Exercise During Pregnancy
Many expectant mothers have doubts about how well exercise will do them during pregnancy. Go ahead and move!
Exercising during pregnancy can’t hurt if you follow a few simple rules. Being pregnant doesn’t mean sitting on the sofa for 9 months and eating for two. So go ahead and move!
Exercise During Pregnancy
Exercise during pregnancy is often a big issue. Expectant mothers are often afraid that exercise will create more problems than benefits and will leave it alone. But if you know what to look out for, exercise is possible.
Even in the last weeks of pregnancy, with a big baby bump, you should exercise regularly in order to keep your circulation fit, strengthen your muscles and not collect too many unnecessary pregnancy weight on the couch.
If you stay active during pregnancy and do sports during pregnancy, this can even have a positive effect on the birth!
Better to avoid the following sports
Exercise during pregnancy is really recommended, but not every sport is equally suitable.
The further the pregnancy progresses, the more moderate exercise should be. So stop doing high-performance sport and avoid the following movements:
- fast turning movements around its own axis
- fast accelerations
- abrupt stops
- Contact sports (e.g. judo)
- Team sports with possible physical contact (e.g. handball)
- Endurance sports in great heat
- Do not train straight abs (only the obliques, please)
- Sports that involve frequent jumps
In addition, when exercising during pregnancy, you should avoid movements and sports that put a lot of strain on the ligaments, tendons and joints.
During pregnancy these become softer and can exercise less support and holding function, so that injuries can occur more easily.
When is exercise prohibited during pregnancy?
Only your doctor should issue a ban on exercise during pregnancy. Talk to him after every examination during your pregnancy, whether the sport you are doing is still okay and fits your current health status.
Your doctor may not allow you to exercise if you have any of the following risk factors:
- diabetes
- high blood pressure
- Obesity
- Underweight
- Previous miscarriage
- Multiple pregnancy
Even without your doctor’s prohibition, you should listen to your body’s signals and immediately stop exercising during pregnancy if you observe the following things about yourself:
- a headache
- dizziness
- Bleeding
- Abdominal pain
- Acute shortness of breath
- Eye flicker
Do not resume exercise during pregnancy until your doctor has given you permission to do so after a thorough examination and consultation.
The pregnancy gymnastics, in which you prepare for the birth, has nothing to do with it. You can do the following gentle sports during pregnancy:
yoga
It depends on you and the type of yoga which exercises you may or may not do during pregnancy.
Avoid positions that put a lot of strain or strain on your ligaments, tendons, and joints. Yoga is generally very suitable for pregnant women.
Exercise during pregnancy: swimming
As you struggle with the increasing weight of your baby bump, you will see how good you are with regular swimming.
There is hardly any stress on the joints when swimming because the water carries a large part of your weight. In order not to overload the circulation, make sure that the water temperature is between 20 and 35 ° C.
Walking
Walking, walking, and hiking are types of exercise that are well suited. However, if you leave flat paths and run “over hill and dale”, make sure to wear shoes that support the ankle.
Your ligaments are softer during pregnancy, so you are more likely to twist and fall and injure yourself. When mountaineering, use hiking sticks to avoid putting the extra pregnancy weight on your knees.
Exercise during pregnancy: aqua aerobics
Any sport in the water, such as water aerobics or aqua aerobics, is good because it is easy on the joints and with only a very low risk of injury.
The resistance of the water gently strengthens your muscles without having to work with heavy weights in the gym.
