At week 36, I have exactly one month until D day!
You may, or may not, be pleased to hear that this will be my final pregnancy based blog whilst also being pregnant myself, at least with this baby! I want to take the opportunity to talk about the past 8 months, and all its glorious, and not so glorious, moments - what I’ve loved about the journey, the parts that weren’t so great, how pregnancy has changed my body and how I’m feeling with only a few weeks to go.
Personally I found the first trimester the toughest. I absolutely hate feeling sick, I become a total wuss who still cries for her own mum! I found that I was a lot less forgiving of my exhaustion than I am now. These days, I feel perfectly entitled to nap on the sofa during the day or opt out of going to the gym as I’m heavily pregnant, so it’s ‘allowed’. In the first trimester, you look the same but feel so different. I remember crying - no sobbing, because I was too tired to go to the gym. After a few early scans I realised that whilst nothing was changing on the outside yet, this little grain, turned bean, was growing rapidly, and it really does take it out of you!
I had a lot of anxiety in the early days. Without the physical reassurance that a growing bump brings, I was constantly worrying, wondering if I was still pregnant and everything was ok. I’m already an emotional person but pregnancy hormones meant the smallest thing could set me off. So there you have it, that about sums up my first trimester - sickness, exhaustion, anxiety and hormonal, but happy. Happy and excited for all that is to come!
Moving forwards it was pretty smooth sailing. I loved seeing all the changes in my body - from my boobs that were too big for my bras to my expanding waistline. At first it wasn't obvious to anyone else but it was enough for me to know that things were happening and my baby was growing. I found it much easier to slow down and regress my training once I could see these changes.
It has been refreshing to have some time when exercise and movement has been aIl about being more mindful and kind to my body. Aesthetic and performance based goals are on the back burner. I wanted my body to be strong, healthy, fit and resilient throughout my pregnancy and that is all that mattered. I have taken each day as it comes, doing what feels good and really listening to my body. I really believe that because of this approach, I have had very few aches or pains and am generally feeling really good.
Now in my final few weeks, I am really rather big and much much slower. I am terrified about having a baby and all the challenges that will bring, but I am getting more and more excited to meet my baby girl. While I do look forward to eventually getting my body back (I am by no means in any rush) and being able to push myself again, I will miss being pregnant. It has been a very special time and incredible to see how much my body is capable of. I will definitely miss my bump and those little tummy kicks that never fail to make me smile. So until I am too enormous and fed up, I intend to soak up and enjoy all of these little wonders right until the end - let the countdown begin!