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Article Series: Pregnancy
Pregnancy: Everything You Need To Know
Expecting
Mom's: Low Impact Workouts
Exercise is extremely important for pregnant
women. Many don’t always feel up to it, especially when nausea
starts or they feel huge. But, exercise has many benefits other
than keeping your weight under control. It increases your circulation,
helps lessen morning sickness, improves the entire digestive
system (which will reduce constipation and heartburn), and
can make you at lower risk for gestational diabetes. Your muscles
will strengthen, which will be important for childbirth. Exercise
also reduces stress and makes you feel better in general. Exercising
thirty minutes a day, three times per week can really make
pregnancy much better and more enjoyable. Here are some benefits:
- help
balance your hormones
- lessen
your morning sickness
- improve
your constipation
- relieve
stress
- prevent
or manage gestational diabetes
Before
you start exercising, talk to your health care provider. She or he will make sure that it is safe for you to start an
exercise routine, and recommend an exercise routine is best
for you. Sometimes, pregnant women can suffer from conditions
that make exercise very dangerous. Don’t risk your or the baby’s
health, get a professional opinion first. Once your doctor
has approved and helped you find out what is best for you,
you can start exercising at a level that does not cause pain,
shortness of breath or excessive tiredness. You may then slowly
increase your activity. Use care and control, and if you find
that you are tired, in pain, or winded, stop and try to find
something else to do the next time. If you have already been
exercising, it's easier to keep exercising during pregnancy.
If you haven't exercised before, start off slow. The worst
thing you can do is over doing it. This is not a race, and
taking your time and getting used to a new routine is not going
to happen overnight. The key is to ease your pregnancy woes,
not add to them in any way.
Chose a fun activity, something you enjoy. If you love to
be outside and weather permits, go walking. There are plenty
of different programs that are fun but don’t put added strain
on your muscles or heart. Focus on low-impact activities, those
are best during pregnancy and seem to have the most benefit.
Avoid contact sports and be careful of any activities in which
you may get hit in the stomach. Try exercises that don’t require
extra weight to be put on your body. Swimming and stationary
cycling can be continued throughout pregnancy. Walking and
low-impact aerobics are the best exercises to start with and
are very easy and fun.
Aerobics
This activity is designed to increase you heart rate and better
your circulation. It allows more oxygen to filter through your
blood and helps keep everything moving. Continuous and constant
movement is what you are doing. Some great low impact activities
during pregnancy include:
- swimming
- water
exercises and aerobics
- walking
- stationary
cycling
Yoga and Pilates
Yoga and Pilates are becoming increasingly for expecting moms.
They are great for your physical and mental health. Pilates
combines strength training with breathing and posture techniques,
for that total-body workout. It is great for toning and staying
in control through breathing and good body mechanics. This
will surely benefit any women facing childbirth. When joining
a class or getting a video makes sure you look for ones that
are designed for pregnancy. Not all the regular techniques
in Yoga and Pilates are good for pregnant women.
Kegels
Kegels are the ultimate exercise whether you are pregnant
or not and they are so easy to do. You don't even need to stand
up to do them. Kegel exercises help to strengthen and tone
your pelvic floor muscles; this will not only give you more
control during labor, but will improve sex as well. After labor
and delivery your pelvic floor muscles will be loose, which
can lead to incontinence and other complications. After delivery
you can do these to re-strengthen the muscles and tone and
tighten the vagina. All you need to do is squeeze your pelvic
muscles for a few minutes everyday, as if you were trying to
hold your bladder.
When the weather is hot you can choose to exercise in the
early morning or late evening to help you avoid getting overheated.
If you're exercising indoors, make sure the room has enough
ventilation. Consider using a fan to help keep you cool. Drink
plenty of fluids, even if you don't feel thirsty. Make sure
that you're eating a well-balanced diet. Normally, pregnancy
increases your food requirements by 300 calories a day, even
without exercise.
What problems should I tell my doctor about?
- Blood
or fluid coming from your vagina
- Sudden
or severe abdominal or vaginal pain
- Contractions
that go on for 30 minutes after you stop exercising
- Chest
pain
- Shortness
of breath
- Headache
that is severe or won't go away
- Dizziness
- Dim
or blurry vision
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SolveYourProblem.com
: 2006
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