Third trimester workout updates

Well at 33 weeks i am still feeling wonderful, have lots of energy and rarely have any back pain. I get it here and there but often found (after further investigation) it was after my 10 km runs. So after another physio session and another pelvic tilt exercise to add to my daily regime i decided to decrease my inclines for running and walking workouts as well as my distance and since then. WOW what a difference. My pelvis has felt much better with my max runs being 8km now. And thus less strain on other parts of my back too. So now i am doing 4, 6 and 8 km runs. I am so happy i am still good at 8. I will continue listening to my body and decreasing again if need be. I also found a new walking incline workout yesterday that i did last night. It was one i found for an intermediate/advanced women in her 3rd trimester. I however found some walks a little too slow so i sped them up and altered the workout to suit my fitness level at this time. It is more of walk/run incline workout and i felt great last night and still do today so i know i didn't over do it. My legs are actually pretty sore today from all those squats and lunges:)

Now let's touch on the importance of doing pelvic tilts during pregnancy especially your third trimester. Your pelvis is going through a lot of changes and the hormone relaxin is doing it's work to relax all the ligaments in this area to make room for baby to come out (don't worry everything goes back to the way it was before for most women). So pelvic tilts help ensure that your pelvis doesn't stiffen up due to all that extra weight on it from baby and it strengthen your abs and helps to prevent and soothe back aches. They also help encourage your baby to get in proper positioning for delivery head down and back towards your back. They also help ease delivery of your bundle of joy. So many pros and i know i have noticed a huge difference since i have started incorporating them.

Here are the ones i do before and after every workout:

Pelvic tilts with back against a wall so my arms wouldn't be up like this picture. Repeat 10 x

Pelvic tilt with hands on wall: Stand a few feet out from the wall and lean forward and put hands on wall at shoulder height. Keep legs hip distance apart and knees slightly bent then tilt your pelvis much like picture above. Repeat this move 10 x


Cat cow yoga pose: Start on all fours in a neutral position with your back push your belly down with head up and bum up like a cow then arch your back up much like a scared cat would do and go back and forth between these movements 20 x

Pelvic tilts while seated: sit with both feet firmly planted on the ground and place hand on one leg and push down as you try to lift up. This is essentially a pelvic tilt only on the side you are doing it on. Repeat on both sides 10 x. You can also push down opposite leg and push it down with your hand as well which also works the other side in another way. Repeat 10 x. I only do this one for my left side as thats where i seem to have the issue. This exercise was given to me from my physio Heidi.

32 weeks and 6 days

Clean gluten free biscuits 2 ways

Hi guys. Its been awhile since i posted a recipe. On Sunday i made a big batch of curried sweet potato apple soup from Gracious Pantry.  And of course i needed to make my clean gluten free biscuits however i couldnt find the recipe i normally used to i adapted one from http://www.glutenfreecookingschool.com. I will include my go to recipe after i post my adapted version below.

*Makes approximately 16 large biscuits depending on how large your biscuit cutter is (and by biscuit cutter i mean a glass from your cupboard)


1.5 cups brown rice flour
1 cup corn starch
1.5 cups sorghum flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. xanthan gum
8 Tbsp Earth balance spread
1 1/4 cups plain almond milk
 1 1/4 cups water
1 Tbsp. cider vinegar
 1 egg, beaten (or make a flax or chia egg if vegan)

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large mixing bowl thoroughly combine the flours, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and xanthan gum.
3. Use a pastry blender to blend the butter into the flour. However if like me you don't have one simply use a fork and blend up until well combined and no chunks of butter are left.
4. Add the almond milk, water, vinegar and beaten egg to the flour and stir until the dry and liquid ingredients are combined.
5. Roll out the dough thickly on wax paper sprinkled with flour and cut out round shapes with a large glass cup and Cook at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until golden brown.


Now you can see my go to recipe here:) For this recipe i use earth bnlance and plain almond milk as well. Let me know if you try either recipe in the comments below! Please note i have found that gluten free biscuits are better the next few days heated again in the microwave they don't crumble quite as badly then and taste better! I spread mine with a little earth balance spread.

Working out in the 2nd trimester

WOW. It's hard to believe i am already 30 weeks today. This pregnancy is sure flying by! I have noticed these last few weeks that my runs are getting a little slower and my circuit weight training is a little slower too. But that's ok! At least i can still work out.

