| |
|
Exercising for Two:
|
| Tips for adjusting fitness and yoga
activities when you’re pregnant Of course, every woman's body
responds differently to pregnancy; you want to be sure to follow what your
doctor recommends in terms of exercise while pregnant. Here are some
general fitness and yoga guidelines to help keep mom and baby safe:
-
Naturally, check with your
doctor before beginning or continuing an exercise program; it is important
to understand any restrictions you may require.
-
Avoid activities that generate
excessive heat; high-duration, high-intensity aerobics, jogging outside on
a hot summer day, and even certain types of yoga can raise your core
temperature to levels that can endanger the baby.
-
Take it easy; respect your
body’s comfort zone and recognize the need to back off.
-
Especially after the first
trimester, avoid exercises or yoga positions that require you to lie on
your back. The weight of the baby in your abdomen can put pressure on the
main blood vessel that returns blood to the heart from your lower
extremities. Many exercises and positions can be modified in either a
seated or side-lying position; check with a knowledgeable fitness or yoga
professional for guidelines on this.
-
Avoid dramatic, excessive
stretching during your pregnancy and immediately after. During this time,
your body releases a hormone called joint relaxin that helps prepare the
body for childbirth, but can also leave you at risk for injury. The reason
is that you will feel a reduced perception of stretch, which means you may
inadvertently stretch too far without realizing it, possibly injuring a
muscle, tendon, or ligament. Play it safe and keep your stretches low-key.
-
Abdominal breathing is
beneficial to all of us, but can play a particularly important role during
pregnancy, as it activates the underused transverse abdominus muscle and
can also offset stress. To try this technique, sit up straight in a
comfortable chair, knees hip-distance apart, feet flat on the floor under
the knees. Place your hands lightly on your abdomen. As you inhale, try to
let your abdomen relax and expand, like a balloon. As you exhale, contract
your abdomen, as though your trying to pull your belly button in towards
your spine; deepen this contraction to help squeeze air out of your lungs.
Relax your neck and shoulders, and keep a good, erect posture during this
activity. It takes practice, and it does feel strange at first, so be
patient. Work slowly up to about 2-3 minutes of abdominal breathing.
-
Avoid abdominal crunches or
twists. Your abdomen and its internal structures are already under a
tremendous amount of pressure, combined with an increased instability
coming from the hormone joint relaxin. As a result, the added stress
of crunching or twisting can increase your risk for injuries to internal
tissues such as your ligaments.
-
Avoid inverted positions, such
as yoga's Downward Facing Dog or Forward Bends.
-
Avoid activities and even
postures that increase your risk of falling.
-
When pregnant, you face the
double-whammy of an increased risk for lordosis (excessive low-back
curvature) and kyphosis (excessive rounding/slouching in the upper
back/shoulders). Thus, postures that gently stretch the chest, strengthen
the upper back/rear shoulder region, stretch the low back (i.e., 2-Knee to
Chest), and strengthen the transverse abdominus (abdominal breathing will
do this) are among the postures that tend to be most beneficial. Postures
that gently open the outer hips and hip flexors can also help in
offsetting postural imbalances.
Return to top of page |
| |
|
