Although there is a large amount of emotional and physical stress that a pregnant woman experiences, fitting in weight training workouts can provide her with significant benefits. It's ideal to complete the exercise sessions twice a week, with at least a day of rest between, but be sure to listen to your doctor and your body and only do what you feel comfortable doing.
Benefits
Lifting weights is not only safe, but is recommended during pregnancy. Maintaining your muscle function and strength can cause you to perform better during pregnancy and possibly give birth with more ease, but also can help you bounce back more quickly after giving birth. It can also improve your mood and sleep patterns and reduce aching.
Intensity
It's important to consider your weight training efforts for muscle and strength maintenance, and not to increase muscle mass or strength. Choose weights that are adequate to cause your muscles to burn, but not so heavy as to make you uncomfortable. Baby Center suggests that you focus on using lighter weights and instead increase the number of repetitions. Choose the appropriate weight that will allow you to complete 12 to 15 repetitions, with the last couple of repetitions somewhat difficult to complete.
Exercises
You should focus on exercises that develop the large muscles in your body. Some safe exercises you can perform while pregnant include the seated row, which develops your back and biceps; the body weight squat, which will strengthen your glutes and quad muscles; and the shoulder lateral raise, which maintains the shoulder muscles. You can also perform push-ups against the wall, by placing your hands on a wall in front of you and placing your feet a few feet away from the wall. Most general weight training exercises are safe to perform, as long as you take precautions to avoid accidental contact with the stomach.
Considerations
Some pregnant women prefer to perform weight training on commercial machines to avoid the somewhat dangerous situation of holding free weights that can potentially drop on your stomach. Also, it's recommended that you avoid using the Valsalva maneuver, or holding your breath during the exercises, because an increase of pressure within the pelvic area can raise the risk of connective tissue damage.
Warning
There are some movements and situations that should be avoided while you're pregnant. Baby Center suggests that you avoid walking lunges, as they can increase the injury risk around the pelvic area. Also, avoid any positions where you're lying on your back after the first trimester, as the increase of weight at your belly area can put pressure on the vena cava vein, which could adversely affect blood flow to your brain and uterus.
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