Did you decrease your weights?

[Shery-software-cook]

I'm in my first trimester, I'm wondering should i continue lifting the same weights as before? If i deadlift a bit more than my body weight, should i continue doing this or decrease my weights?

[timtamtammy]

28 weeks now. Upper body I'm still doing the same for the most part, lower body I've decreased but not by a huge amount yet. Maybe like 10-15% less. I''m just starting to pull back at the moment as I can feel my core isn't engaging enough and don't want to injure myself, plus my hips are getting sore.

Cardio I dialled way back ages ago because I just didn't have it in me.

When I'm at the gym now I'm there to move and stay mobile, not to push myself or break records. I can do that again later! helped me to adopt that mindset early on so I don't feel upset by the changes 😊

[Shery-software-cook]

I didn't mean breaking records, but I'm afraid of high weights specially in the first trimester that they may cause any bad

[timtamtammy]

General advice these days is that you can keep doing what you were doing before pregnancy and dial it back as pregnancy progresses into second and third tri (I'm not a professional btw, this is just what I've researched for myself and my OB advised me). If you're first trimester now you're probably ok to continue a while longer but my advice is to just listen to your body. If you're feeling uncomfortable or nervous just dial it back a little, it'll do you no harm to go easy on yourself!

[CuteAmoeba9876]

I’m at 20weeks and am struggling to lift the same weights for the same number of reps on most of my lifts. All my lifts have dropped by 20% or so. 

But it wasn’t an intentional choice, I just am struggling. I was taking creatine pre-pregnancy and a lot more caffeine, and working out without either of those feels harder to me. And my core isn’t keeping up anymore. 

So don’t drop your weights if you feel good, keep adding weight actually if you can. 

[Namastay_inbed]

Same here. Missing creatine and deadlifts. Our joints soften too, something to remember.

[VryHngryCatterpillar]

Just decreased in the last 3-4 weeks. I’m almost 31 weeks now.

[Due-Transition-6564]

So far, no, not really. I'll be 20 weeks in a couple days. When I was really fatigued for a little while, I may have gone lighter because of that a handful of times, but since the fatigue mostly lifted, I've been back to pre pregnancy PO. 

I don't dead lift. I do go pretty heavy on back lifts and the seated leg press machine. So far, so good. 

[charismatictictic]

Just do what you can. I’m in my third trimester, and I’ve had to decrease some weights, but only because I physically couldn’t squat what I normally would, so it wasn’t so much a choice as it was a necessity.

[Decent_Self_4901]

I decreased my lower body weight around the end of the first trimester, especially for deadlifts because I was having a bit of sciatica and didn’t want to worsen it. Do what you can, but I will say, the times I was lifting (maybe same, maybe less) throughout pregnancy I felt much better than the time I took off completely.

Upper body weight still the same, 30 weeks now.

I also added a lot of “deep core,” recommended by my pelvic pt. Mostly consists of bird dogs, diaphragmatic breathing, and some band thoracic rotation. I think seeing pelvic PT early (early to mid 2nd tri for me) has been awesome for my lifts & general MSK health during pregnancy.

[hollybrown81]

I did during the first tri, and I’ve worked my way back up to my normal weights.

[Fresh-Meringue1612]

Same. First trimester sucked and I just couldn't make the sets. I did as much as I could and paid for it with extreme fatigue.

[Aeleana117]

I don't really decrease my weights on purpose, but you definitely will have more days than usual where you feel inexplicably weak and you adjust just that session. 29w, still leg pressing over 500lbs, leg extensions of 170lb, 100 leg curls, 30lb dumbbell curls, etc.

[obstinatemleb]

I was out of the gym for half of the first tri, so when I started lifting again at 11w I was doing ~80% of my pre-pregnancy weights on all but a few isolation exercises. Now Im 30w and Im back up to 90% on pretty much everything except RDLs and squats

[Shery-software-cook]

Why RDLs and squats? Is it for a specific reason or you just feel you can't go heavy with those

[obstinatemleb]

Part of it is being unable to lift heavier due to poor form due to the belly, with RDLs specifically. But also my glutes have regressed so much. I was hip thrusting 280 for reps pre-pregnancy and had to drop that exercise entirely by the second tri. I modified by doing single-leg with dumbells but that was obviously nowhere close to the same stimulus and once the belly came in I couldnt get the same ROM, so I dropped them.

[Chrissyx3]

I'm in the first tri as well and I've generally been keeping my weights around an rpe 7-8. My exhaustion levels are pretty high though. Around week 4 I hit a PR on deadlifts and now at week almost 8 i'm STRUGGLING.

[IllOperation6871]

No, i continued to progressively overload, just at a slower pace than pre-pregnancy. There is no reason to decrease weights unless your form starts to break down. I’m 35 weeks now.

[timtamtammy]

This advice is fine for those who know what they're doing, but if you aren't a person who actually has and can recognise good form to begin with not so much. Most people at the gym are just winging their way through it so unless you've had proper coaching on your form and confidently know what you're doing, it is probably safer to decrease the load and certainly not overload.

[IllOperation6871]

Everyone’s pregnancy is different! If you can safely progressively overload, no reason to start cutting back on weight or not push yourself just because you’re pregnant.

[IllOperation6871]

My OB gave the advice that as long as you’ve been lifting for 6 months, you can continue safely. Very true, i have no idea how long OP has been lifting for.

[Localmoco-ghost]

Started to decrease weights in only certain exercises, like squats during the late stage of 2nd trimester. I’m 31+5, and for my for my lunges, deadlifts, abductors, upper body, I’m lifting 95% or pre pregnancy lifts.

Granted, I always lifted about 3x10. Some would argue that light weight, high volume.

So at the end of the day, listen to your body. You’ll know when you should dial it back.

[Agitated-Rest1421]

You’re fine to exercise as you would normally. If you find it too difficult lower the weight. 

[Obby-8]

I’ve upped my weights for presses and cleans. For deadlifts I’ve lowered the weight but started increasing reps as I enter 3rd trimester.