Tone it Up and Workout Tips During Pregnancy

I'm a huge fan of Tone it Up, it's no surprise. I talk about them frequently on here. But once I became pregnant, I sort of started to ignore the workouts and motivation that K&K provide religiously. I just kind of shied away from anything that wasn't pregnancy-specific. And let's face it, their workouts are geared toward young, single or newly married women looking for a beach body. Preggos/moms aren't really their target market:)

However, during pregnancy I started to miss Tone it Up and I realized I could still incorporate a lot of their workouts into my prenatal routine, with some modifications.

Here are a few general pregnancy exercise guidelines (but always, always ALWAYS talk to your doctor first):

1. Avoid lying flat on your back or tummy, especially after the second trimester. You may still be able to do booty bridges and things like that while propped up on a pile of pillows, but if anything feels uncomfortable, stop.
2. Don't go too intense. I enjoyed taking my workouts down a notch during pregnancy. If your doctor recommends it, you can continue with the types of workouts you were doing before becoming pregnant. However, huffing and puffing isn't always safe. It's usually recommended that you keep your intensity at a level where you can still speak conversationally. And you also don't want to be working on gains during this tender period.
3. Twisty positions are kind of hard to manage in later stages of pregnancy. You may want to avoid them or modify them as necessary.
4. Don't get up/down really fast: blood pressure drops and blood flow changes can really mess with a pregnant woman. Moves like surfboard jumps and burpees may not be best.
5. Jumping around: not only would this be super uncomfortable, but it can be unsafe. Moves that are jumpy or have the potential to cause you to fall are not advisable.
6. Don't stretch too far: the hormone relaxin can really mess with a pregnant woman's body and stretching too far is definitely a danger. Be careful to stretch only to the point where you just feel it and be careful not to go too deep.
7. Balance is tricky. During pregnancy, a woman's balance is compromised. Now, that doesn't necessarily mean she shouldn't do any balance moves at all, but she should be extra cautious.
8. Different goals. Most pregnant women are not working on their beach bodies or running endurance races. We're preparing for labor, trying not to gain over the recommended pregnancy weight, trying to feel better/have more energy, and wanting to bounce back after baby. That being said, the workout needs to be tailored to those goals.
9. Getting too hot can be dangerous for a pregnant woman. Now, our bodies are super efficient at regulating temperatures and keeping baby safe, but getting too hot is still a concern. Bikram yoga and running on a 104 degree day are probably not in the cards. Drink lots and lots and lots of water and stay cool.
10. Preventing diastasis recti: Anything that pushes the stomach out rather than pulls it in is probably not recommended at this point. Pushing out (as during crunches) can actually increase that gap in the abs, so you need to be careful with ab moves.

With these recommendations in mind, and after a talk with my doctor, I was able to sift through the Tone it Up workouts to find some that were both tolerable and safe for me.

A few of my pregnancy favorites:

Arms: there's not much need to modify with arm exercises, and your tummy doesn't interfere too much with them. Here are my top arm picks:

• Bikini Arms
• String Bikini Arm and Thigh Workout
• 3 Moves for Sexy, Sculpted Shoulders
• 3 Moves for a Sexy Upper Back

Legs:

• Love Your Legs (I'd skip or modify the bridges in the 2nd/3rd trimesters)
• Tone up Your Thighs
• Love Your Legs (different than the above one)

Total Body

• Sweet & Sexy Valentine's Workout (most of these are doable, but you may have to modify/skip some, such as Fly Like Cupid)
• Frisky Fall Full Body Routine (the plank row and pike I'd swap out for standing rows)
• Tone up Every Part in 30 Minutes
• Quick 10 Minute Routine
• Gettin' Slim Without the Gym

Now, I wasn't able to follow the TIU nutrition plan at all. Pregnancy threw off all my food habits from the beginning, when morning sickness left only Culver's mashed potatoes and Pop Tarts to be tolerable. I wasn't able to meal prep because thinking about preparing food made me nauseous and grossed me out big time. Later in pregnancy though, I was able to maintain a relatively healthy diet, but it definitely wasn't all clean and Hubster had to prepare most of our dinners (which turned into leftover lunches the next day). I was totally ok with that and enjoyed the break, but I sure did miss some of the recipes from the plan!

Aside from TIU workouts, I also have a few workouts other workouts that I recommend for expecting mommas:

• Full-Body Prenatal Workout on video and tear sheet
• Full-Body Prenatal Circuit
• And my 3 Favorite Prenatal Workout Videos