Working out in the 2nd trimester was amazing i had so much energy and was able to even incorporate some easier intervals:) I was atill doing all the Tone it Up circuit workouts with some super set arm and leg workouts from PB fingers thrown in as well. I just had to modify some of the moves to work with my growing belly and make sure i listened to my body stopping certain moves as needed. I was actually able to still do crunches up until 22 weeks. I know working out on your back isn't recommened by many however through my research and talking to my dr it's ok as long as i feel ok doing it. So right now i am still doing glute exercises on my back and feel great doing them. The key is that as long as you are still moving and not laying still on your back (and don't feel dizzy) you are good to go and it's not bad for you or the baby:) I was also able to keep my runs at a max of 15-16 km for long runs, intervals one day and then steady runs with no walking breaks another. I also added in another cardio day where i would do a running/toning workout (where i'd do a toning circuit & then jump on the treadmill to run 5 min-ish intervals between circuits) or a walking interval workout. For my long runs i would mainly run 10 min and walk a min or even take more walking breaks if i needed them. I did my last 15 km long run at 26 weeks and since then decreased to 10-12km but as of last few weeks i'm down to 10km max.

Now as i mentioned above working out in the third trimester has changed a little. I ended up tweaking my pelvis a little the week before christmas. I over did it that week with a killer leg workout and then a running workout where you'd jump off every 5 min or so and do squats and jumping jacks. Needless to say as of sat that week my pelvis on my left side started to get a little tender during my run and then ached on and off throughout that week after taking a few days off.

As of this past monday it was still hurting on and off when i ran so i went to see my physio, Heidi from Physio for you. And i was sooooo happy to hear her say it wasn't major and basically my tight glutes, hamstrings as well as tater tot always hanging out on my left side cause my pelvis to get a little over worked and then the tight muscles pulled it forward a little on the left side. I had started doing pelvic tilts as well as only pre natal workouts the week of Christmas so i think thathad helped it from getting worse. So all Heidi had to do was some traction work to get it to loosen up a bit and go back in place:) This is what i remember from my appointment with Heidi so it may not exactly be it...Heidi may correct me a little on this.

I now do pelvic tilts & some stretches for my glutes before and after every workout and its feeling much better now! Pheuf! I was worried that it was time to stop running:) But not yet...body and baby are still good to go with my workouts:) YAH! Next week i may start incorporating some tone it up circuits again (modified of course) as long as they feel alright! (I am currently still doing some pre natal specific workouts along with my running and incline walking workouts). I am so grateful i can run as far as i do now as well as workout as much as i do too! I also have moved my runs all inside on my safe treadmill. It's too icy and snowy out there and i don't want to risk falling!

And because its not janurary without some fun challenges to keep you motivated I have joined the Tone it Up Love your body challenge that runs from now until valentines day (It's not too late to still sign up, join the fun here). As well as Janine's (writer of the purple giraffe blog) Chilly challenge:) You can sign up here still! It's fun to do little challenges to keep myself accountable as well as keep myself on track with eating clean and healthy while being pregnant. I definatley had too many sweets over the holidays and have been craving them daily...so im working on not indulging as much and limiting my sweet intake.

Post Friday 60 min bootycall workout this morning:)

Perfect Fit Affiliate

**Update the affiliate program has been put on hold for now:( I will keep you all posted on when its back on!**

Hi all i have something exciting to share:) I got approved to be an affiliate for Tone it up's Perfect Fit protein powder. I had to apply with my blog and twitter handle and ended up getting approved for it.

I was so excited to try Perfect Fit protein when the Karena and Katrina first launched it back in the spring. I love brown rice protein as it doesn't upset my stomach like whey or soy proteins do. Their protein is super fine like a flour and you can do so much with it. It's organic, non-GMO, complete amino acid profile, gluten free, free of sugar, dairy, lactose, soy, corn and other allergens. So it's essentially perfect for anyone:)

They sell their protein in individual serving sizes for when you are on the go. So you can always have a pack in your purse, in your car or at your office. So you always have quick and easy nutrition whenever you need it. They also have a larger  50 serving bag as well which is great for making smoothies at home, your protein pancakes or for your baking. You can replace flour cup for cup in any of your favorite recipes.

One of my favorite recipes that i enjoy a few times a week is a recipe from the Tone it Up Nutrition plan that they also have posted on the Perfect Fit website.

2-3 egg whites
1 tbsp of flax seed (optional i don't always add it)
1/2 banana mashed (i often need more so i mash a full banana)
1 scoop of Perfect Fit protein

-Mix all up and fry up in the frying pan like a pancake. You can add fruit (or chocolate chips) right in the batter if you like. Or even Peanut butter.

My favorite way to enjoy them is spread with natural peanut butter and thawed frozen berries so they make a syrup almost.

If you want to know more about how to purchase please contact me. You can also click on the Perfect Fit protein link as well on the right hand side of my blog:)

Let me know if you end up trying it and i want to hear what your favorite way is to enjoy you Perfect Fit protein.

