5 Ways My Relationship With My Body, Food & Self-Care Has Changed Since Being Pregnant

I think many women who become pregnant have a lot of questions and worries about how their body will change: “How can I deal with all the weight gain when I’ve been trying to be healthy and control my weight for so long?”, “Will I get stretch marks?”, “Will I never be able to fully bounce back and I’m saying goodbye to my pre-pregnancy body?”

I think for me while these have definitey crossed my mind, my worry level on a scale of 1-10 is around a 3i think it’s because I felt mentally ready to be pregnant and because I have had a relatively good relationship with food pre-pregnancy (which took a lot of work to get to, which I talk about in my book Confessions of a Yo-yo Dieter).

But being pregnant has definitely made me aware of the truth of how I had been thinking about food, exercise, and self-care in more detail and I realized that I wasn’t as intuitive nor intentional about my health than how I thought!

Here are 5 ways my relationship with my body, food and self-care has changed since being pregnant:

It’s kind of a mind trip to know that you are in a position to be gaining a substantial amount of weight and that your body is going to grow in directions you may be been trying to avoid otherwise. Striking a balance between being happy and welcoming of the changes that are happening without worrying about what your condition will be like after the fact is something all people face during maternity, I imagine.

1. I wasn’t really listening to my body until I became pregnant.

   I thought that I was pretty good at following my body’s cues in terms of cravings, hunger, and need for rest, but I discovered that there was a limit. For example, before being pregnant, I’d eat peanut butter when I’d want but I’d control the portion. Or I’d have a donut if I wanted but not let myself finish the whole thing. If I was still hungry after eating a croissant, it wouldn’t have crossed my mind to get another one.

   Since being pregnant, intuitive eating and eating until I’m full has taken a new meaning. I’ve learned to let go of this “I’ll eat what I want but only to a limit” mentality that I didn’t realize was there before.

2. I’m more committed to consistent exercise.

   I love how being pregnant has given me a different kind of purpose around exercise (and by “exercise”, I mean a class - not just going for a walk. I’ve been loving The Sculpt Society’s prenatal exercise program).

   Before being pregnant, I felt a disconnect to exercise in the sense that I didn’t really have any strong purpose behind it other than it being the healthy thing to do - simply getting in steps on a regular basis seemed enough. But there was always this voice in the back of my head wondering if I should do some muscle training for general health, etc.

   Since being pregnant, though, it’s become important to me to make sure that my muscles are strong to support the baby, get some good circulation, feel strong during labor, and avoid complications after birth. I also find it motivating to be consistent because you know that your body is going to continue to get bigger/heavier, so avoiding exercise could mean it gets harder to re-engage with workouts when you have extra weight on your body on top of it.

   I’m not strict, though. I rest from a workout I’d I’m too tired. But I do aim to follow through on days when I have the energy.

3. I’m more diligent about skin care.

   I assumed that I would get a lot of stretch marks since many women in my family have them, so I figured I’d try my best to take care of my skin so that my skin could grow to accommodate the baby without its own stress. I’m 8 months pregnant now and this has paid off.

4. I think more about vitamins/nutrient density.

   Before being pregnant, I used to think about eating a variety of foods and opting for whole foods whenever possible. I kind of rejected the idea of focusing too much on things like macros (protein, carb, fat ratio) because I don’t really like to think of food as being some sort of math equation (though I’m aware it can really make a difference if you feel you’ve been eating healthy but not seeing a change in your body!).

   Since becoming pregnant, I’m more conscious of getting in the vitamins and minerals that I need. When you know that your nutrition can become depleted while being pregnant, that the baby needs certain nutrition to grow healthily, and that nutrition can help you avoid problems like cramping and dental issues, it makes prioritizing vitamins/minerals/supplements easy.

5. I think about body weight differently.

   I think before being pregnant, body weight to me was either something to lose, avoid gaining, or just a number that I may reference to compare where I am to where I’ve been.

   Being pregnant has suddenly given me a break I didn’t know I needed from thinking about weight, which is refreshing.

   Now, some people may worry more about weight when pregnant, especially so as not to gain too much to where it complicates pregnancy, so I recognize this is different for everyone.

6. I’m more diligent about scheduling in self-care.

   Prior to being pregnant, I’d schedule in some self-care when I felt like I needed it (like a massage when my neck and shoulders felt overwhelmingly tight). But while being pregnant, I’ve been more proactive about scheduling in advance or having standing appointments even when I’m not sure how I’ll feel that day.

   Practical self-care things for pregnancy would include a visit to the osteopath, reflexology, or trip to the dentist, whereas for overall well-being I have scheduled in nail appointments and facial sessions as well.

If I was to summarize my feelings since becoming pregnant, it would be that I feel more intentional about my health. It’s a refreshing new perspective!