Fearless Strength: Sweating it out Through Birth- day with Prenatal Exercise

So you’re pregnant and concerned about how to continue or introduce a fitness routine.  Not to fear, there are hundreds of routes to take while being pregnant that can maintain or even increase your fitness level while preparing for the greatest marathon of your life!  Many of us think of prenatal exercise and yoga as the best place to start.  

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Yes, supplementing with yoga is a great approach; it will help reduce the symptoms of pregnancy by relaxing the muscles, reducing tension, and give you the opportunity to breath and chill out!  But what will this do for you come birth day?  I’m a strong advocate of yoga and practice routinely, but let’s be realistic. Simply put, a marathon runner does not train by performing pace runs and yoga with no further exercise.  Solely relying on yoga is not going to make the same impact as prenatal exercise; to improve your optimum strength and stamina that you will greatly need on birth day. 

Prenatal moms need to take the same direction as a marathoner or other athlete, so why not train for it? Consulting with a prenatal exercise specialist is a great place to start, as she or he can customize a workout plan for you to progressively increase stamina, strength, muscle tone, improve blood volume, reinforce proper breathing techniques and introduce specific abdominal exercises in order to effectively prepare for a more physically demanding event, such as giving birth.  It’s important to keep your workouts challenging and fun, but without creating excess fatigue.  This can be gauged with the use of a heart rate monitor so that you can train harder in a safe zone.  While training for prenatal exercise, your heart rate should go no higher than 140 beats per minute.  For best overall results, perform strength training at least two times per week and sneak in cardio daily for at least 20 minutes on a bike, elliptical or a walk out doors. 

Training smarter, in a safe zone, will not only help you to be more prepared for your birth experience, but you will also enjoy the change you see and feel in your new and improved body during pregnancy and after!

For tips on postnatal workouts, check out my next blog!

 Train smart and feel good,

Allison

Allison Schaeffer is a Fitness Professional with over eight years of experience helping people to achieve their goals! She is certified by NASM, holds a BFA Degree in Dance from Rutgers University.  You can learn more about Allison on our website, or she can be reached at: [email protected].