The first trimester of pregnancy is such an exciting time- you’re feeling overjoyed and eager, but also may be overwhelmed and anxious for what’s coming (especially if this is your first pregnancy).

This experience will be different for every woman and even each pregnancy, but there are some common challenges that come up during these initial months- especially when it comes to your workouts and nutrition. So we’re going to address the top questions you may have so we can help you [survive- and hopefully, thrive- through the first trimester.

Ultimately, what’s right for you is personal to your body and your circumstances. We’re here to help as best we can, but also suggest that you speak to your doctor about any specific questions or concerns you have.

How soon do I need to make modifications?

For most women, pregnancy isn’t a condition that warrants a pause or major detour in exercise. You’re just as strong and capable as ever, but of course, safety is a priority.

While you may feel comfortable continuing to move and workout the way you’re used to for a while into your pregnancy, or at least until your belly grows, it’s important to understand how your movement choices can impact your long term core and pelvic health. Certain movements and loads, as well as your overall approach to exercise will need to be modified as time goes on and understanding how and why might be a little different from person to person or even from pregnancy to pregnancy. 

You might often hear the advice of “just listen to your body” or “keep doing what you’ve always done” for how to navigate fitness during pregnancy but it’s important to know what to “listen” for and to be able to adapt your approach for this season of your life. The way you move now and being able to make informed decisions about your training has the potential to help or hinder your long term fitness goals.

The core and pelvic floor are a part of a pressurized system that, among other things, is impacted by how you breathe and move, what your posture is like, and where or how you hold tension. Movements with a lot of abdominal flexion and/or extension as well as high impact movements like running and jumping, increase the demand on that already vulnerable system. The same goes for movements that make you bear down, hold your breath, suck in your belly, or forcefully press your belly out. All these things affect how the pressure in your core is managed and that pressure can affect the integrity of your core and the effectiveness of your pelvic floor muscles. As the baby and the belly grows, the pressure in your core changes even more, the connection to your pelvic floor is challenged further, and being able to manage the entire system of your core and pelvic floor becomes increasingly difficult. So while you might physically be capable of doing toes to bar and high volume box jumps, you may want to consider the risk vs. reward.

In the first trimester, you are likely able to continue to lift the loads and do the movements you’re used to for a while. But once your belly begins to grow and there’s added pressure on your core and pelvic floor- or if you have any symptoms- you’ll want to start modifying. This includes certain movements including core flexion (like sit-ups, toes to bar, v-ups, etc.), jumping (like double or single unders, jump overs, box jumps, etc.) and kipping movements as well as decreasing the loads you lift.

It’s a good idea to start to scale these movements as soon as you feel any uncertainty. If you’re signed up for a race or a competition that requires these movements, or if you’re a professional or competitive athlete with specific goals, be sure to approach training with extra intention and seek professional guidance if you need to. The “why” behind modifications often comes down to "How can I make this safe and effective for my body now and in the long run?" Learn more about modifying here.

For substitutions, look to the Mama Modifications, which are available for all daily workouts on my.streetparking.com. Check out the Mama Modifications Movement Library with detailed videos of each movement. You can also simply default to strict movements instead of kipping.

We created the Mama Modifications that are listed with every Shift and Daily workout and the Butts and Guts extra programs to help you customize and adapt your training for your current season. You’ll find that the Mama Modifications often include information about why you might need to modify like if you’re managing the pressure on your pelvic floor or if you are experiencing pubic pain or SPD, as well as several options for movements that might be more effective for core prehab or rehab. 

While there are some variables during pregnancy, birth, and postpartum that you cannot control, we hope that you are able to use the Mama Modifications to help you manage the level of strain on your core and pelvic floor so that you can help minimize the risk to your long term health and fitness goals.  

I want to workout, but I’m so tired. How do I increase my energy?

Your body is expending a lot of energy right now, but exhaustion is one of those symptoms that generally does get better after this first trimester. There may be some things you can do to help, but you may also just need to go with it.  

