Weird

Man, there are all kinds of crazy things that happen when you're pregnant, and I'm not even talking about actually growing a tiny human.  I'll keep this all health and fitness related, so no need to get all squeamish on me.  This should be familiar to all you moms out there and I bet the rest of you learn something.

Let's start with the changes I've noticed so far.

• Boobs.  I had to buy new sports bras almost immediately, or I have to double up.  Why is that the first noticeable change?  I don't know.  My current theory is it's an incentive for the baby daddy to stick around a while longer.
• GI tract.  Hormones relax smooth muscle tissue, including the GI tract.  This is good in that I am more efficient at absorbing nutrients from my food than general population. (Ha!)  This is bad in that it can create all kinds of GI issues: gas, bloating, diarrhea, constipation, etc.  I have gone mostly gluten free, which has helped.  I also had to cut out raw carrots and celery - they just take too damn long to digest.  Cooked veggies and most raw ones are fine, it's just raw fibrous veggies I can't handle.
• Center of gravity.  I noticed a few weeks ago that my center of gravity has shifted.  I notice it when picking things up and swimming the most.  I'm sure eventually it will affect cycling as well.
• Tendons and ligaments.  Those same hormones that relax GI muscles also relax tendons and ligaments.  This is good and necessary for baby to eventually make his/her debut.  This is bad in that my joints are less stable than normal.  I took a funny step last weekend and I think I mildly sprained my ankle.  That was pathetic.  I'm also blaming loose tendons and ligaments for my feet.  They're not fat, but my Hatori's just don't fit like normal and my toes are hitting the end.  They've been retired for the summer.
• Shortness of breath.  This one I find pretty amazing.  When you're pregnant, your blood increases by 50%.  50%!  That's crazy!  In fact, of the weight that women put on during pregnancy, 4lb is due to blood increase (2lb due to boob increase, see above).  But in the first few months, the additional blood is plasma.  There is additional volume but no additional red blood cells which carry oxygen.  My heart pumps harder to move more blood to get the same amount of oxygen to cells.  That is why I sound like a fat person going up the stairs.  My heart is increasing in size to accommodate all this additional blood and eventually red blood cell production will catch up to the plasma.  Until then, don't mind my heavy breathing.  Headaches, light headed, dizziness are all additional side effects.  I like to think of it as 9 months of simulated high-altitude training.

I keep telling John "I'm a finely-tuned machine!  That just needs a nap."  I'm not as productive on the weekends since I do require more rest but that's OK.  I haven't had to clean out the litter box or handle lawn/yard chemicals since March.  And I get ice cream whenever we want.  Did I mention my boobs are huge?  And I'm creating life?  OK, right now, even though I feel totally different and I have a new set of limitations, this is pretty cool.

Race Envy

This was the first weekend that I felt like I was missing out because of pregnancy.  I knew 4 people who raced Ironman Texas, 3 in the Berryman 50, at least 1 in the 50i50 triathlon (that I was also signed up for) and several people in shorter races.

It didn't help that we cleaned and organized the garage this weekend.  I had to clean, sort and move all of my sports gear: yoga mat, climbing gear, mountain bike, etc.  The yoga mat I will still be able to use but it's going to be a while before I put my harness back on or get any fresh dirt on my mountain bike. 

I know the trade off is worth it.  I know that.  But the idea of a kid is still somewhat abstract, given that I don't really look or feel pregnant, and the list of forbidden food, drink, and activities is very tangible.  So much of my personal identity in the last 4 years has been tied up in training and racing, I think it's natural I feel a little lost without it.  I guess I hadn't really realized how much I really love training and racing.

On the upside, I also realized this weekend that no matter how late I stay up (which still isn't very late) I'm never hung over in the morning.  As John lay moaning in bed on Sunday, I got up and read a book and enjoyed my breakfast, headache-free.  See, there are upsides as well. :)

Where do I begin?

At the beginning, I suppose.  It was a Sunday night and John made a romantic dinner for the two of us.  Oh wait, we don't need to start that far back.  Sorry, you don't get those details.

