Considering there has suddenly been a second wave of pregnancy in my group of friends recently, I've been thinking about what the few really important things are during pregnancy.
All 5 of the below tips I did myself and it put me in a really good place when it came to being prepared for not only birth but some of the 4th trimester, and even motherhood. Yes you’ll never be completely prepared for it and no, you shouldn’t stress out about trying to have too much info. There"s always a balance.
1.Prenatal vitamins. These are at the top of the list for a reason. While you may be taking in more nutrients and food, your body is still putting more energy than you can imagine into making a human from nothing but an egg and a sperm cell. YOU NEED EXTRA HELP. Help in the form of small but effective tablets chock-a-block filled with all the good stuff. A word from the wise, don’t opt for the huge tablets with the separate fish oil and and and… A friend of mine did that and she struggled daily to stomach the tablets. It makes morning sickness all the more unpleasant. As soon as you find out you’re pregnant start on the vitamins and find one with folic acid. I myself used Pregnavit M.
2.Daily walks. This is one we all know if good but one thats the most difficult to stick by. Particularly in your third trimester. You feel tired and out of breathe, you feel large, you feel swollen and you often feel sick. Why would you want to walk?!
Well, walking helps release some of that water retention by stimulating blood circulation in your body. Its gets your heart rate up, which means more oxygenated blood is being pumped not only to your body, but to your baby as well. Towards the end of your pregnancy, the gravity and exercise can help along the natural preparation your body goes through for birth.
Obviously if you enjoy exercise then you are sorted on this front.
3.Kegel exercises. These are the muscles that do a lot of the work during a natural birth. They help your baby get from the birth canal into the big wide world by relaxing and tightening as you push your baby out. Also, postpartum they help heal perineal tissue, which is stretched a lot during vaginal birth.
Researchers say women who workout their pelvic muscles by doing Kegel exercises during the last few months of pregnancy have an easier time giving birth.
The exercises are easy to do -- and no one will know you're moving a muscle. Just relax and simply contract your pelvic muscles as if you were halting the stream of urine (but avoid doing so while you're actually urinating). Initially you might try it lying or sitting down, but they can be performed anywhere. Ask your physician about the number of squeezes you should be doing daily, if at all.
4.Don’t overeat. ‘Eating for two’ isn’t actually a thing.
During your first trimester you don’t actually need any additional calorie intake. All you need to be doing is focused on the kinds of food you are consuming. Nutrition that gives you sustainable energy and of course if you find that a specific food helps your morning sickness then by all means add that in there. For me, the trick was a banana first thing in the morning (Potassium, B6, magnesium and carbs) and then regular meals throughout the day.
When you get to the second trimester you only add 300-500 calories per day. To give you an idea thats about the same as glass of 2% milk and a bowl of oatmeal. So not much.
By the third trimester you’ll need an extra 450-500 calories per day.
Keep in mind that one of the two you're eating for is a tiny growing fetus (just pea-sized or smaller, in fact, for much of the first trimester).
Exert from What to Expect
Note: There are exceptions to this, these are just the general guidelines in the case of a singular, healthy pregnancy.
You can read more about pregnancy nutrition on What To Expect.
5.Educate yourself. Apps are your best friend in this new day and age. If you haven’t already, make sure to go and read about my “Top 5 Baby apps”. Those were my life savers!
Not only can you learn so much on what to expect but when you better equip yourself for motherhood. There is so much about it that you feel like you go into blindly and have to just figure your way through. Don’t over do the research, because that can cause unnecessary worry for you as a new mom. But choose the things you know you are interested in and just learn.
Also, I would 100% recommend an antenatal class if you are able to take one. Many woman think its a waste of time or money, or simply think they don't need it. Trust me, you do need it. It was hands down the only reason I was able to breastfeed Tayo for 8 months. Plus, it was super helpful for Daddy Tayo to learn all the ins and outs. Because, lets be honest Daddy doesn’t download the apps and do as much detailed research as what we do. We are the ones growing the baby after all.
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More momsplaining next week…
Important note: I am not a professional in any of the topics discussed on this blog. The topics above are purely opinions based on my own real life experiences.
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