Fitness Program for Pregnant Women
By: Mark MonteiroTotal Views: 50, Word Count: 692,
Pregnant women are advised by the doctors to exercise daily during pregnancy. It is important to keep them healthy as during this period, women make least physical movements and stay at home. It would be better to engage yourself in fitness program before getting pregnant, so that you don't face a problem while exercising during those last crucial months. If you are among those women who get into the habit of exercising only after they get pregnant, then you need to follow some steps to ensure that you benefit from the fitness program and stay safe too. Below are some tips on fitness program for pregnant women.
Fitness Program for Pregnant Women
Your goal behind exercising should not include losing weight or dieting. The reason why doctors advise exercising during pregnancy is to make you feel better and prevent cases of insomnia. It also helps you to prepare your body for labor and delivery. It would be better if you set goals prior to starting your exercise. The best time to begin exercising is before conception. Even if you missed it, you need not bother. You can still set some goals for yourself. Exercise every day for about 20 minutes. Take a prenatal yoga class two days a week. Maintain a moderate weight gain of 25 – 35 pounds. Consulting a doctor is also important before starting any exercise program. Some women come under health risks if they exercise during pregnancy. In such cases, doctors may recommend alternatives for you.
Whether you are pregnant or not, before you start your workout program, it is important that you warm up. This will prevent any physical injury to your muscles as well as keep proper flood circulation in your body during exercising. A light warm up for 5 to 10 minutes including some stretching would be fine. Some of the women with the following diseases must not exercise:
- History of miscarriage
- Lung disease or asthma complicated by exercise
- Preeclampsia
- Heart or cardiovascular disease
- Placental difficulties
If you feel any difficulty like bleeding, cramps, or dizziness, you should immediately stop exercising and take rest.
In the initial days of exercising, try to be moderate. You must not try to exercise too hard on the first day itself, so that you get exhausted and frustrated right on the first day. If you feel tiredness after your exercise, possibly you need to slow down the next day. Some of the exercises that you can begin with are biking, swimming, and walking. Your exercising should not increase your blood pressure above 140 beats per minute. Drinking lots of water before, during, and after the exercise can be beneficial for you. Keeping yourself hydrated during and after the exercise will prevent soreness and cramps after exercise. Kegel exercises are also advised for pregnant women. This exercise helps you to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles. To perform this exercise, you need to tighten the walls of your vagina, as you would do to hold your urine. Hold it for 10 to 15 minutes and then release. This exercise can be done multiple times a day and it would help during the pushing phase of delivery.
After you finish your exercise, you should cool down, so that your heart rate comes to normal and the blood pressure gets lowered. To cool down when you are about to end the exercise, you can slow down the pace of your walking, swimming, etc. You can even perform some simple stretches after you finish your workout. However, it is necessary that you do it in a uniform pattern, so that it doesn't bring a sudden change in your blood pressure, as it may make you feel dizzy.
It is however, important to consult your doctor before starting any exercising program. Your aim while exercising should be feeling good and not losing weight. Hope that the above tips on fitness program for pregnant women prove helpful to you.
About the Author
Dr. Mark Monteiro is graduated from the Hazard University and done his MBA from the he University Of Illinois College Of Medicine. Currently he is working as general physician at Elmhurst Loyola Center for Health. For over 15 years he has been a pioneer in the field of physician health. He has contributed to the treatment of many diseases like- ASTHMA, TUBERCULOSIS, HIV, HEPATITIS AND ITS TREATMENT
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