Runner’s World Guide to Running and Pregnancy: How to Stay Fit, Keep Safe, and Have a Healthy Baby

223 Pages·2003·2.26 MB·English

by  Chris Lundgren

For Carl, my best friend, soul mate, and husband, who helped create the
subject matter for this project; for Eric, whose first sentence was “Mommy go
running”; and for Perry, whose solid presence on every run provided pages and
pages of inspiration.
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments
Introduction
PART 1: Gearing Up
Chapter 1
On Your Mark, Get Set
Preparing for the Most Challenging Race of Your Life
Chapter 2
The Race to Get Pregnant
How Running Affects Fertility
Chapter 3
Running Reinforcements
Stretching, Strengthening, and Cross-Training
Chapter 4
Nutrition
Eating for Two on the Run
PART 2: The First Trimester
Chapter 5
The First Month
Stomach Doing Flip-Flops? It Must Be Love (or Pregnancy)
Chapter 6
The Second Month
Sore Breasts and Snug Shorts
Chapter 7
The Third Month
The Word Is Out
PART 3: The Second Trimester
Chapter 8
The Fourth Month
Welcome to the Honeymoon
Chapter 9
The Fifth Month
You and the Buddha
Chapter 10
The Sixth Month
Running Strong
PART 4: The Third Trimester
Chapter 11
The Seventh Month
Remodeling Your Running Program
Chapter 12
The Eighth Month
Front-End Loaded
Chapter 13
The Ninth Month
Desperately Seeking the Finish Line
Chapter 14
The “Fourth” Trimester
Running and Beyond
Resource Guide
Index
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This book wouldn’t be a book without the input of many experts. First, thanks
to the athletes who shared their prenatal running stories and advice: Kristin
Alexander, Shannon Avery, Jill Bagley, Lauri Brockmiller, Karen Cofsky,
Lynda Del Missier, Joy Gayter, Wendy Gellert, Kelly Gerlach, Linda Gill, Judy
Gower, Susie Graves, Lisa Keller, Laura Kennedy, Diane Krapf, Liz Lincoln,
Blythe Marston, Leanne Molinero, Geri Sorenson, Nora Tobin, Mcaire Trapp,
and Nanette Zeile.
Special thanks to my friends who granted me interviews and were kind
enough to read and critique the manuscript, specifically Melissa David, who
provided insight into twin pregnancies and C-sections; Catherine Plichta, who
made me laugh until my stretched-out belly ached; and Alden Bumstead, a
friend of Catherine’s who critiqued my first draft without ever having met me.
To Christine Cornell, prenatal water fitness instructor and yet another friend of
Catherine’s, who answered all my questions on water exercise. To Thelma
Robinson, R.N., M.S.N., P.N.P., fellow author, medical expert, and cheerleader
for this project.
Thanks to the many fitness, medical, and nutrition experts I consulted, all of
whom gave generously of their time: Cindy Bonney, certified nurse-midwife at
the Alaska Women’s Health Services in Anchorage; Jay Caldwell, M.D.,
director of the Alaska Sports Medicine Clinic in Anchorage; Nancy Clark, R.D.,
author of Nancy Clark’s Sports Nutrition Guidebook and nutrition counselor at
SportsMedicine Associates in Brookline, Massachusetts; Geralyn Coopersmith,
C.S.C.S., exercise physiologist and owner of Physique Fitness in Ridgefield,
Connecticut; James Douglas, M.D., reproductive endocrinologist in Plano,
Texas; Elizabeth Joy, M.D., a sports medicine physician and team doctor at the
University of Utah in Salt Lake City; Robert E. Keith, R.D., Ph.D., professor of
nutrition and food science at Auburn University in Alabama; Debra Kristich-
Miskill, certified nurse-midwife at the Anchorage Women’s Clinic; Carol
Mitchell-Springer, M.D., of the Alaska Women’s Health Services in Anchorage;
Ingrid Nygaard, M.D., associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the
University of Iowa; James Pivarnik, Ph.D., professor of kinesiology and
osteopathic surgical specialties and director of the Human Energy Research
Laboratory at Michigan State University in East Lansing; Sherman Silber, M.D.,
director of the Infertility Center of St. Louis and author of How to Get Pregnant
with the New Technology; Judy Van Raalte, Ph.D., professor of psychology at
Springfield College in Massachusetts; Frank Webbe, Ph.D., professor of
psychology at Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne and president of the
Running Psychologists; Jan Whitefield, M.D., of the Alaska Women’s Health
Services in Anchorage; and L. A. Wolfe, Ph.D., professor of exercise physiology
at the School of Physical Health and Education at Queen’s University in
Kingston, Ontario.
Special thanks to Patty Kulpa, M.D., sports gynecologist in Gig Harbor,
Washington, for granting me numerous interviews; to Joy Backstrum, physical
therapist at the Physical Therapy Place in Anchorage, for educating me and
demonstrating ways to remain injury-free during pregnancy; and Kathy
Hanuschak, R.D., of Allentown, Pennsylvania, for desgining the menus.
To James F. Clapp III, M.D., emeritus professor of reproductive biology at
Case Western Reserve University and research professor of obstetrics and
gynecology at the University of Vermont College of Medicine, for answering my
questions and for his more than two decades of research into exercise and
pregnancy. His informative book Exercising Through Your Pregnancy gave me
the courage to run through my second pregnancy.
Thanks also to Paul Henry Danylewich, director of White Tiger Street
