By Jennifer Carter-Wharton
My journey with CrossFit began in early 2012 with a desire to get in the best shape of my life before becoming pregnant. I was nearly thirty pounds overweight and unhappy with myself on many levels. As a child, I was never seriously involved in athletics; but as an adult (married to a person who works in the fitness industry), I tried to integrate regular exercise into my life. I sampled many exercise regiments from group fitness classes at our gym, to yoga, to running with friends, but I never achieved my fitness goals with these activities. A poor diet also hindered my progress as I was a vegetarian who mostly ate processed cheese and bread products.
During the years when I struggled with my weight, I would always motivated myself with an external goal like looking great in my wedding dress or losing weight before turning thirty, hence the “get fit before pregnancy” goal of early 2012.
This goal was slightly different from my previous goals as it would affect not only my health and well-being, but the health and well-being of my future child. I knew I needed to find an exercise program that would help me realize I had the intensity and dedication within myself to change my unhealthy lifestyle for good. My husband had been a CrossFit certified instructor for many years and he spoke passionately about the programming and lifestyle. I was drawn to these aspects of CrossFit, and I soon found a CrossFit instructor I could train with three to four times a week. In only a few months of training with him and eating a healthy, plant-based vegetarian diet (mostly Paleo without the meat), I had lost thirty pounds and gained a new outlook on my life and on the sustainability of healthy living.
I continued to train with my CrossFit instructor for a year, and in early 2013, my husband and I decided it was time to start our family. Since I knew I didn’t want to stop CrossFitting during pregnancy, I educated myself by reading articles from the CrossFit Journal about CrossFitting while pregnant, frequented the CrossFit Mom website, and spoke with my husband and my midwives’ group about my desire to continue. We all decided that I could safely continue my exercise regime while trying to conceive and during pregnancy. Many people, including friends, family, and strangers who do not CrossFit, expressed apprehension, doubt, and even anger when I told them of my plan to continue CrossFitting while pregnant.
Undeterred, I continued training regularly and intensely and I became pregnant with my daughter, Beatrix, shortly after I joined Old City CrossFit in September 2013. I continued to CrossFit three to four times a week while pregnant, ran a few times a week until I was 30 weeks along, and practiced yoga throughout my pregnancy. I completed my last WOD at Old City on July 31st, the day before I went into labor.
I found it of utmost importance while pregnant to listen to my body and not push myself as if I were not pregnant. Though my ego didn’t appreciate WOD modification, it became necessary after my first trimester. The coaches at Old City were nothing but supportive and encouraging when I told them I was pregnant at around twelve weeks. They worked with me and suggested modifications with each WOD; toward the end of my pregnancy, they cheered me on for just showing up and staying active. Because of my dedication to CrossFit and a healthy diet, I gained an appropriate amount of pregnancy weight (and lost most within days of giving birth). I was able to have the natural, unmedicated labor and birth experience I wanted, and being physically fit helped me persevere through three hours of intense pushing.
My journey with CrossFit not only made my body strong and capable during pregnancy, but it made my mind strong as well. One month postpartum, I have come to rely on my mind-body strength daily as I experience the challenging and rewarding journey of motherhood.
