Exercise in pregnancy

Soooo... Working in the birthing world for several years now I have heard it all...

Don't exercise it will put stress on the baby!!

You can exercise but not until you are short of breath.

Not unless you have had a scan first.

Only after the first 12 weeks...

You shouldn't burn calories your baby needs them all.

So what is the right information, is exercise good or bad? So here's the lowdown.

Exercise and movement in pregnancy for all low risk mamas has so many benefits.

Decreased risk of pre eclampsia. Reduced lower back pain. Decreased risk of developing gestational diabetes. Improved psychological wellbeing and reduced risk of postpartum depression. Increased placental blood flow and better placental implantation in early pregnancy. Decreased length of labour. Reduced risk of premature birth. Reduced risk of cesarean birth. If you have exercised in pregnancy your baby is less likely to require assistance during delivery and more likely to tolerate stress of ongoing surges with ease.

Optimal foetal positioning , movement during pregnancy helps with this ,it is not enough to have baby be head down. Improved recovery, w

Now who wants faster and more comfortable postpartum period? me too...

So if these reasons aren't enough to make you think about moving this pregnancy I'm not sure what will.

Now where to start?

Begin by picking something you enjoy. The evidence points towards not picking something brand new, don't take up running if you have never ran before, our bodies are flooded with the hormones relaxin and progesterone during pregnancy' and postpartum making us more prone to injury.

Some popular options include, pregnancy yoga,

Pilates, dance, water aerobics, swimming or simply walking .Above all listen to your body if something hurts stop doing it. Keep your pelvic floor heath in mind, breathe throughout the muscle contraction you want to maintain positive intraabdominal pressure to avoid exacerbating issues like diastasis recti.

Tell me did you exercise in your pregnancy?

What is your favorite way to move?

#pregnancyexercise #activepregnancy