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Exercise and pregnancy

Who can be physically active during pregnany?

Almost all women can and should be physically active during pregnancy. Talk to your health care provider first, particularly if you have high blood pressure, diabetes, anemia, bleeding, or other disorders, or if you are obese or underweight.

Whether or not you were active before you were pregnant, ask your health care provider about a level of exercise that is safe for you. Aim to do at least 30 minutes of a moderate activity (one that makes you breathe harder but does not overwork or overheat you) on most days of the week.

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Benefits of exercise while pregnant

Regular, moderate physical activity during pregnancy may have the following benefits:

Help you and your baby to gain the proper amounts of weight

Reduce the discomforts of pregnancy such as backaches, leg cramps, constipation, bloating, and swelling

Improve your mood, energy level, and feelings about the way you look

Strengthen your muscles and improve your blood flow

Improve sleep cylces and quality

Can help to make labor shorter and easier

Can help to recover from delivery and return to a healthy weight faster.

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Precautions to take when exercising

Choose moderate activities that are unlikely to injure you, such as walking, aqua aerobics, swimming, yoga, or using a stationary bike.

Stop exercising when you start to feel tired, and never exercise until you are exhausted or overheated. Stop if your heart rate gets above the doctor recommended level.

Drink plenty of water.

Wear comfortable clothing that fits well and supports and protects your breasts.

Stop exercising if you feel dizzy, short of breath, pain in your back, swelling, numbness, sick to your stomach, or if your heart is beating too fast or at an uneven rate.

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Exercise to avoid during pregnancy

For your health and safety, and for the health of your baby, there are certain physical activities that you should not do while you are pregnant. Talk to your health care provider about other physical activities that you should avoid during your pregnancy.

Avoid being active outside during hot weather.

Avoid steam rooms, hot tubs, and saunas.

Avoid physical activities, such as certain yoga poses, that call for you to lie flat on your back after 20 weeks of pregnancy. Also avoid certain yoga poses that might require you to lie on your belly after the first trimester. Read Yoga and pregnancy for more information.

Avoid contact sports such as football and boxing, and other activities that might injure you such as horseback riding and aggresive bike riding or skiing.

Avoid activities that make you jump or change directions quickly such as tennis or basketball. During pregnancy, your joints loosen and you are more likely to hurt yourself when doing these activities.

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Tips for getting physically active

Go walking in the neighborhood or on an easy hike. Walking on the treadmill at the gym is good as well.

Sign up for a prenatal yoga, aqua aerobics, or fitness class. Make sure you let the instructor know that you are pregnant before beginning.

Rent or buy an exercise video for pregnant women. Look for videos at your local library, video store, health care provider's office, hospital, or maternity clothing store.

At your gym, community center, YMCA, or YWCA, sign up for a session with a fitness trainer who knows about physical activity during pregnancy.

Get up and move around at least once an hour if you sit in a chair most of the day; get up and move around during commercials when watching TV. This will help to keep the circulation from stagnating.

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