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Week 24 of being pregnant – featuring a lot of chocolate!

Week 24 of my pregnant and how are things going?

Well, pretty well actually! I feel really good. My energy levels are good, I’m sleeping well (though still grumbling about now being a side sleeper… I miss sleeping on my back so much!) and I’m still running three times a weeks (roughly around 25 miles/week) and strength training 3-4 times a week.

Running is getting slower of course and I’m finding both my hips get achy towards the end. But I’ve had some acupuncture and massage which massively helped, as does the lovely long hot water bottle Kyle’s sister bought me. Lots of good stretches throughout the day definitely ease the discomfort too.

I love running so much right now. I like to go first thing and just seeing the weather getting better makes me so happy. I might not be nearly as fast as I was before but I still get the same enjoyment. And the podcasts I listen to while running are now not just about running, food and movies but sprinkled with a heavy dose of pregnancy and baby related ones too.

Who’d have thought this would happen, definitely not me! I especially like Made by Mamas (though the number of adverts and sponsors they have in each episode REALLY annoys me) and the Pregnancy Wellness Podcast.

Food-wise things have been very good lately. Kyle amazingly treated me to some INCREDIBLE millionaire rocky roads from the Instagrammer @Nickichanlam (I’ve mentioned her before – she’s so so good). They were BRICKS!

They had a layer of caramel and a top layer of chocolate and then were basically packed full of mini-eggs, biscuit and marshmallows. So fricking good! I had one at 11am one day and basically was full until dinner that evening – and for me that’s really something!

I was also recently sent a super tasty set of drinks, Super DC, from Gusto. They’re basically healthily pimped out soft drinks aimed to boost your immune system as they’re packed full of vitamins.

They come in two flavours: Super DC Blood Orange and Super DC Blackcurrant & Elderberry. They’re full of antioxidants and contain a huge boost of Vitamin D and Vitamin C, for only around 60 calories a can.

 They actually taste REALLY good. The blood orange flavour tasted like a posh Fanta (and I love Fanta).

I honestly wanted to guzzle all the cans, they were super refreshing. Unfortunately they contain a bit too much Vitamin A for me being pregnant so I could only do a taste test, but this was good news for Kyle as he really liked them too.

I was also sent a really cool gift idea – a CHOCOLATE themed gift idea. It’s called ChocFace and basically you choose the photos you want to go on top of Belgian chocolate, which is all edible.

You can personalise what you call the box too, which I love

They come displayed in a really lovely box. I was quite impressed – the photos looked super clear and the chocolate was actually really tasty. I yomped my way through the box fairly quickly, I’m ashamed to say! It’s such a novel and fun idea. Really good gift for someone I think.

Slightly vainly I chose photos of myself and Kyle!

And on the note of food, Kyle and I had Monday and Tuesday off and we spent one of those days having a lovely walk down Southsea seafront and got some takeaway food from one of our favourite spots, The Parade Tearooms.

My favourite menu item from them is the Jane Salad (which I’ve had MANY times). It’s ginormous. And the takeaway version is just as big – giving you a large box of the cold items (salad bits, cheese, coleslaw) and then a large box of the hot items (crispy bacon, chicken and crispy potatoes). It was so good!

Unfortunately  my eyes were far too big for my tummy because after finishing this enormous salad I also wolfed down a gigantic wedge of tiffin afterwards.

This was a BIG mistake as honestly I felt so full for the rest of the day it wasn’t fun. I can definitely see this getting worse the longer the pregnancy continues because my stomach capacity just isn’t going to be what it used to be. Greedy Anna is going to have problems!

What’s your favourite, rocky road or tiffin? To be honest I’m not entirely sure the difference! I think rocky road has marshmallows and tiffin has raisins…

What’s your favourite salad? I really love caesar salads (especially if there are anchovies in it).

**Full Disclaimer: I was sent the Gusto drinks and the ChocFace chocolates for free in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own honest ones.**

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My Running For Two Half Marathon at almost 20 weeks

So this “race” recap is a bit delayed as it was actually back in Feb that I ran it when I was almost 20 weeks pregnant (I’m now 23 weeks pregnant). But hey ho!

