Run Jac Run 🏃🏻‍♀️

Week 39 (of 52) – 2021 edition!

Monday – woke up to pouring, torrential downpour of rain. So much rain… It was scary. Went into work early because I didn’t know if it would let up and felt it would be best to just get there and have time to pull over if needed. The whole day we had some issue or another with the computers …. But made it through! Then picked up H and he lovingly let me rest while he cuddled up with me and watched a show! We went on a walk, ran into some friends and he got to play a bit while the moms caught up – weird to be on the mom side of that and not the kid side haha.

** third trimester just started, and my energy levels have plummeted. I mean, let’s be real, I haven’t had energy this whole entire pregnancy! It seems like it doesn’t matter if I have coffee and caffeine, protein or naps… I am perpetually tired. I am choosing to stay as active as I can, but also respecting the fact that I’m just TIRED. I’ve just started taking magnesium, so I’m hoping it helps with my aches and cramps in my legs! And I am going to put more focus on stretching night and day.

Tuesday – I woke up soaked in sweat! It was gross and I felt sticky… So instead of working out like I planned I had to jump in the shower, it was that sticky feeling where you just feel so gross you can’t do anything else but shower! And since sleep didn’t come so great last night, I chose to not workout. After work I took the pup to swim in the lake – which he obviously loved! Then took H to play and get energy out. Somehow I managed to make it to 10k steps! Woo hoo!

Wednesday – I found a race… It’s a 5k close by next month. November 6. I’m really leaning towards doing it! Gives me something to look forward to that isn’t just about me worrying about when the baby is gonna get here. I have till end of October to sign up, so in between now and then I shall train and see how my body feels. Obviously this isn’t for time, it’s just for me to run and have fun. I think that’s important!! I went on a one mile tester run, since I’ve only been walking lately. And yes, it was hard! My legs screamed at me in the first 15 seconds and my back hurt… I walked for 30 seconds and picked back up. And then I was fine. Was i going fast? No… Frankly I probably could speed walk faster, but that’s okay. It’s just the beginning. And so, here is to my 14:58 mile time today! Before I make the final decision I will be consulting my doctor to make sure it is okay and won’t do any harm to the baby. Since I’ve had a lot of aches and pains that I’m not used to, I definitely want a professional opinion and to make sure she isn’t hanging too low or anything that this training or run would put us at risk for early labor. So, next week I shall find out!

Thursday – went from a run to just a walk. After work my hips were really tight so we just walked

Friday – first day of fall break and we did a lot of running around and errands! Laundry, shopping, picking up checks … I was exhausted after that long day and decided I needed to rest and couldn’t even so much as go on an intentional walk.

Saturday– RUN! 5 MIN WU/ 10 MIN RUN / 2 MIN WALK / 10 MIN RUN / 5 MIN CD (wu= warm up CD= cool down) I ended up running 1.5 miles total! I was going slooooooow but I did it! And felt great, but definitely exhausted. After my run we took H to the park and came home and I had to rest. Then we went and did some Halloween activities.

Sunday – beach day! I did a lot of floating and thinking…. I don’t know if I can do the 5k. It puts a lot of stress on my body. But it would be so cool to say I ran, or at least participated in one at 8 months pregnant!! I’ll probably wait till the last minute to sign up if I do, but I’ll keep trying to increase my running time. I’m going to do some more 10 min run, and then 2 min walks and then increase. The run itself isn’t that hard, it’s the doing stuff afterwards that feels impossible. By the end of the day (whether I run or not) I am exhausted. I am aching, I am hurting, I am sore. I’ve been going to sleep around 9pm nightly!

I don’t know if Ive complained enough, but I just want to say, I am feeling 12 months pregnant. I don’t sit down or get up quietly… I feel like I have a 30 pound watermelon taped to my stomach. Things just keep getting bigger. I have pains in my hips and legs that just won’t go away. I’m constantly tired and hungry or thirsty. But I am trying my very hardest to stay active. I rely heavily on rest, stretching first thing when I wake up and right before bed. I have about 10 weeks left and I want to enjoy this time with my family and some freedom before I have one small human being pretty much dictating everything. It’s been hard to “make” myself get out of the house when sometimes all I want to do is sleep. I give myself time to rest and then pull it all together. Oh and even though I rest often, this bb girl moves A LOT and wakes me up quite a bit to either pee or just to play drums on organs. 🤣

Week 38 (of 52) – 2021 edition!

