Exercise, Baby!

Exercise is crucial to maintain at any stage in life, but especially during those times when life is not proceeding “normally.”  When changes or unexpected developments in life occur, it is easy to not make the same time for exercise that we did before that change happened.  Ironically, this is an even more important time to maintain healthy habits so we are able to stay physically well in order to deal effectively with unforeseen challenges and stressors.   

One example of life change is pregnancy.  Pregnancy produces a major life change that can lead to unhealthy lifestyle habits in response to stressors  during the time of pregnancy, or immediately after, during the postpartum period.  Exercise can provide alleviation of many common pregnancy-related complaints and discomforts, while allowing for a healthy pregnancy and baby.  It is a win-win situation!

Among the many benefits of exercise during pregnancy are the following:

1.     Reduced risk for preeclampsia and gestational diabetes (Butler et al., 2004).

2.     Reduced risk for excess maternal weight gain (Ruchat et al., 2012).

a.     Interesting fact – gaining weight in excess of normal pregnancy weight gain can actually put your child at risk for obesity later in life!

3.     Reduced occurrence of nausea, fatigue, back pain, and heartburn (Da Costa et al., 2003; Radmoski, 2006).

4.     Increased feelings of self-esteem (Artal & Sherman, 1999; Morris & Johnson, 2005; Sternfeld, 1997).

This list is by no means exhaustive, however, it does begin to show us how positive exercise is for both the mother and baby.  Several of the studies mentioned above noted that a moderate intensity exercise routine is enough to provide many of these benefits.  What this means is that an exercise routine incorporating walking or bicycling or swimming, along with consistent resistance training can provide positive benefits!  Even if you have never begun an exercise routine, you can still start one during pregnancy.  I would definitely recommend beginning with a light intensity workout, and letting your doctor know that you are beginning one.  It also would be a good idea to hire a personal trainer who works with special populations to help you create an exercise routine.

At the other end of the spectrum, if you have created a lifestyle of activity that includes training for serious events (i.e. marathons, triathlons, etc.) you can also continue this lifestyle during pregnancy barring any medical health problems, concerns expressed by your physician, and physical discomfort.  Often, a determining factor of the intensity of your exercise during pregnancy is the intensity of your exercise during the year prior to becoming pregnant.  In Artal & Sherman's (1999) study, one of their participants was a woman who was an elite marathoner prior to pregnancy.  At the age of 33, she continued her training regimen of 66.5 miles per week until one week prior to the planned Cesarean section of her twins!

Continuing to exercise during pregnancy is all part of a healthy lifestyle that should begin before pregnancy, and continue long after.  We must remind ourselves that exercise as part of a healthy lifestyle is not just simply to be healthy at one point in time, but to be healthy for a lifetime.  In our minds, exercise must become a vehicle to enjoy other parts of our life!

References

Artal, R., & Sherman, C. (1999). Exercise during pregnancy safe and beneficial for most. The Physical and Sports Medicine, 27, 51-60.

Butler, C., Williams, M., Sorensen, T., Frederick, I., & Leisenring, W. (2004). Relation between maternal recreational physical activity and plasma lipids in early pregnancy. American Journal of Epidemiology, 160, 350-359.

Da Costa, D., et al. (2003). Self-reported leisure-time physical activity during pregnancy and relationship in psychological well-being. Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology, 24, 111-119.

Morris, S.N., & Johnson, N.R. (2005). Exercise during pregnancy a critical appraisal of the literature. The Journal of Reproductive Medicine, 50(3), 181-188.

Radmoski, M. (2006). Exercise during pregnancy. Wellness Options, 24, 38-39.

Ruchat et al. (2012). Nutrition and exercise reduce excessive weight gain in normal-weight pregnant women. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 1419-1426. DOI: 10.1249

Sternfeld, B. (1997). Physical activity and pregnancy outcome review and recommendations. Sports Medicine, 23, 33-47.