Originally posted to the anonymous pregnancy blog July 22, 2008.

I’ve spent the last two years gradually becoming more active in order be as healthy as possible when I’m pregnant. Thus, I find it a little ironic that several of the habits I created to lay a healthy foundation for my pregnancy are now forbidden because of that same pregnancy.

The first problem is that my doctor says I shouldn’t “linger” above 10,000 feet. For most of the US, this probably isn’t much of a problem. However, in Colorado, many of the good hiking trails start at 10,000 feet. My husband and I were planning on taking an anniversary trip backpacking this August but that no longer seems feasible. I can’t help but feel he’s annoyed at the restrictions but there doesn’t seem to be much we can do about it at this point.

Second, apparently I’m suppose to keep my heart rate fairly low while exercising. My doctor told me I should keep my heart rate in the 140-150 bpm range. I was sure that I had heard it was okay to keep my heart rate under 160 bpm so when we went hiking this weekend (at under 10,000 ft) that’s what I targeted. My heart monitor has a nifty feature where it’ll start beeping if I exceed my max target heart rate. I couldn’t believe how fast a little hill could put me near the limit. I felt like an old women forcing myself to slowly plod up and taking several breaks during the climb. The upside is we still managed to hike around 28 miles in two days.

After I got home this weekend, it occurred to me that I really should double check my memory of 160 bpm being okay. Apparently I was imaging things. I couldn’t find a single resource indicating it was okay to go above 150. However, it appears that the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists is no longer recommending that women stay under 140 bpm. Instead, they suggest you are okay if “you are able to talk normally while exercising” (Exercise During Pregnancy). Personally, I find this a little too nebulous for my tastes. I also found an interesting position statement from The Canadian Academy of Sports Medicine that was updated in March this year about exercise and pregnancy. It suggests that you use the Rating of Perceived Exertion scale to determine the exercise level that’s appropriate for you. Again, I don’t like perceiving things, I like facts.

I come from a family with a history of obesity and I’m terrified that I’m going to gain tons of weight while I’m pregnant. Obviously, I expect to gain weight but I want to keep it within the recommended guidelines. I’d really like to find a personal trainer that’s certified for working with pregnant women so they can tell me what parts of my exercise routine need to change. However, I’m having trouble finding anyone that looks qualified in my area.

I suppose this is one of many things I’ll have to feel out as I go along.