Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Naturally Healing from Injury

I thought about making this Part Nine of my Diary of a Pregnant Crossfitter series, but I decided to make it a general post as what I did to myself could happen to anyone, and my recovery was pretty impressive, I must say!

What I did sucked... And it was pretty scary... And I'm really glad that this happened at home and not at Flex or I would have made people even more nervous and I'd probably never be allowed to work out again through the rest of this pregnancy.  But I'm pretty certain this has nothing to do with being pregnant - except the fact that my ligaments are a bit looser than usual so that didn't help the situation (or maybe it did?).  This could have happened to anyone.

I was in the middle of a WOD on my patio, using my 45lb barbell with my two new rubber plate weights (each 10lbs), and the routine was 5 rounds of 5 thrusters, 20 pushups, 10 hang cleans, and 5 back squats.  From the last hang clean to the first back squat, I had the bar racked against my chest with my elbows forward, from where I pushed the bar up into the air over my head, and brought it slowly down to rest on the back of my neck and across my shoulders, where I would hold it in place as I went into a squat.  Usually during my workouts I'm a little slow-going at first, then somewhere in the middle I get a boost of energy and I bust out the last half.  So by the fourth round, I was moving a little faster than I probably should have been, feeling energized and strong and charged.  I pushed the bar into the air off my chest, and brought it down a little to fast behind me - I didn't have enough stability to rest it on my shoulders and completely missed the mark, the bar falling on back and taking my arm with it... and completely out of its socket...  Yeah, stupid, especially since I felt the bar miss and fall and should have just let go of it, since that's what those rubber weights are for in the first place - to soften the blow of the bar landing on the ground after dropping it.  But I held onto it and dropped to the ground with it.  And I sat there in some sort of unique pain that I still can't quite describe - it was painful in that I knew something was very wrong with my arm, more of an alarming pain, but not a normal kind of pain.  Like I said, I can't quite describe it.  I sat there trying to get my wits about me, realizing my arm was twisted behind me and I wasn't able to move it like I should, so something was very wrong with it, and my mind went in all kinds of directions.  What if I broke something?  What if I did irreparable damage?  What if I've created a handicap for myself - what will happen to me with my job?  What will people say?  I have completely lost my credibility as a pregnant crossfitter, how embarrassing... Then finally I thought, I should probably try to get up and find Justin to get help.  So I began trying to get up, and that's when I felt (and heard) my arm suck itself back into my shoulder socket.  Yuck.  It was super creepy.  But that's when I realized what I actually did, and it was such a distinct feeling I could almost visualize it happening as it corrected itself.  I stood up and just breathed for a minute, more thoughts running through my head - I've never really pulled a bone out of a socket before, what exactly is involved in recovery for this?  What ligaments did I overstretch?  I knew ligaments take longer to heal than muscles or tendons, but how long was it going to take?  How long should I wait before picking up that bar again?  I looked at the bar on the ground and knew I wasn't going to touch it - Justin would have to put it back on the rack for me.  Ugh, Crossfit has been my sanity through this pregnancy, I can't give it up!  It's kept me grounded, kept me present, kept me, well, happy.  I feel good about myself when I workout and after, and it's helped prevent me from letting my mind wander to the future, the unknown of birth, how terrifying that is for me, especially since I'm a control freak and that's one thing in life I have zero control over.  I have control over working out though, I have control over what I'm doing in the present, so that's one of the top reasons I've been doing it.  That and to stay healthy and in shape, amongst many other reasons.  Now I realized how easy it is to lose control in a workout too.  Why so many people injure themselves during Crossfit and, therefore, why it's gotten a bad name.

Anyway.  I found I was still able to move my arm in all directions, but it hurt to do it.  Still, I was relieved to have full range of motion regardless of pain in certain areas.  I lifted my arm to the side, to the front, circled it forward, circled it backward, both small and broad circles.  I lifted it straight up, I brought it across my chest, I reached my hand up behind my back.  I was able to do all those movements, but some of them hurt more than others.  I think my rotator cuff was the most compromised, but I was having quite a bit of deltoid pain too (the main shoulder muscle).  I went straight upstairs and got some ice and sat on the couch to figured out what to do next.  Justin came in and of course immediately wondered what I did, so I told him the story, and he shook his head at me and said I need to be more careful, I am pregnant, ya know.  And I wondered, did this have anything to do with pregnancy?  This could have happened to anyone - it's a shoulder, we all have shoulders, whether we're pregnant or not.

