According to my mom, there is a saying in the old country that most women lose one tooth per baby. Babies are nursed in the country side and formula is rarely used.  It is too expensive or there is limited access. Since I gave birth to now, I’ve developed 4 cavities. And yes, I believe breast feeding is the culprit. You lose some of your bone density with each child.

Amazing breast milk and bone density

Breast milk is amazing and indiscriminate of the mother’s health. The breast milk of a malnourished mother will provide just as much minerals and vitamins as a well nourished mother. The only difference may be the fat content might be higher for a well nourished mother.

If breast milk is providing all this good stuff, what happens to the mother if she is malnourished or undernourished? Since a woman’s body is made for reproduction, your treasonous body will compromise the mother’s body to feed the baby. Hence, the cavities for women not getting enough calcium in their diet.

If you are in your 20s, you can still increase your long-term bone density because the rate of bone density loss is slower than the rate you can increase your bone density. However, for someone in their 30s like me, my rate of bone density loss is equal to or greater than the rate I am building up my bone density.

Why women more prone to develop osteoporosis

My bones are much more vulnerable to developing osteoporosis than my husband’s even without the issue of carrying and nourishing our baby. Women stop building bone density between 30-35 years old. I am at a stage where my body is building and losing bone density at the same rate (without the baby factor).

Now add in yo-yo dieting without exercise and you have both fat loss and muscle loss each time you go on a diet. You naturally start to lose about 4% of your muscle mass per decade. Menopause accelerates the muscle mass loss to 10% per decade. Studies have shown that women who participate in a regular strength training exercise routine are less likely to develop osteoporosis. Men are less likely to develop osteoporosis because they do not experience the hormone changes we do over their lifetime and start out with more muscle mass to begin with.

You might think your bones are hard and a fixed lifeless structure. But bone density is constantly changing, growing, diminishing, or re-building, depending on your current circumstances. Taking calcium supplement is not the only preventative measure to curtail bone density loss.

Amazingly, you cannot tell whether someone has great bone density by their appearances. I used to belong to a bowling league where half the members have been collecting social security longer than I’ve been working since graduation. Two women fell while bowling one year. They are both the same age — 82 at the time. One is heavyset and the other is thin. You would think the thin senior would end up with the broken hip, but it is her heavyset friend who ended up sitting out two seasons.  Vi, the thin senior, ended up with a bruise and promptly brought a new pair of bowling shoes to prevent future falls.

Exercises to increase bone density

Regular weight bearing exercises increase your bone density. Swimming and biking has its place in your exercise routine, but not if you want to increase your bone density. These low impact exercises improves your endurance, but its low impact nature would not stress your bones enough to cause your bones to strengthen itself when it repairs or replace the cells damaged from the weight bearing exercise.

The most important factor in finding exercises you can do for the rest of your life is to find weight bearing exercises that is gentle on your joints, provides an aerobic element, and strengthens your bone density. I know this is a tall order.

Do you know what is Vi’s secret for strong bones? Vi never learned to drive. Vi walked everywhere in her youth, catching rides with her husband and friends for errands too far for her to walk. Every day she was adding an extra layer of spackle to her bone density when she walked in her youth. And now you have a sassy LOL (little old lady) that is an active member of our bowling league.

Why do people often ignore walking as an exercise option? Because people exercise for weight loss. However, you can lose weight from walking. Walking is gentle on your joints, provides an aerobic element, strengthens your bone density, and is an exercise you can do for the rest of your life no matter what age you are. Plus, you can walk anywhere, even in your own home with these free walking exercise videos.

Even with all the prenatal vitamins I am taking while nursing, you can clearly see from my cavities that I am not getting enough calcium in my diet. You cannot tell from looking at the exterior that my bone density is probably weaker after giving birth. I wish I’d paid more attention to building up my bone density in my 20s instead of believing that my body will always be strong and youthful. I need to get back into my regular walking routine. 