Monday – I am in a bit of pain today! My skin is burnt… I’m not used to this kind, but my chest and back are on fire. They are peeling, not badly (yet) but definitely peeling and burnt red. Since we put off our chores over the weekend we had to do one of them today, and that was grocery shopping…. Geez! Inflation is crazy! It’s been crazy for the last few months 🙄

Tuesday – Jesse went to work today! Yay, first day and hopefully it goes well… Which allowed me to do some workouts. It’s difficult to do when there’s others in the trailer because well it’s so small lol, and any bit of movement really makes the place shake. I am trying SO HARD to not compare myself to other pregnant moms! But I want those toned arms dang it! I have about 12 weeks left, and I want to use this time to build muscle and tone up. I want to be strong! And I will be! I am currently trying to find what program I want to begin once I’ve delivered. Between beach body / move your bump / obe and there’s another one. It’s all about the money though. Move your bump really focuses on after baby and pelvic floor strengthening but it’s also $50/mo which is A LOT. but I have to think of my future too, I want to stop peeing when I sneeze. You can’t really just do whatever exercises you want to get to where you want, you really do need a program – or at least I DO! I’m also hoping to do at minimum half marathon late next year. Biloxi offers a half and full in mid December, so that will be my target race next year. Which I’m so excited about!

Wednesday – hit 10k steps!! Went on a nice walk with H and enjoyed the Halloween decorations!

Thursday – we woke up at like 4am and couldn’t go back to sleep. I accidentally left a walkie talkie on which then led to it beeping incessantly and then we were just awake. So I got ready extra early and did my morning routine early and went to work early. In the afternoon we went on another walk to look at the Halloween decorations because H is obsessed. I’m still sore from my little strength session the other day! My legs hurt haha

Friday – today I felt like a photo shoot! With my bump as the subject. And then I noticed my “pancake butt” and I got embarrassed and decided to try to do a little booty work. Lol.

Saturday – I went on a 30-40 minute walk with little man, almost hit my step count. My friend sent me over some at home pregnancy workouts that I am definitely excited to try! It’s nice to follow a plan instead of just doing random things. But after my walk, I was so tired. Sleepiness is definitely coming back strong, I slept for nearly 3 hours!!!!! I NEVER have a nap longer than an hour usually! So yeah… Tired was an understatement!

Sunday – laundry day! And then some walking and naps lol. And I hit my 10k goal! Oh also, while my leg cramps haven’t been as excruciating, they are still present. So I finally remembered to get some magnesium pills to help out! Now I’m taking prenatal, iron and magnesium. Baby girl is taking a lot out of me, so I really hope she comes out big and strong… Cute wouldn’t hurt ,😉 but honestly, I think almost all newborn babies are weird af looking. H was a weird little alien until the second week when he really started chunking up. Also, I’ve figured out the design for the side sleeper. We can’t have a normal one from the store, we need to make it… Our space is limited but I finally found an idea that is cheap and should work great. So I showed J and he said he could definitely do that… Hell I could probably do it too lol. My biggest thing this time around is making sure I put our relationship in the top 5. Last time with H, our relationship went sour…. I didn’t have the space. I want to make sure I have that space. And when J offered to just sleep elsewhere so me and baby could have the bed for feedings and what not I cried. I don’t want to go down that path again. And hopefully we don’t have to sleep separately like that. As I’ve said before, my mental health is top priority, I can’t pour from an empty cup… So I must fill mine first before I can devote to others.

Week 37 (of 52)- 2021 edition!

Monday – I went out on a walk! After my nap of course 😬 I was dead tired after work, and H was a grouch during homework time. So we sent him to take a nap, which he reluctantly fell asleep within moments. And J and I laid down for some rest as well. I was only down for about 45 min – hour, but it was just enough! I woke up refreshed and exclaimed “I AM GOING ON A WALK!” the boys looked up and said “we wanna go fishing” and so… They prepared for some lake fishing and we walked down. I got a good walk in, at least 2 miles and about 40 minutes. A great reset I needed.