Some key things to do to support your energy are 1) Get as much sleep as you are able to without feeling guilty, 2) Eat a nourishing diet that provides the fuel and nutrients you need, and 3) Drink plenty of water, and 4) Keep moving.

We know how important exercise is during pregnancy and it can help with your energy, but listen to your body first. If you’re exhausted by even the thought of a workout, rest (or ideally, use the time for a nap!). If you can exercise, just match the intensity to your energy level. Choosing SHIFT or a maintenance count, always!

The first trimester is a great time for walking or extra program workouts like the Suns Out Guns Out Series or Butts and Guts Series with the appropriate Mama Modifications. Many women find that long walks are one way to connect to their changing body and growing baby. It’s nice to create a special playlist or dive into parenting or birthing podcasts (Check out the SP Mamas Podcast!) and start a walking practice that could potentially last you through your entire pregnancy and even into the postpartum period with baby wearing! 

You can also ditch the clock and just move for quality rather than for reps or time or any other kind of score. Remove any barriers or expectations that are going to prevent you from simply moving. Skip the shoes and fancy workout gear (it’s likely wearing just a bra is pretty comfortable right now anyway!), find a cozy spot in your living room- even put on your favorite show- and just go through the motions to get your blood moving and energy flowing.

Are there any particular workouts or movements I should be doing?

There truly isn’t any universal pregnancy exercise that will have magical benefits. The magic comes from the workouts you’re already doing with proper modifications and rest as needed! However, there are a few things we do recommend.

For one, we love using pregnancy as an opportunity to explore breathing exercises, mobility, pelvic floor connection, and mindset in preparation for birth and postpartum.We also encourage you to explore movements that will support your body’s needs during this season. For example, incorporating more posterior chain strengthening like box squats and good mornings to support your growing belly can be helpful. Integrating more strict strength training like strict pull ups vs. kipping or seated shoulder presses vs. push jerks to adapt to the changing demands on your core and pelvic floor has widespread benefits. 

Lastly, we also recommend our expecting mamas utilize Mama Modifications we’ve developed as well as incorporate the Functional Progression Warm-Up. Erica Boland, who developed this warm-up, explains the why behind these movements and how they can benefit you during 

pregnancy and beyond here.

What about heart rate? Is that something I need to monitor? 

In 1994, ACOG (American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) removed the recommendation to keep heart rate less than 140 bpm because it was found that tracking heart rate during exercise was not effective. However, many ObGyns and Midwives around the United States are still in the practice of heart rate recommendations and we always recommend checking with your own healthcare provider for more information.

The most current recommendation is to focus on "perceived rate of exertion". This is similar to your ability to monitor, control, and adapt your own breath, posture, and performance at any given moment during exercise. You should not feel "out of control," unable to catch your breath, or so fatigued that your posture, form, or technique starts to break down. Miranda's rule of thumb is the "talk test". This just means making sure that at any given point you are still able to have a conversation with someone.

Especially in the first trimester, the volume of blood in your body is increasing exponentially and this can make you feel very out of breath. You may find that in the second trimester, you have a little more room for more cardio. We also suggest making sure that you leave enough gas in the tank to be able to "cool down" and down regulate your nervous system after your workout. If you're so exhausted or out of breath after the workout that you couldn't complete a 400m walk, it was probably too much.  

What should I be eating?

Pregnancy is a time to focus on deeply nourishing and proving the energy and nutrients your body and baby need. However, our usual recommendations still apply- prioritize eating a variety of high quality, nutrient-dense, minimally-processed foods and balance your plate with protein, fat, and carbohydrates. You’ll also want to take a high quality prenatal vitamin to cover your bases.

You can look to our Recommended Foods List for guidance and our recipes for inspiration, but for more in depth information on nutrition during pregnancy, we highly recommend the book Real Food for Pregnancy. There are many foods that can be beneficial to include during pregnancy by providing certain nutrients you need in abundance.