No scale december

I watched a great vlog Tara Stiles posted last week about throwing your scale out and just going by how your body feels and listening to your hunger queues instead of paying attention to that number on the scale. This struck a cord with me. It's such an important message to spread to women. For someone who has battled with being anorexic for a few years and being obsessed with the scale this spoke to me and i had to share via facebook and twitter and share how my husband got rid of our scale a few years ago. At that point i was pretty much recovered from my unhealthy eating habits (thanks to finding Tosca Reno's Eat Clean Diet) however i wasn't cured of my obsession with weighing myself. I feel that there are many other women out there who get obsessed by the silly number on the scale. That number is not indicative of health. If you have muscle you will weigh more yet you will be lean:)

As long as you eat clean whole foods and work out your body will be the size it's supposed to be, whatever that may be. It's your unique shape and size and you need to embrace and love that gorgeous body of yours. And a better indication of whether you need to get a little stricter with the healthy cheats is being in tune with your body and how your body feels. Your body will tell you it needs you to be a little tighter with your diet. Maybe a few less treats (like wine or certain foods) or smaller portions are needed just to get that body feeling great as it usually does. Another indicator is how your clothes fit or your measurements. You may very well be increasing muscle and going up weight wise yet your measurements are getting smaller or your clothes are getting looser indicative that you are tightening up:)

If you have been a little too slack with the ol' clean eating lifestyle lately, remember it happens:) Don't be too hard on yourself. Especially during the holiday season. If you slip one day or aren't as tight as usual with your eating than jump right back on it at the next meal:) No point in feeling guilty or being hard on yourself. None of us are perfect! Yes it's great to strive to having a great clean lifestyle but it's not always going to be 100% and thats ok too:) Keep in mind that we are all always a work in progress in all aspects of our lives. If we were "perfect" we'd all lose our drive, motivation and determination. Where is the fun in that?

Today one of my Tone it Up girls posted a challenge for herself for the month of December which inspired me to write this post. I had challenged others to throw away their scales for good and she decided to start her own mini challenge of No scale December and asking others to join! I think this is a great idea:) If you want to join her twitter handle is @MariePOuellet & she is using the hashtag #NoScaleDecember . So i challenge you ladies to join her as a start and maybe after it's over you too will be able to Throw away your scale for good. Let me know below or on twitter if you decide to join in on her challenge. You can find me on twitter @amygrant83.

Happy December everyone:)

Race for recovery 5k/10k

 A few weeks ago when Hurricane Sandy hit NYC and many parts of Jersey it really affected me. I felt for everyone who went through it and is still going through the clean up now as we sit cozy farther up on the East Coast in Canada. I think part of why it touched me so much is that it is so close to us and i cannot imagine the chaos that ensued after the storm hit. I could not imagine seeing that damage or experiencing that storm in person.

While i love running and running races including half and full marathons the fact that NYC wanted to still run the NYC marathon after such devestation to their city sickened me. I could not believe it. There were still so many without power or running water and they wanted to birng in generators and millions of bottles of water for the race? How does that even make sense? Where was the compassion? Well at the last minute they finally showed some! But a little too late in a sense. Many runners had already traveled there to run the race. I personally would have deferred to the next year but can understand why many runners chose not to. It made me happy to read about many donating their rooms to those in need and heading home and many headed to Staten Island, among one of many of the hardest hit by the super storm. The runners ran around the island delivering goods to the drop off centers. They still got their run in but helped out as well. Many other runners even ran their own marathon in Central park looping around 4 times to create the full marathon distance!

One of the bloggers i follow NYC Running Mama  lives on Staten Island (where the marathon starts every year) and as i runner herself appeared to struggle with the fact that they at first wanted to still hold the race (i follow her on twitter as well as her blog). She like many of us runners never blamed the runners for wanting to still run their race. The damage sparked something in her and she wanted to organize a virtual Race for Recovery where anyone in the world can participate! How cool is that? The race fee is $20 which is donated directly to the Charity that was formed after the storm, Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Hurricane Sandy Relief Fund.  The charity is focusing it’s efforts on the NYC, Long Island, and NJ coastline which are amoung the areas most affected by the storm. You can donate the minimum $20 to register or more if you want, you can also fund raise too.

I have been contemplating for weeks whether or not i wanted to run this virtual race and finally decided yesterday that i wanted to help out:) So i registered and set up my donation page here. If you want to donate anything please feel free. It's such a great cause!

Keep in mind i am just running for a cause here. I won't actually be racing this race since when i run it Dec 8th i will be 26 weeks and just entered my 3rd trimester. Runners can run 5k, 10k or 15k for the virtual race. I am choosing to run 15km. It will probably be my last 15km before the baby gets here i imagine. Unless i continue to feel great like i have been. I have still been able to maintain 10-16km for my long runs. And 5-8km for my short runs during the week. I really listen to my body and if i don't feel like doing the distance i planned i do what my body feels like. I base it on how i feel before my run.

For more information on the virtual race if you want to sign up as well please visit here.

