First Trimester Exercise

Just found out you’re pregnant and wondering what exercises are safe to do? Or maybe you have decided you want to be a little bit healthier during pregnancy? This is a great place to start!

Exercise is one of THE best things you can do for your health. In truth, there are very few exercises you have to avoid or modify during pregnancy.

Many women are concerned about exercise during pregnancy, due to risk of bleeding or miscarrying. Here are a factors to consider when starting an exercise program during pregnancy:

Type and Duration

Most exercises should be started with the goal to help your aerobic health and musculoskeletal fitness. So examples of safe exercises to initiate:

• Walking
• Swimming
• Yoga
• Stationary bicycle
• Pilates
• Running or jogging
• Racquet sports
• Strength training/weight lifting

The goal is to get around 150 minutes of aerobic exercise per week. This has been proven to improve prenatal outcomes, decrease your risk for gestational diabetes, decrease preeclampsia risk, and decrease risk of having a baby with macrosomia- aka a very large baby. So exercise is a definite YES in pregnancy. The general rule is you may continue whatever level of exercise you were doing prior to pregnancy. If you weren’t doing any exercise, you can start a gentle exercise program, but aim for about 150 minutes a week.

Exercises to AVOID:

While most exercises are approved, or can be done with modifications, here are some to definitely AVOID during pregnancy:

• Scuba diving
• Sky diving
• Contact sports- hockey, soccer, football, basketball, boxing, etc.
• Activities with a high risk of falling- skiing, horseback riding, gymnastics, surfing, etc.
• “Hot yoga” or “hot pilates”

The reasons you should avoid these should be pretty self explanatory- you don’t want to cause any trauma to baby. No contact sports, no falling, and no getting too hot.

General Precautions

When exercising during pregnancy, you want to avoid getting overheated. That’s why hot yoga or hot pilates is not recommended. Avoid anything that will raise your body temperature above 102 degrees Fahrenheit. The goal heart rate should be below 160.

Reasons to stop exercising

• Vaginal bleeding
• Abdominal pain with or without nausea
• Regular painful contractions
• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Chest pain
• Shortness of breath
• Muscle weakness
• Calf pain or swelling

If you have any additional questions, always consult a doctor.

In general, exercise is great for pregnancy. There are special populations where exercise may not be recommended, especially in those with high risk pregnancy. But as a general rule, regular low impact exercise is recommended throughout pregnancy to increase maternal health, and prevent complications. So get out there girl and get active!