Why Exercise is Important during Pregnancy

If you exercise during pregnancy you are ensuring yourself a more comfortable nine months of pregnancy compared to not exercising at all. The benefits are plenty but the correct form of workout and the amount of exercise you should be doing counts at every stage of pregnancy. Before you begin on an exercise regime, it is essential to get a green signal from your OB/GYN to exercise. If yours is a low risk pregnancy, and your doctor has Okayed it you can begin a fitness program.

Before you Begin..

• It is also important to remember that every pregnancy is different and the coping ability differs from woman to woman depending on your pre-pregnancy fitness level and attitude.
• Even if you want to start something new, be prepared to recognize symptoms and give up the activity if there are any warning signs such as bleeding, extreme fatigue, feeling dizzy or breathless etcetera.
• Apart from having a low risk pregnancy you should first consider the following questions before any exercise plan is incorporated. If none of them applies to you go can go ahead with the program with your doctor’s approval of course!
• Are there any problems with your current pregnancy? Did you have problems with your previous pregnancy?
• Are you a newbie or was exercise a regular feature even before you got pregnant?
• Do you feel healthy and ready for exercise?
• Are you aware of what you can and cannot do at the different stages of pregnancy? Are you informed of the types of exercises you can practise and the duration (overdoing can be a problem)

Key Benefits at a Glance

Other Benefits of Physical workout

Impacts the Placenta: Moderate exercise has a positive impact on the placenta. When the placenta grows well this will mean baby will receive blood, nutrients and oxygen more efficiently. Studies also show that an increased supply of oxygen will protect your baby during labor and delivery. Exercise helps the placenta to grow and maintain a healthy size and this will help the organ perform its job of supply and elimination well. If exercise is discontinued the placenta can decrease to normal size.

Effect on Baby: Studies show that some form of exercise at appropriate levels has a positive effect on your baby e.g. the motion from the activity can be calming for your baby. Some babies actually fall asleep when you are doing some aerobics. A moderate workout releases hormones that cross the placenta and reaches the baby. Further, as mentioned exercise improves the growth of the placenta and this translates to an improvement in development of the baby. Additionally mothers who exercise produce babies with decreased amount of body fat on the baby and increase the volume of stress tolerance. Leaner babies do not mean low birth weight babies

Effect on Labor and Delivery: Staying fit during pregnancy lowers the chances of intervention such as forceps deliveries and c-sections. Women who have exercised regularly tended to require fewer drugs for pain relief. Even if the above is disputed, the general consensus remains that working out during pregnancy helps deal equips you with the ability to deal with the mental and physical stress of labor. Women reportedly have better energy levels post delivery.

Getting back to the old You: Exercising during pregnancy ensures the development of stronger limbs, back and hips to help deal with your newborn with greater ease after you have delivered. Having worked out allows you to recover more rapidly once your baby is born. Stats show that women who have exercised are able to get back to their routines faster than their counterparts who have not. Stats also reveal that exercising helps you control the weight gain to acceptable levels. Staying fit will mean having lesser pounds to shed and what’s more, those pounds come off more easily.