Here are some tricks Ulrich recommends for quelling nausea:
1. Keep saltines or graham crackers on your nightstand. Eat 2 to 3 crackers before you get out of bed in the morning.
2. If you're a morning runner, try to put a little something in your stomach before heading out. Eat a piece of toast with peanut butter. If you can't tolerate that much, try 1 to 2 rice cakes or crackers.
3. Add ginger to your diet. Drink ginger tea and cook with ginger. Sipping ginger ale or snacking on crystallized ginger can help, although these options do contain added sugar so just be wary of portion sizes.
More: 6 Cooking Tips and Food Remedies for Nausea
4. Suck on popsicles—something cold with a little flavor can help. Try to buy pops made with 100 percent juice or those that combine coconut water with fruit and vegetables.
More: Tropical Banana Pops Recipe
5. Slurp soup. The salty broth hydrates and can also settle an upset stomach.
6. An empty stomach is nausea's best friend. Try 6 to 8 small meals, where you're eating every two hours throughout the day. For example, have half a sandwich at 11 a.m., the other half at 1 p.m., an apple at 3 p.m.
More: Nausea-Fighting Foods for Athletes
"If you're not able to keep much down, I'd advise against doing extra exercise—maybe do a walk but don't do an intense workout to further dehydrate yourself," says Ulrich. "In this case, a sports drink might be appropriate for the added electrolytes. It's a fine balance, though, so meet with your doctor and a dietician to make sure it's appropriate to exercise."
As your pregnancy progresses and your belly grows, you may experience heart burn and even constipation.
"It's common for pregnant women to get acid reflux and constipation. Your growing baby is taking up space and your organs are smushed up," says Ulrich. "Make sure you get enough fiber and drink enough water, and exercise will help with constipation—staying active is going to keep your GI tract working better."
More: 8 Foods to Relieve Constipation in Athletes
Proper hydration not only keeps the digestive system running smoothly, but it also supports the growing fetus. "You have all of this extra blood and things going on that require more water, so you need to drink more to support those needs," says Ulrich.
Sipping water throughout the day is the best way to stay hydrated; Ulrich ranks water as the number one way to hydrate, followed by milk, then a smoothie or 100-percent vegetable or fruit juice. It might also be prudent to conduct sweat tests throughout your pregnancy to ensure that you're drinking enough fluids. Everyone sweats differently and your hydration needs can vary according to the weather or your exertion levels, so weigh yourself before and right after runs several times during different trimesters to learn how much water weight you lose when you work out.
More: What You Need to Know About Runner Hydration
In general, stick to the sports nutrition guidelines that you followed before pregnancy (and presented above) for what to eat and drink before and after runs. During this special time, it's even more important to pay attention to the intensity and duration of your running—when in doubt, back off and walk. If you follow Ulrich's advice for eating several small meals throughout the day, you shouldn't need to focus on a special post-run meal or pre-run smoothie because you'll be getting the nutrition and calories you and your growing baby need.
More: Is It Safe to Run a Marathon While Pregnant?
But, if you're not gaining the weight you should and your doctor is concerned, add more nutrient-dense foods to your diet. Eat more nuts and nut butters, avocadoes and other foods that are naturally high in fat like olives. If you drink skim milk, try 2-percent milk and switch from nonfat yogurt to low-fat yogurt.
Ironically, it can be a challenge to add calories the further along you are because, with the growing baby vying for space, you get full on less food. Instead of loading up on high-calorie, high-sugar foods like candy and ice cream, add an extra teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil to your salad or stir some almond butter into your oatmeal.
More: How to Restore Your Core and Pelvic Floor Postpartum
Get more nutrition advice here.
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