With still being able to currently run fairly comfortably (*touch wood*) I’d said to Kyle that it was such a shame there were no races for me to plod round as I’d love to get a medal that I could later show our little guy and be like “I got this when you were inside of me”.

Obviously with the lockdown, races just weren’t being scheduled anytime soon (of course). The nearest races seemed to be late May or June. By that time I would be fairly heavily pregnant and I couldn’t guarantee I’d be able to run 5k let alone a half marathon.

I toyed with the idea of doing an official virtual one but Kyle said if I was going to have to do it on my own anyway I might as well just make my own up and really personalise it. It would save a bit of money and I could schedule it however I fancied. This sounded perfect.

I decided to go for a half marathon and came up with my own route round where I lived and created my own bib and name for the “race”: the Running For Two Half Marathon. I mentioned it to my parents and they said they’d come and support as well, which was lovely (strictly speaking breaking the rules a little but they would stand a distance from Kyle and obviously I’d just be running past).

I decided to go with the Sunday just before I turned 20 weeks, so almost half way, which fit nicely with the half distance as the little guy would be half baked. I had a pizza the night before, as is my pre-race tradition, and got myself mentally prepared. I’d been running 10-12 miles  for a few weeks so I wasn’t too worried about the distance – or how long it would take me as this wasn’t about times.

Unfortunately on the morning I woke up to aggressively windy and cold weather. As my route was basically along the coastline I knew I was in for a rough time. But it was planned, my parents were heading over to stand in the spot they were going to cheer from (about 9 miles – then the plan would be they’d walk down to mile 11, and then I’d finish near Baffins Pond and they’d walk down to see me, from afar), so I couldn’t back out now.

I’d dressed snuggly in two layers and my hat, gloves (and yes, shorts). Within two miles I realised I wasn’t warming up that much. Usually by half a mile I’m good but the wind was so icy and was tearing through my layers and stinging my legs. The wind was pushing from the side and I knew from the direction it was going it was going to be horrendous along the seafront.

I got to my three mile loo stop (my absolute saviour at the moment) and had a quick wee. No run can go without this anymore! I can pretty much manage up to four miles before it becomes impossible. Luckily all over Portsmouth there are some decent quality public toilets – especially in Southsea along the front. As I would in a race, I didn’t stop my watch.

Then I headed off through Old Portsmouth to then turn east towards the front. Ah jeeze. That icy wind was straight against me. It was AWFUL. Had I not been doing a race and had Kyle and my parents not been waiting at a certain spot, I honestly would have turned around and headed back home. I knew I had three miles along the front with this wind and it was soul destroying, not to mention freezing.

It was such a rubbish day. Normally if it’s windy or a bit overcast people still come and walk and spend time down the seafront but there was a sparsity of people on the prom, and those that were there looked miserable.

I just put my head down and counted down the 0.1 miles. Eventually I finally got to my next loo stop and thankfully turned the corner to head back north. The relief for both the loo and the wind to stop being full against me was incredible.

Now I was almost at 7 miles and knew it wouldn’t be such a slog to get to my parents. It was basically all north to them, so the wind was just be sideways on me not against me. But it was still cold. I just wasn’t warming up. It wasn’t even because of the pregnancy that this was hard, it was just an awful run because of the external conditions.

Finally I could see from about 0.5 miles away where my parents and Kyle would be. I could just make out their bodies. I felt immensely sorry for them. At least I was running so wasn’t absolutely freezing, whereas I knew them just standing there in the cold wind would be horrendous. I felt very bad indeed.

Eventually I got near enough to hear them shouting my name and cheering me on, like the absolute troopers they are. I could barely raise a smile to them though. I was cold to my core, so fed up and mentally drained. This was not the glorious celebratory run I’d hoped for.

I quickly told them I was changing my route as the one I’d planned  involved heading back to where I’d come from, and that was just utterly miserably in my mind. I wanted to keep moving to other areas and not head back to the hell I’d come from.

