What could be more lovely than discovering a new life within a womb? Nevertheless, the threats of pandemics often bring anxiety to expectant mothers. Research shows that having pre-existing health issues like diabetes or high blood pressure puts you at risk, whether or not you are pregnant. However, being pregnant during this time of pandemic posed a greater risk and must be handled with extreme care.
Worries and fears will not alleviate the risks even further nor will they help you overcome the dangers and challenges it will only discourage you, or at worst prevent you from making the best decisions out of your personal options.
However, you are not totally helpless and unable to do anything to fight back. Exerting little effort will inspire you to be better prepared and more confident as an expectant mother.
Here are simple and practical pregnancy exercises that guide you smoothly for every trimester. This will be your journey in making personal progress for you and your little one during these challenging times.
First Trimester
A woman’s body undergoes numerous changes during the first trimester. While a missing period may have been your first symptom of pregnancy, you should expect several other physical changes in the coming weeks which include painful and swollen breasts, nausea with or without vomiting, urination is more frequent than usual, tiredness, extreme cravings, and aversions, constipation, and heartburn. Your mood as well is extremely affected. Pregnancy can leave you feeling happy, anxious, energized, and fatigued – all at the same moment. Even if you’re overjoyed to be pregnant, having a new kid can cause fluctuating emotions. However, doing regular exercise can help you with all these challenges.
1. Walking to Moderate Running
Aerobic exercise, also known as cardio exercise, is the most beneficial. This sort of activity necessitates the heart to pump oxygenated blood to the working muscles. It also entails using major muscle groups, such as the legs, for extended periods of time. The ACOG also recommends 150 minutes of aerobic exercise per week. People should try to divide this up into smaller time spans each week. For example, they could exercise for 30 minutes every day, five days per week. If a person is just starting out with an exercise routine, they should start with 5 or 10 minutes each day and gradually increase their time. Aim for a moderate increase in heart rate. Sprints are not necessary. It is important to begin at a comfortable pace before gradually increasing your stride length.
According to James Pivarnik, a kinesiology and epidemiology professor at Michigan State University who has undertaken a considerable study on exercise with pregnancy, the goal of any first-trimester activity plan should be moderation. Aim for exercise that does not surpass 90 percent of your maximum heart rate per minute, stay hydrated, and aim to exercise for 20 to 30 minutes every day.
2. Squats
Yes, squats are safe for most pregnant women, but pregnant women should exercise with caution. Before beginning any new fitness plan during pregnancy, consult with your doctor. After you’ve received the all-clear recommendation, keep an eye out for any symptoms that you’re pushing yourself too hard.
Squats can help strengthen your pelvic floor muscles, enhance hip mobility, and increase blood circulation throughout your body—all of which assist in preparing your body for labor. Deep squatting is highly recommended during pregnancy, but make sure you are not already having any of these symptoms (hemorrhoids, vulvar varicose veins, back discomfort), which are most common during the third trimester. To avoid putting too much strain on your pelvic floor, use a folded blanket, pillow, or another type of support.
Begin by separating your feet by hip-width. Reach your hips back as if sitting in a chair, until your hips are nearly parallel to the ground. Return to the starting location and repeat. Some forms of squats may become less comfortable as your belly swells and your center of gravity shifts. Skip squats that demand a lot of balance, such as single-leg variations, for example, until after the baby arrives.
If you are experiencing pain, discontinue or reduce the weights you are using (such as dumbbells) or limit your range of motion. Stop the exercise if you suffer pain — in the knees or elsewhere — as you would with any other movement.
3. Pilates
Pilates can help you deal with two of the most common pregnancy issues: balance and lower back pain. Pilates strengthens the core muscles with a variety of apparatus and floor movements. Your first sessions will be devoted to increasing your strength.
However, the first trimester is not the time to push your body or try to improve your Pilates practice. Instead, concentrate on your Pilates fundamentals, such as breathing and stabilization.
Exercise only as much as you are comfortable with. It’s critical to pay attention to how you’re feeling and begin to get more in tune with your body’s demands on any given day. Pilates workouts are easily adaptable to meet the prenatal body and how an expectant lady feels on a daily basis. There are alterations that can be made if you feel a little pain in the back or tightness in your chest.
Avoid lying on your back, as well as any twisting of your midsection. Overexertion during Pilates or other belly-focused exercises may result in diastasis recti, a condition in which your abdominal muscles’ parallel panels momentarily split.
Second Trimester
The second trimester of pregnancy begins around week 14 and lasts until the end of week 27, or months 4 to 6 of pregnancy. The second trimester lasts around 14 weeks. Many of the early pregnancy symptoms, such as nausea and breast soreness, will go away throughout the second trimester, while others, such as heartburn and constipation, may persist.
