Pregnancy is associated with numerous changes that happen in women’s bodies. It can be overwhelming and confusing to navigate through all the information available.  It has been scientifically proven that exercise during uncomplicated pregnancy is associated with a number of health benefits for both mother and baby. These include prevention of gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia as well as shorter and less complicated labour.

Here we would like to provide you with the latest evidence-based guidelines for exercise during pregnancy.

All women without complications are encouraged to remain active during pregnancy.

This statement applies for the entire duration of the pregnancy including the first three months. Physical activity in the first trimester does not increase the risk of miscarriage or other complications. It is also important to note that decrease in physical activity is not associated with such complications as gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia and pregnancy related weight gain. We encourage you to consult with your medical health care provider if you are not sure whether to continue with your usual exercise routine.

Aim to be active on most or all days of the week

Someone who is usually active and participates in some form of exercise on regular basis should try and maintain this during pregnancy. Sometimes movement, duration and intensity will need to be adjusted due to the changes that occur to the body such as increase in body weight, decreased blood pressure, increased ligament laxity etc. Talk to your physiotherapist to discuss if any changes are required for you and your exercise routine. If you are starting a completely new exercise routine it will be better to commence with 3-4 days per week and increase as you find comfortable.

Pregnant women are advised to accumulate at least 150 minutes of physical activity per week.

Minimum of 30 minutes per session at least 5 days per week is ideal to achieve exercise-associated benefits. Experts encourage women to do aerobic and strengthening exercises during pregnancy. Walking (at a brisk pace), stationary cycling and swimming are great options for aerobic training. Strengthening exercises should be done twice a week using light weights, body weight or resistance bands. 

Women are advised to perform exercises of moderate intensity during pregnancy.

This will vary and depend on woman’s pre pregnancy level of fitness.

One of the ways to monitor the intensity of exercise is heart rate measurement. If it is something that you would like to do, you will find the heart rate rangers to be guided by in the table below.

Borg’s Rating of Perceived Exhaustion (RPE) scale is an easy and practical way to measure level of exertion. Levels 12-14 are indications of moderate intensity.

And finally a “talk test” is another simple way to help monitor exertion. At moderate level a woman should be able to comfortably maintain a conversation; if needing to stop for a breath it would be considered vigourous.

Some of the examples of moderate intensity training include brisk walking, water aerobics, stationary cycling and resistance training.

Pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) performed on daily basis may assist in reducing the risk of urinary incontinence.

PFMT has been found to decrease the rate of prenatal urinary incontinence by 50%. Women are encouraged to consult their pelvis floor physiotherapist to make sure that the exercises are performed with correct technique.

Pregnant women are advised to avoid exercises performed lying flat on back after first trimester. 

Lying on the back when pregnant can put pressure on big blood vessels and affect blood supply to major organs. Change or adjust position if experiencing symptoms of light-headedness, nausea or feeling unwell.

Watch out for........

If experiencing any of the symptoms listed below at any stage during the pregnancy all women must stop the exercise and contact their healthcare provider as soon as possible:

• Persistent excessive shortness of breath that does not resolve on rest
• Severe chest pain
• Regular and painful uterine contractions
• Vaginal bleeding
• Persistent loss of fluid from the vagina indicating rupture of the membranes
• Persistent dizziness or faintness that does not resolve on rest
• Sudden swelling of ankles, hands and face
• Decreased foetal movement

We hope that this information gives you confidence in continuing or starting your exercise journey during pregnancy. Do not hesitate to contact us here at Innerstrength Healthcare if you have any question and would like any further advice.

The information is based on "2019 Canadian guideline for physical activity throughout pregnancy" and 2020 RANZCOG "Exercise during pregnancy" guidelines.