Tuesday – I decided today I wanted to swim for my exercise. I realized that I was giving myself a bit too many excuses to eat like crap. And frankly, I am not even craving the junk food, it’s just easily accessible. So, for the next 12 weeks I want to make a conscience effort to eat better. Make it a habit, not restrict all the goodies, just make them less! That way, I am a little more prepared for after birth. I’m trying to keep my weight gain low, continue this… And not let it get out of hand. I know when I breastfeed I become RAVENOUS. as I expect all mom’s do. So I am going to do some research on how to combat this. And my assumptions are – easy to grab good snacks, protein, lots of water (for BF (breastfeeding) lol) and just making sure you stay on top of eating. I know that if I wait too long to eat literally anything will do in a pinch. And I don’t want to gain more weight after, which happened last time. I ended up losing weight quickly but then I gained it back because I was over eating and a lot more. (No sleep, no exercise, doing nothing for myself, eating too much when I wasn’t even hungry – it was a mess)

Anyway, this is us swimming!

Wednesday- family walk and hit my 10k step goal .. haven’t hit that in a while!! It was nice walking around and I got a total of 45 minutes of exercise 😊 also, since starting to take iron pills it has GREATLY helped my cramping legs. I still get minor cramps at night but they go away as soon as I flex my foot, so I’ll take it! And it doesn’t happen every single night.

Thursday- the plan was to go swimming again, buuuut then H found his friends and chose to play with them. So I walked around a bit while he ran around and played. And frankly he needed that way more. School has changed so much and he barely gets to socialize or run around and just be a dang kid. It actually makes me start leaning towards home school so he can play and exercise more.

Friday- I woke up on the wrong side of the bed, truth be told.. J has been pretty negative lately. Just about like everything in general. And it’s been weighing on me. A lot. So I went on a walk. And I walked and walked. And still was a bit off afterwards. But about 35 minutes of power walking was nice.

Saturday- we went to gulf shores and played in the water and tanned. I got burnt. But the swimming was fun!

Sunday- we neglected all chores and what we should have done (which really wasn’t too smart lol – we need groceries and laundry done) but we went back to the beach to play. I got even more burnt and my chest feels like it will fall off despite us getting new sunscreen and applying generously

An almost 7 month belly. This is bigger than I ever got with H lol

Week 36 (of 52) – 2021 edition

This week is a little different because I did no walking except for over the weekend. This week, I need to complain. This week I need you, my dear reader, to understand I am only human and despite the greatest gift and blessing of pregnancy, I am suffering a lot.

My main goal for this pregnancy was to stay fit. I wanted to be fit so that after birth I could begin running and be fit again. I don’t want to be overweight and lose sight of myself and be depressed again. But when you’re growing a baby, you don’t really get a say in what your body really does. I can feed it right, treat it right, and do all the things right… But in the end, I have no say over how big my belly gets, how many more stretch marks I have. I can’t make sure I have a belly only pregnancy (like I wanted), because there is so much more that goes on.

I can see everything getting bigger, I can see a small extra layer of fat around my body in the form of cellulite. I see my face getting a little rounder and my knees not enjoying this extra weight. I can feel myself mentally going downhill and I am constantly trying to pull myself back up. I remind myself I’ve done this once (pregnancy and then losing the weight and finding myself) and I can do it again, and this time I have so much more support. But it is hard.

This past week, I went to the doctor for my glucose test – which I passed! Yay. However, I had to divulge to the doc how I’ve had terrible Charley horse cramps in my legs that leave me barely able to walk the next day and constipation has been a struggle. So I have more vitamins to take. Which consequently make it harder for me to poop.

Friday night I was so overwhelmed with everything going on inside me to the outside world, I had a severe panic attack. It started with my back seizing up, then me crying and over emotional, to not being able to breathe, to downright PANIC and almost throwing up everywhere. J was there and helped me through it, and calm me down… But what was worse is thinking if I did any harm to our baby. Without me getting oxygen in, she wasn’t able to get any either. Which sent me into another panic – 🙄

Saturday we were so exhausted by my previous nights “show” we slept in till almost 9, and I mostly just had to rest all day – back was still hurting a lot! And I was so tired I stayed in bed. This isn’t like me. And I know the boys wanted to do things but they never push me to do more, and I’m incredibly grateful for that. They’ve both been able to be selfless and understand that I don’t just easily say I cant do something or I’m tired, it’s usually a last resort when I have to just say an absolute no.