But I do have increased relaxin.  That makes my shoulder, and all my joints, different from anyone else's.  Here's some good info about relaxin from breakingmuscle.com

During pregnancy, relaxin levels are highest in the first semester and right before pregnancy. In the first trimester, relaxin helps to relax the uterine wall and aid in the adaptation of the cardiovascular and renal systems to the increased demand for oxygen and nutrients. Towards the end of pregnancy relaxin helps to relax the ligaments in and around the pelvis so the mother’s body can better adapt to the growing fetus.

More and more research is being conducted in regards to the role that relaxin plays in the human body. Here’s some things we know:

  • Relaxin is a known vasodilator in the same family as insulin.
  • Little is known about relaxin in males except perhaps that it aids in sperm motility.
  • Relaxin has been found to decrease scar tissue and fibrosis in heart, lung, and kidney tissue.
  • Relaxin has been found to promote wound healing and is associated with collagen production.
  • Since relaxin helps to relax the blood vessels, scientists are also interested in its effects on patients with heart failure.
The second-to-last bullet point caught my attention - that it has been found to promote wound healing.  Maybe that's part of why I healed so quickly?

Perhaps, but I also attribute it to homeopathy.  As soon as my ice pack thawed I went straight to my medicine drawer (I have a whole drawer at the end of our line of cabinets in the kitchen dedicated to my natural remedies - and I'm running out of room... haha) and pulled out my arnica tablets - a homeopathic remedy for healing from injury.  This is a good example of the curious philosophy of homeopathy - that "like cures like".  The plant arnica, or Leopard's Bane, is a bright yellow flower that grows on hillsides.  It's been used in folk medicine by mountain climbers who fall as a poultice to heal the injury, but it's very poisonous if taken internally - it can increase swelling, create bruising and make your body feel bruised - all the symptoms the homeopathic form of arnica is meant to treat.  Read my post about homeopathy (linked above) to learn more and rest assured that you're not poisoning yourself by taking the homeopathic version of arnica.

This homeopathic remedy is known as the aspirin of homeopathy because it significantly reduces pain from injuries.  It can regulate heart activity after injury and stop hemorrhage, and helps the body absorb blood clots lodged in tissues.  It helps heal blood vessels that are causing bruising, and stimulates the body's overall healing process.

I keep this on hand as a staple for Harlee - as soon as he learned to walk, as is the case with all toddlers, he was falling and tripping and stumbling all the time and arnica was my go-to if he had any kind of significant injury.  Back when he was first learning to walk he had an accident that hurt his leg (I may have mentioned this in a previous post), resulting in us taking him to the ER to make sure it wasn't broken because he screamed every time we touched or moved it and he was limping on it when he pulled himself up on anything and cruised around furniture.  No breaks or fractures were found, and it was assumed it was just a sprain.  As soon as arnica was administered, the crying and limping immediately stopped.  By the end of the day you couldn't tell anything even happened!  I also used it when he broke his arm, but that was severe enough to need surgery, but he made a very speedy recovery.  I did notice, though, that as soon as he woke up from the anesthesia after getting his elbow pinned back together and the cast on, I gave him arnica and he instantly went from just barely being able to lift his arm or even wiggle his fingers to attempting to use the bad hand to lift his cup or hold a toy and was wiggling his fingers like nothing was wrong at all.  This stuff is awesome!

So I immediately jumped into using my arnica.  I had some left from Harlee's pediatrician that's 200C (a VERY high dose) and I took one every half hour for about four hours.  The next day I used my store-bought arnica which is 30X and took it every 15 minutes for about 2 hours.  I set a timer on my phone so I was diligent about it.  With that I also administered a cream called Traumeel that a friend of mine had told me about after Harlee broke his arm.  It's a homeopathic cream with arnica in it as well as several other healing elements.  I rubbed it all over my shoulder blade, up into my neck and along my whole shoulder down the side of my arm.  I really didn't have much pain all day, except for during certain motions like lifting my arm above my head or reaching across my chest or lifting my arm behind my back.  It was more sore than anything.  I continued to use the Traumeel all day, nearly every hour and again the next day.

