Fitness and Pregnancy

Fitness and exercising are of great logical steps towards anyone’s good health. Interestingly, the benefits of exercising expand to include women who are expecting a baby. In fact, these benefits during pregnancy are the same as those for people who are not pregnant. In spite of that, the majority of pregnant women are not aware of the importance of being fit during this period and think that pregnancy is not a time to improve performance in strenuous sports. Yet, I think that ideal exercise for a pregnant woman gets her heart pumping, keeps her limber, manages weight gain, and prepares her muscles for the hard work of labour and delivery, without causing undue physical stress for her or the baby. Low-intensity activities such as walking, jogging, and swimming are fairly safe and recommended for an expectant mother, specially the one who has not regularly exercised, although some of these activates may not work for her during the last few months of her pregnancy. Nevertheless, she will be better off avoiding activities that could put her at risk for slips and falls, such as bicycling, rollerblading, horseback riding, and skiing.
As a general rule, a pregnant woman’s body will undergo many changes during her pregnancy. But understanding the roles of nutrition and exercise can ease the transition and keep her (and her baby) healthy. Exercising during pregnancy does help prepare pregnant woman for childbirth by strengthening her muscles and makes getting her body back in shape once the baby is born much easier.