So, what are my hopes? I hope to be able to poop consistently 😅, stay somewhat active…. Even though I feel like I’ve lost a lot of strength. I hope to eat healthier, decrease my cramps in my legs and sleep better. I hope I can find beauty in the next 12-13 weeks of carrying this baby and be able to enjoy more than suffer through. This pregnancy has been a lesson in not taking things for granted. Not to take for granted being able to run and lift weights, not taking for granted sleeping in or naps… And so much more.

Hopefully next week I can do a little more walking and cry a little less. Just gotta take it one day at a time 💪🏽

Week 35 (of 52) – 2021 edition!

Monday- happy labor day! I went on a short cow interrupted walk 😦 and then took the dog down to play in the lake

Side note- we are really uncertain what to do about the dog! We feel so bad because he doesn’t have the running or freedom space he deserves! And on top of that, when the baby comes I know we will have less time. He is such a good dog, but he isn’t trained to be calm! There’s been many times he has either almost knocked me over or pulled me to the ground pulling when he sees a cat or something. And it’s scary! At that point, I just try to let go so I don’t get hurt. While we love him dearly, we are also nervous about him being around the baby. We are going back and forth on what to do. We won’t have anyone to watch him while we are delivering, and then after delivery I won’t be able to really walk him much, it will take time to get used to walking with a baby – if that is even possible?! Honestly we dont want him to hurt her on accident either. So just a little torn on what to do. And we feel bad for giving him up, but also want what’s best for him.

Not only has that been weighing on me, but trying to find the right baby stuff – ugh!! There is so much information out there, I’m just trying to find a car seat that can fit in a jogger. And before I get any comments about not needing a jogger because she will be too little, I need you to understand that we don’t live on paved streets so a jogger is convenient because of the tires. It can go over grass and dirt and bumps easier than a regular one.

Tuesday- with all the stress and overwhelming feelings I cried 5-6 times today. I planned on going to the gym after my shift. It was so tiny. I scarfed down cheezits before hand and it upset my stomach so I couldn’t run let alone want to even walk. I tried lifting some weights and hurt my back. By the end of the “workout” I felt totally defeated.

Wednesday – Friday – I have no clue what happened.

Saturday – it was mostly a chill day, in the evening we went to Fairhope pier which I planned to do a run. But I am definitely more of a morning runner and everything seemed to rebel against me. I made it about 23 minutes of a run/walk. My legs feel heavy… I mean I AM gaining weight. You have to! And it’s hard to wrap my head around (extra weight gain = harder to run) my legs cramp up easily, but I try to push through. I know what pain I can push through and what pain to definitely not push through.

H and J went fishing while I went out on my little run/walk. They caught some tiny fish that couldn’t be kept and by the time I got back more people were out fishing. Some guy caught a decent sized sheepshead fish (biggest and first I’ve ever seen in person!) And he gave it to us. So J is planning on a fish dinner which I’m super excited about!

Sunday- went on a great walk with H!! We have both been trying to spend quality time with him before the baby comes and when he asked if I wanted to go on a walk, I couldn’t resist. We walked around, got to see the Halloween decorations and even took a train ride.

Week 35 (of 52)- 2021 edition!

So, last week I started a job at a smoothie place, and then Hurricane Ida came roaring in and we evacuated… Turns out that it didn’t hit as hard as we thought and we are nearly 12 hours away enjoying Florida sunshine. The boss texts and I do believe I won’t be working there anymore, but I’m not too worried about it.

Sunday – walk in the morning with Jesse while he fished. It was probably a little less than a mile, but it was fun exploring the neighborhood.

Monday- 45 minute walk alone and loving it… Winding neighborhoods and battling bugs. Florida is a lot like Alabama except it is more manicured… Or at least where we are! Thank goodness for my aunt who put us up and allowed us to turn our evacuation into a vacation here!

Wednesday- I actually ran! I did it! My immediate goal was 60 second run and 90 second walk. And just go. I did it a couple times and then I just tried. I ran for about 18 minutes straight (albeit slowly) and then walked a couple minutes and continued on running. I alternated about every 5 minutes run to a couple mines walking. I hit about 36 minutes total and roughly 3.04 miles in total! Of course after this, I was very very tired. And sore. And hungry. So I made it home, courtesy of Jesse… He drove me home after he was done fishing, and we made eggs. Then I stretched and showered. And thennnn I took a bath! A nice long hot bath and it was miraculous! By the end of the night walking up stairs was near IMPOSSIBLE! But a couple tylenols later and boom bam I was all better!

