One of the most frequent questions pregnant women ask is what exercises are safe while they are expecting a baby. The answer, inevitably, varies. Some doctors are of the opinion that women should only do stretching exercises during their pregnancy, while others say that running is fine, as long as you are in good shape. Is pregnancy exercise really such a big deal? Do you need more than common sense to determine what is and is not safe?
Staying in shape is beneficial under almost any circumstances, and if you are enjoying a low-risk pregnancy, there is really no reason at all to refrain from exercising. The safest exercises during pregnancy include swimming, walking, cycling, yoga, and low-impact aerobics in short, anything that is normally very safe for a healthy person is also safe during pregnancy.
It's quite obvious that pregnant people should pay special attention to how they feel. The moment warning signs like pain and exhaustion turn up, you'd instinctively stop working out anyway. Vaginal bleeding and lots of Braxton Hicks contractions are some pregnancy-specific signals that something could be wrong.
Of course, activities that you would generally consider to be slightly or very dangerous are best avoided. Here, too, common sense is quite enough. Bungee jumping? Not OK. Paintball? Not OK either. Doing a dangerous dive? Not OK. When there is an activity you'd like to do but are not sure is safe during pregnancy, give your healthcare provider a call. And, if you have any special circumstances during your pregnancy, like twins, high blood pressure, an incompetent cervix, or whatever else... talk to your doctor before making exercise decisions.
Where does that leave you? If you're generally a sensible person, a prenatal exercise is safe when you think it is safe, and not safe if you think it isn't. If there's anything you're not sure about, that's where you can ask for advice pregnancy is just like the rest of life :)!
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