It’s comforting to me, a person who associates exercise with pain, discomfort and boredom, that even the most disciplined women must set aside their rigorous routines during pregnancy. Is it terrible to appreciate how pregnancy puts so many of us on level playing ground? The fact is, exercise is really good for pregnant women, but it must be modified for the safety of both mom and baby. You never want to be out of breath when you are pregnant, and you certainly don’t want to be jostling that poor baby around on the jogging path.
Pilates has been recommended to me by many pregnant women as an exercise that is easy to modify for pregnancy. Pilates is one of those routines which has the potential to be both easy and difficult, depending on which moves you do and how you modify them to match you abilities.
Swimming is both fun and relaxing for the pregnant woman who is suffering joint and ligament pain. It creates a weightless experience and reliefs a lot of pain causing pressure.
Walking is great exercise, but it can be boring if you don’t switch up the scenery once in a while. One of my favorite places to walk is the mall. Now, if you are a shopaholic, the mall may be the last place you want to go for a walk, but if you are a disciplined window shopper, it is a great place to get exercise. The climate is always perfect and there are always new things to look at.
You may be getting exercise without even realizing it. Housekeeping and gardening are two activities that you can do at home and you don’t have to spend a dime. If you are currently nesting, housekeeping may be the perfect way to knock out two birds with one stone. As long as the weather is good, gardening or yard work is a nice way to get exercise and a little fresh air, too.