Labor: (1) work, especially hard, physical work. (2) physical or mental effort. (3) the process of childbirth.
When we think of labor, we know there are contractions, that most people speak of the pain they feel, but what isn’t really expressed is how childbirth, or labor, is a lot of hard and very intense work! Your body is going to be going through some extreme changes, and muscles are going to be constantly working. Imagine going to the gym and doing cardio and strength training for 12 hours or more. Preparing for labor means doing the physical and mental preparation for these changes.
Pregnancy is the equivalent to high endurance athletic competitions! This isn’t something you’d sign up for without preparation. Just as you wouldn’t sign up for doing The Murph (a Memorial Day CrossFit challenge of non-stop movement starting with a 1-mile run, followed by 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, 300 squats, and another 1-mile run, all while wearing a 20lb vest) without creating a routine of dietary needs and workouts beforehand, you cannot expect your body to easily handle the rigors of pregnancy and labor without developing a healthy routine of nutrition and exercise.
It doesn’t mean if you find yourself pregnant and mildly (to woefully, such as yours truly over here) out of shape that you’re somehow doomed. It does mean, however, that you do need to start a plan, the same as someone who is already exercising regularly. Pregnancy is rough. Labor is rigorous. Lactation, too, takes more energy than you might think! (Think marathon running day in and day out.) So, you’re in for a year or more of a lot of work, if you plan to bodyfeed for any length of time.
What does your exercise routine look like? Will you be one to walk your way through pregnancy and labor? Are you already doing squats and weights and looking to tone it down a bit for the first and third trimesters? Is bouncing on a birth ball and swimming while it’s hot outside all the gas you have in your tank?
DoulaWise 