Big Changes in 2013!

Shortly after Tim and I got married on October 31st, 2009, we had decided that we would wait until the 2012 Olympics to try and have kids. At the time, it felt like it was a long way away but once 2012 hit I started to realize that time was coming very quickly. Specifically once we got over to Europe before the Olympics began, we were staying with our good friends Sabine and Bastian and Germany and the topic of kids came up a lot and I was getting very scared about it because I knew that within a few weeks we had planned to start trying. I was very hesitant and feeling like I was not ready for this big life change. I am 26 years old and Tim is 40 which is why we wanted to have kids asap after the Olympics. I decided to just not think about it and just let things happen the way they were supposed to.

After the Olympics, Tim and I headed to Croatia for a week long vacation and it was so nice to not have to worry about training or any other care in the world and just have a good time. Once we got home, I had decided that I wanted to keep training for another month or so and try to do one last race in Europe at the end of September because I knew how good of shape I was in and I didnt want to waste it. Then a few weeks in, I started thinking "what if I got pregnant before the race and I had already booked the ticket, etc". Then pretty soon as these thoughts started to come into my mind, I started feeling kind of strange. I was getting cramps during training on a daily basis, was feeling more tired than usual and my heart rate wasnt going down in training. I thought that something must be off but I took a pregnancy test and even though they say it can detect a positive pregnancy at least a week before your expected period, my test came back negative. I could have sworn I was pregnant, I just felt it! So I kept trying to train like usual but still wasnt feeling great. After a few days of missing my period just over a week later, I decided to take another test. My sister said that I should do it first thing in the morning for the best result so at 4am I woke up having to go to the bathroom and I decided to take the test then. Tim had woken up and was wondering why I was in the bathroom so long and I just told him it was nothing. The test came back POSITIVE this time. OMG, I knew it! Obviously I could not sleep the rest of the night. I decided to not tell Tim so that at least one of us would get a good sleep. I told him as soon as he woke up that morning and he was so excited! 

I immediately decided to take a bit of time off training since I hadnt taken my yearly break yet. After taking only a week off, I decided to start doing some training since at this point I knew that my 2013 season was not going to happen and I might as well just do some light training every day just to stay active. The first few months during the first trimester were pretty tough. I felt pretty exhausted every afternoon and soooo hungry ALL the time! I havent experience fatigue and hunger to this extreme even in my biggest mileage weeks of training. Thankfully once the second trimester hit in mid November I started getting back into my regular eating habits and I had tons of energy again. I have been lucky to have no morning sickness at all but I did have a bout of really bad back pain where I couldnt stand or walk without Tim helping me. It was extremely painful but only lasted about a week. Otherwise I really have nothing to complain about so far in my pregnancy, I have been very lucky!

I am now in my 22nd week and am shocked to still be able to do every normal physical activity that I usually have done but just with no intensity and at a reduced amount of mileage. I thought for sure that I wouldnt be able to racewalk at this point but I have surprised myself and am doing very well. Im just trying to enjoy training to stay fit for the birth and to make it easier to make a comback after the birth. At the most, im doing 100km's per week with all of the activity im doing with racewalking, running, hiking and elliptical. Ive been feeling great! 

Last week we had our major ultrasound for all of the measurements and to be able to find out the gender of the baby. Tim and I were always planning on finding out the gender and in the weeks leading up to the appointment, I was always saying that it was a girl. Well, I was right, we are having a baby girl and we are so excited! The baby is exactly where she should be with her development. All of her limbs and organs are there and look great. 

She was face down so it didnt make for the best picture but she looks great all the same! Here is a recent picture of me, starting to look pregnant finally!

Our due date is May 15th and if you do the math, we got pregnant in Croatia, just a week after I raced at the Olympics! We couldnt have planned it any better! I am so thrilled with the timing as it puts no rush on me getting back to training too quickly and I can just focus on my recovery after the birth and on our little girl. As long as I am back into full training by September I will be happy. In the meantime, I look forward to enjoying my last 4 months pregnant before our lives change forever. 

Keep on walking,

Rachel