5 foods + moves that have been my go-to for a healthy pregnancy

I'll be the first to say I've been super fortunate in the pregnancy woes department. I haven't seemed to experience so much of what some people consider the downsides of pregnancy, like morning sickness, headaches, dizzy spells, etc, and I thank my lucky stars for that! But even more so, I'm thankful I haven't actually had specific food cravings OR aversions. I feel like my sense of smell isn't all that superhuman, so maybe that's why I haven't had any crazy aversions-- other than the stinky litter box that I'm at Marcus's mercy to scoop or the trash, but those are every day aversions! I do think that plenty of folks are much too quick to use pregnancy as an excuse to overindulge and take in way too much excess for what their bodies need in pregnancy, so maybe it's been easier for me without the feeling of "I MUST have a fried twinkie" or something else oddly specific. Don't get me wrong though; if I see something delicious, I may want it in that moment, but that's not a craving. That's a normal human reaction regardless if I'm carrying a baby, and the fact that I'm carrying a precious life relying on me for proper nutrition helps me say "hmm, maybe I won't have ice cream for the 5th time this week!" Please don't even get me started on this Blac Chyna person and her goal of gaining 100 lbs in her 9 months of Kardashian fame. It truly disgusts me.

Rant over! Now the 5 foods that have been my musts for reaching my daily nutritional goals and the 5 strength training moves that have been the foundation of my prenatal focus.

1. Bananas-- I'm not always a huge banana eater because sugar is sugar, for the most part. When I'm on a sugar roller coaster, it's all I can think about, so we tend to limit sugars to a certain extent most of the time in our house. However, if I'm going to indulge my post-dinner sweet tooth, I'm gonna try my hardest for it to be something slightly less empty than a pint of Ben & Jerry's (even though I'm guilty of that one every now and then!) Bananas with some Jif whips peanut butter or blended into a chocolate protein shake with some peanut butter happens most nights lately, and I'm all for that bonus potassium and magnesium boost before bed. The Jif whips is only a couple grams of sugar too, versus some other peanut butters, so it pairs really well.

2. Eggs-- I really wish I'd kept a tally of how many eggs we've gone through since November, because it would be an astonishing amount. I'm talking bodybuilder quantities of eggs, which makes sense because I am literally building a body! The choline found in eggs is a huge component of brain development, and it's only found in the yolk, so you better believe we don't waste that liquid gold in our house. Luckily, I haven't had a stomach for fried eggs since a stomach bug last year since runny yolks are a no-go, but I eat 2-3 scrambled at least 5 times a week. The fats found in eggs keep my blood sugar sooo stable that I really attribute much of my calm appetite/desire for sweets to high egg consumption. If it's true that kids like foods that you ate a lot of while pregnant, we're gonna have an egghead on our hands.

3. Bell peppers-- We are not fruit juice drinkers, so I'm not always gonna get a ton of extra vitamin C, but luckily I love bell peppers and they're easily one of the richest sources. Lately, I've been getting the mini ones that come in the bag, and I love slicing and dipping them in ranch. Yum! They really are a treat. The reason I'm focused on that extra vitamin C kick is because your body cannot absorb iron without the presence of vitamin C, and because it's water soluble, your body doesn't store it, soooooo enter bell peppers! I try to take my prenatal vitamin around the time of a bell pepper (or other vitamin C rich) snack for better absorption. Lots of things interfere with iron absorption, so it's better to be safe than sorry with my ramped up iron needs these days.

4. Turkey burgers-- This one has really been more of a sporadic easy meal than anything else. I found these Butterball Natural Inspirations turkey burgers on sale one week at Publix, and I found them to be super easy to prepare and make tasty, so they've become a quick lunch protein for me. I usually enjoy them bunless with cheese and a little ketchup with a couple veggies on the side. I don't always prefer turkey over beef burgers, but I really like the macro breakdown of these specifically, and the ingredient label is maybe 3 ingredients-- tough to find a frozen food these days. If I don't have to worry about thawing something before I can enjoy it, it's that much easier for me to stick to it as a healthy meal choice!

5. Dates & Lara bars-- prior to pregnancy, I had never ever eaten a date, and even after buying a bag, I wasn't sure I wanted to. They look like weird giant raisins, and I'm guilty of judging food by how it looks. So I eased myself in with trying Lara bars. Holy yum! I can't get enough of the cookie dough one, and each bar contains 2 dates. The reason these have been such a staple for me personally is because I am control-freaking the timing of going into labor. This is truly laughable, I know, I promise. But hear me out! There is a study out there, albeit a small one, but there is a study of pregnant woman who consumed 6 dates per day in the last 4 weeks of pregnancy and 97% of them went into labor on-time with no medical interventions, and I have a wedding to be in 2 weeks after my due date. While it may be a silly thing to try, these are also just an awesome snack to have on hand. I always carry a snack bar of some sort in my purse, so between Lara bars and Victory bars, I never have an excuse to grab Cheetos.

1. Glute bridges-- I feel like if I never hear the word "kegels" again, it'll be too soon. All you read during pregnancy preaches the importance of kegels, and I get it. But the pelvic floor is made up of more than kegel muscles, so I really love glute bridges. The slight hip inversion with these is also awesome for trying to get a breech baby in proper position later in the third trimester. I try to do these SEVERAL times a week, even if it's just a few sets before bed. Postbaby, I'll be back to adding some weight to these via barbell across my hips and single leg varieties.

2. Squats-- I wasn't in the squat rack with much consistency pre-pregnancy, so my squats have all been either very light goblet squats or air squats. I've seen fit mommas in the squat rack with beach ball bellies, so it can be done, but it definitely depends on what you were used to before you got pregnant. These work the entire pelvic floor, and you can even incorporate your kegels here! Boom! The important part is good form and focus.

3. Deadlifts-- Most of my workouts aren't in a gym setting, so it's rare that I'm getting traditional deadlifting in. Don't get me wrong, I love to, but mine are typically single-leg Romanian deadlifts with a 10-15 lb kettlebell or like the one in the picture, especially with the high pull. Pregnancy puts a lot of strain on your hamstrings (much like your lower back, your wallet, and your emotions) because the forward tilt of your pelvis thanks to your growing belly keeps the hamstrings stretched, so it's very important to continue to strengthen them. I have had very little to no low back pain so far, and I like to attribute some of that to strong hammies. The bonus of this move is the high pull, which is awesome for those rhomboids, traps, and shoulders that pretty soon I'll be using to tote around a sweet baby boy.

4. Dumbbell shoulder press-- I love deltoids. I love all things shoulders when it comes to lifting, so naturally I'm going to have one be a go-to. I usually incorporate this guy in with either dumbbells or a kettlebell and either alone or paired with a squat or lunge. This move just makes me feel like I'm gonna be better prepared to entertain a possibly rambunctious baby boy who will love to be tossed in the air, especially if he's anything like his energetic dad.

5. Dumbbell row-- Again, a large part of my focus has been on a strong back. I've always had bad posture, so I try to keep my rhomboids and lats in the back of my mind anytime I'm lifting upper body. These are an easy move for at home, so they're a must for me.

Obviously, these foods and moves have not been my only, but they have been crucial for me personally. Pinpointing the things that have helped me get to nearly 34 weeks pregnant and feeling phenomenal is important for me because it helps keep my efforts intentional, but hopefully these things can also be beneficial to other people who may come across this post. I bet other mommas have lots of foods and things to add to this list, but it's definitely a must for each woman to find what things are going to help her live an intentional and healthy pregnancy.

#weighttraining #prenatalfoods #diet #nutrition #vitamins #prenatalfitness