Home Workouts When Pregnancy

Home Workout When Pregnancy

There are lots of good reasons to keep active when you're pregnant.

Exercise improves your muscle tone, strength and endurance, which may make it easier for you to adapt to the changes that pregnancy brings.

Which exercises are best in pregnancy?

The ideal exercise in pregnancy will get your heart pumping and keep you supple, without causing physical stress. Many activities, such as running and weight training, are fine in the beginning, but you may need to modify your workout as you grow bigger.

You'll really feel the benefit if you do a combination of:

Aerobic exercise, which works your heart and lungs.

Muscle-strengthening exercise, which improves your strength, flexibility and posture.

To get the full benefits, you'll need to exercise at least three times a week, ideally more. Try to find something that you enjoy, as you'll be more likely to stick to it in the longer term.

Build activity into your daily life, too. For example, taking the stairs instead of the lift, and doing housework or gardening, counts as exercise.

Walking

Brisk walking keeps you fit without jarring your knees and ankles, and gives your heart a workout. It is safe throughout pregnancy, and can be built into your daily routine. Aim to walk for at least 30 minutes a day, five times a week. So walk to the shops rather than drive, take the bus only part of the way, or do a brisk few laps of the park or pavements in your lunch hour.

Running:

Running is one of the quickest and most efficient ways to work your heart and body, and you can vary the distance as your energy levels allow.

However, if running is new to you, pregnancy is probably not the time to start. It’s best to stick to more gentle exercise, such as walking or swimming.

Swimming:

Swimming is an ideal, and safe, form of exercise in pregnancy. It exercises your arms and legs, and works your heart and lungs. The bigger your bump gets, the more you’ll enjoy feeling weightless in the water.

If you enjoy group activity, you could join an aquanatal class or aqua aerobics class. Exercising while standing in water is gentle on your joints and supports your bump. It can help to ease back pain and swelling in your legs in late pregnancy.

Yoga:

Pregnancy yoga helps to maintain muscle tone and flexibility and improve your posture. It’s kinder to your joints than more vigorous types of exercise. However, you should also do some aerobic activity, such as brisk walking, a few times a week, to give your heart a workout.

Stretching helps to keep you supple, though don't overdo it. Think about gently opening and extending your body, rather than pushing yourself. Your yoga teacher will show you how to relax your body and mind.

Pilates:

Your pilates teacher will guide you on your posture, making you aware of how you hold your body. She’ll take you through a series of positions and movements that will strengthen your core muscles. You’ll learn how to time your breathing with the exercises, and how to relax.

Weight training:

If weight training is already part of your exercise routine, there’s no reason to stop now that you're pregnant. As long as you're careful, using light weights will tone and strengthen your muscles.

Aerobics:

Going along to a weekly aerobics class gives you a regular time to exercise. It's safe, as long as you keep the exercises low impact, to protect your joints. If you sign up for an antenatal class

Dance:

Try not to leap, jump, twirl or change direction suddenly, as you may lose your balance. If you join an antenatal dance class, you can lose yourself in music, while keeping fit under the instruction of a qualified teacher, who can adapt the moves to your stage of pregnancy.

Pelvic floor exercises:

Last, but definitely not least, exercise your pelvic floor! If you have weak pelvic floor muscles, you may leak small amounts of wee when you exercise, cough or sneeze (stress incontinence). You can prevent this from happening by doing pelvic floor exercises every day.