So let me tell you about the next day after this happened (yesterday).  I was afraid to wake up, honestly - after laying still all night I was afraid it would be stiff and even more sore than the day before, and usually the second day is the most painful anyway.  But, to my pleasant surprise, it wasn't so bad!  I gave my arm a full rotation, moved it in all directions, and it loosened up immediately from being still all night.  I was amazed!  I didn't even have any popping or strange noises from the ligaments or tendons like I expected.  It felt like a normal shoulder, just with a few sore spots.  Of course I was very careful with it all day, using it in ways that felt comfortable and being careful not to overdo it, but at least still using it to keep some strength in it.

In fact, I was able to drive the Ranger, making full turns with the steering wheel fairly comfortably, and I made quite a bit of progress in raking a large amount of pond scum along the edge of our pond.



That stuff gets heavy!  I was really grateful I had been working out all throughout the pregnancy, or I would have pooped out shortly after starting.  Most of all, though, I was grateful that my arm was healing up so quickly and it looked like soon enough I'd be able to get back into my workout routine.

It rained that afternoon, which felt wonderful after getting all sweaty from raking, so I stood on the patio and enjoyed the cool shower and tried a few strength exercises with an empty dumbell (which I think weighs 1.5lbs but I should figure that out to be sure).  I did about 10 reps each of shoulder presses, shoulder flies, side raises, front raises, and tricep kickbacks, and I repeated that series another two or three times.  I also held my arm out at a 90 degree angle and rotated my forearm down and up several times.  Everything felt good!  In the shower I let the hot water hit my shoulder to warm the tissue and loosen everything up and I did a few arm circles, reached my arm up, reached my arm across my chest, and reached it up behind my back.  I had done this the day before, too, and all the motions felt pretty comfortable, and even more so that second day I did it.  I listened and felt for any popping or cracking or strange movement in the muscles and ligaments, and got nothing.  What a relief!  I was definitely on the mend!

By night I hardly even noticed any soreness in my shoulder.  I made dinner, ate it, and cleaned up the dishes afterwards, got dressed for bed and put my arm around Harlee to read books to him, and nothing bothered it.

Now it's the third day, as I'm writing this, and there's hardly any soreness left at all.  There's a little down the lateral side of my arm, along the deltoid and just below it, but other than that I've got full range of motion and everything I do feels comfortable.  I've got a full day of clients and I plan to go to yoga this evening, and I'm feeling confident that I won't have any issues!  Of course I'll be careful with it, but I don't see myself being too restricted.

So that's my story, and those are my experiences with homeopathic arnica - I highly recommend you keep a bottle of 30X arnica on hand as well as Traumeel - accidents happen at any time and it sure is nice to be able to heal quickly and without drugs!  Now, whether the pregnancy hormones were in my favor or not for this healing process, I'm not sure, but I do feel pretty certain that the arnica played a huge roll in the quickness of my turnaround, and I know the Traumeel made a huge impact on the relief of the soreness (I'd used it before for sore muscles and it works like magic).  No harmful drugs or anything - that's my kind of healing!  Now, I need to get ready for work!

Friday, May 23, 2014

The Diary of a Pregnant Crossfitter - Part Eight: Pregnancy Modification Advice and WOD Suggestions


Look I got new toys!  Two 10lb Olympic rubber plate weights for my weight bench!  I'm so excited!  Now I can drop the bar without hurting the concrete (not that I've gotten so worn out from a WOD that I had to dump the bar off me - those days are long past - though I'm looking forward to coming back to those kinds of workouts!).  I can also lift from a safer height too.  And they just look cooler than the smaller weights.  That's always a plus.  So now all I can think about is using them, and what WODs I'll be doing next.  Which made me realize I should write about the WODs I've been doing.

I've been checking into other Crossfit blogs (especially CrossfitMom.com) to get WOD ideas for my at-home workouts and I realized, it would probably be somewhat helpful if I posted some of them on my own blog.  So here are some that I've been doing - and anyone can do these, not just pregos like myself, but I can assure you they are prego-friendly!  I've also decided to post some advice on Crossfitting while pregnant:

1.  Don't Crossfit while pregnant unless you've been doing it for awhile BEFORE you got pregnant.  That goes for any exercise - don't just throw yourself into a brand new work-out routine after finding out you're pregnant.  This is a time of major changes, so being conditioned to a certain kind of workout is important if you plan to continue to workout throughout your pregnancy.

