Prenatal Fitness: Benefits of Staying Physically Active During Pregnancy

Exercising during pregnancy allows for women to feel more energetic, manage the physical demands of labor, and bounce back mentally and physically in the postpartum period. Benefits also include less weight gain, more restful sleep, decreases chance of morning sickness, and if participating in group exercise, it can be great for social health. The real goal of exercising while pregnant is to maintain good health and fitness into the postpartum period; women will bounce back from labor even faster if they stick to an exercise program through their pregnancy. The body goes through many musculoskeletal changes during pregnancy, including the body adjusting to the shift of a woman’s center of gravity. Exercising while pregnant can aid the body in altering to these changes with ease. Hormonal changes consist of increasing levels of estrogen and relaxin that cause joints to become more flexible. Staying physically fit during pregnancy improves muscle function and muscle soreness decreases as a result of exercising. Light resistance training program is definitely effective for both mom and baby, however there is not a great deal of research on heavy resistance training while pregnant. I assume it would be extremely difficult to find a group of pregnant women willing to “test” if it is beneficial for them and their baby.

Resistance training while pregnant provides women with many physiological maternal benefits. A finding by the National Strength and Conditioning Association states that women who exercise regularly had decreased incidence of pregnancy-induced hypertension as well. When designing a training program, importance should be placed on core work in order to counteract the lumbar stress and help relieve back pain. Laying on their stomach and machines that press up against their bellies should be avoided.