Top 5 Benefits of Exercising in and after Pregnancy
First of all let me say congratulations! Mothers-to-be! New Mothers!
I've learnt that pregnancy offers a different experience for everyone. Some women encounter no problems at all, while others do. These can range from excessive weight gain, hypertensive conditions, gestational diabetes, infections, difficult labour, mood changes and many more. Would you believe me if I told you that staying active during and after pregnancy can play a significant role in avoiding or reducing the severity of these conditions? You're probably asking, 'Can I even exercise while pregnant?' The answer is, 'Yepp, it's 100% true and yes you most definitely can once medically cleared'. The benefits are so highly valued that many healthcare providers across the world make exercise a staple in the management of pregnancy.
As a fitness enthusiast and a dedicated advocate for women's health, I felt inspired to write this post. You're going to find in this post 5 ways exercise can improve your pregnancy experience. In addition, you will also find some extremely helpful tips and advice from Coach Tanisha Cross herself (who recently had baby #2 while staying active during her pregnancy). She shares some very useful ways exercise has helped her through her pregnancy and gives tips on how to be active and safe. Let's dive in!
Benefit #1:
In pregnancy, the placenta produces a substance called human placental lactogen that plays a significant role in raising blood sugar levels. It does this by inhibiting the action of insulin (main role is to lower blood sugar). During pregnancy, some women go on to develop gestational diabetes (GDM) especially if they are at a high risk. GDM itself can then predispose both mum-to-be and baby to a wide range of complications. These include pre-eclampsia, chronic DM after pregnancy, prematurity and macrosomia (an abnormally large baby).
So where does exercise come in to help with all this? It efficiently helps to regulate those sugar levels to prevent them from becoming too high. By working your muscles, you increase their need for energy. This then causes them to require more fuel to produce this energy. What does our bodies mainly use for fuel??? Glucose!!! I.e. the sugar in the blood! So being active causes your muscles to use up blood glucose and therefore enables you to keep blood sugar levels down. By doing so, you are also avoiding the detrimental effects of GDM in pregnancy.
Benefit #2:
Weight gain is normal during pregnancy. There is actually a very important role it plays in the wellbeing of your baby. It ensures that your baby grows adequately i.e. not too small or not too large. A baby that is too small is at risk for difficulty feeding, illnesses and in some cases developmental delays. A baby that is too large is at increased risk of trauma during delivery, other delivery complications and childhood obesity.
Healthy weight gain is also great for you mummy! It means that there will be less that has to be lost after delivery, making postpartum weight loss easier. Therefore, your risk of becoming obese after pregnancy is reduced. I know a lot of women are concerned about the weight gain in pregnancy. I completely understand that. Just remember that it is essential for the health of both you and your baby during pregnancy. Do your best to stay active within safe limits and maintain a balanced diet as these are sure ways to ensure that your weight gain remains within healthy boundaries. Want to find out what is healthy for you? Check out this CDC link.
Benefit #3:
Pre-eclampsia is a medical condition that typically occurs after 20 weeks of gestation. It is characterised by the presence of elevated blood pressures accompanied by the presence of high levels of protein in the urine. It can be classified as either mild or severe. The development of pre-eclampsia is multifactorial. What is most important to note is that it can lead to numerous complications that increase maternal and foetal morbidity and mortality.
Exercise amazingly plays a role in reducing the risk of developing this condition. A study entitled 'Adherence to Walking or Stretching, and Risk of Preeclampsia in Sedentary Pregnant Women' referenced a 2003 paper that reported that women who engaged in any regular leisure physical activity during pregnancy experienced a 35% reduction in the risk of pre-eclampsia. There are many other studies that prove the protective effects of exercise against pre-eclampsia. Want to know more about what pre-eclampsia is? Check out this youtube video and this Medscape article for more information.
Benefit #4:
Benefit #4!
I worked with many women during their pregnancy while on my Obs & Gyn rotation. I'm pretty sure that if they saw this benefit they'd be like SIGN ME UP lool!! Here's the tea! Certain movements, especially those targeted to strengthening your pelvic and abdominal muscles, can help relieve pelvic pain.
So to explain this a little bit more...as you progress in your pregnancy, the pelvic joints and associated ligaments adjust in preparation for delivery. If this happens unevenly, pelvic pain can result. By strengthening pelvic and abdominal muscles with exercise, you can significantly reduce the pain associated with these changes.
Check out this article by ‘Physio for All’ that recommends 4 easy movements to help with pelvic pain!
Benefit #5:
There are many elements and events within pregnancy that can negatively impact on mood. These can range from the hormonal changes and changes in body weight, to pain/discomfort and health-related complications.
The final benefit of exercise in pregnancy to wrap up this post is that it is a GREAT outlet that has been proven to improve mood! It does this by causing an increase in the 'feel good' hormones and biochemicals such as dopamine, serotonin and the very well-known endorphins! Endorphins in particular interact with receptors in the brain and is well known for producing an elevated mood and sense of relaxation. Particularly in pregnancy, maintaining a good mood helps enhance the experience and the bonding between mother and child during and after birth! This is the kind of journey that we want!
What better way to close off this entry than to hear about how exercise has helped a queen through her pregnancy? Introducing Coach Tanisha Cross! She is a powerful fitness trainer, fellow loc’d queen and beautiful soul who has just been through her second pregnancy. It was great to be able to connect with Tanisha! Below you can read about her experience with exercise in pregnancy. As a bonus, she also provides some pearls on how to reap these benefits of exercising in and after pregnancy while being safe with it!
Thank you so much for being here and reading this post. If you enjoyed it and found it helpful please let me know in the comments here or on my Instagram page 'Zeal by Zedelle'. Also, share it with another queen (don't let her miss out on this!). Until next time, love & light!