2.  You're not in this to beat the clock or set personal records anymore.  Boo, I know.  That was a big mental obstacle for me to overcome.  But for 9ish months this is about you staying healthy and supporting a healthy pregnancy, not being a badass.  Although I think it's pretty badass to be doing any kind of exercise while pregnant, so go you!

3.  You're going to have to modify stuff, from stretching before and after WODs to the kinds of lifts and exercises you do during the WOD.  Don't overstretch - your body is producing a lot of extra relaxin hormone that makes you more flexible than normal, and therefore more prone to injury.  Avoid stretches or exercises that involve twisting the pelvis - keeping the hips straight and balanced will help you when that baby needs to come out.  And obviously don't do anything that involves laying prone (on your belly) or puts any strain on your abdomen.

4. Don't get TOO out of breath.  A good indicator is if you can still carry a conversation while working out (or running too).  I don't use a heart rate monitor or anything - you can if you want - but usually if you can still talk then your heartrate is still at a safe level.

5.  Stay SUPER HYDRATED.  Duh.  Actually this should probably be higher up on the list.  Keep drinking water!!  Stop throughout the WOD to drink water - I know this affects your time but remember, this isn't about the clock right now.

CrossfitMom.com has great information on how to workout through the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd trimesters.  Definitely read that before jumping into your prenatal workout routine.

Those are some of the best pieces of advice I've got right now.  I'll let you know if I think of more.  Now I shall share some of the WODs I've done while pregnant.  The weights I have listed are just what I did at the level I'm at.  You can (should) change it to what you're capable of.  Enjoy!

21-15-9
20lb dumbell shoulder press (or whatever weight you can handle)
55lb front squats
Burpees
(So this means do 21 of each of these, then 15 of each of these, then 9 of each of these).

3 Rounds (notice I'm not putting RFT - "rounds for time" - just do it, don't worry about the clock!)
20 25lb overhead walking lunges
10 75lb deadlifts (or whatever you can handle)
20 air squats

12 min AMRAP (As many rounds as possible)
10 burpees
10 45lb overhead squats

5 burpees, 10 air squats, 15 25lb kettlebell swings
10 burpees, 15 AS, 20 KB swings
15 burpees, 20 AS, 25 KB swings
20 burpees, 25 AS, 30 KB swings

8 min AMRAP
7 55lb clean & jerks
10 burpees
Followed by a 2min AMRAP
55lb back squats

10 min AMRAP
50 20lb KB swings
10 burpees
10 tricep dips

4 Rounds
10 20lb KB snatches (5 each arm)
5 55lb squat clean
5 pushups

5 Rounds (55lbs)
5 thrusters
20 pushups
20 hang cleans
5 back squats

I'll add more as I do more and let you know what they are.  Now that I've got rubber plate weights I'm eager to get more goodies!  A 14lb wall ball and 20lb kettlebell are on my list, as well as talking the hubby into welding me a squat rack with pull-up bar and building me an 18"-20" box for box jumps (or step-ups as of now).  But for now all I have are barbells and dumbells (the dumbells I use in place of a kettlebell, which seems to work fine).  Someday!

Hope you liked my WOD list, let me know if you try any of them and how it goes!  Now I'm heading downstairs to use my new weights!


Catch up:
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Part Five
Part Six 
Part Seven

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

The Diary of a Pregnant Crossfitter - Part Seven: Feeling Grateful

I haven't posted in awhile so I figured it was time to check in.  Especially since I have a few good endorphins coursing through my veins after a beautiful morning WOD on my patio.