Until next time and thanks for stopping by Small Steps to Health. If you like what you are reading, please share it with your friends.

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One more month to go and I will be able to hold my little girl. I am at the point where I am ready for this pregnancy to be over.  Though I have a relatively “easy” pregnancy up until the last couple of weeks, I am at the stage where I am uncomfortable no matter what I am doing.

Though I wanted to be one of those women who exercise during my entire pregnancy, I stopped between 6.5-7 months. I am experiencing too much back pain (which I suspect stems mainly from my car accident).

I am looking forward to exercising again!

Strange as it might sound to some of my readers, I cannot wait to start exercising again. I have this lovely vision of pushing the stroller around the park near my home every day after 2-3 weeks of rest and recovery.  And as my stamina increases, I plan on venturing further to the bigger park near the local elementary school.  Within a month, I hope to start using my exercise dvds on a regular basis again.

I gained too much pregnancy weight!

I gained more pregnancy weight than I thought I would.  I am up 31 pounds.  I do not anticipate hitting 40 pounds, but I would not be surprise if I end up somewhere between 35-40 pounds.

Prior to my pregnancy, I was more discipline with my eating, but sometimes during the 5^th month, I started indulging. It does not help that my husband has “cravings” while I don’t. I got tired of making Oreo cookie milkshakes runs with him. So I am eating desserts and some fast food about 3-4 times a week (nothing crazy, but still out of character for me).

I can tell that my husband wants me to have a massive pregnancy craving where I make him run out in the middle of the night, in the rain, with his pjs and disheveled hair to get my pregnancy craving fix. Why? So that he can join the ranks of men with hormonal pregnant wives that make their husbands do crazy things.

I feel bad for not being able to provide him with fodder for his stories. Sometimes I wonder if I should make something up just so he could feel good about doing his husbandly duty, but the thought of having to eat something like pickles and ice cream is too much a sacrifice for me.

Until next time and thanks for stopping by Small Steps to Health.

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I was really excited about my second trimester and getting over the fog of exhaustion.  This might sound crazy to some women, but I was looking forward to a few months of exercise during pregnancy.  Walking to the refrigerator for a pint of ice cream or to the nearest horizontal surface for a quick snooze could be consider pregnancy exercise, but I was hoping to re-capture some of my pre-pregnancy exercise endorphins.

Pregnancy, especially when you start showing, is a good excuse to stay on the sofa, wait for your husband to “voluntarily” offer to get you some ice cream.  I love using the baby as an excuse for my husband to “baby” me.  Morally wrong?  Maybe.  Am I milking it?  Oh yea.

But exercise has been a big component in my life for the last several years and even the limitations of pregnancy cannot keep me away from it for long.  However, I discovered that you cannot expect to pick up right where you left off prior to getting pregnant.  As a matter of fact, exercise during pregnancy has its own unique set of challenges, especially since I am still dealing with my torn hip labrum.

This post is a discussion on the benefits of exercise during pregnancy and what is considered safe pregnancy exercises. I am not a doctor or fitness trainer.  This post is only my opinion and examples of what pregnancy exercises I am doing to stay healthy.

Can I exercise during pregnancy?

Absolutely.  If you can walk, you can exercise during pregnancy.  However, don’t expect to be able to continue at the same intensity or duration because your stamina will be compromised as your pregnancy progresses.  I did not believe this myself until I hit the middle of my second trimester when my aching pelvis made me give up aerobics exercise dvds entirely (of course, part of my problem came from my injured hip).

The goal of exercise during pregnancy is to maintain your current fitness level.  If you have always lifted weights or done aerobics, you can certainly continue to do these physical activities during your pregnancy with some modifications.  And most of us are able to walk prior to becoming pregnancy.  Do you see any reason why it would suddenly become impossible for you to walk a mile or two after the pee stick dried?