I found out on March 8 and I had a little bit of a meltdown. Ok, I freaked out in typical Sam-fashion: complete withdrawal.  I didn't even tell John.  I went to bed early that night repeating "Everything will be OK, everything will be OK".  The next day I was in Lawrence for work so I ducked out of the conference early and went to the River Trails for an 8 miles run.  What else was there to do?

The run helped and by the end I felt slightly less terrified and a little more at peace.  Don't get me wrong, this was planned but the idea of kids versus the actuality of having kids are two completely different things.  I went home and told John.

Luckily, thankfully, John was and has been totally excited.  I don't think the two of us could both be terrified; that would be a disaster.  He's already planning zoo trips and experiments.  His excitement has definitely helped me to be more excited and less petrified.

Remember that 3.5 mile 5k I ran in March?  I was pregnant.  8 miles at Brew to Brew?  Yep, pregnant.  So I'm still working out, but I'm honestly a little nervous about broadcasting my workouts just because I know people tend to be pretty opinionated when it comes to what pregnant women should and should not be doing.  There is very little guidance but a whole lot of wives' tales.

Now you're all caught up and I'll have plenty to post about.  I promise nothing too personal or gross, but poop stories are always on the table.  I was in to the dr. today and Baby K's heartbeat was around 160 bpm.  Sounds like a good tempo run to me!

Running with the Cows and....

This morning was the Running with the Cows half marathon.  John and I both ran.  It was a decent day but it got pretty hot towards the end.  We ran it in 2:06, which is not my slowest half (Olathe - 2:12, one day after giving blood.  Not my smartest move).  But I have a good reason for taking it easy, the best reason actually.

Drum roll please!

Surprise!  I'm 14 weeks pregnant.

So I actually have a ton of crap to catch up on that I haven't been able to write about.  Last Tuesday for example.  And the full reason behind going gluten-free.  And all of the weird things that happen when you're pregnant.  Hmm, maybe I should put a disclaimer that my blog is taking a turn towards motherhood.  Still mostly about exercising and eating, but I don't exactly know where this is headed.  Consider yourself warned.  But I promise nothing too disgusting.

I have gotten the green light from my OB to do "pretty much anything you want".  Since I've been doing this for so long, they just told me t0 1) Stay hydrated 2) Listen to my body and 3) No speed work or really hard effort that will cause me to overheat.  And of couse, I'm not moutain biking or rock climbing.  Those things can wait.

Thank god for that advice though, because if I had to follow what most pregnancy books and websites recommend (a brisk 20 min walk every day) I think I would stab someone.  Maybe I should keep homicidal thoughts to myself now that I'm going to be a mother.

Weird.  I'm going to be a mom.  It's weird even to type.

Anyway, as you could probably guess, we already had a scare and I'll get into that later.  But as far as we know, everything is OK and the Peanut already takes after Mom.  Peanut doesn't sit still for very long.  But because of the scare, I have a ton of ultrasound pictures from weeks 11, 12, and 13.

I also think I win the "Best Mother's Day gift" award.  We sent John's mom an ultrasound picture of her first grandchild.  (My mom already has 3.)  

13 weeks

High five, Dude!

Power to the People!!

Pretty darn cute already.  You just don't want to see them from the front - looks more like an alien.

I also made gluten free sugar cookies to tell the neighbors and they turned out absolutely amazing!  Better than regular cookies.  My one neighbor didn't believe I made them and thought I had to have bought them somewhere.  Yeah, that good.  Don't mind the orientation, for whatever reason blogger keeps importing it sideways.



Tuesday

“Courage isn't having the strength to go on - it is going on when you don't have strength.”
― Napoleon Bonaparte

I wish I could post more, but I just can't right now.

Quick Updates

I swear, one of these days I will upload Brew to Brew photos so you can see what an awesome running toga looks like.  I've been cutting back on FB just because I find it to be annoying and a complete waste of time.  Since I'm cutting back on FB, I'm not on the computer in general so I've noticed I'm getting lazy at updating.  So here's the quick run down:

1/2 marathon is in a few weeks and training is going well for the most part.  If it's cool, it should be a good day.  If it's hot, I won't even try to PR, it will just be for fun.  Our weather is fluctuating between highs in the 50s (good for me) and 90s (bad for me).  So it's hard to predict.  But I know what an over-heated meltdown feels like and I don't need to repeat that performance.