Perfect timing for that, as yesterday was not the best day.  I started out eating healthy - homemade paleo tortillas stuffed with a mixture of hamburger, egg, and salsa, then grilled chicken and steamed veggies for lunch... aaaand classic Pizza Hut handtossed pizza for supper.  Plus my abs weren't really happy last night either - every time I stood I felt an uncomfortable stretch from my pelvis to my ribs all up the right side - I could almost isolate the ligaments it was such a distinct "grabbing" sensation.  I whined all night long until bed, but my dear husband kindly inflated my exercise ball (that had been patiently waiting for that moment since our move) so I could stretch my poor middle out and took care of getting Harlee ready for bed.  I swear I have a "man cold" most of the time.  It's kind of pathetic.  For those unfamiliar with the term, it's basically a very sexist statement referring to the fact that most women can be puking their guts up and running a 900 degree fever and still manage to take care of the kids, clean the house, cook dinner, etc. etc., whereas men could have the sniffles and be laid up in bed completely unable to function.  I know a few men like this, but certainly not all of them fit the bill.  Justin had never heard of this term before so I explained it to him and he just stared at me, reminding me of his strep throat fiasco and asking, "I hope you don't put me in that category..."  No, fortunately, Justin has NEVER suffered a stereotypical "man cold".  However, I think I've been subconsciously trying to keep the balance in the relationship to make sure one of us does!  My god I annoy even myself sometimes - really this pregnancy has been super easy and I have SO much to be grateful for, but regardless I still find myself bitching and moaning about how I've begun to hit a wall around 4:30 every day and I'm overcome with such draining fatigue.  Or my arches hurt.  Or my back is sore.  Or I'm hot.  Or I have allergies (which isn't even pregnancy related).  Whine whine whine.  It's really not that bad.  I've been much more pain-free during this pregnancy than I ever was with Harlee, thanks to my regular sessions at the Myofascial Treatment Center.  I'm not carrying near as much weight this time as I was with Harlee, thanks to my sticking with Crossfit regularly (I'm several weeks into my third trimester - at this point with Harlee I was up at least 50lbs.  This time I'm up only 20).  I have WAY more energy this time than with Harlee, also thanks to Crossfit and also a *mostly* paleo diet.  I'm able to do things most pregnant women probably couldn't do, too, like the day I helped my sister-in-law with her landscaping, which was a lot of shoveling through some tough rocky dirt.






That was about 28ish weeks along.  I look at those pictures and realize, I really do have a lot to be grateful for, and I'm especially SOOO thankful I've stuck with my exercise routine, because without that I wouldn't be able to do these kinds of tasks.

This morning was perfect.  Beautiful 68 degrees, clear sky, birds chirping, and a WOD on the back patio with a view of the lake and green trees all around.  Again, so much to be grateful for.  I adjusted the WOD on CrossfitMom.com to suit my situation (she had a 400m run listed and running doesn't work for me right now).  I did the advanced, minus the run, which was 3 rounds of 20 overhead lunges with a 25 lb weight, the 400m run I replaced with 10 75lb deadlifts, and 20 air squats.  I finished in just under 7 minutes, and to encourage the sweat to break I did 60 pushups after that.  My kid slept the whole time, which was also great (the last couple WODs I did on the patio he was there to "coach" me...).  Now I'm sitting here, getting a blog in while he's still sleeping, hazelnut coffee brewing, shower waiting for me, and hopefully a wonderful day ahead which will end with a session at the Myofascial Treatment Center and then yoga in town.  Life is good.

I'm hoping the weight of the deadlifts stretched my arms out enough to get the last of the soreness out of them.  This past Friday the WOD at Flex included 50 partner pull-ups (full range-of-motion pull-ups assisted by a partner holding your feet to give you just enough "umph" but not enough to take away the brunt of the work).  Oh my goodness my brachioradialis muscles were angry all. weekend. long.  I couldn't fully extend my arms!  But I love that feeling, so I haven't been complaining!  The WOD also included 75 push presses at 55lbs, tossing a 14lb ball over the pull-up bar back and forth with a partner 50 times, and about 37 or so burpees (75 split between two partners).  It was a fun one!



These are a couple pictures from that WOD, doing the push presses.  I'm about 30ish weeks at this point.  I feel kinda silly sometimes when I ask people to take my picture in the middle of a workout, but then I look back on the pictures and I'm glad I ask - on days like last night, when I'm feeling down about everything and frustrated and aggravated and suffering a "man cold", it's nice to have these little reminders that this pregnancy really doesn't suck.  It's pretty awesome, actually, and I have a lot to be thankful for.

Well, Harlee finally woke up, so looks like I get to start our day!


 Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Part Five
Part Six

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

The Diary of a Pregnant Crossfitter - Part Six: Body Awareness (and Dealing with Disappointment)

We just got back from Dallas yesterday, where we celebrated my cousin's wedding and spent a great weekend with family.  It was also a weekend full of food I don't normally eat (but certainly stuff my face with during special occasions such as this!), and by the end of the trip I was feeling it.  I felt sluggish, moody, and my feet were starting to swell (which is a topic I will be talking about later on).  I also felt really down on myself.  All I wanted to do was get back to Flex and work out, work off all the junk I ate over the weekend and undo all my poor health choices.

I shouldn't be too hard on myself, I guess.  It wasn't that bad.  But I wasn't feeling good, and that was a fact.

I'm taking a break from personal training this month due to scheduling conflicts between Derek and I, which I'm kinda bummed about because the personal training has been working wonders for me.  I started seeing positive changes immediately after starting and last month was awesome.  It's back to strict crossfit now, though, which is great because I love that too.  It complements strength training beautifully though, so I'm curious to see how I do for a month using one without the other.  June brings maternity leave for me, though, and therefore no more scheduling conflicts.  I am definitely hoping to jump back into personal training again as soon as May is over!

Today we started with some barbell curls (to exercise mostly the biceps but it's a good full arm workout) and pushups (which I have to do from my knees now), and then we did bench presses.  My last max weight on the bench was 85lbs, so when I pressed 85 I felt really good about myself that I hadn't lost it.  I almost got 95lbs up too!  Not quite though.  But still, with pregnancy being a time that you don't want to try to max out and beat personal records, being able to hit my current personal record and not worry that I felt strain in the wrong places was definitely a good feeling.  Then the WOD (workout of the day) followed that, which was 50 bench presses, 100 meter sprint, 50 barbell curls, 100 meter sprint, 25 bench presses, 100 meter sprint, 25 barbell curls, and 100 meter sprint.  It looked like a good one.  I decided to just use the women's bar with no weight on it, which is 35lbs.  The first 50 bench presses were smooth and easy, and then came the moment I was anticipating - that sprint.  100 meters is nothing, on normal circumstances I'd have no problem with it, but I hadn't run in quite a long time and Elliot has grown quite a bit since then.  I had no idea how it would feel.

Here's the theme of this post - body awareness.  When I'm there working out, I really have to check into myself.  Put aside my desire to bust ass and give the workout 100% of everything I've got, and instead treat it as exercise and movement to keep me in shape for a healthy pregnancy.  It's not about pushing it to the limit, it's about doing what I'm already capable of and tuning in to my body to know that I'm not straining or stressing areas that really should not be strained or stressed (namely the abdomen and low back).  So this sprint was going to be one of those tests.  I walked outside and began a gentle jog, then picked up the pace a little bit so I felt I was somewhere between a jog and a sprint.  It felt sooooo goooooood.  I've missed running SO much.  I've been feeling pangs of jealousy every time I see someone out jogging.  It was a beautiful morning, too.  I tell you what, angels were singing at me the whole 100 meters.  It was glorious.  I got back to the gym and hopped right back to the bar to bust out the 50 barbell curls, and couldn't wait to get back out to jog the next 100 meters.  And the angels sang again, but I did notice I had to slow it down a bit.  No big deal.  Got back to the gym, laid down on the bench, and pushed out 25 bench presses, only to sit up and be greeted by a Braxton Hicks contraction.

Just to be clear, here's what AmericanPregnancy.org says about Braxton Hicks contractions:

Braxton Hicks contractions can begin as early as the second trimester. However they are most commonly experienced in the third trimester. When this happens, the muscles of the uterus tighten for approximately 30 to 60 seconds and sometimes as long as two minutes. Braxton Hicks are also called “practice contractions” because they are a preparation for the real event and allow the opportunity to practice the breathing exercises taught in childbirth classes.
Braxton Hicks are described as:
  • Irregular in intensity
  • Infrequent
  • Unpredictable
  • Non-rhythmic
  • More uncomfortable than painful (although for some women Braxton Hicks can feel painful)
  • They do not increase in intensity, or frequency
  • They taper off and then disappear altogether

