Thu. May 9th, 2024
Inger Houghton

A new mum lifted weights and smashed consecutive pull-ups while she was 39 weeks pregnant.

Inger Houghton, 31, wowed 83,000 Instagram fans with sweat-inducing workouts while sporting a large baby bump.

And as the blonde beauty parades her svelte physique, it seems her hard work during those nine months was worth it.

Inger, originally from Norway, said: “I stayed active for my entire pregnancy.

“I didn’t train as often or as hard as before of course, but I would have gone mad if I couldn’t do anything for nine months.

“Luckily I had a good pregnancy without any major problems, so it didn’t feel like a struggle to keep active.

40 weeks: Inger's baby bump
40 weeks: Inger’s baby bump

“I also felt a big change in my balance as my belly grew, and obviously doing pull-ups with 14 kg extra was a bit harder.

“My focus was to maintain my fitness level as much as possible.

“I was prepared to gain weight, as this is an important part of lots of pregnancies, but I wanted to maintain as much muscle mass as possible.

Toned: Inger's figure before she got pregnant
Toned: Inger’s figure before she got pregnant

“Being strong would help me cope with the changes the pregnancy made to my body, and also prepare me for giving birth.”

The personal trainer and her husband, Ian, live in Dubai with their new arrival, baby daughter Kaia Isabella.

Inger focused on strength training and included squats, pull-ups, dead-lifts and presses in her work outs.

Healthy: The mum worked out hard before and during her pregnancy
Healthy: The mum worked out hard before and during her pregnancy

She added: “After giving birth I lost 11 kilos in 11 days, and it almost went quicker than I wanted.

“I lost a lot of muscle mass as well and I didn’t recognise my body. It was a very weird experience.

“I think the reason for this was that I didn’t gain more than the recommended weight during pregnancy, but most because of the breastfeeding.

“We had our daughter right around Christmas so I ate a lot of chocolate and still lost weight – I wish it always could be like that.”

Hobby: Inger didn't want to give up exercise while she was pregnant
Hobby: Inger didn’t want to give up exercise while she was pregnant

However, the toned mum did admit there some days during pregnancy she enjoyed putting her feet up.

She said: “There is no doubt that growing a baby inside you can be hard, so some days the sofa won over the gym.

“I gained weight very quickly in the beginning. I didn’t look pregnant, only bigger than I used to, and this wasn’t as fun when you have a lot of people ‘watching’ through social media.

“I got tired from doing normal stuff like taking the stairs. We live on the first floor, but I must admit I still used the elevator.

“Going to the gym was, and still is my favourite hobby, so I would do this every day if I could.

“Now the days when I don’t have time for the gym, I take our daughter for a walk with the stroller.”

Courtesy of: Mirror