[Written by Evelyn Stevenson (pictured) and Lee Steggles] With our CrossFit® gym being in Clapham Junction, we are at the epicentre of family life in London. With so many lush green spaces and sizable housing it lends itself well to starting a family here.
Our experience and resources.
At Shapesmiths we have had, over the past 5 years, the pleasure of helping 15+ pregnant members who continued to train through a large portion of their pregnancy. Some members have had two pregnancies with us!
We wanted to share some resources that the coaching team periodically review. They are not only a lesson in how to tackle training whilst pregnant (spoiler alert: we simply modify the workout and include you in the process) they also serve as a lesson on how to work with whatever fitness level you find yourself at when you start at Shapesmiths.
First thing, first… check this article out from the CrossFit® Journal: PREGNANCY, A PRACTICAL GUIDE
It is a perfect primer for not only someone who is trying for a child, is pregnant or is post-partum, but also for anyone who is new to CrossFit® believe it or not! Of particular note is the fact that your coaches will be striving to tailor your class experience with relative intensity in mind. Everything should be relative to YOU, right!?
To quote the article “The purpose of this article is not to defend a woman’s right to CrossFit® through pregnancy, nor to debate the safety of doing so. The purpose is only to share with the CrossFit® community a template for scaling CrossFit® movements for pregnant women.”
This PDF is a great ‘Practical Guide to Scaling’ for Pregnancy. Note: another definition of scaling is ‘modifying movements, to preserve the intended stimulus that day.’
Here’s the guide: PDF PREGNANCY TABLE
Coming up in part two:
We cover things to look out for in the:
- First Trimester
- Second Trimester
- Third Trimester & Postpartum
If you have any questions about your pregnancy or need any advice, fire an email to [email protected] or you can grab a Shapesmiths coach, Eve or Lee and we will make sure you get the care and information that you need.