Being Pregnant

9 Safe Exercises Pregnant Women Can (and Should) Do

Posted by michellehorton on February 2nd, 2012 at 8:00 am

preg07 300x199 9 Safe Exercises Pregnant Women Can (and Should) Do Even if you know the truth about safe prenatal exercising, you still might have a long list of excuses.

No time.

Achy joints.

A sedentary lifestyle.

But there are simple exercises that are both easy and extremely beneficial to both you and your baby, even for beginners. Of course you should check with your doctor or mid-wife about your health status before starting any exercise program, especially if you have a high-risk pregnancy. And of course these don’t apply to pregnant women on bed rest.

But for everyone else, here are 10 no-excuse exercises to get you up and moving:

preg01 9 Safe Exercises Pregnant Women Can (and Should) Do

1. Take a walk
Moderate exercise (like walking) is safe in healthy pregnancies, even for those who were sedentary pre-pregnancy, according to Raul Artal, MD, lead author of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists' (ACOG) guidelines on prenatal exercise. Even if you have no time to hit the gym, there are easy ways to sneak in more walking: park further away in parking lots, opt for the stairs, take a 10 min. walk around the building on your lunch break, etc.
Photo:Erik Isakson/Blend Images via WebMD

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9 Safe Exercises Pregnant Women Can (and Should) Do
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1 Comment

I just wanted to say that kegals are the worst thing anyone can do, as it causes the pelvic floor to become too tight and unyielding, and it pulls the sacrum into the pelvic cavity. a better exercise to do is to stretch and lengthen the hamstrings, and tighten your glutes to pull the sacrum out, and allow the pelvic floor to be long and lean, which is both stronger and more supple, allowing an easier delivery.

Jillian Nicol commented on Feb 08 12 at 11:14 am

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