Exercise in first trimester

[LivBiv]

Hi all

Just wondering if anyone else is managing to keep active? I normally make it to a gym class 3-4 times a week but since about week 6 of pregnancy (I'm about 10 weeks now) haven't been able to do anything. I've just been curled up on the couch sleeping and feeling sick. Are other people just powering through and getting some exercise done? Or giving it a break for now? Should I be trying harder to get some movement? It feels really really difficult right now

Allow yourself to rest if this is how you feel. Trust in your body and that it knows what it needs. Some women will be exercising but it's irrelevant they aren't you. Every women has their own unique pregnancy experience. I would bet that once you are through the first trimester your energy levels will increase and perhaps you will find yourself able to exercise again. Best of luck.

I'm 16 weeks second pregnancy, neither pregnancy have I managed to do any exercise in the first trimester after about 6 weeks. First pregnancy I was going to the gym 4x a week before, this time round was probably only once or twice. First time round was lockdown at start of second trimester so just did yoga and lots of walking then swimming once gyms opened again as it had been too long and i was too big to go back. This time I've just started doing yoga but will try and get back to some light workouts too. I think you need to listen to your body, the rust trimester is tough!

I’m 8 weeks and feel the same. Too sick to exercise in the mornings and too tired in the evenings. I try to go for a walk in the daytime if I’m wfh. I’m starting to feel like it’s a vicious cycle, the less I do the more lethargic I feel. But hopefully 2nd trimester will be better 🤞

I'm 7 weeks and have had to postpone all my PT sessions until further notice 🤣
I am barely capable of making it through the day at work, let alone going to the gym.
I will be back once I feel better though, it is what it is.

Listen to your body. Your body is tired, you rest.
The first trimester is the worst. You feel exhausted and nauseous. It will pass.

My first pregnancy I went into it gym obsessed and training for a marathon. Barely managed a thing between 6 and 14 weeks as I felt so awful. Once the sickness and fatigue passed I got back to the gym and swimming, not as intense as before though. Kept swimming til 40 weeks, it definitely helped keep me mobile. Go easy on yourself, if you need to rest, rest

I'm having weeks when I've managed to get out a few times and have run about 20 miles over the week, and weeks when I've managed parkrun and that's it. I find if I don't get out before work during the week it doesn't happen as I'm too tired by the evening. I swam yesterday and that was quite pleasant, but I found I needed more breaks than usual. But go easy on yourself, you're growing (at least one) human in there. If your body is telling you to hibernate, it's ok to listen to it.

I always get HG so have to completely stop. Usually start to slowly resume around week 24. However this time round I've not been quite as unwell as my last two so am very tentatively starting a little bit at home now at week 16. 10-15 mins of a pregnancy exercise video is literally all ive got in me so far though after 4 months of being super sedentary and ill.

Rest whilst you need to and I'm sure you will feel much better in a couple of months and can pick it up again then.

Second trimester is generally better for energy and less nausea but do bear in mind that after 16 weeks you are not meant to spend periods lying flat on your back which will potentially affect what you can safely do (I teach yoga & Pilates regular and pre/post natal)

This is where I had a huge difference between expectation and reality. I had high hopes of hitting the gym and yoga in some maternity athleisure wear. What I atually did was spend my time laying on the sofa in my pants eating crisps. Don't sweat it OP, pregnancy is about survival. Exercise if it makes you feel good. Otherwise, get some rest and don't feel guilty about it.

I had to give up most gym classes between weeks 7-11 due to nausea - and if I hadn't felt sick, I think the exhaustion would still have stopped me. I stopped core classes and any classes before 4pm completely!

Be kind to yourself, I was able to go back to the gym & to pilates as morning sickness lessened. You can do other stuff like aqua aerobics/swimming or yoga and pilates and still get a good work out. You just have to make adjustments.

I am normally very active. In first trimester I barely managed a thing, felt so awful / sick / exhausted. If you're body is telling you strongly to rest then just go with it. Unfortunately I haven't felt great for most of the pregnancy, but I did manage semi-regular exercise from about 14 weeks onwards, although not as much as I would have liked. Plenty of time to get back in to it once baby has arrived. Just rest up!!

In my first pregnancy I managed to work full time and that was IT. Nothing else was accomplished.

In the second trimester I managed to force myself to do 15 minutes of light cardio 5 times a week. I felt much better for it, but yeah, in the first trimester it was absolutely not on the cards.

It's really rough the first trimester - take it easy on yourself and rest up. I promise you'll feel better for resting and giving in for a bit. You'll know when you're ready.

With my first I was in the best shape of my life, gym six days a week. It hit me about week 6, couldn't face anything. About 14 weeks I was able to start doing some gentle exercise, by week 20 i was working out pretty normally.

This time movement makes me feel sick, I couldn't work out if i wanted to. I'm almost 16 weeks now and I really felt a medium sized walk at the weekend so I know I need to build up slowly. If I can get some long walks in and some pregnancy yoga soon, I'll be happy. But you'll find me in bed/on the couch when I'm not at work for the foreseeable!

You're not alone. You're doing something remarkable and you have to trust your body - you wouldnt keep running on a dodgy knee.

Take care of yourself xx

Semi pro athlete - I stopped any kind of exercise and training at 6 weeks. I just couldn’t do it

I didn’t restart gym until I was 15 weeks in. I had no energy and was also worried to overwork the body during the most sensitive weeks of pregnancy. I am anyway impressed with whoever has the energy to keep the gym up in the first trimester. Massive respect, I barely had energy to take a shower and go to work. Talk about gym.