My pregnancy essentials
Well, it's two days after my due date and no signs of Baby E's arrival. I thought I'd share some of the things I loved during my pregnancy. While none of them are very typical pregnancy essentials because I just didn't feel like I needed a lot of typical things, for whatever reason, they did help get me through the past several months. Although, I do wish I had bought a pregnancy pillow. But by the time I thought I needed one, I was so close to the end of my pregnancy that it felt silly to spend the money.
1 - Cherish black knit dress from Teal (a local boutique) - I bought this dress in several colors sometime in the second trimester and it's still serving me well. It's so easy to just throw on and go, plus it's super comfortable and I'll be able to wear it after pregnancy since it's non-maternity.
2 - Target C9 sports bra- I've taken to wearing one of these not just for workouts, but all the time when I'm at home. It's just more comfortable and I've heard constant bra-wearng can eliminate some sagging.
3 - Gatorade - While I hated consuming the extra sugar (and other not-so-great stuff found in sports drinks), I found that gallons of water often wasn't enough. I dealt with some pretty bad side effects of dehydration and Gatorade was the only thing that really helped keep that under control, both when running/working out and then farther into the second trimester when I just needed a ton more electrolytes in general. My diet was pretty healthy over the course of my pregnancy with not much change in my overall eating habits, so I don't think a little Gatorade did any harm. Plus, it kept me from passing out, so it was worth the trade-off.
4 - Old Navy running shorts - I wore these pre-pregnancy and they've continued to work well throughout my entire pregnancy. I usually wear them with the waist rolled down, but during pregnancy, it was more comfortable to just wear them normally.
5 - Tiare Hawaii dress from Swell - If I could have worn this dress every day, I would have, especially since it's gotten hotter here in Charleston. Again, it's not maternity and I'll be able to wear it post-pregnancy. It's so comfortable I'm thinking of purchasing it in the other colorway just so I have another one.
6 - Pure Barre Prenatal DVD - This DVD has been wonderful. I love barre workouts, but some of the positions of regular workouts started to get uncomfortable (or were just not recommended for pregnant women). But I'm still able to do this entire prenatal workout without modification and it's definitely helped maintain some of my core strength throughout pregnancy. Plus I've been able to work out at home whenever I feel like it instead of going to a class.
7 - Bonk Breakers - Normally, these would be way too much for me unless running a full marathon, but pregnancy really zapped my resources when running, so I had to eat (and drink) a lot more than normal. I can't say enough good things about Bonk Breakers. I used them on longer runs and then in the Charleston Half and even if they were a little tough for me to eat while running, they got the job done and gave me the energy I needed. And from what I can tell, they have mostly natural/whole food ingredients.
8 - Sun Bum Cool Down lotion - I have no idea whether using vitamin E and aloe actually does help keep stretch marks at bay, but I figured I'd give it a try. I already had this stuff, so I just started using it. At 40 weeks, 2 days, I don't have a single stretch mark. I can't say whether it was because I used this or if I just got lucky, or maybe a little of both, but at least I smelled like delicious coconuty goodness for the past several months while using it.
In addition to the list above, here are a few other (food-related) essentials that I've cycled through during pregnancy:
1st trimester -
- Egg and cheese sandwiches on bagels
- Spaghetti O's (gross - thankfully, I only gave into this craving twice then just ate regular (healthier) pasta instead)
2nd and 3rd trimesters -
- Mint chocolate chip ice cream
- Fruit, all of the fruit - I couldn't (and still can't) get enough fruit (I even made a fruit pizza)
- Greek salads with lots of banana peppers
As far as clothing, overall I avoided buying a lot of maternity clothes other than a few dresses because I just didn't need them. My normal style is flowy, loose tops and dresses, so that made it easy to keep wearing regular clothes and I just felt less frumpy in them than I did in maternity wear.
So maybe that's not the most exciting or helpful list, but it is what worked for me and I wanted to share it in case some of the items could be helpful to someone else with a similar pregnancy experience.
And lastly, one quick housekeeping note: you may (or may not) have noticed that the blog got a facelift. One of my pre-baby goals was to update the look of this blog so I didn't have to worry about it later. I've also decided to keep the content here focused solely on running, fitness, food, and Charleston with snippets of my life (recent snapshots). No more style or design content, which was far and few between anyway, but while it was fun to post, it always just felt out of place for me here. As I go forward, I plan to document my postpartum journey and my return to running.
With that quick note out of the way, we now return to your regularly scheduled programming (which might be a little sporadic over the next few months, but I'll try my best!).