Perceived Exertion & Pregnancy

Ran on the treadmill tonight -- later than usual because Speedy again refused the bottle from his abba, and I had to do the final tank-up before leaving. The Swadfather thinks it's just a timing issue -- getting to him before he's really hungry. I hope so.

I did 2.5 miles in 30:55 (that's 12:22 min/mi) today. When I was running during pregnancy, I told myself, "This is just like those martial arts movies where the guy trains with weights attached to him so that when the big fight comes, it is effortless." I reasoned that I was lugging around an extra 30 lbs., distributed quite unevenly (that's not counting the weight I had to gain by backing off my training in order to get pregnant), plus the constant stuffy nose, shortness of breath, and having to stop to pee every 2 miles or so. Freed of all that, I expected to be running faster after I gave birth!

I didn't factor in third-degree tearing that would require 7 weeks of healing before I felt reasonably certain that all my insides would stay put when I jogged. When all was said and done, I had a 2 month lay-off, starting 3 weeks before delivery, when I just couldn't call what I was doing "jogging" any more. (I did, however, speed-walk around the labor and delivery floor -- trailed by my partner, my doula, and the Captain -- when my contractions stalled.) You can't emerge as a faster runner after that sort of down-time.

What would have helped, though (other than keeping up with the perineal massage...too weird...), is knowing more about what I could safely do early in my pregnancy. Because I couldn't get any straight answers, I did very little. Luckily, when I finally got to see my midwife, she said, "If you're used to running 20 miles a week and slinging 40 lb. bags of compost, don't stop unless you want to." Even though I immediately went back to running, weight training, and doing normal activity at work, I had lost some ground already, and picked up at about 75% of my original speed, distance, and weight. Later in the pregnancy, backing off to that level was appropriate, and I continued to modify as my body asked me to, but early on it was safe to do more.

If you find yourself in a similar situation and find "listen to your body" too vague, try using the Borg Perceived Exertion Scale. You know what "moderately hard" exercise felt like prior to pregnancy (or injury, illness, etc.) -- aim to exercise at or below that intensity, knowing that your pace, distance, weight, and body mechanics will all have to shift over time. This allows people at all levels of fitness to exercise safely, without recommending heart-rate and weight limitations designed for sedentary folks to those of us who have very physical hobbies or jobs.

Incidentally, for women in trades that involve heavy lifting or strenuous work: I stayed 100% in the field until the start of the 3rd trimester, and didn't go indoors completely until the final month of my pregnancy. I got better at asking for help (to the relief of my Latin American, male co-workers), but I kept carrying plants, shoveling mulch, and squatting to weed and plant. As far as I can tell, the bigger dangers on the job are dehydration, overheating, hearing damage after the 24th week, and exposure to diseases and hazardous substances. (I'll lay out those pieces in a future post.)