Exercise and Pregnancy
Whether you are mad keen on running or a bit of a sofa lover it's important to know how to have a healthy exercise plan in pregnancy. Here are the answers to some of the common questions women have about exercising during pregnancy.
What are the benefits of exercising during pregnancy?
Being pregnant can in itself be physically demanding on your body and many women think that to rest would probably be the best thing. In fact taking some exercise can really help you to deal with the challenges of being pregnant. It can help you feel less tired, ease lower back pain and swelling. It can also help you manage to cope with the extra weight that you will put on during your pregnancy.
The good feeling that exercise gives you can help to reduce the chances of suffering with depression, anxiety and stress and it may even help you sleep better.
Doing some regular exercise can also help prevent you developing diabetes in pregnancy and high blood pressure.
Is it safe to exercise in pregnancy?
Yes, starting or continuing a moderate level of exercise is not thought to cause any harm in pregnancy and should help you to feel good.
For a minority of pregnant women exercise is not recommended if the pregnancy is complicated by other medical problems. Talk to your midwife or GP early in your pregnancy if you are unsure if you should be exercising. Check with your doctor before starting any exercise if you:
• know that you are at risk of premature labour or miscarriage
• know that you have a low-lying placenta
• have had significant bleeding
• have had problems with your lower back or joints
• have a pre-existing medical condition
• have high blood pressure
• are having more than one baby
• are having lots of severe headaches.
So, how active should you be during pregnancy?
The government recommends that everyone does 30 minutes of moderate exercise five days a week. Women who didn't do much exercise before getting pregnant should begin with 15 minutes of continuous exercise three times a week, and then increase that bit by bit to 30-minute sessions four times a week and then to daily exercise.
The exercise should be enough to increase your heart and breathing rates, but you should still be able to have a conversation.
Are there particular exercises that you should avoid?
There are a few sports which are best to avoid in pregnancy. These include contact sports, high impact sports and vigorous racquet sports that may risk bumps to your abdomen, and excessive stress on your joints.
You should also be careful about any kind of activity which involves balance, cycling or horse riding for example. Your balance can be severely altered due to the shifting of your centre of gravity due to your growing bump. Skiing is also best avoided for this reason. Falls can be a lot more hazardous in pregnancy. Scuba diving should definitely be avoided.
Also avoid exercises that involve lying flat on your back after 16 weeks as the weight of the bump can press down on a major blood vessel.
What exercises or activities are good in pregnancy?
Walking and swimming are good exercises to be done in pregnancy. If you attend an exercise class it is important that the teacher knows you are pregnant.
You should not allow yourself to get too hot as overheating can be a risk to the baby. A good rule of thumb is that you should always be able to hold a normal conversation during exercise, if you can't you are probably working too hard and need to slow down. Also ensure you drink plenty of water.
ASDA is helping Tommy's to give every baby the best chance of being born healthy, aiming to raise £500,000 in 2009 for Tommy's vital research to find out why things go wrong in pregnancy and at birth. To find out more information and how you can help visit www.asda-tommys.co.uk.
For more information on healthy eating during pregnancy, why not listen to our podcast. simply click on the link above or visit the podcast section of our website.