I sort of feel like a freak, because I'm kind of looking forward to labor. Not because I think it will be enjoyable, but because I'm curious to see whether my body can handle it and whether I'll be able to get through it med-free. When I was trying to explain to someone why I wanted a natural birth, the only analogy I could come up with was a Crossfit WOD. I was trying to explain that you know it's going to suck but it's amazing to see what your body can do. The person I was talking to doesn't CF and therefore had no idea what I was talking about.

I guess when it comes to natural birth in general I just feel like I wouldn't start a WOD thinking that I couldn't finish it. If I have to quit or scale or whatever, it happens. But you just don't start out the WOD with that mentality. So for me, labor sort of seems similar.

Do any other CF moms-to-be feel similarly? Do CF moms who have given birth find the "really long WOD" analogy to be at all appropriate?

When I was pregnant with my daughter I had the same thoughts as you. I wanted to have a natural birth and I was looking forward to it because I wanted to know what it would be like and how my body could handle it. I mentally prepared myself saying I can do this, I do CF! I also believed that my body was made to give birth to my child. I knew that it wasn't going to be easy, but I wanted the experience for myself. I gave birth to my daughter 3 months ago, naturally. I didn't have the option of medication because I chose to have a planned home birth. Making that choice in itself forced me to be committed to going all natural. I think that the "really long WOD" analogy is appropriate.

I won't say "you should do this" or "you should do that", because every one's labor is different and has different pain tolerances. But I will say that it helped me to mentally prepare myself to be ready for the 'biggest WOD'. I told myself that I could do it even though I had doubts, that it's not going to last forever or kill me lol. For me, I can't compare a WOD to labor and delivery because the labor and delivery was a lot harder. That's not to scare you; it's all worth it at the end. For me, active labor was 12 hours and I pushed 2.5 hours. It was the most amazing experience of my life and now I know what my body can do.

In the end, it's YOUR birth and YOUR baby. You can do it!

I totally agree with you! I was nervous for labor, but I figured I could use some of the strength that I find during my WODS and put it to use. I figured that if I could do a tabata, I could use the same fame of mind during labor. Well, I went 18 hours without pain meds (and my daughter was posterior, so I had a lot of back labor). I ended up needing a C-section after that, because she simply wasn't engaging, but I'm proud of the amount that I was able to endure before calling it and having some help getting her out of there! I'm happy to say that I survived an 18 hour WOD, and though it was tough, my crossfit mentality helped me through it. If you haven't had your baby yet, good luck, and get it done!

I'm currently 23 weeks in and have started to read about birth stories of natural births at The Farm. Once I started to read about the births, I began to think about how I would approach my upcoming child's birth (it'll be my first) and I came to the same conclusion as you. Pregnancy is just a really long WoD and so will the labor process. We have to go through labor, so might as well mentally prepare for it, just like when we know Fight Gone Bad is coming 2 months in advance, lol.

Like the others have said, I know my body is made to give birth and it can handle it all on its own. So I have 17 weeks to mentally, emotionally, and even spiritually prepare for the big day (hopefully it won't be days!).

Also, I'm doing a natural birth at a water birthing center. I love being in the water and I'm looking forward to the birth because no one can tell me what exactly it's going to be like until I go through it. Kind of like the high you get when you're at the end of a seriously agonizing WoD, aka Eva, Murph,or any other hour plus workout.

Best of luck!!!

I am 21 weeks with my second child and I am interested to see if my labor and delivery will be any different. I started CF when my first was 6 months so I have been at it for a year and a half. I only walked with my first and with him I had to give him a nudge three times before labor actually started. I was pretty tired after a week of induction so I lasted about 12 hours in active labor before I gave in to meds. This time I am thinking of it as a wod, and actually I use this as a motivator when I am not feeling like hitting the box.

I am 25 weeks pregnant with my second child. I did not discover Crossfit until my first was 3 months old, which was almost 2 years ago. I was a marathon runner and triathlete. I continued to workout up until 2 days before I delivered. My thoughts were similar, but I used a marathon as my analogy. The total amount of time for labor and delivery was 4 hours. Although I didn't have time, my plan was to go med free. I am hoping for a repeat performance My pregnancy has been very similar, except I am in much better physical conditioning now. I definitely think that Crossfit will prepare you, physically and mentally, for L&D.
Good luck and congratulations to all!

I don't think it compares to a WOD - it really is more like a marathon, when going through an unmedicated labour. Hours upon hours (and in my case, days) of contractions, the "wall" hits where you see no end in sight, the thought of "why the hell did I sign up for this", knowing the finish line is ahead but not knowing when, the endless endurance. Yes, a WOD is like that, but in a much briefer time span and there are some additional psychological components to it.

Unlike a WOD or marathon though, you simply can't run away from it, even if it comes down to medication or an emergency c-section, there is no turning back, and when it is over, you should be proud no matter how it was achieved

I need to keep this in mind as I am 6.5 months and going through the "why the hell did I sign up for this... again!" mentality. This time, I will be at home instead of the hospital, to hopefully provide some more mental support through it. I hated the hospital.