Benefits of exercise during pregnancy

The benefits of pregnancy exercise include:

• shorter labor
• more stable blood sugar hence reducing your chance of gestational diabetes
• lower risk of preeclampsia
• reduced chance of C-section

The number one benefit of pregnancy exercise is the benefit to your baby.  Women who gained excessive weight during pregnancy more than double their baby’s risk of being obese children.

In addition, staying active keeps me positive about nmy increasing weight ad waistline.  I know that my pregnancy weight gain and expanding waistline is a sign that my baby is healthy, but there is a part of me that resist losing my figure even if it is only temporary.  And pregnancy exercise gives me a small sense of control over my body so that I do not feel like I have to restrict my eating.

Cardio exercise for pregnant women

Walking and swimming are the safest cardio exercise for pregnant women.  These two activities are low impact and have low risk for injuries.  Even a previously sedentary individual can easily pick up walking.  Low impact exercise starts to become more important as your pregnancy progresses because of the increase in your weight and the instability in your joints.

Relaxin is a hormone that peaks around 14-16 weeks and softens the joints in your body to get it ready to open the pelvis area for the birth of the baby.  However, relaxin does not discriminate against other joints in your body.  So even though you might not feel it, all the joints in your body becomes looser and less stable as your pregnancy progresses.  Any muscle imbalance you might have previous will be exaggerated by the relaxation of your joints.  And in the case of my torn hip labrum, I actually feel this stability much earlier with aching hip muscles and an aching pelvis area well before I even gained my first 10 pounds.  When you are pregnant, you produce more relaxin hormones than normally presented in your body.

So high impact cardio or cardio that requires quick sudden movements are not recommended exercises for pregnant women.  Low impact cardio can be quite boring for those of us used to jumping, quick foot movements, or step aerobics, but think of it this way — you only need to do it for a few months.  It is better to be safe and be able to continue to exercise during pregnancy than to injury yourself and gain excess weight during pregnancy.

Weight lifting exercise for pregnant women

When it comes to weight lifting exercise for pregnant women, you might want to consider lifting more repetitions with lighter weights.  Once again, you have relaxin to thank for this exercise modification during pregnancy.  There is a chance of an injury when you have looser joints while lifting heavy weights.  Or if you have access to a gym, pregnancy is a great time to start using the weight machines.

Normally I am not a big fan of weight machines unless you are a beginner when it comes to weight lifting.  Weight machines isolate your work to a particular muscle group that the machine is specifically designed for, hence reducing your risk of injury.  Weight machines allows you to lift heavier weights for a particular muscle group even if your smaller stabilizer muscle groups are weaker.  This also means you can have sloppier form.

While free weights, on the other hand, incorporates a lot of smaller muscles to help stabilize the movement making your muscles look more balance.  So if you want to continue heavy weight exercise during pregnancy, using a weight machine would help you accomplish this goal while reducing your chances of injury.  However, you risk over training your big muscles groups while neglecting your smaller stabilizing muscles.

How have I been exercising during pregnancy?

Prior to pregnancy, I walked 2 miles daily and workout with exercise dvds 4-5 times a week for 30-45 minutes.  I was able to continue this exercise routine up until my 8^th weeks. Then, pregnancy exhaustion reduce my exercise dvd sessions to 3 times a week for about 20-30 minutes because I was spending so much of my evening napping when I get home from work.

From week 10 through 16, I was still using my existing exercise dvds.  I started using lighter weights and made my movements smaller when doing aerobics due to the reduction in my stamina.  I stopped doing ab exercises on the floor after 12 weeks and started using an exercise ball instead (the incline helps with the discomfort of my budding pregnancy belly).

During this time I continued my daily 2 mile walks.  I started slowing down visibly around 18 weeks.  I was getting too winded while I tried talking to my friends.  I feel a little guilty that my friends had to slow down to accommodate me, but there was no way I can keep up without flaring up my pelvis area when I get back to my chair.

