The below is an article from one of our Personal Trainers sharing some expert advice on why you should still train while pregnant
As a woman who has been pregnant and given birth to a healthy baby girl, I look back on my pregnancy and wish I had kept up an exercise routine whilst pregnant.
At the beginning of my pregnancy I was 37yrs old, weighed 58kgs and was fit and healthy, training several times a week. When I found out I was pregnant my immediate thought was to stop exercising to protect the growing baby. At 40 weeks pregnant, I was 38yrs old, weighed 71kg and was tired.
If I knew then what I know now I would have continued to train with a qualified Personal Trainer who could guide me through a Pre Natal Exercise Program. The program would have seen me as fit and healthy when my baby was born as I was when I found out I was pregnant.
There are so many benefits in continuing to exercise whilst pregnant, this relates to resistance and cardio vascular training. Some of the benefits are…
- Healthy Weight Gain - it is recommended that you only gain 20% of your body weight whilst pregnant. i.e. 60kg weight = 12kgs weight increase
- Strengthens Pelvic Floor Muscles - your pelvic floor muscles support your bladder, uterus and bowl and with the added weight of a growing baby these muscles need to be strong.
- Prevent Gestational Diabetes - exercise has shown to reduce insulin dependence and help keep you blood sugar levels under control during pregnancy
- Improved sleeping during 1st and 2nd Trimester - energy levels can be low during the 1st & 2nd Trimesters so exercise will help give you energy during the day and sleep well at night.
- Prevent Preeclampsia - lowers the chance you will suffer from High Blood Pressure during your pregnancy. Preeclampsia can result in you being bed ridden in the 3rd Trimester if severe.
- Decrease Back Pain - if you keep your core and pelvic floor muscles strong through exercise these will help support your back during pregnancy. 70 % of women experience back pain during pregnancy.
- Improved Circulation - you will experience fluid retention, bloating and swelling during pregnancy and exercise will help decrease these affects as well as prevent varicose veins and hemorrhoids.
- Decreased Time of Labour - your pelvic floor will be strong from exercising and you will be fitter so you will remain strong during labour.
- Improves Mood - when you exercise your body produces endorphins which make you feel great and these will help to prevent you from suffering from Pre and Post Natal Depression.
- Baby Blues - because you have exercised before baby is born you are healthy and fit and better able to handle those sleepless nights when the Baby Blues can take hold. Up to 80% of mums experience this in the first 2 weeks of having the baby.
- Back in Shape Faster - exercising during pregnancy will have you back to your pre-pregnancy body faster and have you feeling great.
For more information or to find out what's the correct training program for you, contact Vision Personal Training Prahran
*Disclaimer: Individual results vary based on agreed goals. Click here for details.
