Tuesday 23 November 2010

14+3 : Back to Normality... sort of

I think I feel sort of human again. The nausea is pretty much manageable now and I think my energy levels are improving. I noticed it about a week ago, we walked the dogs to the park and I felt like running around. Me? Running? Surely not. It felt good to raise my heart beat!

I've made a pledge to myself to take baby steps back to my former self. Its started today with food & getting back to the gym.

Food for today is as follows:

* Cocopops & milk - breakfast #1
* 2 slices wholemeal toast - breakfast #2
* Banana - mid morning pre-gym snack
* Penguin biscuit bar - half pre-gym, half post-gym (yes, I actually got hungry in between my pre-gym snack and actually going to the gym)
* Ham Sandwich with side salad (well iceberg lettuce & cherry tomatoes) - lunch
* Carrot Sticks & Reduced Fat Houmous - mid-afternoon, pre-meeting snack
* dinner is still an unknown!

I'm quite pleased with that :) I'm off to Tesco tonight and I'm going to stock up on all the healthy foods I'm currently enjoying.

The gym went ok, I didn't push myself, my body wouldn't let me! I did 15 minutes on the cross trainer, followed by 30 body weight squats (30 regular & 30 ballet), 30 single legged butt raises (on each leg), then some hammer press w/ 3kg weights, shoulder press with 2kg weights and front/side raises at 1kg (30 of each). It only took me 31 minutes and I burnt a respectable 406 calories. The best bit is that I feel great for it! Lots of people at the gym asked where I had been, I explained that for the last 2 months I've been sleeping in my car at lunch :P

I'm not really looking forward to any possible muscle aches tomorrow, but I'm determined to get in at least one more gym session this week.

Monday 15 November 2010

13+2

So I'm 13+2 today. Apparently the baby is now the size of a medium shrimp. In my head a lime is bigger than a medium shrimp, but to be honest... I don't eat alot of shrimp!

I *think* the nausea is on its way out. I'm certainly managing it much better these days with regular food and knowing when my body has had enough and needs some rest.

I also think my energy levels are starting to increase! On Friday I went for the worlds shortest run and did a few squats/push ups when I got home and it felt good. It was really tough though. I've effectively had about 6-7 weeks of nothing but dog walking and just running up the hill to the pub and back was shattering. However, to put things into context its exactly half a mile up hill then half a mile back down hill to my house. I did it in 8 minutes flat. So for someone who's not done anything in forever an 8 minute mile is pretty darn good! When I got home I did 30 calf raises, 30 ballet squats, 30 regular squats and 30 push ups.

On Saturday we went to Bluewater to meet some friends so I did ALOT of walking around. It probably saved me from some of the muscle aches, but by the end of the day my legs were starting to feel a little stiff. Sunday was much the same with walking around more shops, but I think keeping active helped my aches and pains disappear quite quickly. I hope that I can do my short run + extras when I get home every day until it becomes easier again and then I'll start increasing things (perhaps up/down the hill twice, etc). The important thing for me is not controlling my weight, but to stop losing definition in my muscles. After nearly 2 months out of the game I'm flabby all over and it's not doing me the world of good mentally (I keep having crazy dreams about getting really fat!).

Last night I had a pretty terrible nights sleep. I was tossing and turning all night, I just couldn't get comfortable. I've definately got a bump at night and weirdly, this morning I still have a bump. I wonder if last night it was 'popping' for good. To people who don't know that I'm pregnant though I 100% just look like I've got a belly. But at least I know its a mini bump.

Friday 5 November 2010

Scan Update

I had my 12 week scan yesterday. We got up relatively early, had a bit of breakfast and then headed over to the Maternity Unit at Winchester Hospital. We arrived pretty early as we'd been told the parking was crap, but we found about 4 spaces outside. We got inside and were directed to the Ultrasound waiting area. As soon as I sat down the couple opposite me were flicking through their maternity booklet. Arse, I'd totally left mine at home! I double checked the letter that I'd been sent with my scan appointment and right at the bottom in bold lettering was 'Bring your Maternity Notes'. I'd never even got that far down on the letter, I read the date and that there were no special things to remember, so it never even crossed my mind! I think once the world know I might just keep them in my handbag so I don't make the same mistake again. Mr H did go and ask the receptionist if he should go home to get them but they said not to worry.

My appointment was at 9.10am and we eventually got called in at about 9.20am. I've obviously never had an ultrasound before, and it was quite strange to be led into this darkened curtained room with a bed and a tv screen. They wasted no time in getting my clothes into the right position, applying gel and getting the wand thing in action across my tummy.

