Green Country Moms Stuck With CrossFit Throughout Pregnancy

CrossFit is all the rage when it comes to getting in or staying in shape these days. But what about for pregnant women?

Lea-Ann Ellison has been criticized nationwide for her choice to remain active in CrossFit, despite being 8 months pregnant, after a picture of her was posted to CrossFit's Facebook page.

We talked with two new Green Country moms who said they weren't going to use their pregnancy as an excuse to stop working out.

CrossFit is a high-intensity exercise program that mixes cardio and weight-lifting. After that picture was posted last week, many are questioning if a such a rigorous workout routine puts the baby at risk, especially so late in the pregnancy.

But the moms we spoke to said they spoke at length with their doctors and would never put their child in harm's way.

"I felt amazing after my delivery," said Alecia Siegfried.

It's been exactly 13 weeks since Siegfried gave birth to her healthy little girl, Maddux. She's already back in the gym, with a body that's bounced right back to those pre-baby days.

That could be because she spent the entire nine months of her pregnancy doing CrossFit.

"CrossFit, up to the day I delivered. I worked out with Emily in the morning and had my baby at 10 o'clock that night," Siegfried said.

Joy Hulver admitted doing CrossFit while pregnant isn't easy, but said it was necessary for her, for those nine months and after.

"With this pregnancy, I just relished being able to come into the gym every day and move my body," Hulver said.

918 CrossFit owner, Emily Smith, has been training expecting mothers for years.

Smith said the workouts bring out a strength in moms-to-be that is far greater than the weight they are lifting.

"It's just neat to watch these women realize how strong they are all the way throughout it, and I think that helps with the birthing process and the postpartum process," Smith said.

Siegfried said her doctor gave her the green light to keep up with the strenuous workout routine, because her body was used to it. She's been a CrossFitter for four years and through two pregnancies.

"Main thing was to listen to my body and, if something hurt or didn't feel right, just to stop and not to push myself, and so that's what I did," Siegfried said.

The trainers at 918 tailor each routine, which for pregnant women, may mean reducing weights or cutting some exercises, altogether.