Featured on Fit Mama Friday today is holistic health coach and mama-to-be Jaclyn Jackson. She’s also the blogger behind the excellent fit pregnancy blog Bump Sweat. Married for almost three years to her husband Nathan, they are eagerly anticipating the birth of their baby girl. (Fit Mama Friday is sticking with a recent theme of featuring pregnant mamas who are thisclose to their due date – baby’s due date is August 20!) With a background in exercise science and over five years of personal training experience, Jaclyn knows what she’s talking about. After suffering for years from eating disorders and hypothalamic amenorrhea, both of which she discusses openly, Jaclyn wants to encourage women that they can overcome and be healthy again. She also shares one of my big passions, which is encouraging active, fit women who become pregnant to keep up with their strength and fitness – it’s so healthy for mama and baby. 

Meet Jaclyn.

I love that your blog focuses on pregnancy fitness, since that’s an area I’m also passionate about. (I want to get all the mamas moving!) What can we expect from Bump Sweat once your baby girl arrives? Will you transition more towards postpartum fitness and life, or will there still be a focus on pregnancy?

I’m so with you! I want to be encouraging and helping ALL moms be fit. That’s why, after little one arrives, you’ll still find me writing about fitness during pregnancy. At the same time, I plan to share my experience, struggles, and successes working out and staying fit while taking care of a newborn in hopes of inspiring mamas to be active with me. As you know, I have such a heart for women desiring and preparing to be pregnant, so I want to continue sharing with and speaking to them, too. Having struggled with hypothalmic amenorrhea (because of an unhealthy relationship with exercise and food), I wrote an entire series on preparing your body for making a baby based on what I learned from my journey, so anticipate seeing more posts like that.

You’re very open about the struggles you had with amenorrhea, due to your disordered eating and exercise habits. How did that affect your lead-up to pregnancy and what have you gained by sharing your experience?

I battled an eating disorder for over seven years, and it took on many forms throughout that time. I was anorexic, orthorexic, bulimic, exercise-obsessed… you name it, I struggled through it. From the years of self-imposed physical abuse, I failed to have a period on my own (i.e., without birth control) for many years. I thought for sure I’d never be able to have children or, at a minimum, doing so would require years of trying. By the grace of God, I eventually overcame the eating disorder and, eventually, got pregnant without ‘trying’. I learned so much from my long journey (read my story here) that I feel compelled share with others who find themselves in the same boat. Disordered eating and hypothalmic amenorrhea are two conditions so ridiculously common in the health & fitness world, but few people (until recently) actually talk about them openly. I want to be a beacon of hope for women who find themselves battling one or both of those, to encourage them that they, too (with work and patience) can overcome.

Obviously you are super in tune with your body and what you can handle in terms of working out while pregnant…even to the point of being okay with your doctor telling you to stop exercising. Do you think that’s more due to having a new life to think about, or because you worked so hard to be more aware of how you were treating and using your body?

It’s funny you ask that, because I spent time reflecting on and discussing this with my husband (and in a blog post) just last week. My being okay with having to stop exercising due to both, that is. First, a few years ago, I cut way back on the working-out in order to heal from the eating-disorder damage. That experience, while so hard, taught me the paramount importance of rest and listening to my body. That’s been hugely helpful during pregnancy, because, as we joke, I’m ‘bodybuilding 24/7’, which requires more fuel and rest. Secondly, knowing little one’s growth and well-being depends on mommy taking it easy right now makes the whole not-lifting thing easier.

I know recently you’ve had to dial back your workouts, but what was your usual form of working out during your pregnancy?

Up until a couple weeks ago, I continued performing the same style of workouts I’d done prior to getting pregnant. My doctor said all along that as long as what I’m doing feels comfortable and I listen to my body that I can keep doing what I did prior to pregnancy. For me, that was Crossfit-style workouts. While I don’t attend a box, utilizing my personal-training background, I create similar workouts that include the strength-training, functional training, and more that comprises CrossFit. You can find all the ‘MommyWODs’ I did throughout pregnancy on the blog.

Now that Doc’s asked me not to lift until after baby’s here, I either go for a long walk or perform 30 minutes of prenatal yoga each day. That plus cleaning like a madwoman… got to love nesting! 🙂

What has it been like being on a more relaxed exercise routine after your doctor told you to take it easy from appointment to appointment?  Has it been difficult?

Honestly, I’ve felt very refreshed by it. The first few days were rough, because I wanted so badly to be that mom who could say she lifted weights on the very day she went into labor. That’s my pride talking. Additionally, a few pieces for our home gym arrived last week, and I’ve been tempted a couple times to utilize them. Not to worry, I stayed strong, resisting the urge. I honestly enjoy walking about in nature, which enables me to take in the fresh air, get some sun, and listen to my nerdy podcasts. Also, yoga’s been key for combatting the late-pregnancy soreness. I love it!

What do you do for a living, Jaclyn? And what’s your usual workout schedule?

I founded and run a health-coaching ministry for people struggling with disordered eating. The program’s called ‘Eating Health & Healing’, and through that I coach individuals on a part-time basis, allowing me the flexibility to be a stay-at-home mom starting as soon as little one arrives. I’ve been married for almost 3 years. My husband Nathan has been incredibly-supportive throughout my eating disorder journey, starting a ministry, and now diving into the blogging world.

Throughout my pregnancy, I aimed to workout 4 times each week. Typically Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday for an hour or so each of those days. I’d rest the other days, sometimes doing absolutely nothing, sometimes going for walks, swims, or bike rides with my friends or husband. Recently, I aim to do yoga or walk 4-5 times each week.

Apart from wanting to stay fit and healthy for your baby, what motivates you now you’re in a healthy relationship with your body?

I used to exercise solely to burn calories and look a certain way. Sad but true. Now, after walking through what I did and discovering my genuine love for exercise, my main motivations have been how being active makes me feel and staying healthy. I see the degeneration and disease a sedentary lifestyle causes in so many of my family member’s lives, and I don’t want that for myself nor for my own kids. That’s a new motivation as I become a mom, setting an example for and being active with them.

Do you think there will be challenges, or even a downside of being a fit mama once you have your baby girl?

For sure. As planning and actually performing workouts both require time, I can foresee that being a big struggle after baby comes, since she’ll require so much time and attention. Thankfully, we’re in the process of setting up a home gym, which should make getting the workout in a little easier. Additionally, on the weeks the planned workouts don’t happen, I can see not feeling the best physically and/or getting down on myself for not having the time and/or energy to get a few good workouts in.

Thanks so much for sharing with us today, Jaclyn! I love your blog and think it’s such a wonderful resource for women who are pregnant or trying to conceive. I’m looking forward to following along as you document your postpartum journey (almost as much as I’m looking forward to seeing newborn pictures!) 😉

Want to find out more about Jaclyn? Check out her blog Bump Sweat, and find her on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

 

Fit Mama Friday – Fit Dad Friday

Every Friday on Fine Fit Day I feature a Fit Mama or a Fit Dad story of how and why a fit and healthy mama or dad ensures fitness is a priority in her or his life. You’ll read about all kinds of parents and their fitness stories. Some are stay-at-home parents, some are single parents, some juggle more than one job on top of parenthood, but they are all committed to a fit and healthy lifestyle. As you’re getting ready for your weekend, I hope you’re inspired to be active after reading about these kick-ass mamas and dads on Fit Mama Friday – Fit Dad Friday!

 

Do you want to be featured on Fit Mama Friday? Or do you know someone you’d like to see featured? Please contact me for details!