Can You Do Sports During Pregnancy?
With more and more social media posts becoming viral, you may have seen articles and videos about pregnant women working out? Performing sports during pregnancy is a topic that many people are curious about. If you want to know more about this matter, we’ll tell you all you need to know!
Is it safe to perform sports during pregnancy?
During pregnancy, your body experiences lots of changes; swollen legs, back pain and many other ailments that may benefit from sports and workouts. Most doctors recommend doing sports during pregnancy, but of course, with certain precautions.
The benefits of practicing sports during pregnancy are varied. Below, we’ll tell you about some of these benefits so that you can decide if it’s right for you:
- Exercise helps with back pain and improves your body posture. Since you’re carrying extra weight from the baby, there are areas of your back that suffer from the bad posture that your body acquires to bear the excess pounds.
- Boosts intestinal movement. Piles and constipation are two of the most common conditions that pregnant women experience. Since sports and working out activate and promote the correct functioning of the digestive system, such problems often improve as well.
- It improves your joint health. During pregnancy, joints tend to become loose, but exercise makes them stronger.
- Helps you sleep. Insomnia during pregnancy will no longer be a problem. Exercise helps you to rest better, eliminate stress and anxiety and stay calm.
Tips for doing sports during pregnancy
If you’re pregnant and are interested in all the benefits that sports have to offer you during pregnancy, you most likely want to begin exercising right away! However, there are some tips you should keep in mind. Doing sports while you’re pregnant isn’t the same as working out when you’re not. Consider the following aspects:
No more than two hours per week
Even if you’re used to visiting the gym every day or three to four times a week, you may need to reduce this. No matter how good you feel, you shouldn’t forget that you also need plenty of rest.
It depends too, on how well you take care of yourself. Even though doing sports is very healthy, some people recommend that you reduce the time you spend exercising and split it into just two weekly sessions.
No intense exercises
You can’t use those two hours a week to train intensely or lift too much weight. Walking, using the elliptical or a stationary bike should be more than enough to keep your body active and allow your metabolism to keep working correctly.
Swimming is a perfect activity for pregnant women that can help to improve your body posture and back pains. Yoga, tai chi and pilates are other ideal options. In many gyms and sports centers, there are classes and activities, specifically for pregnant women.
Learn to breathe
Breathing is very important when you work out, even more so when you’re pregnant. It will help you to get the most benefits from your workout, and will also increase your endurance. Besides, everything you learn about breathing when you exercise will also be very useful during labor.
Stay hydrated
Remember, there’s a tiny person inside of you that depends on you completely and consumes some of your nutrients. Therefore, the mere fact that you’re pregnant should be reason enough to drink more water than usual. If you’re doing sports during pregnancy, then even more so. Drink water before and after working out.
As you’ve seen, not every sport is good for pregnant women. However, there are a lot of things you can do to stay fit. Get going and enjoy this wonderful stage in your life, while you maintain a healthy lifestyle.