Exercise during pregnancy didn’t used to be something many expectant mothers thought about. Now we know that working out is so good for your body and baby that more and more women are hitting the gym with their growing baby bump. The last time I was in Lifetime Fitness I counted 6 pregnant moms to be on the cardio machines and in the weight room. Currently it is recommended that pregnant women who are healthy and don’t have preexisting conditions or concerns with their pregnancy should be working out about 5 days a week for 30 minutes a day. (*)
Finding the workout that is right for your pregnancy can be tricky.
You should always talk to your doctor before starting any exercise regimen, and this is especially important when you are pregnant. For instance, I didn’t know until I asked my OB that I should keep my heart rate under 150 no matter what workout I am doing. While this wasn’t hard in the beginning of my pregnancy, my love of spinning had to be put on hold as my belly grew and I found it harder to control my heart rate in class.
Other guidelines (**) my Doctor gave me to follow were:
- Avoid activities that were high risk of falling or impact like skiing, horseback riding, gymnastics, racket sports, basketball, and soccer.
- Avoid exercise that has you lay on your back for any length in your 2nd and 3rd trimester.
- Listen to your body. Stop if you have any pain, bleeding, dizziness, or decreased fetal movement.
I personally suffer from sciatica during my pregnancies which can make workouts that are cardio based difficult. I found however, that by continuing to workout early in my pregnancy I was able to hold of a lot of the sciatic pain until much further into this pregnancy than my first. But trying to be creative with my workouts can be difficult, so I reached out to my fellow moms and asked what form of exercise they loved while pregnant and found a wide variety of answers with one thing in common – as long as they were moving they had more energy and happier pregnancies then when they weren’t working out!
- Cobi Dickinson from Peace from Pieces swore by any form of water aerobics during her second pregnancy. “This type of workout provides an aerobic workout without the joint impact, just cardiovascular exercise and muscle toning. It was the easiest and fastest delivery out of four (pregnancies).”
- Swimming was a favorite among many of the moms I talked with. Amy Thayer from Oh So Savvy Mom said she swam until two weeks before her first baby was born and three days before her second was born. “The only drawback to this form of exercise is you need to have access to a pool and care for your children.”
- Bex from Bex Life maintains that her homebirth was made possible by all the yoga she did during her pregnancy.
- Amanda Tress of Fit Pregnancy and Parenting says she didn’t really change her workouts much at all even while pregnant. “I did all of the same cardio machine workouts as pre-pregnancy. I slowed down my running pace a little bit toward 35 weeks, but I didn’t scale back on distance. Pool workouts were great too!
- Jeanette Vollstedt from Little Ms. J found that working out was her only way to escape pregnancy related back pain. “I worked out three times a week until 37 weeks when I was put on bed rest. I walked every day, did Pilates and worked out with a trainer one day a week.”
- Tara Cherry of Mommyhead Adventures didn’t have access to a gym but swore by her pregnancy DVDs! “Glow Prenatal Cardio Sculpt with Tonya Larson was my favorite.”
- Another favorite is something everyone can do! Simply walking everyday is a great way to get your workouts in!
Up until now I have been doing 30-45 minutes of cardio and then either and upper or lower body lift. I always have my heart rate monitor on me so that I can make sure I keep my heart rate under 150 like my Dr. recommended. Exercising gives me energy, makes me feel better, and will help keep my body strong for the labor that I hope to have. I look forward to continuing my workouts by switching to lower impact exercises like Aqua Zumba and Yoga. I am very lucky that I belong to what I believe is the most amazing fitness facility anywhere – Lifetime Fitness. Lifetime Fitness offers a wide variety of classes including yoga, water classes, and Pilates. They also have amazing “play care” for my son while I attend these classes.
(*) I am not a registered anything, I am a just a mom who enjoys fitness. Always consult a doctor before beginning any workout program.
(**) These are just my doctor’s recommendations. You need to see your own doctor to see what guidelines they set for you.
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You are such a cute preggo! And I’m curious. What kind of watch is that?
I love that there is information for pregnant moms to stay healthy and excerise. When I was pregnant with twins, 4 years ago, the doctor recommend slow paced walking to ease tension in the abdomen.
You look great and Congrats! 🙂
Like Amanda I haven’t changed my workouts a ton until now that I am 34 weeks. I have slowed my pace and incorporated more walks.
Great tips! I wish I was better at working at during my last pregnancy, but hardly had any motivation.
So amazing that you’re taking such good care f you and new baby! I am sure your delivery and recovery will both benefit too! You look awesome and are an inspiration (even to those non preggies like me! )
I exercised during my pregnancy and it made the weight loss so much easier!!
Love the water aerobics with pregnancy!
Good for you for getting in some exercise. You look great! I exercised on and off when I was pregnant, it did make me feel better too.
You’re looking fabulous! I love the bump from above pic 🙂
Thanks Connie!
I am going to join Fitfluential one of these days, it seems like such a great program!
It isn’t really a program, more of a community of people who have interest in fitness! You should check it out though!! 🙂
Great post! I find myself struggling to make myself fit in exercise not pregnant. Way to go continuing yours while pregnant.
Where have I been? I love the new blog design looks great.
Thanks Amber!
Great advice – you look awesome! I saw my doctor yesterday and talked about working out because I want to stay strong. She suggested walking about 20 minutes or swimming!
Yay!! I hope you can work that in! Can you walk H to school?
First, try QiDANCE. I think you’d love it and you can modify it all you want. Second, I taught exercise until a few days before giving birth to both of my boys. I’m so glad we no longer live at a time when exercising while pregnant was considered bad for you and the baby. I will also add that you might like to avoid lifting your arms overhead, as that will increase your HR significantly. And you can do your ab workout on your hands and knees.
Thanks Alexandra! I’m an AWFUL AWFUL uncoordinated dancer – but that may be a great option for others!! I’m glad we aren’t living with that myth anymore either!!
I think it’s great that you’re incorporating exercise into your pregnancy, great tips too!
Thanks Billie!
I wish I exercised
Great tips! You look amazing!
Thanks for this post! It gives a lot of tips that expectant moms need and should read! I’m 37 weeks pregnant so I only have 3 weeks to go and other than walking around the mall and sometimes going to the pool, I haven’t exercised, I know, I know, I should have and if I do get pregnant again in the future I’ll definitely start in the first trimester. What happened with me is that like you I experienced really bad, severe sciatica pain which I just couldn’t bring myself to go the gym. Also I had been doing Zumba before my pregnancy and it just seemed like too much intensity so I stopped and was going to take up yoga, however our financial circumstances changed and I couldn’t afford it, no excuse because I could have done some at home. Thankfully I’ve only gained 25 lbs so far and only have 3 wks to go but I do wish I had taken up the yoga not just for actual physical exercise but also to help me relax and clear my mind.
You are doing a great job, it is amazing how things have changed and exercise is recommended I think it is a great change.
These are great things to share. I wish I would have exercised when I was pregnant because now I am paying for it. Keep up the good work! You are so cute pregnant.
I love swimming.
This is a wonderful idea and you look great!
The at-home videos seem like a great option to save money, especially as a Pilates fan.
Thanks for the tips.
Keeping baby and I healthy is a very important so I also excercise during pregnancy.
excercising helped me lose the weight after pregnancy!
It’s hard trying to find a suitable workout during pregnancy and all I did was walk on the treadmill.
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What a lovely bump! And an awe-inspiring post too! I’m sure a lot of preggies, especially new moms, out there would learn a lot from these tips. Thanks for posting and cheers for a healthier pregnancy! 🙂