I knew what they felt like, I knew what they were.  The one I felt met all the criteria in the above information, so I wasn't worried.  I just sat and waited for it to subside.  Kelly (trainer this morning as Derek couldn't be there) asked if I was okay, so I said I felt like I was having a Braxton Hicks and was waiting for it to subside.  I guess if you're in charge of a group of people working out and one of them is pregnant, you really don't want to take any risks or chances, so she immediately said I should probably just stop and not complete the WOD.  And my whole system deflated.  I knew I wasn't in labor, but I could also see where she was coming from.  It would really really suck if I DID go into early labor and she was the one in charge at the moment.  But I was certain that wasn't happening, I just felt my body was doing what it was supposed to be doing.  I'm in my third trimester - practice contractions are going to come and go a little more frequently as the big day approaches.  Well, I decided to walk instead of run for the next 100 meters, and that didn't feel good at all.  Not a contraction kind of feeling, just a strained feeling.  Nothing like what I was feeling during the first two sprints.  I remember the last time I was out on a walk - it was last week, I had packed Harlee in my jogging stroller and walked him down the lane and back, and it hurt.  Same kind of strain.  It was a really aggravating feeling because I knew walking was supposed to be such a good and simple exercise during pregnancy.  I don't know if it was a good idea or not, but I sprinted Harlee back to the house for a very short distance - mostly to get back faster so I could sit down but also to see if there was a difference in running or walking.  There was.  The pain lessened as I ran, and it wasn't nearly as uncomfortable.  Unfortunately our lane is really rocky, and I'm pretty sure Harlee could have used a chiropractor after that rocky adventure.  So I stopped.  Anyway, that's what I was feeling this morning.  That pain, and there was a part of me that said, "Ya know, sprinting doesn't make you feel this way.  Maybe try it again and see how it feels."  Well, this time I had eyes on me.  One set was nervous that I was hurting myself and I didn't want to give her any more reason to worry.  So I finished walking back and was very grateful to get to stop.  That didn't feel good at all.  I have no idea why walking doesn't feel good - I intend to inquire about that at my myofascial treatment today - but I was certain sprinting would have felt a little better.  But I'll never know for sure because I didn't try it.  I was really upset about the turnout of this workout, though.  What a crappy way to come back into it from vacation.  Or at least that's how I felt at first.  I know I should probably try to focus on positive things like the fact that I was there in the first place, and I still have quite a bit of strength that those bench presses and barbell curls weren't any problem for me.  I did go ahead and finish the curls because those only strained my arms and nothing else.  It gave the rest of my body the chance to wind down from whatever just happened with that last walk.  Kelly said she wanted me to walk and skip the curls, so I had to tell her that walking didn't feel good at all - the curls felt better.  And they did.  After that, I was done.  I was not finishing that last 100 meters.

It got me thinking about the ladies who will someday be in my shoes in the future, experiencing their first pregnancies here at Flex and wanting to continue to crossfit.  It got me thinking about this blog and the people I reach out to, and if any pregnant women will read this for advice on their own workouts.  What can I say to them?  What advice can I give based on this experience?

I guess I can't.  Everyone's body is so different, and every pregnancy is different.  But the main thing is to really tune into yourself.  Bringing a baby into the world takes immense self-awareness.  Raising a child does as well.  Pregnancy is a great time to practice that body-awareness.  Just tune into your body physically, and tune into your heart as well.  If you feel like you should stop, then just stop.  Put aside your ego, your desires to bust ass like you used to when you weren't pregnant, and focus on the fact that this is a temporary time in your life that your safety and the new life you're supporting need to take top priority.  If you feel you can keep going without risk, then try it, but gently.  Or at least that's what I do.  I felt walking needed to stop today, but since I didn't feel concerned that I was going into labor or anything, if I were by myself and not being watched I probably would have attempted a short sprint just to see what it felt like, and that's based on a recent experience, not just random curiosity.  I did know that barbell curls were easy for me, something I'm capable of without straining important muscles needed for the pregnancy, so I wasn't going to not do those.  That's my body.  As for yours, I can't say.  All I can tell you is to tune into it, and if you feel concerned, nervous, unsure, then err on the side of caution and just stop or slow down considerably.  Sticking with this throughout the pregnancy has been the best thing for me, though.  It's given me the opportunity to know my limits and realize my body's changes as I progress, and has given me something to compare my experiences to.  I hope to keep going all the way up to the very end, but I'll try to keep an open mind, as anything can happen.

That's my story for today.  I'm still a little disappointed that I didn't really complete the WOD, but I'm working on that.  I'll try to focus on feeling proud of what I DID complete today, and come back again Thursday morning and see what happens then.