As I’m nearing the end of my third pregnancy, each one has been a little different but I’ve pretty much had the same goal each time. Make it through and come out in the end with a healthy baby. Sometimes trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle during pregnancy is easier said than done when you are faced with morning (aka all-day) sickness, exhaustion, body aches, and the other myriad of pregnancy symptoms. Despite the challenges I think it’s important to do your best to eat well, get a little exercise, rest (a lot) and take your vitamins.
Pregnancy is known for bringing out food cravings and aversions which can make getting all of your nutrients in a challenge. With my first pregnancy I ate really well, I craved fresh fruit, veggies and milk. (Yeah, ice cream too but overall I think I did great.) My second pregnancy the only thing I really remember wanting horribly bad was cheese popcorn. You know, the bright orange totally bad stuff. At least it had fiber from the popcorn, right? And now with the third pregnancy there’s not been anything I’ve just had to have. I am however counting down until October 1st when I can get my hands on a Pumpkin Pie Blizzard, but that’s about it. However, with every single one my appetite has shrunk down pretty much the instant I got pregnant. The first trimester is especially hard when I hardly want to eat anything at all but I know there’s a baby working hard on growing and needs a balanced diet.
I think one of the most important things I’ve done with each pregnancy is making sure to take prenatal vitamins to balance out what I’m not taking in food wise. Even to give 
myself an extra boost. When you have a baby depending on you solely to provide all of it’s essential nutrients to support it’s growth and development it makes it so important to get it all in whether it’s through food or vitamins. With close to 70% of energy supply being devoted solely to brain development while the baby is growing, finding a prenatal vitamin that has an adequate amount of folic acid and DHA, such as BrainStrong Prenatal, to support healthy brain, eye, and nervous system growth is key. BrainStrong Prenatal vitamins have the highest level of folic acid and DHA you can get without a prescription and they happen to cost less than most copays. Also, something that’s important when you are taking a DHA supplement is to make sure you are getting it from a clean source without potential contaminants, which is hard to do when going with a fish source. BrainStrong DHA comes from a vegetarian source so there’s no worries there.
As far as exercise goes, just taking a 15 minute walk every day can actually help boost your energy when you are feeling sluggish and possibly give you the energy to walk a little longer. It doesn’t take much at all to get a little pick-me-up. Through most of my first and second trimester I was walking to school to pick up Hanna every afternoon and we would stop at a local playground on the way home. It was good for the kids and good for me to get some sunshine and get a little blood flowing in the afternoon.
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle, even with pregnancy challenges can be pretty simple if you let it. Eat a well balanced diet, supplement with prenatal vitamins, get in a little exercise and rest as much as you can. Once the baby is here make sure to keep taking your prenatal vitamins too, especially if you are breast feeding! It’s easy to forget once your little one is here but it’s still so important and helps give you that much-needed extra energy too.
What have you done during pregnancy to make sure your baby is growing healthy and strong? What tips would you give other moms trying to do the same?
Disclosure: I was compensated for this post. However, as always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.