Defense in Montreal, Quebec, author of Fearless: The Complete Personal Safety
Guide for Women; and to Stephanie Shain, dog-bite expert and director of
outreach for companion dogs at the Humane Society of the United States in
Washington, D.C.
To Linda Honikman of the Road Running Information Center in Santa
Barbara, California, for sharing knowledge and providing resources as I wrote
the proposal for this book. To Heidi Shelhamer-Felegy at Runner’s World
magazine for providing statistics crucial to getting this project off the ground. To
Rodale’s Steve Madden, who understood the need for a book on running during
pregnancy and worked diligently to make it a reality.
To Leah Flickinger, my creative and diplomatic editor, for sculpting a
manuscript into a book. Working with her was a pleasure and a learning
experience. To Jane Hahn at Runner’s World for sharing her expertise in matters
of running, pregnancy, and new motherhood. To copy editors Loretta Mowat and
Lisa Elwood for their careful attention to details, both big and small.
To agents Janet Rosen and Sheree Bykofsky of Sheree Bykofsky Associates
for negotiating my publishing contract.
To my brother Ken Forbes for market research assistance early in the project,
and to my sister Anne Wangman (and her sister-in-law Beth Wangman) for
helping locate several of the running moms I interviewed. To my mom and dad,
Gwen and Lyman Forbes, for raising me to believe I could do anything I put my
mind to.
And of course, to Carl for his support, enthusiasm, and many hours of “dad
duty,” and to Eric and Perry for putting up with a closed door all those days they
just wanted to play with Mom.
INTRODUCTION
The seed for this book was planted during the fourth week of my first
pregnancy. I wanted something that would tell me it was okay to keep running,
that my baby would be fine if I continued the sport I’d pursued my entire adult
life. After a desperate and unsuccessful search at the Barnes & Noble near my
home in Anchorage, Alaska—the “Pregnancy” shelves, the “Sports” shelves, the
“Exercise” shelves—I moved on to the two other major bookstores in town, only
to find the same disappointing results.
At my first prenatal checkup, I timidly mentioned my running. “That’s fine,”
the nurse said. “Just keep your heart rate under 140 beats per minute or you
could divert oxygen from your womb.” I turned green, not from morning
sickness, but from the memory of a chest-pounding 8-miler I’d run the night
before taking my home pregnancy test. I swore to myself I’d be more careful.
During each subsequent run, I’d stop every 3 to 4 minutes and place a finger on
my neck to check my pulse. It took little to nudge my heart rate over the limit, so
stopping and walking became part of my routine. I began to enjoy my runs less.
My frustration grew until I finally quit and replaced running with light workouts
on a stairclimbing machine.
My first baby (a boy) was born a healthy 7 pounds 9 ounces and apparently
unscathed by my early pregnancy misstep. After confirming my second
pregnancy, I shopped again for that elusive book, certain that in the 2 years since
my first pregnancy some writer had filled the gap. Again I came away empty-
handed—but inspired. The Runner’s World Guide to Running and Pregnancy
had started to germinate. I dug into the piles of research on exercise during
pregnancy (and finally learned the truth about heart rate), recorded my
experiences in a journal, interviewed medical professionals, and talked with all
the moms I could find who had run through their pregnancies.
My second child also was born healthy. Nine months of running had diverted
nothing from the womb, which became obvious when the baby emerged at a
whopping 8 pounds 10 ounces and sporting an impressive set of lungs that he put
to use immediately.
We all have different reasons for wanting to run through pregnancy (you’ll
find many outlined in the pages that follow). I love the physical and emotional
boost I get from running, and I didn’t want to let go of that for 9 months. And,
like many runners, I thrive on goals. Four weeks postpartum, I began to
intersperse some running with walking. Ten months postpartum I ran the
marathon I’d fantasized about during my pregnancy. But that’s just my story.
Pregnancy is a highly individual experience, and your journey through prenatal
and postpartum running will likely unfold differently from mine and that of the
other runners quoted and profiled in this book. You’ll want to listen to your own
body and “run your own pregnancy.”
Having run all the way through my second pregnancy, I’ve now answered the
burning questions I had when I scoured bookshelves for the volume you now
hold in your hands. I’ve organized the book in a read-as-you-grow format—
trying to place answers at the most relevant moments of your pregnancy’s
progression. Since no two pregnancies are alike, if you don’t find what you’re
looking for in a particular month, read ahead to the next. By the time you finish
this book, you’ll be armed with the most up-to-date advice from the experts—
including exercise physiologists, sports gynecologists, and moms just like you.
And you’ll have fortified your mind and body for the unique experience of being
a runner while becoming a mother.