There are also certain foods you’ll want to avoid eating during pregnancy due to safety risks. For a complete list, we suggest you speak with your doctor. Real Food for Pregnancy also addresses a lot of myths about foods to include and avoid.

How much should I be eating?

The term “eating for two” is a bit misguided. You actually don’t need that much more food during pregnancy- normally, no additional calories during the first trimester. Once you get to the second, you’ll need about 300-350 and around 500 during the third, which can easily be obtained by adding 1-2 snacks and/or increasing your portion sizes. 

However, if you’ve been restricting calories or following a fat loss template, you’ll want to make some adjustments. And because most of your nutrient needs are increasing, focusing on foods rich in vitamins and minerals is key. Many women find they can simply listen to their hunger and fullness signals to ensure they’re eating the right amounts for their bodies.

You can follow a SP Nutrition Template for more guidance if you need- we suggest the Performance or Postpartum Template. We just recommend refraining from weighing and measuring food, or even focusing on specific serving sizes during pregnancy. You can estimate portion sizes using the Palm Method, and focus primarily on balancing your plate and listening to your body.  

I want to eat healthy, but nothing is appetizing right now. 

You’ll quickly learn that your body (and baby) may have its own agenda during pregnancy! Especially during the first trimester, food aversions are very common. Your goal is just to do the best you can!

Most aversions will go away so for now, aim to keep things really simple and get food in somehow. Even if it means eating the same things every day or choosing foods you don’t normally do because they’re all you can stomach.

Take advantage of the times you do feel hungry. If not, smoothies are a great way to sneak healthy foods in that you don’t necessarily want to chew and taste and get nutrients in. Soups and stews and other soft foods can be helpful as well.

How do I handle food cravings?

Cravings can make it difficult to eat the way you originally planned during pregnancy, but they’re totally normal. While you may not find yourself craving strange combos like pickles and ice cream, you may have really intense cravings for very specific foods.

While research on the why behind pregnancy cravings is limited, one common hypothesis is that we cravings are caused by specific nutrient needs. It can’t hurt to simply pay attention to any patterns in foods you’re craving. Also make sure you’re eating and drinking enough overall- sometimes we have cravings because we’re actually hungry.

It’s also possible that pregnancy cravings are driven by something else, or are totally unexplainable. Sometimes you satisfy them with a more nutrient-dense option, but other times, you just need to give in. Enjoy it! As long as you’re balancing your overall nutrition and are healthy, cravings generally aren’t problematic and likely will shift through pregnancy.

I’m so nauseous! Is there anything I can do?

“Morning sickness” is a misguided phrase. Many mamas feel nauseous at other times of day or even throughout the day. If your nausea is so intense that it’s getting in the way of your day to day functioning, bring this up to your doctor.

Some women find that eating smaller meals more often during the day helps curb their nausea, as does staying hydrated. Other natural remedies include ginger (like ginger tea or chewing crystallized ginger), smelling certain essential oils (peppermint is often helpful for nausea), or trying SeaBands. 

Supplementing with additional vitamin B6 and/or magnesium or using something like Unisom has also been shown to help many women, but be sure to talk to your doctor before taking any supplement or medication.

I feel really great right now, but I’ve heard horror stories about morning sickness and other symptoms. Should I expect that I’ll soon feel terrible?

Every woman experiences pregnancy differently, and every woman experiences different symptoms. It doesn’t mean you will (or won’t). We think it’s best to be prepared but not necessarily expect that you’ll feel a certain way. 

While not a cure-all or a guarantee, many women do report that eating well and moving through pregnancy does help them avoid or manage negative symptoms. You also have the SP Mamas group to come to if anything does come up that you need help with, plus we’ve linked to our favorite resources below.

Where can I learn more about exercise and nutrition, but also other common questions during pregnancy?

Check out this SP Mamas Resource for some more links to helpful blogs, books, podcasts, and more!