Behold…the 18 Week Baby Bump!

Celebrity Trainer Heidi Powell's 18 week Baby Bump - Learn more at https://heidipowell.net/2296

Okay, okay. You asked. So here it is. My 18 week baby bump!

Now in case you don?t know this, a baby at 18 weeks is ONLY 5 1/2 inches long and the size of a small bell pepper?weighing in at less than 7 oz. Also, I should note that Chris and I aren?t very big, therefore we will never have big babies. So?if you?re feeling like my bump isn?t big yet, well it?s not?but TRUST me, it gets BIG!!!!! You?ll have to wait and see this miracle of growth happen (both the baby and my belly!)

I should also note ? that is a shirt wrapped around my waist. Yes?I had Chris take the first few pics and couldn?t believe my once-muscular butt was kind of dimply and droopy!!!!!! As my upper thighs and boobs grow to sizes they have never been before, my butt is sagging lower than ever before too!! It?s amazing?and scary at the same time.

This is pregnancy number 4 for me, and it will never be an easy or a normal process. While there is no time I love MORE than being pregnant (I mean, come on?I?m growing a HUMAN INSIDE OF ME!!!), it never fails to be an incredibly hard process for my eyes and my brain to accept. Here?s why ? I work so darn hard, in the kitchen and in the gym, getting my body into the shape that I feel the happiest and healthiest at?then in a matter of weeks, it seems to all disappear.

And I?m not just talking about my physical form (trust me, it?s all relative. Anytime you gain 10% of your body weight in 4 months, it?s a tough thing to face, no matter your current weight), but also my physical fitness levels. They have gone from my fittest ever (50 burpees in 2 minutes and 15 seconds) to not as fit as I feel I work to be (today, 50 burpees in 3 minutes and 35 seconds). EVERYTHING seems harder: push ups (once from my toes so easily is now from my knees after 20), running (OMG ? the bladder pressure is insane already), to even just walking with Cash in my arms! I find myself breathing so heavily that I can?t believe it!

But there is hope! To all you moms out there going through this (or hoping to at some point) ? DON?T WORRY! This is a reminder I often have to give to myself as well. Sometimes, being pregnant can feel the same as when you are sick. You know, as you are puking with your head in the the toilet you feel like you will never ever be the same again? You almost forget what it is like to be healthy?to be normal. Well, pregnant ladies, I feel your pain on this. It is SO easy to forget what it feels like to be ?normal?. But coming from a mom that has done this three times, I?m here to assure you that we will ALL be normal again. In fact, I KNOW (although there are days I forget and don?t believe it)  it is possible for ALL of us pregos to be fitter, happier, and healthier post-babies?no matter how many we have had!

So for now, let?s enjoy this miracle we are creating. Because this process truly is a miracle. And for some of us (probably me) this might be our last time experiencing it.

Prego Tip for Today: Be active! (But only if you were active pre-baby, and check with your doc) I, like many of you, have days were I wallow in my sorrows and feel bad for myself and my recent lack of energy. These days, I want nothing more than to sit inside and work away. I will come up with every single excuse for WHY I don?t need to work out. Let?s get real, has there EVER been a time where we?ve forced ourselves to be active and we?ve regretted it? Most likely, not. In fact, as soon as we get up and start moving, we feel SO much better! And remember, this is good for baby too. Studies have show that women that are active during pregnancy are more likely to carry full term.

I make moving easy by committing to just 5 minutes. That?s it! If I do my 5 and am feeling good, I?ll do more! But I feel great knowing that, regardless, I got my 5 minutes in. Don?t kid yourself, 5 minutes can be tough. Here was my workout yesterday ? it kicked my butt.

Set the clock for 5 minutes:

Perform as many burpees as you can in that time.

  • You can modify these to accommodate the growing belly by just going to hands and knees, then standing up.

Set the clock for another 5 minutes (because I was feeling AWESOME after that):

Perform as many pull ups as you can in that time.

  • If you can?t perform body weight pull ups, use bands for assistance or the lat pull down machine in your local gym.

Week 19, here I come!

66 Responses

  1. I think it’s amazing you are able to stay in great shape throughout pregnancy! Don’t feel self concise about your butt being droopy or having dimples. Just because it isn’t what is optimum for your normal body doesn’t mean it is something to feel embarrassed about. I have NEVER had the joy of looking at a part of my body and being displeased. I have always remembered looking at my body with discust. You are beautiful and toned and creating a miracle. People like me are inspired by you. Don’t feel like you have to appear perfect because perfect isn’t obtainable. You be you because you are inspiring! A little droopiness shows that you are in fact not perfect. And maybe if you can do burbees when you’re pregnant maybe I can get off my ass and get some exersize. You’re amazing! Droopy booty and all! Don’t be afraid to show your imperfections. ?.

  2. Awwwwwww, your baby bump is so little and cute! Your advice to all the prego ladies is right on. I have three kiddos myself and remember the days of pregnancy. Some of those days were awful, and I had to force myself to workout. Every workout was so worth it in the end. I worked out to the end of all three pregnancies and I delivered on time with one and almost two weeks late with the others 🙂 All three were very healthy and because I worked out during the pregnancies, I bounced back very quickly! Keep up the good work growing that baby and working out! 🙂

  3. Thanks for so much for sharing Heidi! Pregnancy is beautiful and you look great. I’m so excited for you and Chris and your growing family.

  4. I am so glad to see this post. I just love readin your posts. You are so real. I just had my 3rd baby 7 weeks ago and right before her I was in the best shape ever and it’s been so hard for me to see everythin die down a bit. In also a csection gal so getting back to the gym for the first time last week felt so weird. I posted about it on my fitness blog, you would probably laugh reading it. I posted about my “chub roll.” Lol. Bootcampwithcolby.blogspot.com thanks for your cute post. You are such a beautiful person inside and out 🙂

  5. But I am sure enjoying this little life growing inside of me and cannot wait to get her in a jogging stroller or to our Crossfit box!!!

  6. Thank you!!! I got pregnant last fall towards the end Lurong Living paleo/Crossfit challenge and was in the best shape of my life… my have things changed these last 8 months! I am still working out but it is so different and seeing my body go from possibly my best shape ever to sizes and numbers on the scale I have never seen before has been difficult. Nice to know I’m not the only one!

  7. I am right there with you (at 21.5 weeks! I have found that with each subsequent pregnancy, there have been slightly different changes. Something new to wrap my body-image-brain around. But I look forward to shaping myself anew after this pregnancy, and seeing what my is capable of, once again. After the awesome proving-grounds of labor and birth!
    You are looking fantastic. Thank you so much for sharing your picture and your thoughts. It gave me a little boost this morning.

  8. Out of curiousity, were you able to get your workouts in during the early weeks? I am 9 weeks along with my first pregnancy and suffering so much exhaustion and nausea that it’s really rough. Last week I ended up vomiting in the bathroom mid-workout… although I did keep going and got my swim in. I also had to excuse myself halfway through yoga later in the week. Anyway – tell me it gets better???

    1. It gets better. 🙂 I did have days when the nausea tried to take over. We simply do the best we can. 🙂 Congratulations on your baby!

  9. Thank Heidi for posting that. First off congratulations to you and Chris. Did not know that you are pregnant. What you describe is how I feel on an everyday basis. And I’m not even pregnant. I somehow trying to get myself back. To a comfortable place with my body. Most days I feel like a failure. That reading positive notes like yours help me

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