How to exercise during pregnancy

Focus on you – there’s no prizes for training super hard

Every woman is different. Every pregnancy is different. Our top advice for exercise during pregnancy is to focus on you. Listen to your body and don’t overdo it. Exercise during pregnancy shouldn’t feel awful, so try to enjoy it; have fun with it, and follow a few golden rules:

Get Comfortable

Make adjustments to the equipment you use and the way you move to account for your changing body. For example, if you lift weights you may need to change to using dumbbells over a barbell because of your bump. If you climb or run you may need bigger shoes, and if you row you’ll need to open your legs as you move up the slide to get to the catch.

Strength and Conditioning

If we’d said this 10 years ago it wouldn’t have gone down well because, until recently, pregnant women were discouraged from any kind of functional exercise. Thankfully, time’s moved on and the benefits of deadlifts, squats and lunges while pregnant are no longer in doubt.

Although you’ll need to pare back exercise as you progress through the trimesters, a solid strength and conditioning programme is encouraged while pregnant. Exercises that focus on strengthening your back and glutes — to counteract the weight of the bump — are especially effective.

Key things to note are to ensure you’re breathing throughout your lifts (no breath holding) and to stop using a weight belt. Train to the strength of your pelvic floor and if you leak or are in any pain at all then reduce the load.

Energy Levels

Your training should be energising, it shouldn’t wipe you out. It should be something to look forward to – not something to dread. To get the balance of these things right you’ll need to adjust the intensity of your sessions. So reduce or stop things like inclines and sprints, increase the amount of rest between sets and reduce your overall training time. Always keep snacks within reach as it’s important to top up your energy levels.

Pelvic Floor

ALWAYS pelvic floor. Pelvic girdle pain and leaking are common in pregnancy, but exercise — whatever it is you’re doing — should not make your symptoms worse. Make sure you’re doing your pelvic floor exercises every day and see a Women’s Health Physio if you need any help at all. WHPs are amazing. If you need help finding one, click here for the directory on the NHS Squeezy app.

Keep it fun

Exercise while pregnant isn’t about pushing through. It should be enjoyable, fun. To get there, you may need to modify your training or start to do something different entirely. Swimming can be a really lovely form of exercise as your movements are supported by the water and you might even forget how big you are!

See a Women’s Health Physio

“After lots of back and hip problems, not helped by having to cart a toddler around, I knew I’d be in trouble if I got pregnant with my second child without preparing my body. In the same way women adjust their diet to ensure they’re healthy for conception — or how we take our folic acid supplements in preparation for pregnancy — I did a pregnancy prehabilitation programme.

I went to a physio with one goal: to make my body strong enough to have another baby. By that I didn’t mean super strong, I meant a functionally strong, stable back and pelvis. I actually had to stop running for a few weeks to bring down inflammation.

Once pregnant, I worked with the same Women’s Health Physio throughout and it was the best thing I could have done.”

~ Dr Emma Ross, co-founder at The Well HQ