At 36 weeks and three days pregnant, according to my iPhone application which tracks the countdown and informs me from week to week of the approximate size of my baby relative to various produce (a watermelon this week), I am really winding down. Or rather, my body is winding down. My schedule is still on full speed at my studio, Gyrotonic Ann Arbor & The Movement Center, as I try to accommodate as many clients as I can, finish preparing a new group of Gyrotonic trainees to begin their apprentice teaching hours, fit in teaching one last Gyrotonic continuing education course, and coordinate the studio to run as smoothly as possible during my month of maternity leave. While I feel so ready for the baby to arrive I can’t help but feel I could just use a little more time. I hear I’ll feel like that for approximately the next 18 years.

This has all been made more challenging by the pressure of the baby on my lungs, which has diminished my ability to get a full, satisfying breath. I have a constant tiredness and fogginess, not unlike the feeling of being suddenly at high altitude. I’m winded walking up steep hills and stairs. This combined with the extra 30 pounds I’ve gained through the pregnancy gives me a greater appreciation of what some of my clients who come to me in a state of de-conditioning must experience to some degree.

My 30 pound weight gain has held steady over the past month or so and, given the fact I can barely fit in any food with the constant pressure of the baby on my stomach, seems like it’s reached the maximum I’ll gain. This puts me squarely in the middle of the generally recommended figure of 25-35 pounds most of the books and websites promote. So I’m feeling pretty good about this- or at least as good as any woman can feel after gaining 30 pounds in six months.

And so far I’ve had no stretch marks! Before anyone emails me with horror stories of the spider web of scars that spread across their belly in the last week, I know, I’m not out of the woods yet. This may seem vain in the light of being so fortunate to conceive and soon to give birth to the most important person in my life, but I won’t pretend to be above caring about how my body will appear after the pregnancy. My friend Melissa Bryant, owner of Organic Bliss in downtown Ann Arbor, gave me a bottle of Talulah stretch mark lotion to test out, and I’ve been using it daily since the beginning of my second trimester. I’m wary of all the products marketed to pregnant women and new moms- I think marketers see us as an easy sales target, but I’m on my second bottle now and would truly recommend it to all of my pregnant friends. The other product I’ve been really glad to have is the Belly Bra. A client of mine, who’s had three children, passed her old ones on to me and I can’t imagine getting through pregnancy without them. Made of a stretchy, synthetic material they slip on like an undershirt, but they have a strong elastic band that goes under the belly and helps support some of the weight. It feels like it takes some of the burden off my ligaments and organs, and allows me to move more comfortably. They’re not really “breathable” so they may not be the best for summer pregnancies, but I’ve been wearing them everyday since about seven and a half months.

Our midwife, Pat Kramer, came to our house on Monday evening to get an idea of the layout of our home and how we might best set up for the birth. Where would the “aqua doula” tub go? How is our nursery set up? How many sleep sacks and onsies do we really need for a newborn (it turns out we’re more than covered!). So now we feel like we have more of a clear vision of how the experience might be for us. She looked me over again and said everything looked good. The baby is properly positioned and now it’s all just about waiting…

Look for entries on Wednesday afternoons and Sunday mornings. If you don't see an update I might be in labor!

Aimee McDonald-Anderson is an Ann Arbor native and owner of Gyrotonic Ann Arbor & The Movement Center in downtown Ann Arbor. She has been teaching Pilates since 1997 and Gyrotonic since 2000. She holds a BFA in Dance from The University of Michigan