From relieving stress to speeding recovery post-delivery, exercise offers a number of benefits when you're expecting. If you have been exercising at a gym or health club prior to your pregnancy, small potential changes to your lifestyle are all that is needed to continue exercising at a similar pace. If you have decided pregnancy is a good time to emphasize fitness and wish to join a gym, your physician may be able to offer guidance on how to begin.
Physician's Approval
When you find out your pregnant, you and your physician will likely discuss your current lifestyle, including eating and exercise habits. Give your physician an accurate picture of how much you exercise. If you go to the gym, describe machines or activities you regularly perform to ensure they are safe for you while you are pregnant. In your first trimester, you may find you are able to keep a similar pace to what you were doing before. As you advance in your pregnancy, however, keeping the same pace may become difficult if you were running on a treadmill or taking high-impact aerobics classes.
Pregnant-Friendly Gym
Consulting gym personnel, such as a trainer or manager, can help you find out if your gym offers special programs for pregnant women, like pregnancy exercise classes. A personal trainer or other exercise specialist at your gym can also work with you to pinpoint exercise equipment that may not be ideal for use during pregnancy, such as a bench press that could fall on your abdomen or a squat machine that requires you to lie on your back, as this can interfere with your baby's blood supply. Also, if you engaged in contact sports at your gym, such as basketball, soccer or ice hockey, these should be avoided during pregnancy, according to the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
Recommended Activities
As you advance in your pregnancy, you may find your growing stomach starts to restrict some of the activities you once did in the gym. Consider low-impact exercises like walking, swimming, cycling on a recumbent bicycle or taking a water aerobics class. The goal is to keep moving, but at a comfortable pace.
Symptoms
Listen to your body during your exercise session to ensure you are exercising safely. For example, becoming overheated is a problem that can lead to fainting or dehydration, which puts your baby at risk. Experiencing symptoms like nausea, muscle weakness or chest pain are also signs you are exercising too hard. If you have symptoms like fluid or blood leaking from your vagina or you experience uterine contractions, have gym personnel contact emergency medical services.
References
- KidsHealth; Exercising During Pregnancy; November 2010
- BabyCenter: The 13 Rules of Safe Pregnancy Exercise
- American Pregnancy Association; Top Recommended Exercises; 2011
- The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists; Exercise During Pregnancy; June 2003
- FamilyDoctor.org; Exercise During Pregnancy: What You Can Do for a Healthy Pregnancy; August 2010
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