I also just got my Gabrialla maternity support belt a few weeks ago for running. So keep your eyes peeled for a review on that soon too:)

Have any of my fellow runners ran a virtual race before? If so what one? How was your experience? This will be my first and i will be running it with my running partner in crime, Steph.

Pregnancy and weight gain (20 weeks)

A few months ago i read a blog from one of my favorite running bloggers i follow NYC Running Mama where she blogged about all the information out there that tells us mom's to be how much weight we "should" be gaining at every trimester of pregnancy. Her blog post really touched and helped me during that time. I had just had my first OB appointment at 12 weeks and 4 days and was shocked at how much i had gained in my first trimester.

When i got to my first OB appointment I had happily stepped up on that scale at the receptionist's desk and weigh in. Something i would be doing at every appointment once a month. I knew i had gained a little weight, i was thinking maybe 5 lbs at most. WELL i was wrong i gained a whopping 11 lbs in my first trimester! Holy smokes. I knew very well from reading many articles on "suggested" weight gain i "should" only have gained 1-5 lbs in the first trimester according to the baby center (sometimes you don't gain at all if you have morning sickness) and approximately 1 lbs per week in your 2nd and 3rd trimesters Source. Now this number does change from website to website as well. However it generally says the same.

Prior to pregnancy i was 2 lbs underweight for my height due to just training for and running my first full marathon. So i accounted for that as well to try not to get too stressed about my whopping 11 lbs weight gain. I had also read that because i had been underweight pre-pregnancy i should gain 28-40 lbs according to most websites. I was scared though after gaining so much weight in my first trimester that i would gain too much throughout my pregnancy and it would have negative effects on the baby as well as me. From what i have read it can be bad to gain so much weight at the beginning. Its much better for you and baby if it is steady. However i really hadn't changed much eating wise in the first tri. So it wasn't that i was eating too much (although i was eating more carbs due to being nauseous all the time). It simply was that it appeared that this was my bodies way of preparing for pregnancy. That is exactly what NYC Running Mama's OB had said too so reading that put my mind at ease.

Bump pic at 20 weeks. I have gained 15 lbs so far.

At my last 2 month appointments i have only gained 2 lbs at each on (so now at 20 weeks i am totaling 15lbs weight gain) . So it seems to have slowed down which is a sigh of relief. According to NYC running Mama she gained 10 lbs in her first tri and then it really slowed down weight gain wise. So i was the same as her as well as other runner's who commented on the blog post. Isn't it funny that women runner's tend to gain so much initially? I was sure glad i wasn't alone. Made me feel a lot better about it. It's just me and my bodies way of dealing with being pregnant and gaining according to it. Not according to some "standard" out there. This is something important to remember for all momma's to be and future momma's to be. As long as you are eating clean and working out while pregnant (if you can) then don't worry about that weight gain, your body is doing what it needs to to make a good home for your little bean or as i affectionately call mine; Tater Tot.

Despite gaining so much my first trimester and so little since then my doctor has shown no concerns and hasn't even mentioned it. She knows that i eat well and i am still very active. So that accounts for why i am gaining slowly now. I am making sure i fuel myself and baby enough for the amount of work outs i do. While i have read that you need an extra 300 calories while pregnant if you continue to be very active i haven't been concentrating too much on this as i do not count calories. I simply listen to my body and eat more if i am hungrier. As well i ensure on my long run days that i get an extra big meal in after my long run. Then i ensure that i am well fueled for the rest of the day and i don't get too hungry. My body is always much hungrier on long run days. So now that i am pregnant i am now just extra careful that i eat more than usual on those days.

I have been very lucky thus far with working out and running. My body is still good with the amount of km's i have been running. I run 6km one day a week, 8 km one day of the week and between 12-16km on Saturdays. However if my body is saying less on a particular day i have a certain km's planned i listen. Just last week on Thur i tried to run my 8km but my body was saying no more when i reached 5km so i stopped and listened and decided that was enough for that day. And then i was able to rock out 14.81km on Saturday morning with no issues! So it really truly pays to listen. I don't want to get hurt or hurt the baby in any way so it's so important i listen to what my body says. 

For current momma's and momma to be's out there, do you agree with the suggested weight gain during pregnancy? Do you think it is something mom's to be should stress and concern themselves with?

I feel that it is merely a guideline to ensure mom to be's know roughly what they should be gaining however it's not something to be too concerned with. Your doctor will advise you if s/he is concerned with how you are gaining weght and should take in to account your body structure, eating habits and your activity level so it's more personalized to you and not just a general guideline. I think it also works to dispel the myth that you are eating for two. I am not eating for two! I am eating for one plus a little extra:) Basically just an extra snack a day. Right now i am eating every 2-3 hours depending on what my body needs that day. So instead of the pre-pregnancy 5-6 meals a day i now eat 6-7 meals a day and sometimes 8 if i really need it.