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Until recently people
believed that exercise could damage the fetus and for the nine months
of pregnancy women should rest. But experts in this field differ from
this age-old theory; they believe that exercise, if properly done,
will help for an easier pregnancy and delivery. Studies have also
shown that women who exercise regularly delivered healthier babies
with a strong fetal heart rate. Also, for women who exercised, time
spent in labor was shortened by about a third.
Exercising also help to ease some common ailments with pregnant women
such as back pain and fatigue. However care should be taken while
exercising and there shouldn’t be any high intensity workouts in your
exercise regimen.
Even if you never exercised regularly before, a program can be
undertaken safely. If you have been regularly exercising, you can
actually continue on the same level for the first trimester, unless
there are other complications. For a normal woman, the important thing
is to listen to your body, if you find it is too much, lessen the
intensity a little bit.
Since the fetal heart rate is tied to your own, care should be taken
not exceed your heart rate beyond 140 beats/ minutes, as they baby’s
heart is also racing along with yours. Monitoring your heart rate and
breathing is good, a heart rate monitor, which set out an alarm every
time u exceeds the safe heart rate range. Feeling breathless is common
because your blood volume level the body provides for you is low, in
order to accommodate blood for both you and a growing fetus. Resulting
in breathlessness and even faintness. You will need to adjust your
exercise levels accordingly.
Avoid exercising at hot, humid conditions or in extreme altitude. It
is critical, your body temperature affect the baby and over heating is
not good for both. It is important to drink plenty of water also.
As the pregnancy progresses, reduce the intensity level. Due to added
weight of the baby it tends to happen naturally. Stretching is good
but be careful not to over-stretch. Early in pregnancy, a hormone
called relaxin fills your system, which induces hyper-flexibility in
the joints and musculature. This is for the expansion of the uterus
and the repositioning of the pelvic floor. Pregnant women, as a result
of this increased flexibility has a tendency to strain muscles and
ligaments. Nevertheless it is still important to stretch after
exercising, but within your limitations.
Ballistic movements like jumping and running should be avoided, in the
last trimester. These motions can strain the pelvic floor, which is
already supporting the added weight of the almost full-grown baby. But
there are plenty of exercises without bouncing motions.
Doing Kegel exercises is important. Since the pelvic floor supports
the bladder, uterus, and intestines, the added weight of the baby
during pregnancy can stretch out that floor, causing either the
intestines or bladder to drop down. Kegels involve contracting and
releasing the PF muscles, similarly to stopping the flow of urination.
Tighten and relax the muscle quickly several times a day.
Although deciding on which activities are best for you is highly
individual, generally, in the first trimester, almost any form of
exercise (except contact sports and very high intensity exercise) can
be undertaken safely. As you move on to later trimesters running and
cycling may become uncomfortable. There are other activities that give
good exercise like swimming, water aerobics, hiking, etc.
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