So I carried on running north until I roughly worked out if I turned back I could make the 13.1 mile distance if I just ran home. There was no way I wanted to be outside anymore. I wanted a hot shower, hot porridge and a cup of tea. I quickly rang Kyle and explained that was what I was doing. My parents could meet me there and we could chat from the front door. I felt bad but realistically it was no better than standing outside in Baffins Pond.

Happily they’d actually parked the car near to where they’d stood so they had been able to shelter in the car for warmth while I was running to them. So they drove back to our house (yes with Kyle masked up in the back of the car… it was just too cold to expect him to walk the mile back – at least both my parents had had the vaccine at this point).

I sped up on the final mile knowing I was heading home to warmth and shelter and then finally finished to them clapping me along the street which was lovely.

I ran 1:58:34 which I’m over the moon with, especially with two toilet stops. Under two hours was an unimportant goal I’d vaguely had in my mind so it was nice to achieve it. Long gone are the days of sub 1:40 or even sub 1:45 halves!

I’m really pleased I got the run done. It wasn’t what I’d hoped for and to be honest we were all feeling pretty rubbish afterwards. I felt terrible for my lovely supporters but they assured me it was fine and they were happy to see me achieve this milestone. To be honest, had I have known what the weather was going to be like in reality then I’d have changed the day. But it was what it was. It was certainly memorable!

And I got a medal! We had one made and I’ll be able to show our little man and say that I ran a very tough run to get this for him! And that’s something special to me at least.

Have you been running in the cold temperatures?

Have you been doing any virtual races?

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21 Weeks Pregnant

Week 21 here we are.

I won’t lie, nothing much has greatly changed in the context of the pregnancy or my life because happily the pregnancy is going smoothly for now, and less happily because lockdown is life so exciting activities are somewhat limited.

That being said, the weather is on the change to spring-like feels and when the sun is out I am so much  happier! I definitely feels like this spring is a LONG TIME coming, you know? We had the darkness of Lockdown 3 over Christmas and then January and February basically being a bit poo, it’s like the weather is foreshadowing better times to come.

And I’m sure everyone is ready for them! Boris’ announcement this week has given us a bit more hope. We actually have DATES to look towards and plan to. Yes it might be months away before life returns to somewhat normality but we have a timeline now thank god!

I did have a little blip last week where at the start of the week I felt a bit meh. I figured it was lockdown fatigue but after my run  on Thursday morning I quickly went downhill and had to go back to bed. I just felt completely and utterly drained. I felt a little sick and just an overwhelming sense of tiredness. I had fears of first trimester-ness coming back with a vengeance. I took Thursday and Friday off from work and of course exercise and literally just spent it in bed with my iPad and a book.

It did me the world of good! By Friday evening (good planning eh!) I was feeling far more energised and alive (and ready for our usual takeaway, obviously) and by Saturday I was even well enough to go for a 10 mile run. Perhaps somewhat optimistically going that  distance I realise, but I went with the flow and it just felt good. The weather definitely helped and I came back with a spring in my step.

Usually I don’t get ill that often but I think this past couple of weeks the baby has had a bit of a growth spurt which has taken a lot of my energy and just knocked me for six. Running on Thursday morning clearly exacerbated things and my body said “nope!”. Being pregnant is hard and I’m not quite the machine (in my head) that I once used to be. But I was sensible and took the rest and then reverted back to Anna normality 😉

My hips have begun to ache a lot more and sometimes running can annoy this so I’m taking each run as it comes. Sometimes missing a usual run and doing a YouTube fitness video instead. I’ve become a lot more relaxed about this because I’m just happy to keep my body moving in a comfortable way that helps keep the baby and me strong.

I do feel like my bump has definitely “popped” more and I’m feeling less bloated and more like an actual pregnant person. With the weather warming up I was able to go for a walk with my coat unzipped and with less of a baggy huge jumper and felt like it was the first time the world had seen my bump. The world didn’t care, but every window I passed I was gawping at myself and my little tummy proudly sticking out. Finally!

Food-wise I’ve been all about chicken. I over did getting Indian takeaways (two a week!) and have now become obsessed with roast chicken, boiled veg and BBQ sauce. I either cook it myself or get it delivered (which is ultimately less faff and SO much tastier as whatever they put on it makes it taste incredible). It’s become a problem. But weirdly the thought of chicken wings and  KFC still are not doing it for me. These used to be my absolute favourite chicken takeaways!

