The Truth about Pregnancy Exercise
This isn't me, but I lifted weights throughout my pregnancy with Nora and plan on doing the same with this baby.
When I was pregnant with my first child I read a book that completely scared me about pregnancy exercise. The woman who wrote the book never exercised when she was pregnant and didn’t think other women should either. She said things like, What if it was your fault you miscarried? Would you be completely okay with being responsible for your baby’s death? Words like that haunted me and I decided I needed to do what was best for me and my baby and stopped working out. The next six weeks I didn’t work out at all and let me tell you how I felt. I felt terrible. I wasn’t happy and I felt like I was doing something wrong for me and my baby.
One day I was sitting in the house alone wishing I could work out and I thought –why am I taking this woman’s words as fact? I haven’t done any research myself. So, I began my lengthy research into pregnancy exercise. I also joined a pregnancy exercise class to get a better idea of what the experts were allowing women to do.
This is what I discovered:
1. The golden rule of pregnancy exercise is to listen to your body. If something doesn’t feel right, stop, rest and drink water. If you still don’t feel right call your doctor.
2. Stay hydrated! Drinking adequate water is very important during pregnancy –especially if you are working out. Dehydration can lead to contractions and pre-term labor.
3. Throw out your heart rate monitor- The old saying about not letting your heart rate go above 140 is no longer believed to be true. Listen to your body and pay more attention to your breath. You don’t want to push yourself to the point of not being able to breathe. You don’t want to put yourself in a situation where you and the baby are fighting for oxygen. Breathing hard is perfectly okay. Pushing yourself so hard you’re gasping for air is not recommended.
4. You can pretty much keep the same exercise regiment you were using pre-baby. Weight lifting, running, walking and swimming are all okay. The exercises you shouldn’t continue are horseback riding, and any dangerous sport that might involve impact to the stomach. For example I stop playing softball because I’m not confident I can protect my stomach from a ball and there is always the risk of impact when running from base to base.
5. Don’t try to tackle new exercise goals while pregnant. Don’t start marathon training, etc. Your goal should be to maintain fitness and get those endorphins flowing.
6. Don’t lay flat on your back for more than two minutes at a time. If you lay on your back for too long you risk the weight of your pregnant belly cutting off the blood flow (and nutrients, etc) to your baby. You can still lay on your back though. I still did bench presses, skull crushers, pectoral flys, etc. right up until the day Nora was born.
7. Just because you’re pregnant doesn’t mean you can’t work your abdominals (It does change HOW you work your abs though). Having strong abdominal muscles will actually help you to push better and get that baby out when the time comes. The abdominal exercises that are okay during pregnancy are planks and v-sits.
What exercise did you keep up while pregnant?
p.s. Stay tuned for part 2, where I will share all of the benefits of pregnancy exercise!
I won tickets to medieval times in Baltimore on Sunday (for my 5 year...
I worked out up until the day I was 40 weeks pregnant even, on my due date. I did cardio and weight-training my whole pregnancy.
That last day at the gym I had a really hard time doing stuff, so I didn’t go for the last week I was pregnant/ over-due. Bradford was born 8 days later weighing in at a large and in charge 11 lbs, 8 oz. Clearly having a giant baby in my belly was why I felt so bad that last day at the gym, and clearly working out so much while pregnant didn’t have a negative impact on my pregnancy.
Working out to the best of your ability and endurance is the key to a healthy pregnancy.
I worked out until I reached around my third trimester. I got sick for 2 weeks then did 2 weeks of traveling for baby showers and I started up walking again about a month and a half before Levi was born. I felt horrible when i wasn’t working out or walking and I gained weight, but as soon as I started up again I shed off the excess pounds i didn’t need. i agree that its not harmful to the baby!!
Heather,
Way to work out your whole pregnancy! I am so amazed with Bradford’s size. You sure do make healthy babies! When’s baby #2 coming ; ) hehe. I definitely agree with you that working out while pregnant does not have a negative impact on pregnancy. You’ll have to read part 2 (when it’s out) and tell me if you noticed any of the benefits I will talk about.
Thanks for commenting!
Jessica,
I think you’re so right for listening to your body -and for giving exercise another try after taking a break. I forgot to write about it but one of my running books says that the pregnant body changes so much from week to week (center of gravity changing, etc). That what feels bad one week might feel completely fine the next so they say to give it another try in a few days. I’m still a huge fan of listening to your body though and if my body ever doesn’t feel right exercising I’m going to stop. I definitely agree with you that exercise is not harmful to the baby!
Thanks for commenting!
Kelly
Ugh I was so uncomfortable when i wasn’t active! Getting sick was the worst because it knocked me completely out of my routine so I’m glad I had enough motivation to get back into gear after I got done sitting around for a month feeling sluggish lol It really gives you energy!
Since you were able to do it with your first pregnancy I don’t see a problem with this one, too
I know they say that the first and second pregnancies can be completely different but I’m sure you’ll be fine!! I’ll even go to the gym with you if you want once Levi is 2 months old 
you are too good!! I miss you!
Jessica, I really hope I can continue to workout this pregnancy! I am dealing with a yucky case of plantar fascitis from running the marine corps marathon but so far it hasn’t kept me from working out. I just have to deal with more pain than usual
Toni, You’re too funy! Have you been able to run at all lately? I miss my running buddy!
Kelly
[...] Read Part 1 (What you can/can’t do while pregnant and exercising) here. [...]
Hi-
Great article! I just gave birth to my 5th child. She is exactly 1 week old today. I was running marathons prior to my pregnancy and really wanted to stay in shape this time. With all of my other kids — I stopped exercising about half way through. By the end – I was in horrible pain with back aches and just general body aches.
This time around, I kept running through my whole pregnancy. The evening before my daughter was born I actually did an easy 6 miles on the treadmill . . .. which finished off 25 miles that week for me.
I had absolutely no back ache this time around, and really no body aches at all. I felt great all the way to delivery! I think working out really kept my core strong and my weight in check, so I didn’t have the regular pains I experienced before.
I had a very rapid delivery – made it to the hospital, but just not inside. . . .she was born in our van in the parking lot!
But she is a perfectly healthy and very strong little girl! I feel great and have just 9 pounds to lose to get back to my prepregnancy weight (which feels great compared to my other pregnancies — which left me with about 25 pounds to lose!)
Everyone thought I was crazy to continue running throughout my pregnancy.. .. but here is proof that if you do it correctly and listen to your body – it is the best thing for you and for baby!
Kathy,
Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us. You are a wonderful example for pregnant women!! I too have noticed that I have a lot less back pain when I exercise! Though I haven’t been able to keep up with my weekly running like you were able to. I had a very fast delivery the first time around and I’m hoping for a similar experience the second time around! I’ve been reading up on how to deliver a baby just in case I end up like you and delivering in the car
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I am very curious, did you use a maternity support belt while running later in pregnancy? I’ve been looking into using them but haven’t officially made my decision yet.
Thanks again for sharing your story!
Kelly