In this WIAW post I talk about some new "pregnancy symptoms" I'm experiencing - third trimester hunger, exhaustion, and lower back pain. I also share what a typical day of eating looks like when I feel like hungry all the time!
Other than the first trimester when I had periods of exhausted and nausea, I've felt pretty amazing throughout my entire pregnancy. I would still say I'm feeling really great and can carry about my normal life on a daily basis, but this past week I did noticed some new symptoms pop up.
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Third Trimester Lower Back Pain
One of the symptoms I've been experiencing is some lower back pain. I know this is really common in pregnancy--and I'm so thankful that until now I haven't had any back pain--but I'm definitely aware of the lower, left side of my back throughout the day now. It totally makes sense to me as to why my back might be hurting. My body isn't used to carrying so much extra weight in the front and things are loosening and expanding to make room for a larger baby.
Third Trimester Hunger And Exhaustion
Two other symptoms are exhaustion and hunger. Other than a week of napping in the first trimester, I've rarely napped during pregnancy until this past week. We were in Destin, Florida with Brett's family this past week and I found myself taking 1-2 naps everyday! I would feel energetic first thing in the morning, but eventually would need a power nap before lunch and sometimes in the afternoon too. This baby is definitely growing faster now!
That also explains the increased hunger I'm experiencing now as well. Up until this past week, I never really felt the ravenous pregnancy hunger that many women talk about. Occasionally in the past I would need an extra snack or two, but now I need one before lunch and definitely after dinner. Sometimes I get to the end of the day and realize that I haven't really eaten much more than if I wasn't pregnant--which explains why I'm so hungry--so a snack before bed helps me stay full through the night and gives my body energy to keep growing this baby!
I'll share more pregnancy details soon in my next pregnancy update, but for now let's look at a day of vegan meals during my 31st week of pregnancy.
Breakfast
Breakfast this day was pumpkin oatmeal. The base is combination of oats, chia seeds, ground flaxseed, pumpkin puree, chopped apple and cinnamon. I topped everything off with more apple, almond butter and cacao nibs. Fats and protein are needed in all my meals now in order to keep me full and satisfied for longer than an hour!
Morning Snack
Two cuties helped tide me over until lunch.
Lunch
For lunch I whipped up a simple Tahini Chickpea Salad which I'll be sharing the recipe for soon. I toasted two slices of Ezekiel bread and topped them with spinach and the Tahini Chickpea Salad and had some veggies on the side.
Afternoon Snacks
As per usual, chocolate made an appearance during my day, first in the form of hot chocolate. I used the Sipping Chocolate from Trader Joe's and some coconut milk to make a mug of rich, sweet hot chocolate.
Before dinner I also had some pretzels to calm my growling stomach as I prepared my meal.
Dinner
Dinner came together in a flash due to leftovers. I topped a bed of spinach with a small, chopped sweet potato, a grilled portobello mushroom and some tempeh. I used hummus as a dressing and had some pecans on the side as well.
Nighttime Snacks
Right after dinner I had two squares of this amazing Dark Chocolate with Almonds and Sea Salt. I thought I would be full until bed time, but a couple of hours later my stomach started growling. For another snack I topped a super-seed cracker from Trader Joe's with some almond butter and cherry balsamic jam. It was a strange but good combination and helped keep me full throughout the night.
Other than an hour walk while doing some Chinese listening review, I sat around reading and napping all day. I was just so tired!
Have you experienced increased hunger in your third trimester?
- If you've been pregnant or are pregnant, during which trimester / week were you the most tired?
- What is your favorite brand of hot chocolate?
- What's your favorite Trader Joe's item?
Tiffany Witz says
I miss Trader Joe's mostly for the chocolate covered sunflower seeds. I used to live in Washington state, now we have moved to Texas, where rhere is no Trader Joes. ????
Also, I am in my 31st week and since around week 29 or 30, I have noticed a change where I went from being full of energy and eating normal and healthy, to now some days I can't keep my eyes open and end up falling alseep in the middle of the day and I am hungry all the time and getting tempted by unhealthy items (chocolate, sweets, fats).
Faith says
Congrats on your pregnancy! You're getting so close! And yeah, third trimester exhaustion and hunger is real. Hang in there. It's so worth it!
Alyssa says
Definitely the third trimester is tough for food - you're hungrier but also cannot eat as much because a larger baby is squeezing everything else and making your stomach less able to handle large portions! I would say the first trimester was rough because I had bad nausea (curable only by eating lots of white carbs, potatoes and GF crackers all day every day) and then I felt great from Months 4-7.5, then I started to feel HUGE and I also experienced prodromal labor for 4 weeks before delivery. I would snack all day long, basically, but never eat a lot of any one thing.
Faith says
I feel ya! I'm currently still able to eat fairly large portions, but smaller more frequent meals just feel better...and I'm certain will feel even better the more she grows!