Hello 38 weeks! I can’t believe that I’m here! Now that I crossed this threshold I can share that my doctor’s prediction was that baby boy would come before 38 weeks. I was fairly certain when he said that he was jinxing me and I’ll probably go to 41 weeks.

I did an Instagram poll last week and the vote was in favor of a late arrival. Only time will tell. It’s the craziest thing to think that it could be tonight…or next week…or 3 weeks from now!

38 WEEKS PREGNANCY UPDATE

Once again, not much to report on baby boy. He’s chilling in there gaining a bit more weight and preparing for his birthday!

I’m very excited to meet him. I have wondered so much about what he’s going to look like since Tanner and I have pretty much opposite coloring and features. I have dreamed so much about that moment that he’s put on my chest for the first time. I just can’t wait. <3

HOW I’M FEELING AT 38 WEEKS PREGNANT

The body changes that have come with pregnancy felt like something that I wanted to dive deeper into for today’s post.

One thing I have learned in my years of working with pregnant training clients and yoga students, as well as having friends who have been through many pregnancies, is that everyone’s experience of pregnancy and body changes/image/relationship is different. I honestly had no idea how I would feel about my body/in my body while pregnant.

Minus the one scare that I had at 27 weeks, which I attribute mostly to stress, sickness and exhaustion, I’ve been so lucky to have a physically very easy pregnancy. As most of you know, I didn’t experience morning sickness in my first trimester and was able to keep up a pretty normal workout schedule until the third trimester. I’ve had minimal physical symptoms that I can really complain about…even now at 38 weeks.

As I’ve shared many, many times before, the biggest challenge throughout pregnancy for me has been the emotional side of it. I dealt with almost crippling anxiety about miscarriage in the first trimester to be shortly followed by a really down and depressed period of grief around the time of my brother’s birthday and the holidays. Finally, as I’ve mentioned briefly in other posts, relationship challenges have made the third trimester a roller coaster of emotions. At some point in the future I might share more about what that experience has been like but for now…I’m focusing on welcoming this baby into the world.

So…back to the body stuff. I have found that I LOVE the hell out of my pregnant body. 

Earlier today I was putting together collages for this post. Someone suggested last week that I should compare early pregnancy to now. Here is a photo of me at 5 weeks and at 38 weeks. Putting them side-by-side was a shock.

I weighed the same thing (within 5 pounds) from high school until getting pregnant. While my body has certainly changed and transformed over the years depending on how I was training, for the most part it has stayed the same. I have always had a leaner, more athletic body type. One of the things that I’ve always felt most conscious about is my very small chest and tendency to be really muscular, especially in my arms. Finally seeing my body a little more shapely and filled out during pregnancy has been the coolest experience.

For the first time in my life I can fully fill up an A cup, I like to think I have a little extra booty back there, my face is fuller and I just overall feel very feminine and love the softness of it…extra cellulite and all. Don’t get my wrong, I also love my strong and muscular pre-pregnancy body but pregnancy has been a wonderful change of pace for me. I’ve connected with my body on a deeper level than I ever have before. It is truly a miracle what it is doing for me and this baby right now. I have a whole new level of respect for it.

I mean!!!!! Ahhhh! I will miss this bump!

And I have to say again that I know everyone’s experience of pregnancy in their body is so different. I’ve also had friends and clients share candidly that they REALLY struggled with feeling at home in their pregnant bodies and I think it’s so normal and so necessary to talk about that too. It just felt important for me to share what it’s been like for me, especially as someone who works in the fitness industry.

You may also want to read: my postpartum fitness plans.

THE REGULAR STUFF

Symptoms: 

• Allllll the pelvic pain and some pressure on and off. Holy cow. Baby’s head is SO, so, so low and putting so much pressure on nerves and just everything in general. Some days it even hurts to walk and roll over in bed.
• Allllll the peeing, especially at night. I think I was up 7 times last night…and I’m not even joking.
• Fatigue, especially in my legs and especially at the end of the day and some during the day mostly in the afternoons.
• On and off cramping and nausea. Comes and goes.
• No swelling of hands or feet, blood pressure is low!

Workouts: daily walks 2-3.5 miles, teaching strength once a week (tonight is my last class!) and a few yoga practices. Moving every day and it’s what helps the most with my pelvic pain, fatigue and overall discomfort.

Food: cramping, nausea and occasional heartburn have not made for the best food situation. I’m really good for breakfast and lunch and then things go downhill for dinner. I typically have to force myself to eat dinner and it’s usually not until 8:30 or 9 that I can get hungry/psyched up enough to eat anything. It’s so weird.

Getting labor going: my doctor told me to stay as active as possible to get things moving. I’m now sitting on a birth ball (exercise ball) at my desk every day, doing lots of squats (especially low squats in yoga) making sure to get my walks in and doing fun things like bathing the dogs.

I thought surely a 3 mile walk and bathing both girls today would do something…but nope! 🙂 We were a sight to see on the back patio with the garden hose.

They sure do look cute though! And they’ll be clean when their baby brother comes home! 🙂

Speaking of cleaning, I’m feeling the need to clean all the things. My housekeeper was here this morning, I have professional carpet cleaners here as I type this post and I’ve been doing things like organizing bathroom vanities, washing and folding baby clothes, wrapping up house projects and more. This is coming from a girl who is NOT a neat freak!

Back to getting labor going, I don’t really buy into all the food superstitions and whatnot. I think he’ll just come when he’s ready to come!

QUESTIONS

What was your #1 physical symptom in the last weeks of pregnancy? 

Was there anything that helped to “get your labor going?” 

How did you feel in your body/about your body when pregnant? 

Craziest pregnancy cleaning/organizing story?