Still running jogging

Next to what she consumes, nothing attracts unsolicited comments like the sight of a pregnant woman running. I've been fortunate that said comments are generally positive ("Right on!") or encouraging ("Keep it up!"), though I've heard tell of the annoyingly negative ("Should you really be doing that?").

When I was pregnant with the Bug, my last so-called run (trust me, it gets really slow near the end) was a couple of days before I went to the hospital to deliver. I'm hoping for the same sort of luck this time around, and all indicators are still positive. I chuckle a little when people ask me about it, because the #1 question is about my heart rate. Of which I have no clue. I don't track my heart rate when I'm not pregnant, nor do I track it when I am pregnant. It's actually a lot easier than that. You just want to keep your exertion to a moderate level, and it's easy not to overdo it because between increased blood volume and decreased lung capacity, there is simply no way to push it too hard. I still record my run times, but only because I find it interesting to track. The other guideline is total exercise time. I've heard that it's good to keep yourself around 30 minutes or less by the time you hit the third trimester. Frankly, I could not do much more - when you're pregnant, you really go to the bathroom frequently. I simply can't hold it longer than this!

As far as workout gear, I have heard about giant belly bands that are supposed to keep you from bouncing. The concept freaks me out, and my tummy is totally bounceless anyway. I wear my normal shorts, low below my tummy, and either a maternity running shirt or a big old t-shirt. The former is far more comfortable, but I've got more of the latter and they suffice.

I think the reason I do it is to maintain a level of normalcy even while pregnant. Like a glass of wine with dinner, it makes me feel a bit more human. Plus, exercise during pregnancy is supposed to help with post-baby weight loss. I'm hoping to keep running 'til the end again.