I gave up on aerobics completely after 19 weeks.  It took me this long to figure out that the pain I feel in my pelvis and hip area all stem from the aerobic exercise I was doing (and it was a pregnancy aerobic workout video too).  I have to ice the area immediate afterwards and for the next evening as well.  Remember what I said about the instability cause by the relaxin hormone?  Well, throw in prior muscle imbalance from my torn hip labrum, and you have a recipe for pain.

I replaced aerobics with pilates and yoga which helped with some of the discomfort of pregnancy when your posture keeps changing to accommodate the growing belly.  I never saw the need to purchase pregnancy workout videos before, thinking I would be able use something milder in my existing exercise dvd collection.  Now that I am 10 pounds heavier with a belly that protrudes an additional 6 inches forward, regular exercise dvds do not cut it. They do not show pregnancy exercise modifications that can accommodate my larger belly.

I never thought that a 2 hour shopping trip where you are strolling leisurely would wipe me out so completely that I need to take a nap immediately after getting home.  I can see the writing on the wall regarding exercising as my pregnancy progresses into the third trimester.  I thought I would be one of those women who would continue to exercise rigorously like I am not even pregnant.  Maybe it is because I am almost 32 years old.  Or maybe it is because of my previous injuries.  But I can see myself giving up weight lifting entirely and focus mostly on pilates and yoga with a little bit of walking thrown in.  And that is just good enough for me at this point.  After all, there is only a few months left until spring.

Until next time and thanks for stopping by Small Steps to Health.

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Pregnancy has been easy for me physically, even with the increase in my hip pain, but it has been hard for me mentally.  Pregnancy really slows you down because your body is so busy growing these tiny hands and feet.  You’ll think I would relish this time to take it easy and sit around with a gentle smile on my face while I stroke my growing belly.  But I find this period unsettling.

I realize this is the last chance I get to be truly alone with my husband.  Not that the baby is unwelcome.  You have no idea how long I waited to have this baby.  At the same time, I can’t help counting down the days of just being responsible only for myself.

A couple of days ago, I realize that I HAVE to keep my job because I cannot live in my car with my baby.  Prior to that, I figured if I get laid off then I can always live in my car or my husband can feed me scraps from his leftovers.  But I can feel the box closing in on how much freedom I have left.  It is not so much that I will choose to have a blow-out with my boss and quit in a huff (I actually like my job a lot), but just that I don’t have that choice anymore.  Silly huh?

I always have the freedom to pick up and go.  Always.  Now I feel like I have roots.  It is not a bad thing.  Being Chinese, my family obligations (some of which I even do willing) is a mile long.  There are certain things I would never do because of these family obligations and beliefs, so responsibility is not new.  What is new is that I will be primarily responsible for this helpless baby.  Yes, I conveniently forgot about my husband.  And I am sure he would be a big help.  But he is just the father. 

I know children are worth it.  Having help raise my two youngest sisters, there is nothing like that delightful moment when the little one that you helped nurture light up when you enter a room (too bad this does not last longer than the age of 7) or snuggle up to you for no reason.  There are all these little moments that make everything worth it.  But I can’t help but feel scare.  I don’t think I have been this frighten before.  When I had my car accident a few years back, I was worried and often feel helpless.  But never this frighten.

Until next time and thanks for stopping by Small Steps to Health.

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I have a relatively healthy relationship with food and my weight.  I am neither underweight nor overweight prior to getting pregnancy.  But when for some reason as I viewed my partially nude body when I was getting ready for bed last night, I started worrying about my weight gain during pregnancy.

I talk about exercise and eating healthy as an extension of being a healthy, vibrant person.  It is truly one of my guiding principles.  But what woman does not indulge in a little bit of vanity occasionally?  And with all the changes happening to my body, how can I not regard my pregnancy weight gain with a mix of fear, joy, and confusion.

Why is pregnancy weight gain confusing?

