It’s a common question for many women, especially if you’ve battled to conceive or have had trauma related to pregnancies in the past. There’s no doubt that exercise is beneficial to both mom and baby during pregnancy (see our article on 7 Reasons To Exercise During Pregnancy for more info), but it can be difficult to know what is too much and what is just enough.
If you’ve been active before pregnancy…
In general, if your pregnancy is low risk and you’ve already been active before pregnancy, you should have no issues with continuing your normal pre-pregnancy fitness routine. However, the first trimester can be rough with exhaustion, fatigue and nausea – so you may need to take things a bit easier depending on your symptoms. As you enter the second trimester, there will be certain things you’ll need to start to modify, but try to continue being active for as long as possible.
If you haven’t exercised regularly before pregnancy…
If you haven’t been active pre-pregnancy, now is not the time to start anything new and intense. That being said, if your pregnancy is low-risk then there are some safe activities you can start immediately. This includes activities like walking, swimming, stretching and light aerobics. As your exercise tolerance builds up, you can start to introduce some safe prenatal strength and fitness work. This will only be helpful in the long run.
When shouldn’t you exercise?
There are some conditions where exercise is contraindicated. For example, placenta previa, an incompetent cervix or preeclampsia. If you have a history of any of the following, then a normal exercise routine may not be the right thing for you and you should consult you medical practitioner for recommendations. These include: high blood pressure, diabetes, chest pain, smoking, high cholesterol, joint issues, gestational diabetes, or a multiple pregnancy e.g. twins or triplets. This doesn’t mean you can’t exercise, but there may be some activities you need to avoid. Or, you may just need to watch your pace more closely.
So what’s the consensus?
Unfortunately there’s no straightforward answer and the best thing you can do is to listen to YOUR body, and do what feels right for YOU. Always build things up gradually, do workouts at your own pace, and don’t feel bad if you can’t push yourself as hard as you did before. Your body is basically running a marathon as it grows a whole human, so having less energy for things like fitness is completely understandable. Do what you can at the level you can do it at the moment!
Check out the below video for a bit more on exercise in the first trimester. If you’re looking for some safe prenatal workouts that you can do at your own pace, you’ll find plenty on the Belly Strong Fitness YouTube Page.
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