When it comes to exercise during pregnancy, the guidelines change. In general, pregnant women should stick to lower intensity workouts. Also, what may be safe in the first trimester may not be safe in the second or third. Appropriate exercise is recommended, but pregnant women should seek help from their obstetrician or an exercise instructor with experience in teaching pre-natal exercises.
Effects of Exercise on the Mother
Heather Coleman-Ibrahim, a certified personal trainer with a specialization in prenatal exercise, says that light to moderate exercise is good for pregnant women. She recommends that on an intensity scale of 1 to 10, 10 being very intense exercise, that pregnant women go no higher than a 4 or 5 during exercise (more on specific exercise instructions in the Recommended Exercise section below).
If proper guidelines are followed, Coleman-Ibrahim says that women who exercise will better be able to manage stress and keep a controlled weight gain during pregnancy versus excessive gain. Typically speaking, women should expect to gain between 25 and 35 pounds, unless their doctor says otherwise. Exercise will also help with blood pressure, maintaining good cardiovascular health, and reducing ankle swelling.
Other benefits of exercise include more energy, improved posture, improved circulation, less back pain, better self-esteem, more energy, and less varicose veins and hemorrhoids.
Effects of Exercise on the Fetus
Women who exercise have a lower chance of developing diabetes, gestational diabetes or high blood pressure, which can indirectly affect the fetus, says Coleman-Ibrahim. Babies born to women who exercise are less likely to develop birth defects and usually develop at a healthier weight.
Recommended Exercises
"Most exercises are ok but they need to be tailored," says Coleman-Ibrahim. For example, most exercises performed in a prone or supine position (face down or face up) are not advised. However, modifications can be made and there are always exceptions. Coleman-Ibrahim recommends abdominal stabilization exercises like modified planks over core exercises the involved spinal flexion, such as crunches. She also will have pregnant clients do incline chest presses or seated cable chest presses instead of lying flat on a bench to do a standard dumbbell chest press.
Coleman-Ibrahim advises that simple exercise like walking, hiking, and swimming can be done without much guidance, but that women should seek help from a personal trainer or instructor with pre-natal training for pilates, yoga or weight training.
"Work on maintaining somewhat what you've already created for yourself," Coleman-Ibrahim suggests, meaning that women should focus more on maintaining their level of fitness instead of trying to improve it, unless they were sedentary prior to pregnancy. For women that did not exercise before becoming pregnant, a light to moderate exercise program should be started.
Other good types of exercise include low-impact aerobics, stationary cycling, and stretching. Regular exercise of any kind is important and should be done daily if possible. A minimum of three days a week is necessary to be considered regular exercise. As far as weight training goes, pregnant women should focus on doing more repetitions at lower weights as part of a maintenance program.
Exercises to Avoid
Any sport or exercise that could injure a woman's stomach or cause her to fall should be avoided. Gymnastics, horseback riding, and downhill skiing are examples of activities to avoid. Scuba diving is also not recommended.
Coleman-Ibrahim personally does not think running is good after the first trimester, but has known women that have done so safely. "Some women who used to run marathons can still run 5-10Ks during pregnancy, but at a slower pace," she says. Generally, she recommends that women slow down whatever they're doing during pregnancy as the extra weight they are carrying around automatically makes any activity more intense.
Also not recommended are activities that involve jumping, jerky or bouncy movements, or exercises that call for a wide range of motion as a woman's changing balance and hormones can make these movements risky during pregnancy. Also, do not exercise in excessive heat or humidity.
Coleman-Ibrahim advises, "If something doesn't feel right just don't do it." During her pregnancy, she felt differently on different days. Some days she did jumping exercises and some days she didn't if it felt risky.
Birth Process
Coleman-Ibrahim says that the babies born of women that exercise consistently throughout their pregnancies will be at a healthier birth weight based on their length and their weight. Also, "The birth process tends to go a little easier."
Risks and Contraindications
If women experience any of the following they should stop exercising and contact their doctor: vaginal bleeding, dizziness, headaches, pain in the chest or calves, amniotic fluid leakage and preterm labor. A reduction in the fetus' movement is also a sign that a doctor should be consulted.
Exercise should also be avoided if any of the following occur of if the mother has one of these conditions: Heart disease, restrictive lung disease, incompetent cervix, ruptured membranes, placenta previa after 26 weeks of gestation, or pregnancy-induced hypertension.
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