SO out of breath walking up hills

[Ivy37]

This is a small one, but I've really noticed HOW out of breath and puffy I feel walking up hills at the moment... I'm almost 10 weeks, and the hills are just London highpoints, nothing actually mountainous. But I get so out of breath and it feels hard work. Is this normal for first trimester? Anyone else really noticed this? Or am I actually just more unfit than I realised?

Yeah. Same thing happened to me around 8-11 weeks , I got worried! But later on about 22 weeks I couldn’t even do a flight of stairs, they checked it was actually my iron levels, it was too low.

I got out of breath doing anything up until about 15 weeks it was crazy! And it's very common. It can be related to lower iron levels but I'd imagine you will have recently had this checked at your booking appointment? Just try to keep well hydrated and rest plenty, that can help.

I would get your iron levels checked. Do your legs burn going up the stairs too?

It hadn't even occurred to me that it could be iron levels, thank you all, I will get this checked! I did have bloods taken at my booking appointment 10 days ago. They'd say they'd only ring if there were any problems, otherwise to be discussed at the next appointment in early April. I've not had any phonecall which I thought was a good sign, though would they ring about iron levels?

No legs burning going up stairs, glad to report. Noted on hydration and rest, thank you!

Yes they would call if your iron was low. They will likely have only checked your haemoglobin though as that's routine. Sometimes it's your stores of iron (ferritin) that are low and that can make you feel quite rough so maybe they could check those at your 16 week appointment if the symptoms haven't resolved by then :)

A friend of mine was the same - I live on a slight incline and she always commented on how difficult she found it. It later turned out that she had a heart issue brought on by pregnancy. She'd had two pregnancies in close succession and not saying for one moment that you have a heart issue, but if you've noticed something that doesn't feel right, then it's wise to be checked over.

I think we sometimes talk ourselves out of these things, but pregnancy puts our bodies under all kinds of new strains.

I've had the same issue. My iron is on the lower side of normal.

I normally get out of breath on hills though, one of the joys of having difficult to control asthma.

I've been getting ridiculously out of breath since week 5 (now 17, and it has only improved slightly). Iron levels are fine. Fitness fine-ish? (Run after a toddler, eat healthy - no time for exercise though.) Didn't have this at all in my last pregnancy and I hate it!