Within seconds there was this little thing wriggling up on the monitor... and I mean wriggling. I never expected arms and legs to be moving around, nor did I expect it to be doing summersaults and rolls in there. I wasn't sure whether it was due to the sugary breakfast or whether its just got used to getting out of the way of dog paws and has already developed a technique for getting out of the way of incoming objects.

By this point, even me the ultimate ice queen had a few tears rolling down the side of my face. It really was a beautiful sight.

The baby is about 51mm long at the moment, so tiny! and is living about 2cm underneath my skin. I was quite suprised at how close to the surface it is, but I guess it being so close puts some things into context about how uncomfortable I feel sometimes when my jeans are digging in or I'm wearing tights pulled up.

Measurements were taken of the Nuchal fold (the test for downs syndrome) and they came back perfect, she was struggling to get the measurement more than about 1.6mm and the measurement at which they worry is 3.5mm.

She talked us through what she was doing and what we could see, but this baby really was wriggling. She wrote on our notes 'scan restricted by fetal movement' whoops!

Whilst she was poking around she found a cyst that was nearly as big as the baby, she said it probably wasn't anything to worry about and was probably a result of ovulation on the cycle that the baby was conceived. Apparently they will just monitor it in the other scans. I'm not that worried so I've not leapt on google right away to find out more, I'll just see what happens :)

Turns out I was correct with my EDD and they put me back two days. So I'll officially be 12 weeks tomorrow and baby is due on Saturday 21st May 2011. Mr H reckons she was a bit sarcastic when she confirmed I was correct, but I didn't really think so. We were shipped back into the waiting room to wait for my notes and pictures.

After about 5 minutes we got the pics and the notes to stick into my book when I got home. The pics are hilarious, I got two face shots, one odd shot of I'm not sure what and a profile pic.

Introducing el guapo! (because it looks like theres a mexican wrestling mask)




Though this face shot looks a little 'Roswell' to us...



Finally, a good stereotypical profile :)



After I'd got my notes back I had a wait of another 30-40 minutes until I was called through for the triple test (blood test, another downs checker). I'm such a wuss when it comes to giving blood. Something about that creepy inner arm fold that turns my stomach. Not helped by the fact I was starving by the time we were called through. It was over in seconds but I held my breath and was totally fighting back the tears. Before they took blood, I was weighed. The number on the scales scared me, it was in kg. I do not understand kg. I weighed myself at home this morning and I've gained 4lbs. I'm fine with that. The kg figure just looked really scary!

After that we had to make my appointment for my 20 week scan. I'll be 20 weeks on New Years day, so clearly have some weekend/bank holidays in the way of me getting to see el guapo again. We're booked in for the 4th January at 11.45am. I can't wait!

Wednesday 3 November 2010

12 weeks today!

Although that could all be subject to change tomorrow at the scan if they change my dates.

Apparently the baby is now the size of a lime. Hello lime baby!


Will do a better update tomorrow :)

Monday 1 November 2010

11+5 : White Rabbits

Happy 1st November! I think I'm feeling partially more upbeat than I did last week. Sure I bought a size 12 dress from Primark at the weekend to wear for Halloween, but I don't think it was the most forgiving of dresses anyway. Having seen photos from the weekend, I don't look as bad as I think I do. I guess the extra flabbiness that has a resulted from losing muscle definition still isn't really showing up through my clothes.

As today is the start of a new month, I'm going to make an effort to get back to the gym at lunchtimes. Now this could back fire in a major way! But I figure that even if I only managed 30 minutes of something its better than doing nothing which is where I'm at at the moment. I'm not sure what I'm going to do at the gym, but thinking something along the lines of 10 minutes cardio and 20 minutes weights. Obviously if I think I can take things further, I'll up the limits of both. To begin with I'm going to go slowly and see how I feel as the week progresses.

I've not actually got a great week to be starting back with the gym as I'm only in the office twice this week! However, this is my plan...

Monday: Gym at lunchtime
Tuesday: Going to London, so won't need the gym with all the walking I'll be doing
Wednesday: Working from Home, will try and get out for a run after the electrician has been
Thursday: Day off (scan day), 30 day shred in the evening
Friday: Gym at lunchtime
Saturday: Off to Damnation in Leeds, no time for anything!
Sunday: Pug meet in the morning (on the beach at Southsea) then lunch at MIL's.... so more beach walking :)

4/7 days wouldn't be a bad start if I can manage it!