Running Through Pregnancy - The Adjustments I Made

Before pregnancy, I was running 2-3 times a week, 5-10km each time. But pregnancy brought new challenges - nausea, fatigue, and a lowered immune system (IYKYN!) which had a big impact on my running. So I had to leave my ego at the door and adjust.

Here’s what I changed:

🏃‍♀️ Kept it flat: I stuck to running on flat routes and avoided hills, as they could elevate my heart rate too much. I’d walk if I needed to, and made sure to listen to my body.

❤️ Heart rate in check: I focused on staying in Zone 2 for my heart rate, ensuring I wasn’t pushing too hard.

🕰 No focus on speed or PBs: Running became about feeling good, not hitting personal bests. I let go of the pressure to be fast and just focused on enjoying the run.

📏 Reduced distance: As pregnancy progressed, I cut my runs down to once per week and reduced my distance when needed, listening to my body and mostly sticking to 5km runs.

💪 Strength training is key: I continued prioritising a good warm up before every run & strength training with pilates to support my body and running muscles - keeping my glutes and core strong helped with stability and posture.

🍽 Running after eating: No more fasted Exercise! I shifted to running later in the morning after I’d had a meal, so I had the energy to sustain me through my runs and calm my nausea.

Running may look different now, but listening to my body has always been the most important part.

I set a goal to run until 20 weeks, as long as both my baby and I were healthy & feeling good. But I took it week by week, listening to my body and adjusting when necessary.

How did your exercise journey go during pregnancy? I could barely exercise in my first pregnancy due to an injury, I’d love to hear if you were able to keep moving through pregnancy or not, and how you adapted your routine to suit your changing body?

Dr Kate 💕
🤰Pregnancy Chiropractor
📍 Melbourne

*Make sure you always check in with your health professional when it comes to exercise and pregnancy. Every woman’s journey is different and needs to be adapted to suit your individual needs.