Pregnancy Symptom Remedy Round Up
For those of you who missed our pregnancy series over on Instagram, here's a quick round up the best tips/tricks (+ links to each post for more in-depth information!).
In this series, we took a deep dive into exercise myths, birth prep & the benefits of staying active (along with some of my favorite ways to do that). I also shared some of my best tips for tackling some of the most frustrating pregnancy symptoms. So let's get into the round up!
Morning Sickness
This is a rough one! 80-90% of women experience some form of morning sickness during their pregnancy, so good tips are definitely needed.
Here's what worked for me:
- eating consistently (at least every 2 hours)
- making sure that protein was the base of every meal/snack (Why is that important? Well, protein promotes and extends blood sugar balance, which can prevent the blood sugar crashes that leave you feeling worse)
Check out the rest of the post for extra recommendations and my go-to snack ideas to ward off morning sickness & keep you feeling as good as possible!
Exhaustion
This was a big one for me! For my whole first trimester, I was SO tired. I felt like I'd been drugged. Pre-pregnancy I would sleep 8 hours a night and generally had a higher than average energy level, but baby had me sleeping 10-12 hours a night and still knocking out a 2 hour nap in the afternoons.
And while I felt a bit ridiculous for sleeping so much and struggled with discouraging fitness setbacks, I hit a point where I realized that all of this was absolutely OK.
It's easy to feel guilty over your lack of productivity, but at the end of the day, you're actually doing something incredible: nurturing a life. And that takes energy! This time is temporary, so go ahead and take the nap :)
Click here for the full post.
Cravings
In this post, I talk about my struggle with unruly pregnancy cravings (believe me, being a dietitian does not exclude you from wanting ALL the pizza!) + my best hacks for eating well throughout the 9 months.
Top Tips:
- Don't be afraid to stick with what works for you. Your appetite is going to change, so keep lots of healthy options on hand that DO sound good to you - and get comfortable with repetition :)
- Go the "kid-friendly" route and hide extra veggies in your food - add them to a smoothie, chop them up in a sauce, or cover them with cheese.
- Experiment with flavors and cooking techniques. Maybe an old go-to sauce is not doing it for you, try something new! Change out the spices, sauces and cooking techniques to find what works.
Click here for more on the key mindset shifts that will set you up for success in eating well during your pregnancy!
Hydration
Water is life!
And this is never truer than during pregnancy :) The increased need for H20 during this period can make hydration a real struggle for a lot of pregnant women. Here are some of the tricks I've found most helpful.
Tips:
- drink before you're thirsty (by the time you're feeling thirsty, there's often a small amount of dehydration going on already - so drink beforehand)
- if a queasy stomach is giving you issues, experiment with temperature and flavor. Ice water can be a lifesaver for lots of pregnant ladies! And there's plenty of water enhancers to try.
More tips here!
For the rest of our pregnancy series, you'll find the links here:
- How to perform a basic Kegel
- Some of my favorite pregnancy workouts!
And that's our pregnancy series round-up!
If you love good, in-depth info on personal fitness & nutrition (and are tired of scouring the internet for reliable sources), give us a follow over on Instagram!
We generally have a series going where we dive deep into health-related topics - and our content is 100% follower led, which means we explore the topics that are most helpful and interesting to YOU.
Andddd you can always drop a fitness question into our DM's too! You'll likely see the answer pop up on our feed :)
Until next time!