Although you are probably already aware of the benefits of exercising regularly, perhaps due to your work or family obligations you may not be able to practice a sport or exercise as much as you’d like. Now that you are pregnant, it is a good moment to incorporate exercise into your lifestyle.  

Simple but effective

Exercise is beneficial to have an optimum level of health, but during pregnancy it can provide you with additional benefits: on the one hand it will help you prevent the typical discomforts of pregnancy and on the other hand it will increase your resistance and physical stamina for the day of the delivery and beyond.

However, pregnancy is not the best moment to start demanding sports, or to take up a new sport that may put you at a risk for falling. 

Introducing a little exercise in your life could be as simple as being more aware of how to take advantage of opportunities to exercise. Examples of simple activities in which you may add some extra exercise are:

• Don’t take the closest parking spot when you go grocery shopping. Park at the farthest end, so you have to walk some more.  

• Go up two or three flights of stairs whenever possible instead of going in the elevator.  

• At work, get up and talk to your co-workers in person instead of using the phone or e-mail. That will help your blood-circulation.  

• When you are cleaning at home, play music you like and dance while you clean.

New exercise routines

Exercising on your own could be a drag, especially if you aren’t used to it. The best way to start off an exercise routine is to share it with other members of your family or with your friends.  

Commit yourself to walking daily, when you come from work, before or after dinner, with your partner, a family member or a friend or neighbor. This will help you keep in shape during pregnancy and avoid swelling in the legs. You don’t have to jog; walking briskly for 15 or 20 minutes is good enough. You must do it briskly, but not so much that you cannot have a conversation while you walk.   

A form of exercise that is recommended during pregnancy is swimming. Besides eliminating stress on your joints, it enables you to improve your circulation and exercise at the same time. If you commit yourself to swimming with a partner, the other person will also benefit from it.  

Working out at the gym

If nobody else can be with you during those activities and you need motivation in order to start to exercise during pregnancy, you could find a gym close to your work or your home, where they can help you to get started.  Most fitness centers will be able to give you an exercise routine or provide you with a trainer that helps you with them. Make sure she has the required experience to work with pregnant women and that she won’t suggest any type of exercise that would be counterproductive.

Some machines, such as the stationary bicycle or stair-climbing machines, you can use during pregnancy, because they help distribute your body-weight. In gyms you can also attend swimming classes, water-aerobic classes or low-impact aerobics classes that are safe to practice during pregnancy.  

And although, due to the initial discomfort of pregnancy it may feel like a drag to go to the gym, thinking about how much better you will feel afterwards will make the effort worthwhile.