Second Trimester Begins

Whoa, fast forward a couple of months, huh? I am glad I wrote that first previous post in order to document how I felt that very first day I found out I was pregnant. Well, now a couple of months have passed, we've had two ultrasounds and the reality has sunk in!

Six months from now, give or take a few days, the baby will arrive. That seems so far away, yet so soon. So much to do and plan for! I am very excited and find myself daydreaming about her/him all day long...

I am 13 weeks pregnant today. I started my second trimester today, and although I have been feeling a lot better than I was during the barfy stage of weeks 5-11, I still have these nasty periods in the late afternoon/early evening where I get headaches, an unpleasant metallic taste in my mouth and a sort of seasick feeling. UGH! Guess I should be glad I don't feel sick in the morning, because this is when I work out (and work) and I guess it would be much more debilitating to be sick all day long than just a few hours in the evening. I just hope it goes away soon! I want an EASY pregnancy, not to feel like my body has been taken over by a parasite or an alien...lol

I feel like people at work keep staring curiously at my stomach, as if they think I am going to "get huge" overnight. That's one of the things that held me back from telling anyone for so long...I really hate being examined. I also hate those well-meaning questions.. "how are you feeling..." Like you have a disease or something.

Some people I talk to act like you're screwed once you get pregnant, like you have no control over your body or what it's going to do. I guess to a certain extent that is true...however I think you have a great deal of control over many lifestyle factors such as are you going to pig out and be a couch potato, or are you going to eat sensibly, exercise and realize you aren't REALLY "eating for two?"

I went to the doctor yesterday and was pleased to note I had only gained 2 pounds during the whole entire first trimester. Yay me. My goal is to gain 20 pounds or less. I am sure I will get some frowns for that one, but I know my body and it will do what it wants to do. I do NOT starve myself, so there is no danger of that. I have changed my diet quite significantly in the past month though... I learned I am gluten and grain intolerant so I cut out all bread, grain, wheat, gluten and sugar and the improvements in my stomach issues are phenomenal! I will never go back to eating that stuff on a regular basis, I feel SO much better!

My diet consists mainly of soy milk, protein drink, eggs, cheese, natural peanut butter, cottage cheese, plain yogurt, celery, cauliflower, broccoli, apples, pears, grapes, berries, nuts, seeds, salad, animal protein and water. I do not drink soda of any kind and my diet is very clean and unprocessed.

I exercise about 5 days per week, alternating running, P90X and other plyometrics and exercises using my own body weight for resistance. I have worked really hard to continue my fitness program even during the parts of the pregnancy where I was feeling VERY tired with just a moderate amount of effort. That was while my blood volume was catching up to my vascular system, and things are MUCH better now!

In fact, I am going to start INSANITY next Monday! I may have to take a lot of breaks, but I'm gonna do it!!!