Exercise in Pregnancy:Eat for one but exercise for two!

Are You Pregnant? Then take the advice seriously for very good reasons.

In a recent article, Dr Duckitt, a Canadian Obstetrician and

gynaecologist advised pregnat women to take exercise seriously.

In her paper, she exaulted the benefits of exercise on the

pregnant woman and the unborn baby.

She reminds as that women who exercise during pregnancy

experience a much more healthy pregnancy and are more likely to

exercise afterwards.

The aim is to undertake at least 30 minutes a day of moderate

exercise.

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With the start of the London 2012 Olympics less than a year away, athletes such as Paula Radcliffe and the Canadian heptathlete, Jessica Zelinka, remind us that it is possible not only to return to world class competition after having a baby but also to continue training—albeit with some modifications—throughout pregnancy. The prevalence of obesity is increasing: in 2007, 24% of women in the United Kingdom aged 16 and over were obese compared with only 16% in 1993.

One of the aims of the London 2012 Olympic bid was to encourage the whole population to become more physically active. This should include pregnant women too.

Recognising the beneficial effects of exercise during pregnancy is not new. In 1900, J M Ballantyne, who helped pioneer antenatal care—or as he put it pre-maternity care—in Edinburgh, designed a card to make sure essential advice during pregnancy was remembered and recorded by his pre-maternity nurses. This included a tick box regarding exercise and rest.1 In 1945, the textbook Williams Obstetrics advised 30 minutes of exercise twice a day.

…But the beneficial effects of exercise during pregnancy to both the mother and developing baby need to be emphasised, and women need reassurance that they are doing no harm as long as their pregnancies are progressing normally.

The challenge for the future will be to encourage all women with uncomplicated pregnancies to attain at least the currently recommended exercise levels while continuing to research what type, what intensity, and how much exercise in pregnancy will give the best maternal and fetal outcomes.

..

Exercise during pregnancy keeps pregnancy weight gain down and

may help prevent some pregnancy related complications.

The important message here is a woman is more likely to exercise

after pregnancy if she has exercised during pregnancy.

Many women, think it is dangerous to exercise during pregnancy.

It is not true.

If you want to lose weight after pregnancy, the sensible thing

to do is to exercise during pregnancy, and continue and improve

on that after pregnancy. If you have not gained a lot, you do not

have much weight to lose after pregnancy.

Exercise in Pregnancy

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