And on a final note, our 20 week NHS scan and midwife appointment went really well! All healthy and happy and now I’m trying to read as much as I can about different bits and bobs to feel somewhat in control when the baby arrives. I have ages yet but it helps calm me a bit to feel I’m learning something ahead of time.

What’s your favourite takeaway?

Are you a good ill person? What’s your favourite way to recover?

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Almost 20 weeks pregnant

So I’m almost 20 weeks pregnant and can happily say I mostly feel pretty good.

For me it’s been entirely true what people told me at the start when I was suffering so much during the first trimester, that the second trimester would be a dream. I very rarely get any sickness, most of my food aversions have disappeared (though chicken wings, my favourite crisps and apples apparently are still a no-go). My tiredness is not nearly as bad as it used to be. Occasionally if I’ve done a lot in a day I might have a little nap but generally I’m fine. I have loads of energy to do my workouts, my running and lots of walking (because what else is there to do in lockdown eh…).

I will say though that the thing that has crept up on me has been my body image. I mean this is no real shocker let’s be clear. A woman’s body changes very quickly week by week and it’s definitely an adjustment. No one likes to feel their jeans getting tighter round their waist or feel uncomfortable in general in clothes that not so long ago felt fine.

Obviously I’m pregnant and this is a thing. The baby is growing, my tummy is expanding – these are inescapable realities! But regardless of these facts, it’s still a hard one to adjust to. For the most part of this pregnancy I haven’t changed that much or look that pregnant. The biggest change was my boobs getting bigger. I’ve always had small boobs and so it’s been quite the shock to sudden have a lot more bounce going on!

Boobs aside though, recently I have definitely noticed my tummy “popping” more. And as excited as I am to look pregnant I’m in that awkward stage where it’s more of a bloated tummy than a baby bump look. And as it’s winter I’ve been under hoodies and jumpers and I guess somewhat subconsciously hiding that “bloat”. Ashamedly I’ve felt embarrassed of it.

I know this will sound very “woe is me” but I’ve had the (lucky) genetics of always having a flat tummy. Any weight I’d put on would go to my bum and thighs. But of course I’d get bloated from time to time because that’s life. If I ate a big meal or felt a bit gassy, my tummy would swell out a bit. I’d always be a bit embarrassed about this – as I expect most women would sadly. So now that that’s my constant shape right now I can’t help but feel a little bit self-conscious.

Like I said though, it’s an adjustment. I’m learning to embrace it. It definitely helps having Kyle there to make me feel better and attractive and to keep things in perspective. And I know very soon the bloat will look more like a bump and I will feel more confident in myself.

It is funny though to think that the bigger my bump is getting, the warmer it’s getting and the less clothes I’ll be wearing – so the bump can be “revealed” a bit more day-to-day. Big hoodies and jumpers just make me look like my normal self. I look forward to wearing tank tops and t-shirts so I can “feel” more pregnant all day, you know?

In other news, we’ve got our 20 week scan and midwife appointment on Wednesday which we’re really excited about. I can’t wait to see how much the baby has grown since our 16 week scan. I’m also quite anxious to speak to the midwife to talk about feeling the baby move, as I’ve yet to feel any “flutters”.  I know for first time pregnancies it can happen a lot later but it’s a reassurance I need to hear from someone face-to-face, you know?

I also want to hear that the baby is growing well. I haven’t put a lot of weight on and I hope that I’m fuelling everything right. I run and workout a lot and I want to make sure this is all healthy. Don’t get me wrong, I eat a lot too but the weight gain thing is making me a little anxious. I feel fine, I’ve had no pains and I don’t feel under-fuelled but I’ve never been pregnant before so I’m second guessing everything! I know in reality it’s probably all fine, but hearing from someone with medical experience would just set my mind to rest.

If you’ve been pregnant, did you have an easy second trimester?

Do you have a good body image?

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First trimester to second – how I feel, running and food

I’m quite comfortably in the second trimester of my pregnancy now at 18 weeks and enjoying life.

