Exercise does many things during pregnancy. It boosts mood, improves sleep, and reduces pregnancy aches and pains. It helps to prevent and treat gestational diabetes and may keep preeclampsia at bay. It prepares you for childbirth by strengthening muscles and building endurance, and makes it much easier to get back in shape after your baby’s born.
Burning calories while pregnant
Exercise is so beneficial during pregnancy that the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends pregnant women exercise at least 30 minutes a day most days of the week.
Safe exercises during pregnancy
The following activities are usually safe for expectant moms, although some of them may not work for you during the last few months of your pregnancy.
Walking
One of the best cardiovascular exercises for pregnant women is walking. Walking keeps you fit without jarring your knees and ankles. It’s also easy to do almost anywhere, doesn’t require any equipment beyond a good pair of supportive shoes, and is safe throughout all nine months of pregnancy.
Swimming
Health care providers say swimming is one of the safest exercises for pregnant women. Swimming is ideal because it exercises both large muscle groups (arms and legs), provides cardiovascular benefits, and allows expectant women to feel weightless despite the extra pounds of pregnancy.
Low-impact aerobics
Aerobic exercise strengthens your heart and tones your body. And if you take a class for pregnant women, you’ll enjoy the camaraderie of other moms-to-be and feel reassured that each movement is safe for you and your baby.
Dancing
You can get your heart pumping by dancing to your favorite tunes in the comfort of your own living room, with a DVD, or at a dance class, but steer clear of routines that call for leaps, jumps or twirls as balance can be off with the added weigh.
Yoga
Yoga can help maintain muscle tone and keep you flexible with little if any impact on your joints. But you may have to change a yoga regimen with walking or swimming several times a week to give your heart a workout.
More
- Five myths about exercising while pregnant
- Exercise during pregnancy: Is it safe?
- Dos and don’ts during the first trimester of pregnancy
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Posted In Health Information, Pregnancy, Women's
