Pregnancy | Your Wellbeing
Popular Pregnancy Exercises Fit For Foxy Moms-To-Be
In the old days the simplest tasks, such as climbing stairs or carrying grocery bags, were a big no-no for pregnant women. It was in fact commonly thought that pregnant women were fragile and weak, and pregnancy was sometimes even looked at as an illness of sort. But those days are thankfully over, and today we all know that a little bit of exercise every day – throughout your whole nine months of being pregnant – is beneficial for both you and your unborn baby. To be on the safe side, however, just make sure you discuss everything with your gynaecologist before you put the pregnancy exercise of your choice into practice.
When pregnant you gradually become heavier and heavier, and at some stage you’ll start lacking energy as well. Pregnancy exercise will without doubt help you feel better both physically and mentally. And let’s not forget the fact that toning and strengthening your body can only make you better prepared for that major task that lies ahead – namely labour. Let’s look at the most popular forms of exercise suitable for pregnant women, and get some advice on how to get started.
Water Workout
Because exercise in water is less straining on your body – as the water supports your body and only requires you to support 50 percent of your weight – it’s a firm favourite among pregnant women in particular. Swimming, water jogging and aqua aerobics are all excellent low-impact exercises to enjoy and benefit from. We suggest you warm up with some water walking or jogging before moving on to do some aqua aerobics strengthening exercises, and at last ending a 30-minute session off with swimming a few laps. Just remember to drink plenty of water and to avoid jumping and diving. If you have your own pool, maintaining this exercise regime is obviously a lot easier. If you don’t, however, check with your local gym if they do classes specifically suited to pregnant women, or use a friend’s pool as often as you can.
Relaxation Exercises
Other great pregnancy exercises include those focusing on breathing, posture and body awareness – such as Yoga and Pilates. When it comes to yoga, the fact that it can improve your endurance, strength, circulation and posture, means it’s a great way to keep your body toned and healthy throughout the nine months of your pregnancy. According to the website www.healthandyoga.com, yoga pregnancy exercises can also help alleviate morning sickness and mood swings, relieve Oedema and cramping, raise energy levels and slowing metabolism to restore calm and focus.
Pilates has many of the same elements as Yoga, but in addition targets your pelvis and tummy specifically – strengthening and toning the muscles you are using to carry your baby, which ultimately makes your pregnancy a little easier. Pilates also prepares your pelvis for birth and helps you perfect those oh-so-important breathing exercises.
When practicing these relaxation exercises, however, keep in mind that you need to choose and attend classes developed for pregnant women specifically. Focus on those exercises where you position yourself on your hands and knees rather than lying on your back a lot, and avoid lying on you tummy altogether. If you are unsure about anything at all, it’s best to check with your gynae before going ahead with any type of exercise. He knows how your pregnancy is progressing and how it is affecting you individually – as most women go through pregnancy in a slightly different way.
If you were a fit and healthy gym bunny even before you thought about having a baby, this is definitely an added bonus and should make it easier for you to fall pregnant in the first place. However, make sure you slow down and develop a completely different exercise programme once a little life is growing inside you, because frantic exercise could harm your baby.
Recommendations
We suggest you do a mixture of water and relaxation exercises, so that you and your baby can enjoy a bit of variation. Perhaps head for the pool three times a week, and join a Pilates or Yoga class twice a week. Remember to always start slow and to warm up before you start. And don’ forget to slow down and stretch out after each session.
Other than that, the best advice we can give you is to simply make sure you fit your new exercise regime into your daily routine and keep it up! Because keeping fit during your pregnancy will not only help your body prepare for labour, but also promote a healthy lifestyle for yourself and your baby in the years to come. What’s more, because your body stretches and changes so dramatically during pregnancy, toning and strengthening exercises makes the process of getting back into shape after you have given birth a lot easier.
There are plenty of other exercises that are safe to do while you are pregnant as well – such as cycling (preferably on a stationary bike), using a step machine or a rowing machine at a comfortable speed and tension, light jogging and weight lifting, easy hiking and walking, comfortable dancing and undemanding ball sports. However these types of exercises should all be practiced with caution, and keep in mind that once you reach your last trimester, you should step these activities down and stick to stretching and water workouts alone – just to be on the safe side.
So get started, ladies, whether you are pregnant already or thinking of making a baby in the near future. And after each exercise session, don’t forget to replace the fluids you’ve lost as well as compensating for the calories you burn!
References:
- H. E. Murkoff, A. Eisenberg & S. E. Hathaway: What to expect, when you’re expecting. 2002: Third Edition: Pocket Books, UK.
- www.yourbabytoday.com
- www.healthandyoga.com
- www.babycentre.co.uk
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I wanted to thank you for this solid read!! I am definitely enjoying every little bit of it. I have you bookmarked to find out new stuff you post.
i am 15 weeks pregnant and my feet are always swollen and a bit painfull what can be the cause
Your uterus and growing baby put pressure on the veins that lead to your legs and this makes your circulation to slow down and blood to pool in your legs. Try not sit or lie down for long periods of time. Put your feet up when you can and try to rest of your left hand side. Remember to stretch, exercise and rotate your ankes, wriggle your toes to improve the circulation.