to eat as I had when I was training hard two times a day pre-pregnancy, according to the popular myth that you need a lot of extra calories and that breastfeeding will take the weight off later. Those popular myths are what lead to the fact that many women become obese or diabetic during pregnancy. Fortunately, a plant-based diet is protective against those conditions, but I did gain significantly more fat than I should have and it did not come off effortlessly by any means!

What we did to ensure I was in optimal health for pregnancy #2, and that recovery will be rapid

Diet-wise, I still eat the same plant-based diet as ever, of course, but it is planned more carefully this time around. Not because there is any doubt that I’m getting adequate nutrition, but because I want to ensure my weight gain is in the normal range with not too much fat that would be difficult to lose afterwards. No additional stress is needed with a newborn and small child to care for! I do take a prenatal supplement in addition to eating plant foods, and I’ll continue to do that while breastfeeding.

We engineered a reverse diet for this pregnancy to increase my calories under careful supervision, checking my body fat periodically, just as we would do in competition prep – in fact, you could apply the same principles outlined in our book to this goal! I looked at guidelines for healthy weight and fat gain during pregnancy to determine about where I should be after 40 weeks, and we broke it down into occasional checkpoints for the entire pregnancy. If I undergained, we increased my food and if I was on track, we maintained. Does it seem obsessive to do this during a time that is popularly considered an opportunity to indulge? I don’t think so – it’s a big load off to know that I’m where I should be, and that I’m getting all the food I ought to be getting, without fear of being in an unhealthy state afterward. I have also heard from my midwife that many of her pregnant clients are fearful of increases on the scale – I think a reasoned approach helps combat that irrational fear. You’re going to gain some weight no matter what!

Our approach to fitness has reaped incredible benefits for me this time around. When I knew I would soon be pregnant, I changed my training style. The focus was now on stamina and on building my legs, core, and glutes as much as possible and off of lifting heavy weight. There is a lot of hunching involved in caring for a new infant, especially while nursing, and the last thing I need is upper back and shoulder tension! I started doing bi-weekly Body Pump classes, which is a type of circuit-training basically in a group setting, to address the above goals. I also became serious about daily dance training which also emphasizes endurance and core, glute, and leg-focused strength exercises. Prehab has been an important part of my preparation, too, to build strength and stability in the small, joint-supporting muscles that keep me pain-free; these muscles are often ignored because they don’t make you look good, but feeling good counts for so much more in the long run! Exercises like these can be used for anyone with low back pain issues to great benefit.

Phase I Pregnancy Prehab and Workouts (First Trimester)

Daily Prehab

1. Chest stretch
2. Band Pull-Aparts: 20 overhand, 20 underhand
3. Lying Shoulder External Rotation: 20 per side
4. Back Supported Crunch: 2 x 20
5. Side Plank with Abduction: 2 x 15
6. Bird Dog: 2 x 15
7. Downward Dog to Pigeon Pose: 1 per side

Gym Routine, 1-2 x Per Week

Each numbered group to be performed as a superset or circuit

1A. Cable Twist with Glute Emphasis 2 x 15

1B. Hyperextensions 2 x 15

2A. Pull-ups/Chin-ups 3 x 10

2B. Dumbbell Walking Lunges/Bulgarian Split Squat 3 x 12/leg

2C. Bicycle crunches 3 x 25

3A. Cable Row 3 x 8-10

3B. Hip Thrust 3 x 15

3C. Plank 3 x 45 sec

4A. Bodyweight Reverse Fly 3 x 10

4B. Leg Press 3 x 15

4C. Battle Ropes/Jump Rope 2 x 30/100

High Intensity Interval Training, 2 x per week

• Step Mill: 1 min max speed/2 min recovery for 6-8 cycles
• Bike/Run: 30 sec max speed/90 sec recovery for 8-10 cycles

Phase II Pregnancy Prehab and Workouts (Second Trimester)

Daily Prehab (or 3 x per week)

1A. Plank 2 x 30 sec.

1B. Side Plank 2 x 30 sec/side

2A. Bird Dog 2 x 12

2B. Band Pull-Apart 2 x 25

3A. Lying Shoulder External Rotation 2 x 15

3B. Weighted Clamshell 2 x 15

Gym Routine, 1-2 x Per Week

2 sets per circuit (numbered group), rest 30 seconds between

Once per week perform each exercise for 8-12 reps each, once 20-20 reps each

1A. Full Squat (goblet, bodyweight)

1B. Assisted Pull-ups

1C. Push-ups

2A. Step-ups

2B. Hip Thrust

2C. Cable Row

3A. Bodyweight Reverse Fly

3B. Lateral Raise

3C. Hammer Curl

3D. Hyperextension

Optional: BFR Shoulder Press

The results? At around 7 months pregnant I participated in a weeklong dance training workshop considered to be the endurance trial of a lifetime, with 6 hours a day of intense drills. Dancers brought multiple changes of clothes because we’d be soaked in sweat after over an hour and a half of continuous vigorous movement with no breaks allowed. I was able to keep up with no problem (well-hydrated, of course) and I had many dancers come up and tell me that they could not believe I was there at all!

Dancing:

Now at 37 weeks – birth could happen at any time – I can still drill for an hour or more with no problem and can still hang for as many body weight squats as I did pre-pregnancy. When I was pregnant with Miles at this time, I could not even walk around the block without having to sit down periodically due to the strain on my hips and lower back. At a time when an unfortunate number of women are scheduling C-sections to escape this sort of late pregnancy misery I feel like I could go another month or two.

Conclusion: the work has paid off!