December 01, 2006

Regular exercise is good for us anytime but it is especially beneficial during pregnancy. As your body changes to accommodate the growing baby, exercise helps you maintain your muscle tone, improve your posture, strength and endurance. Exercise can make you feel better, giving you more energy and having a positive effect on your moods. It is important to check with your doctor or midwife before starting any exercise or to see if you can continue the exercise you were doing before you became pregnant.

All of your body beautifully changes in some way during pregnancy including your tolerance for exercise. Pregnancy is not the time to take up vigorous sports that could cause you to loose your balance or increase your potential for falls or injury including such things as skydiving, scuba diving, rock climbing, horseback riding, or soccer. If you are skilled and actively involved in a recreational sport when you become pregnant, check with your doctor/midwife to see if you can continue as long as you feel comfortable. Remember, it is important to stop any activity that makes you uncomfortable or causes pain.

Many women find they can take up walking or swimming and many continue playing tennis, cross-country skiing, jogging or bicycling. Because the hormones of pregnancy cause your ligaments to relax in all of your joints, you will want to do low-impact aerobics and seek a pregnancy fitness or yoga class. In later pregnancy, you may find that you need to slow down your exercise routine and adjust to your changing body needs. In addition, you should discontinue such exercise as skiing, snowmobiling and horseback riding if you were able to participate in those activities in early pregnancy.

Enjoy safe exercising during your pregnancy and be sure to:

• Avoid bouncing or jerking movements
• Start slow to avoid strain and fatigue and gradually increase your level of exercise
• Include a warm-up and cool-down phase
• Slow your activity level if you are unable to speak aloud during exercise
• Drink plenty of liquids before, during and after exercise
• Keep breathing, do not hold your breath
• Do not exceed your target heart rate (To calculate your target heart rate, use the following formula: 220 – your age =    x 60% to x 80%)
• Avoid overheating, your body temperature should not go above 101 degrees
• Stop exercising immediately if you feel dizzy or faint, have breathing problems, experience any pain or vaginal bleeding

Check with your doctor/midwife if you have any questions about exercise