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MY PREGANANCY
Mar 22, 2018, by Rebecca Jackson
I'm not going to lie; I haven't been looking forward to writing this post. I haven't been looking forward to being so open and vulnerable. However, I think it is important to share my journey with you.

This past year, my body has gone through the most change it ever has. I went from being pregnant to having a wonderful little girl to now having to figure out what my new normal is. I worked out throughout my whole pregnancy, up until the day before I went into labor. I was teaching HIIT classes, strength training, and trying to get at least 18,000 steps in a day. I was determined to stay healthy.

I gained 39lbs during my pregnancy. The recommended amount is 25-35lbs. They also suggest how quickly you gain that weight. During the first trimester, I had already gained 15 of my 39lbs. I remember worrying, and asking my husband and my doctor if I was gaining too quickly, or if I was harming the baby by putting on too much weight. By 20 weeks, halfway through my pregnancy, I was already at 20lbs. I felt great. My feet hurt, but my body felt good, and I loved getting to feel my little girl swim around inside me.

As my third trimester approached, I learned that my abdominal muscles had split. I had a diastasis recti. I was mortified. I cried. I had been trying so hard to avoid having that happen, but was misinformed due to conflicting research on which exercises to avoid. I signed up with the Tummy Team, and started immediate rehab. I stressed and worried a lot about what this abdominal split would mean for my after-baby body. Would I ever get my "body back?" How would my husband look at me after?
Here I am at 35 weeks. My friend had to convince me to do these photos. I was at the point where I stopped feeling attractive. I felt huge. I was glad she convinced me to let her photograph the miracle that was happening.

That day, we had just found out our little girl was breech. It turned out, she liked moving as much as I do. We had a version scheduled in two days. When we arrived for our version, she had turned on her own. We would have another version scheduled at 39 weeks.


Throughout the next few weeks, I would keep getting larger and larger. Here is a selfie I took to document how big I got. It's a day after my due date.

When I went into labor at 41 weeks, our little girl was head down. During labor, she decided she wanted to flip again. We had to have a c-section. Thankfully, after having two scheduled versions already, I was somewhat mentally prepared. I knew it meant no exercise for 6 weeks.

Check out this post about after my c-section. Post
Have fun & Be Active!
Rebecca
Written by:

Rebecca Jackson
Rebecca is the Founder of Build It For Life.

Rebecca Jackson is an ACE Certified Personal Trainer and AFAA Certified Group Fitness Instructor. She is a working mom who believes that exercise should be part of everyday living. She received her B.S. in Psychology from the University of Mary Washington.