Some symptoms may arise during the second trimester: First is the congestion produced by increased blood flow to your nose’s mucus membranes. You might even start snoring for the first time. Another is mild swelling of the ankles and feet, which affects around three out of every four pregnant women, beginning around week 22, though it may vary and last until birth. Stay active and kick up your feet when you’re not moving.
1. Yoga
If you’re pregnant, gentle, strengthening yoga could be your best friend. It will help you stretch your muscles, relieve pregnant aches such as lower back pain, and lower your blood pressure.
Learning to breathe with your body’s motions is an important component of yoga practice that will come in handy during labor and delivery. If you already practice yoga, stick with it as long as it’s comfortable for you. Avoid positions that could cause you to fall, such as Warrior and Tree poses, or have a partner assist you in them. Avoid twisting your stomach.
Your body begins to create more of the hormone relaxin during the second trimester. It prepares your tendons, muscles, and ligaments for birth by relaxing them. Be careful not to overstretch because this may cause you to become more flexible. Don’t push yourself all the way to the edge to avoid discomfort and injury.
A type of yoga exercise called the butterfly stretch improves circulation, stimulates the digestive system, and promotes relaxation. It increases flexibility in your low back, hips, and inner thighs, assisting your body in preparing for delivery. In doing this exercise, first allow your pelvis to lean forward as you sit on the edge of a cushion, block, or folded blanket. Put your feet together and press the soles of your feet together. Then to deepen the stretch, bring your feet in toward your hips. As you stretch your spine, root your lower body into the floor. Place your hands on your ankles or shins and interlace your fingers under your pinky toes. Stay in this position for a minute. Repeat 2–4 times more.
2. Stationary Cycling
Exercising on a stationary bike is the most effective approach to building muscle strength. Your belly begins to grow in the second trimester, and this is the time to avoid putting too much strain on your abdomen. Sitting on an exercise bike and cycling may be your greatest exercise option, as long as it isn’t too painful and there aren’t any risk concerns.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) lists stationary cycling as one of the safe forms of exercise that are safe during pregnancy. When cycling indoors, OB-GYN and certified personal trainer Brittany Robles, MD. recommends three crucial things. The first is maintaining adequate hydration. Second, maintaining a healthy pace. And lastly, avoiding overexertion and
avoiding becoming overheated, as this can impair your circulation.
3. Kegel Exercise
The Kegel exercise is the third and last exercise in this program. Developing pelvic floor muscles as early as the first and second trimesters is critical. As your pregnancy advances, these muscles are frequently stretched and weak.
In the Kegel exercise, you should take a deep breath and hold it for 1-2 seconds.
Then, squeeze all of your pelvic muscles as you exhale, as though you’re attempting to hold your pee and poop in. Lastly, hold for 3-5 seconds before releasing the contraction.
Third Trimester
Weeks 28-42 of your third trimester are the summit of the journey. Usually, it feels like a very long one. This is when your body is stretched and pushed to its limits. This is indeed the final stage of pregnancy. Back pain, exhaustion, difficulty sleeping, swelling, and shortness of breath are just a few of the health problems that women face throughout the third trimester.
The good news is that exercising regularly during the third trimester can help ease some of the aches and discomfort. It’s a good idea to exercise during the third trimester, even if it’s rigorous exercise if that’s part of your habit. Exercise on a regular basis can help to ease some of the unpleasant symptoms of pregnancy. However, it’s critical to stay within your limitations and exercise in a way that’s safe for both you and your child. Daily moderate exercise of 20 to 30 minutes, or 150 minutes per week, is recommended by most guidelines.
1. Water aerobics or swimming
Swimming is a fantastic activity during pregnancy since the water takes the weight and tension off your joints and ligaments, allowing you to move with little or no discomfort. Swimming laps or practicing water aerobics on your own or in a class is a terrific method to raise your heart rate safely and comfortably.
2. Pushing Prep
Exhale while maintaining a calm pelvic floor as the baby goes down the delivery canal to maximize your body’s rhythms and strengths during pushing and labor. Start by exhaling a stream of air via pursed lips after inhaling by stretching the rib cage 360 degrees. Try to repeat the sensation as if you were peeing after a few breaths like this. This pushing warm-up can be done at the start of an exercise, during rest periods, or even during the stretch at the finish.
3. Deadlifting
The deadlift is a functional activity that should be continued during pregnancy, although we may need to adjust it for comfort and belly accommodation. You might discover that switching to kettlebells or dumbbells instead of the barbell helps your pregnancy, or that adapting to kneeling deadlift variations helps you train the hinge movement pattern while putting less stress on your lumbar spine. Inhale as you send your hips back to initiate movement and bend forward while maintaining a neutral spine. To get back up, exhale and repeat.
According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), frequent activity throughout pregnancy may reduce the need for cesarean delivery. So stay fit and do not fret. Congratulations on your upcoming pregnancy! I am confident that you will be an excellent mother to your child. Simply enjoy the journey to be more strong and more reliable for your little one.