12.5 weeks

At 12.5 weeks we had our first encounter with our new ob/gyn practice. We choose the practice due to a recommendation by our RE doctor and the proximity of the office to the hospital we intended to deliver at. There are five doctors at this practice so we will see all five during the time before delivery since when I deliver the doctor we have will depend on who is on call that day.

The first appointment was good but a little longer than anticipated. Up until this point I had been able to avoid the dreading pee in the cup and regular well women checks. Well this practice was not letting me slip away from that anymore. First we had an ultrasound and got to see our little plum. (We have a name each week based on the size of the baby according to the bump app). It seemed to be either sucking its thumb or trying to hide its face as its hands were constantly moving to and from the face. We also got to hear the heartbeat which once again was pretty cool.

We next met with one of the doctors. She asked if I had any questions and of course the first thing on my mind was her suggestions on exercise and activity. She said she recommends women to do no more than what they were doing prior to pregnancy. So I told her my history and that I had been limiting myself to working up to 140bpm and avoiding running and jumping. I asked if I could raise that heart rate a little more and add some running and jumping into my routine. She said if you feel well enough to do so, go for it. The main goal was to not over exhaust yourself and make sure you can breathe during the exercise.

I decided that I would self-impose a heartbeat limit on myself of 160bpm or so. I knew this would be far enough on the heart rate scale for me to really get in some better exercise that didn’t make me want to go to sleep as one of my friends stated. I was so excited to be able to run and jump rope again. I was getting really sick of rowing all the time at such a slow pace!

Overall, the appointment went well. I was sent off with a bag full of paperwork and information to read. I of course got through the material fairly quickly and realized this is what normal women get earlier on rather than having to rely on Google to answer pregnancy questions. 

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My New BFF

After my 6 week ultrasound I was permission to increase my activity but I had to keep heart rate under 140bpm. So I had to invest in a heart rate monitor. I quickly realized that the 140 bpm wasn't very high when doing any form of cardio or moderately lifting at high reps. I had to learn how to breathe slower and find the best ways my body recovers so I could continue with working out.

Anyone who's don't CrossFit knows in a metcon the goal is usually to go as fast as possible. Well know with my new limits I was focused more on quality vs quantity and/or speed. I actually felt like I spent more time waiting for my heart rate to decrease than I did working out at times but I knew I was still doing my body good. I also knew this was the safest way to keep my baby safe and healthy in the womb. So embraced the new challenge and realized something was absolutely better than nothing! 

My new BFF! 

Giving up my favorite hobbies

I knew once I got pregnant I would have to change my lifestyle a bit but after everything I've learned I quickly realized my life would have to be changing a lot sooner. I knew if I decided to go through with the treatment my physical fitness routines would be drastically changing. So in order to really prepare myself for the changes regardless of the route I went I decided I'd give myself a deadline. My deadline was a CrossFit competition here locally and after the competition I would start making changes.

I pushed myself really hard to perform well at the competition. I called it my last hurrah and I sure did make a great last performance. I ended up placing 2nd overall in the scaled division. This was the icing on the cake but I knew that also meant my time had come. I would be giving up CrossFit and soccer. And of course running and anything else that could be high intensity. I was pretty much going to be limited to walking, elliptical, yoga and some light bodyweight exercises. 

I know it sounds so trivial to give up exercise and some might be rejoicing to stop exercise but for me it was a rough thought to overcome. As many people know exercise is a part of me. It's my de-stresser. It's my favorite hobby. It's been a big part of my life for the last few years. It's brought new opportunities and friends. I have a full set up of CrossFit equipment in my garage for gosh sake. I knew this was going to be a rough change but I also knew it would all be worth it in the end!

I wanted a family more than I wanted or needed CrossFit, soccer, running, or whatever I wasn't able to do. I would just find a way to love walking and yoga instead. I decided to look at this new adventure in a positive way. 

Who I am?

I'm from the grand city of Cincinnati and I'm proud of it. I love this city and don't plan on leaving anytime soon! I married my best friend in July 2014 after dating for over 8 years! We had a wedding with 250+ of our closest friends and family and began our journey as husband and wife on our honeymoon.

I personally have feel in love with health and fitness since college. I've adapted to the paleo lifestyle of eating and following CrossFit style workouts for quite some time. Both of these items have made a huge impact on my life and I thank the universe for bringing them into my life. It's changed how I go about my life, created friendships I would never have had before, and given me a rather expensive hobby! Most of my friends know I love CrossFit a lot but I try not to be one of those people who ONLY talk about CrossFit and nothing else. I do have a lot more to me than that!

I work for a large retail chain and love my job. I enjoy being involved in my community and am involved in several organizations around the city giving back to the community. I love to cook and I'm a terrible baker from scratch but I'm getting better! I enjoy doing projects around the house and watching a good movie time to time. I enjoy traveling to new places and have a goal to travel to all 50 US states. 

That's me in a nut shell!