So far I think I’ve put on about 3-4lbs – I’m assuming it’s going to increase quite quickly at some point!

Comparative to the first trimester, it’s an utter breeze. No constant feelings of nausea, no feeling like I was limited in what I could eat for fear of it turning my stomach or being too much. While I still can’t eat certain foods (apples, shockingly, can you even believe? Along with ice cream, hot chocolate and chicken wings), I can pretty much eat most things and eat far bigger portions than I was able.

Porridge thankfully doesn’t make me feel sick anymore and I’m gradually increasing my portion size little by little. Pre-pregnancy I would have a giant bowl, but then I had to half that bowl to a teeny tiny portion and now it’s about 3/4 of the way there again, hurrah!

My chocolate eating, however, has become quite something. I eat it every single day. Now previously I would of course eat chocolate regularly but this is literally every night.

I just love having a black decaf coffee a few lines of the Cadbury’s Mini Egg Bars (you must try if you haven’t) or Tony’s Chocolonely or Toblerone. Basically anything. We have a lot of chocolate in the house and every single night I’ll be getting some.

I’m not worried because it’s not like I’m eating an entire bar every single night (though some nights I do get close!) but to me it’s balance. We have nice balanced meals most days and if I eat a lot of chocolate one evening, I’ll make sure to eat more vegetables and less chocolate the next day.

My energy levels are so much better too. During the first trimester I was exhausted ALL the time. I had to take 30-60 minute naps in the afternoon to get through the day (thank god for WFH!). If I ran I would be totally drained for the rest of the day. My standing desk became my sitting desk and doing my usual strength workouts became very hard. Following along to YouTube workouts was tough as I felt so unfit.

To be honest I thought this was only going to get worse. However happily it has not. I no longer need naps, running and working out feel normal again and I get through the day without feeling like I’m walking through treacle. It’s crazy how things change so quickly.

In terms of my running, I’m still slower than pre-pregnancy, of course, but I have some mornings where I feel more energised  and zippy than usual and can be around 8:15-8:30 paces.

But then there are other runs where I’m nice and comfortable just going along at 8:50-9 min miles.

Running, despite being slower, doesn’t feel vastly different to how it used to. I do feel a pressure and slight weight in my lower tummy and this will often result in my needing to stop  a number of times to go for a wee during my longer runs. But I don’t feel any discomfort or pains when I run, or afterwards (otherwise I’d stop).

I did have a minor blip recently where my left of hip started to bug me. It felt like a niggle I’d had before so I didn’t think it was pregnancy related. But perhaps due to all the changes in my body and hormones it was exacerbated? Who knows. I was sensible though and rested it for about 6 days. Instead I did YouTube workouts instead and rehabbed my hip with squats, lunges and glute work. I found these definitely helped.

Now the hip issue has gone and I’m back to my usual runs. While I’m so glad it cleared up quickly and it wasn’t a long-term thing (touch wood) it did give me The Fear a bit. I really want to maintain my running as best as I can during this pregnancy. Now of course, as I keep saying, I know my paces will drop further and I will eventually be running less but I do want to continue to run every week as much as my body will allow. So far 30 miles a week with a 10-13 mile long run at the weekend is working perfectly. I adore my running at the moment, especially with lockdown. It’s such mental refresher and a way I derive great happiness in this worrying and admittedly rather boring time.

This is why when I started to get a niggle I was quick to react and take some time off. I’m  happy to take a number of days off rather than weeks off because weeks are big in this pregnancy journey. Lots is changing and I don’t want to suddenly try running again after a lot of time off and realise my body is just not able to anymore.

I know that might be a silly way to look at it and factually not accurate at all but it definitely encouraged me to be far more sensible than I’ve ever been. Normally I’d have pushed through the runs regardless, but I stopped straight away even though it wasn’t painful per se, just a bit niggly. Pain is usually what stops me. However I nipped it in the bud before it even got there, whew! A lesson for future non-pregnant Anna I think…

Did you run through your pregnancy (if you’re female and had children!)?

Do you like to snack in the evening?

What food would you hate to not be able to eat anymore?