Thursday- we woke up at the awful time of 4am and left Sarasota. 😭 We actually ended up leaving at 5am… And made it home around 2pm. The drive was long but not too bad. I completely passed out at the end, I was exhausted!! I slept for about 30 minutes or so and it was just enough to rejuvenate me. Luckily we came home to very little damage! Just a little water got in to the compartment under H’s bed. And we saw how we left the place a mess 😒 so I started immediately on dishes. Jesse gets to vacuum tomorrow. Lol. I’m super pumped to run tomorrow and I guess go in to work. At least I can get a yummy smoothie.

Friday – I was planning to run before work but thought I should hold off till after work so I’m not exhausted or hurting during work…. Real good plan. Buuuut life had other plans. And we had to go grocery shopping. Then we came back made dinner, it rained and it’s dark. So hopefully tomorrow! But before work I did get to do some strength training, so there’s that!!

Saturday – 2 miles (probably a little more but Garmin was on pause because it couldn’t find the dang satellite for a while lol) I managed 9 minutes running straight! Woo hoo, but had to stop because I had a terrible cramp on my right side that wouldn’t go away. Did a couple more 2 min run segments but the cramp was made worse. Came back home and then did lunges, squats and modified pushups. 💪🏽

Sunday – rest and relaxation day! I woke up just to look forward to Naps 😂

Week 34 (of 52) – 2021 edition!

Gotta be honest, since I’m working and driving for pick up and drop off for H it doesn’t leave a TON of time to work out. Oh yeah, and it’s been pouring rain in the afternoon to evening each day. So that really puts a damper on things.

Not only does the weather put a damper on things, covid cases are going up so my opportunity to go to the gym (which is AT the hospital) isn’t really my BEST option. It’s a whole separate building but vulnerable folks are there and I just don’t want to risk it. 😕

Anyway.. along with ALLLLL OF THAT, I’m also battling excruciating Charley horses each night. To the point that I wake up at 3am, shake Jesse awake for help and cry because my legs are in pain. And while the cramp lasts, the pain in my leg, from the contracting muscles… Stays. And it feels like I have pulled a muscle even 24 hours later and Tylenol not stretching nor massage make it feel ANY better. It’s been a rough week.

I’m trying to stay hydrated, I’m stretching, I’m massaging, I’m wearing compression socks. Wednesday night was the first night with no cramps. But woke up coughing for like 10 minutes. And then pain in my abdomen. I can’t sugar coat any of this … And each pregnancy is DIFFERENT. but this girl is a rascal and my body is going through a lot for her. She kicks and punches every night around 9pm and then also has her rounds around 3-4am too. We have 120 days till we meet her, can you believe it???!!!

Monday – no exercise

Tuesday – 40 min walk in the morning before work which led to the worst Charley horse that night

Wednesday – 30 min walk with Hendrix. We are each trying to spend individual time with him doing something enjoyable as we know soon that time is going to dwindle down. J has been playing with him as he is obsessing over cars and magnets. I can’t get down on the ground to play so it’s been a bit of a bummer.

Thursday – REST

Friday – evacuate because Ida looks to be MEAN … We got to my aunt’s house at 9pm?! It was a long day.

Saturday/Sunday – exploring and beaches, walking and fun

Week 33 (of 52) – 2021 edition!

Monday – organizing

Tuesday – 50 min walk

Wednesday – not sure what I did this day! Lol but I did get my hair cut on Tuesday, feels so nice to have it short again!

Thursday 45 min walk .. I started a part time job… Just making smoothies but it gets me out of the house and a little money in my pocket. And they work around my schedule since I have to drop off and pick up little nugget!

Friday- I worked!

Saturday-Sunday : I literally can’t remember

Week 32 (of 52) – 2021 edition!

This is the first week that Hendrix goes to school school, yeah he went to preschool before and I was a wreck the first few times then too…but he’s going to first grade. And it’s a brand new school and he’s just growing up so fast! So we had some prep work to do before school started!

