First Trimester

I’m pregnant! This season is going to look a bit different and it’s exciting and scary. There are women before me who have helped to pave the way for athlete moms and I am grateful to them. I hope that sharing my experience will help more women in future!

I am currently in week 14 and so far things have been going well. The baby is healthy and I am starting to feel much better. Even though I am publishing this now, I wrote it as the trimester progressed to accurately document how I was feeling each week.

(week 3-4) The very first symptom that I noticed was heavier breathing. I’d be out doing intervals or rock climbing in the gym and my breathing was so much heavier than it normally would be at that heart rate or that power. Another strange early symptom was a nosebleed (also during an interval workout). I can’t remember the last time I got a nosebleed so this was definitely a strange one. Like many other expecting mothers, I also felt more fatigued in these early weeks. I’d be able to do a workout and my workday but I’d have little energy for anything else and took some naps which is extremely rare for me.

One thing that really took me by surprise was the fear and anxiety I feel. I am not an anxious person but the responsibility of keeping my baby safe while it grows inside of me hit me hard. On bike rides I have been taking quiet side streets even if it takes longer and I am extra cautious around corners and downhills. I’ve been feeling really great about trail running, in large part because of how safe I feel in the woods. I certainly will continue being as active as possible throughout my pregnancy but I might shift more toward riding on gravel/closed roads and running on trails so I can keep this baby safe!

(week 5) The fatigue and nausea hit this week. Some days were great and other days I was knocked completely down. Due to the nausea I have had to focus on simple foods: eggs + rice (pre-race and prenatal apparently), ritz crackers, mashed potatoes and soup have all been palatable.

I’m so lucky to have a partner who has been doing significantly more than half of the housework and is willing to stop and get me whatever foods sound edible in the moment.

My coach and I have been having conversations about how to proceed during the next several months. I am a person who does really well with structure. It reduces stress to have my training plan laid out for me. I work remotely and set my own hours so I plan my work week around my training. However, energy levels can be so drastically different depending on the day throughout pregnancy and other athletes have returned to race fitness within a few months of giving birth. Right now the tentative plan is to temporarily leave structured workouts behind and focus on feeling good.

(week 6-8)

The fatigue and nausea have so far only gotten worse. I went from normal training on the bike 6-7days/week to maybe 1-2 easy rides/runs. I am lumping these three weeks together because even sitting at a computer and typing requires more energy than I currently have most days. I’ve never been a napper, even as an infant I didn’t nap much (I slept well through the night though) so when I say I am napping more than I ever have in my life it is not an exaggeration. There are days in the last few weeks when I have taken 3 naps and slept 8-11 hours at night… it is ridiculous. I really miss my normal energy.

I also realized that even on the days that I have a bit more energy and can get a “workout” in (read as easy run or ride) I can’t do anything for more than 1-1.5h because I am so under-fueled due to food aversions and nausea. Luckily I haven’t actually thrown up much, it is more like constantly feeling on the verge.

My final complaint in these last three weeks is more about living in Tacoma. I was spoiled in Roanoke and I am spoiled in Duluth and live right on trails. Here, it is a 45 min drive to get to mountain bike trails. I’ve never had such low motivation to go mountain biking. If I drive 45 min I can’t guarantee that I will feel good enough to ride when I get there and it just doesn’t feel worth it to have 1.5h of (traffic-y, stressful) driving for 1-1.5h of riding. Even trails to run on are a 15 min drive. I miss my home.

On the bright side - I had my first ultrasound!! The baby has a heartbeat and is measuring the right size!! It really makes this flu-like feeling and lack of energy feel like it is for a reason. Cannot wait to meet this little baby in October.

Week 7 - First Ultrasound!

(week 9-10)

An improvement!! These weeks have been a mix of good days and bad days. I feel the most sick when I haven’t eaten enough and I’ve been having trouble eating enough protein. I tend to have low blood sugar, so if I eat just carbs I end up bonking hard! It has been difficult to eat protein though because I can’t even consider eating meat and dairy. Quinoa chips have been saving me lately :)

(week 11-14)

During the last few weeks of the first trimester I started to feel better and better every day. In weeks 13-14 I was able to eat almost normally which I’ve noticed greatly improves my energy!! I don’t love being pregnant but seeing the baby stretch it’s legs in the ultrasound makes it all worth it - and getting some energy and normalcy back certainly makes it more bearable!

I have been able to ride and run a bit more and it feels amazing to be back outside on a regular basis!

Cheers to the first trimester being done and to (so far) making a healthy baby!

Week 13 Ultrasound