I am pretty sure you can understand the fear and joy part of gaining weight during pregnancy.  After all, years of trying to prevent weight gain from slowly creeping up is not going to disappear overnight.  I doubt that I am the only or last woman to worry about the amount weight you gain during pregnancy.  The weight gain fear swings both ways — gaining too much or gaining too little.  There is also joy in providing the nutrition my baby needs to grow in the womb.  This extreme emotional swing about weight gain could all be hormonal.  And don’t forget that I am also worry how excess weight gain would increase my hip pain.

The “appropriate amount of weight gain” during pregnancy is confusing to me.  The OB/GYN office is staffed by three women doctors.  When asked, all three of them gave me a different answer on how much weight I should gain during my pregnancy.  One doctor mentioned limiting my weight gain to no more than 15-20 pounds.  Another doctor thinks I should aim for 20-25 pounds.  And the last doctor thinks my body would gain whatever weight it wants to gain to have a healthy baby (I like this doctor the best).

Interestingly enough the advice the doctors gave reflect their individual body body shapes.  The “skinny doctor” wants me to gain as little weight as possible.  The “average doctor” wants me to gain a reasonable amount of weight.  And the “big boned doctor” (she was not overweight, just that her frame is more sturdy looking than the others) is okay with whatever weight my body wants to put on.

Are you as confused as I am?  Do doctors give out advice based on their own personal experience most of the time?

What do books and magazines have to say about pregnancy weight gain?

Being a bibliophile, I started digging through the shelves of my local library to see if there is another answer to this weight gain question.  Here is a breakdown of the average amount of weight gain during pregnancy:

Of course, the average woman in the United States is also taller and heavier than me.  So maybe the advice from the “average doctor” is the amount of weight my body should gain during pregnancy.  However, I think there are more factors at work in nurturing a healthy baby than just reaching some ideal weight requirement.  After all, what happens if you hit this “ideal pregnancy weight” before the end of the 40 weeks?  It is not like you can go on a diet during pregnancy.

Slow and steady weight gain during pregnancy

I’ve talked to plenty of women who gained 40+ pounds during pregnancy with healthy babies.  And a majority of them were able to lose  enough weight to be within 5 pounds of of their pre-pregnancy weight.  I’ve also talked to women who gained the recommended “ideal pregnancy weight” and ended up with complications at the birth.

As many of my regular readers know, slow and steady is the best way to lose weight.  This prevents sagging skin and helps you from re-gaining the weight loss.  This motto is also true for a healthy pregnancy.  When you slowly gain weight, it gives your body a chance to adapt to the extra pounds and allows your skin to stretch gradually (preventing stretch marks).

It is recommended that you gain 1-1.5 pounds a week after the 4th month.  Most women do not gain any weight by the 9th month because there is hardly any room in the womb for the baby to keep growing.

One thing I notice is that my weight gain happens when the baby is going through a growth spurt.  My weight would hold steady for a couple of weeks and I would eat the same amount of food I normally ate pre-pregnancy.  However, when the baby hits a growth spurt, I am ravenous which means eating every 2 hours.  And during that 1-2 weeks period, I would gain up to 3 pounds.  Then, the weight gain would slow down again.  But on average, I am gaining about 1 pound per week after my 14th week.

Pregnancy weight gain warning signs

If you start gaining more than 3 pounds a week after the 4th month and it is not due to excessive eating or water retention, then it could be a warning sign of gestational diabetes.  Being part of a high risk group for gestational diabetes (Asian descent), I have cause for some concern.  And if you were overweight pre-pregnancy, there is also a chance you would develop gestational diabetes during the last part of your pregnancy.

Pregnancy weight gain is complicated.  I just hope that I can keep a sense of humor about it even when I get comments from people that I look “too big to be (fill in the blank) weeks pregnant.”  Yes, I had a few of those already.  And the sad thing is, these rude comments all came from other women.  You would think with the massive amount of body image issues surrounding our culture, these women would know better than to make a pregnant woman worry about her weight.

Until next time and thanks for stopping by Small Steps to Health.

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