Monday- hair cut and prepping – and lots of swimming which led to me not going on a walk/run – let’s face it.. right now I’m just walking and I’ve tried running on the trail but I don’t feel my shoes are supporting me. In the afternoon we met his teacher and got some info for school. But the bus schedule was left up in the air and we expected a call from the driver (never happened)

Tuesday- I meant to go on a long walk but was ultimately stuck talking with another mom who’s daughter is in H’s class … Stuck is the wrong word because I quite enjoyed chatting and don’t have many friends here at all. We went to the lake a couple times and swam around until I couldn’t stand this huge wasp fly thing that kept landing on me. We ended the night with dinner and Moana. I love Moana! Lol

Wednesday- school drop off!! I was a nervous wreck but pulled it together and tried not to project any feelings on H. I made him a pump up playlist while we drove to school and the drop off line was relatively quick! I cried when he got out of the car. He just looked so small and was fidgeting with his backpack strap. I wanted to get out and give him a big hug and walk him to his class. But he asked to just be dropped off and I respect that. Honestly this kid is outgoing af, he makes friends quickly and doesn’t take shit from anyone… So he is the last the get bullied. He would and has (plenty of times) stood up for others when he sees something going down that should happen. And for that we are so proud of him. But I still worry and get nervous. Kids can just be plain mean, and I don’t want his spirit broken. So I’m counting down the minutes till he gets back!

But as for exercise- I did go on about a 30 min walk around the lake and it was really great! Part way through I swear I heard a cow growling at me, but then I couldn’t hear it and so kept going. Did not get a picture. Today Jesse asked me to just do nothing, to enjoy my time… I haven’t had a true day off in well.. 6.5+ years. But I know I can’t keep this up for more than a few days, besides stuff needing to be done.. me + vegging doesn’t work well. My friend, Kay, swung by after I told her what a wreck I was dropping H off at school and we hung for a bit, then had lunch and tried to nap. It’s basically been storming all day here so my plans to take river out to swim didn’t happen. I cleaned the house, which was quick and easy – especially since living tiny … And hopefully in the next week or so I can really dive into organizing and taking things to the cargo trailer we don’t need!

Thursday- Jesse stayed home and we actually just napped all day. It was so nice. I have been waking up a lot during the night lately and just generally uncomfortable, so I napped for a few hours and then got to listen to my book “The Summer Seekers”

Friday- well last night H woke up not feeling well and threw up. So we ended up not getting a ton of sleep. I had some big plans for the day but unfortunately those won’t be happening, which is probably for the better as the delta/covid 19 virus is going around more and more and I shouldn’t be store hopping. I did manage to get in a great 50 minute walk! Couldn’t pass it up, had to take advantage of the morning and get back on routine

Saturday – prepping for the possible tropical storms heading our way! And went to the lake to cool off!

Sunday- 45 min walk and I even sprinkled in a little running, like probably 35-40 seconds a couple times lol but it was something. My shoes don’t feel supportive like they used to. So I haven’t pushed myself.

Week 31 (of 52) – 2021 edition!

Monday- utterly exhausted from the weekend activities! I decided to forgo any workout and took the pup to the lake to swim and then gave him a bath so he could come inside and hang out. He is the HOUDINI of escaping his crate… And we have met several neighbors who have already met him and they can’t stop saying just how nice and great a puppy he is 🙄 it’s crazy lol.

Tuesday- woke up just as exhausted and we really arent sure if we have something we are coming down with. But for the whole weekend I was obsessing over these overalls from ASOS. this morning I finally got them… Overalls and some cute maternity shirts 😃 and they should be arriving tomorrow!!

Plan: 2-3 miles

Actual: 2.5 miles walking

Wednesday- plan: 2 miles actual: swam a few laps… Did laundry, cleaned up and tried on my new clothes! Did not get to do an intentional run/walk

Thursday- gender reveal!!!! And 1-2 miles IT IS A GIRL!!!! we are beyond excited for this as everyoneeeeeeee has been saying it’s a boy it’s a boy, we started to believe it. I definitely did, and although I would be happy either way as long as they are healthy… I’m excited for the cute clothes! 😃

Friday- 2 miles. Actual- 1.5 miles been feeling really rough lately

Saturday and Sunday- I made it out for about 30 minutes each time!