The gluten-free experiment is going well so far.  I ran again on Sunday after 2 mostly gluten free days and I ran 7 miles without a single bathroom stop.  Victory!  I feel better, but I think it will take at least a week before I feel *good* again.  It has been relatively easy, other than the night John had pizza and it smelled so heavenly.  But I decided it wasn't worth stomach cramps and I did not cave.  Point for Sam.

This weekend, I'm trying GF pizza crust Friday night.  I stumbled across this blog and I've already copied her flour lists, tips, and a few other recipes (Pumpkin Chai bread??  Hello!).  I can't wait to try them out!  I made Chex-treats last weekend which are great (Rice Crispies treats with GF Cinnamon Chex instead).  They disappeared quickly.

Gluten Free Goddess

I'll try to take some pictures and post about any successes or failures in the kitchen this weekend.  My biggest decision will be what goes on top of the pizza.  And hopefully I will have nothing but uneventful runs to report.

Fed Up

I am fed up. 

What started as some bad Chinese food turned into a week of full-on GI-distress.  I will try not to get into specifics, but basically I was miserable all week.  This morning I went on my weekend long run and cut an 11 mile run down to 6.  Impressive for the wrong reasons.

The abdominal cramps started just before 3.5 miles.  I knew there were porta potties soon and a park about 1/2 mile ahead.  I was hoping to make it to the park and I'd turn around there.  No such luck, I had to stop at a porta potty next to a soccer field about 0.2 miles away.

My pace was fine and I actually felt good other than when my abdomen was cramping.  Kelly was meeting me at mile 7 (now 6 because I cut off 0.5 miles on that leg) and run the last 4 miles with me.  When I got to the park, I had to make another bathroom stop except the porta potty was DISGUSTING and I wouldn't use it.  We walked about 1/2 mile to the next porta potty by a different soccer field.  I told Kelly I just couldn't run.  Running made it worse.  So we walked a mile out and a mile back.

I'm so frustrated and miserable.  I'm not the hypochondriac-googling-WebMD-self diagnosing type, but I have been online trying to find out what the culprit could be.  I have it narrowed down to two choices: gluten sensitivity or irritable bowel syndrome (what a sexy name for a syndrome).

Since there is no real test for either one, and I know I am gluten sensitive in hot weather races, I am going to try going gluten free for two weeks and see how I feel.  And to be perfectly honest, I'd rather have a gluten sensitivity than irritable bowel syndrome (please proceed with the pain in the ass jokes).

Another reason was trying gluten free is my diet from last week.  We typically don't eat much gluten, mostly cereal (I'm a cereal monster).  But this last week:

Sunday night: Chinese food & noodles (may or may not have gluten but definitely put John and I both in the bathroom)
Monday lunch: Chinese leftovers (the GI problems hadn't started before lunch)
Monday night: Whole wheat pasta
Tuesday lunch: Soup
Tuesday dinner: Pasta leftovers
Wed lunch: sub sandwich
Wed dinner: can't remember
Thursday lunch: pasta leftovers
Thursday dinner: black bean burger on bread
Friday lunch: last of the leftovers
Friday dinner: baked ziti

Enough gluten already?  And why did I make pasta on Monday?  We never eat pasta at home.  Some days were better than others, but every evening was painful.  The only time I felt good was in the morning, at least 11 hours after eating last.  By the end of the week, every time I would get abdominal cramps, I'd have to run to the bathroom because I wasn't sure if it was gas or worse.  Either way, I could stay sitting at my desk.  I felt so bad today, that I cancelled going to Dolce with Kelly.  And I love Dolce.

So my gluten-free experiment begins.  I'm hoping that I don't need to cut out all gluten but for the next two weeks I'm going to try.  I want to clear my system and start over.  Hopefully I can go back to cereal and the other minor things, I just may have to avoid wheat-based pasta and bread.  I'm willing to try anything at this point, just to get some relief.