6 Common Questions About Exercise During Pregnancy
Exercising regularly while pregnant can help reduce your risk of pregnancy complications and ease pregnancy discomforts.
It’s always a good idea to speak to your doctor before you start any workout routine. Once you get the clearance from them,try to get at least 30 minutes or more of moderate exercise three to four days a week. Remember, your goal during this time is to keep up your pre-pregnancy fitness, not to train like you’re auditioning for American Ninja warrior. Any movement and light moderate exercise is going to be beneficial for you.
I’ve been fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with hundreds of pregnant women in person and through my online fitness program over the past decade, but I still get a handful of common questions moms-to-be ask me which is why I wanted to address the six most common questions about exercising during pregnancy.
Why should I exercise during pregnancy?
Regular exercise is great for just about everyone – including expecting moms and their developing babies. For moms, daily activity can help ward off high blood pressure, postpartum depression and gestational diabetes. Plus, exercise can help alleviate back pain, pelvic pain, general discomfort, urinary incontinence – all the little joys that come with carrying the miracle of life – can be eased with regular exercise. Being fit and strong will help support a growing belly, push the baby out during childbirth more efficiently and then carry a growing baby in your arms. Exercising also helps with elevating one's mood and energy throughout the day.
So, which exercises are best for pregnant women?
The best; non high impact thing you can do to get regular exercise is walking because it’s great for people who hadn’t been exercising prior to pregnancy. Other great types of workouts can include:
Swimming ( the buoyancy is a friend to pregnant women)
Stationary cycling
Weight lifting
Rowing
Yoga
Jogging
The key is to combine aerobic exercise with strength training.
OK...so which exercises should I avoid?
Hold off on scuba diving and horseback riding while pregnant (a reasonable request, right?), and for good measure, avoid hot yoga.
You want to avoid exercises that can lead to abdominal trauma. That means no competitive ball sports or contact sports, downhill skiing, gymnastics, water-skiing, surfing or high-risk road biking.
Got it. So, just how much exercise should I be getting a week?
Thirty minutes a day, most days a week is a good measure.
For people who haven’t exercised in months (or years or decades) prior to pregnancy, this may seem like a formidable demand. But remember, this doesn’t need to be 30 continuous minutes of wind sprints or squat jumps. Start slowly. Take breaks. Ease into 30 minutes of walking. You can break up those 30 minutes into 10-minute segments throughout the day too.
For women who already exercise regularly, I recommend continuing your normal routine. Avoid and modify any ab exercise that requires you to crunch up or lie completely flat on your back for longer than three minutes.
Should I exercise if I’m high risk?
Always consult your doctor if you are high risk.
When should I stop exercising?
I’ve trained women up to the week before they gave birth but this totally depends on you! Your intensity will be modified as you get closer to your due date and you will also most likely need longer rest times between sets.
As far as when you need to stop working out, that depends on you and your comfort level. Most important thing to do is listen to your body. Monitor the effect of each activity and adjust the regimen if necessary as the pregnancy progresses.