I had a great Monday today. I went grocery shopping with no drama. I managed to remain pretty productive without feeling stressed. All of your comments on my “Put Up or Shut Up” post made me feel much better. We have a laid back night of leftovers (whole wheat linguine with sauteed veggies) ahead of us. And I fit in a great spin workout this afternoon. I love the instructor at that class time. She gets working out while pregnant and doesn’t feel the need to baby me or question me all the time. You know how much that means to me.

Oh, workouts! How I love thee. You have seen and heard a plethora of my adoration for maintaining exercise during pregnancy. From photos to videos -

Even during pregnancy I seek out a good workout high. I always make sure to do so safely though. Which brings me to this reader’s question:

What type of modifications do you make for working out while pregnant? How do you work out your ab muscles? How do you avoid laying on your back for chest presses etc. I need tips 🙂

First of all, congrats to whichever reader needs these tips! I’m here for any support you may need in the months to come. As for the question, I will list out some of the things I do or keep in mind for pregnancy fitness:

• I never try new workouts. I only participate in things I know my body can handle and that I know how to adapt for my body’s needs.
• I never allow myself to feel winded or like I’m exerting myself much. I work out at a comfortable state – enough to feel like I’ve done something but not leave me fatigued in any way at the end.
• I do not do targeted ab exercises. This is purely personal preference. I focus on keeping good posture and using good form in other activities (like during spin or while lifting weights), which naturally will work the core. I regained core strength just fine after M and didn’t suffer a diastasis.
• I stay off my back after the first trimester by doing moves on an incline bench. I either use the incline benches at the gym or during Power set my step up with 3 risers on one side and 1 on the other. This mostly affects chest work, since I do not do abdominal training.
• I don’t do high impact moves after the first trimester. So no jumping in kickboxing, no high intensity plyometric drills, no running, etc for me. Although if I had been running regularly before pregnancy, I may have felt comfortable continuing that.
• I stop any activity that becomes painful at ALL. Don’t risk it for the sake of finishing a workout. I have had days where I have to stop after 10-15 minutes instead of completing a planned 40 minutes to an hour.
• I take more rest days. I take two FULL rest days from exercise and one “active rest” day where I will do a lighter walk or yoga.

Those things work well for me, but as always if you have any specific questions check with your doctor/midwife. And listen to your body! Always!

• What type of workout have you been doing the longest? How long? When I think about it I guess I would have to say kickboxing. I did some TaeBo videos before buying my own fitness DVDs and Cathe’s Kick Punch & Crunch was the first fitness DVD I purchased…8 years ago! Wow! Maybe that’s why I can still do all of that at 8 months pregnant?

I have finally reached a stage where, sadly, many workouts are starting to get more uncomfortable. I also find myself lacking the motivation for certain things, especially weights workouts. I typically LOVE doing weight workouts, but right now I don’t enjoy them much. Probably because I miss doing the types of lifting I truly enjoy. Power classes are getting old. Plus, I find myself liking the simplicity of completing workouts at home. In fact, this afternoon I completed a quick circuit workout with my handy resistance bands and 5 lb dumbbells.

• alternating reverse lunges
• one armed rows with the band
• wall squat holds
• pushups on knees
• step ups on a high step
• tricep kickbacks with band
• bicep curls with band
• rear delt fly with band

I completed 15 reps of each move, one right after the other, two times through. I only did 2 sets of the circuit in order to try out another walking DVD download from Exercise TV.

Christina from Exercise TV contacted me about reviewing some of the workout options on their site. Since at home workouts appeal to me greatly right now, I took her up on that offer. I wanted to pick out something I knew would work well with being almost 8 months pregnant, so I opted for some DVD downloads from their walking program.

Leslie Sansone’s Rock & Tone Intermediate and Advanced workouts. I completed the Intermediate workout yesterday for some light cardio and then gave the Advanced video a shot after my circuit workout today.

Oh goodness that is quite the unflattering shot! Now you can see how cumbersome that ball of baby B has become. 😉 That’s all besides the point, though.

While these workouts were provided to me free for review, the opinions are completely my own. Both walking DVDs clock in at only 20 minutes each. They both consist of brisk walking in place, side steps, knees, kicks, and other basic moves. The advanced version adds in a lot of squats and lunges as well. The intermediate video felt a bit too basic for me, but could definitely suit a beginner…or myself as an entry workout post-pregnancy. I really enjoyed the Advanced video, especially when coupled with my circuit workout beforehand. I know I will be thankful to have these options available to me in the next few months as they suit my current fitness level.

For all of you looking for more advanced workouts, Exercise TV has many many many workouts from which to choose. Some of the cardio and ab workouts they offer look really good. They have free options in both full-length and mini versions for you to customize your own workout or get in a quick abs session at home. They have a variety of workout styles to choose from as well – dance, kickboxing, interval training, pilates, yoga, strength training, circuits, and more. They also have DVDs for purchase or videos to download, including workouts like Jillian Michaels, Jackie Warner, and Core Fusion. With the downloads, you can then store them in a mobile device or burn them for portability and your convenience.

Lucky for you all, as a special gift to my readers, Exercise TV will be giving away one video download to THREE different winners. To enter leave a separate comment for each of the following ways you choose to enter.

• Mandatory: Visit the Exercise TV store and let me know one of the video downloads you would be interested in trying out.
• Share this giveaway on Twitter (be sure to include @TinaFFF and a link to this post) OR share a link in a post on your blog.
• Add me to your blog roll. I know its shameless. Sue me.

There you have it. Three chances to enter. Three winners. Numerous workouts to choose from. This giveaway will end at 8pm EST on Monday, Nov 22.