Fitness mantras during pregnancy

You must be wondering how Shilpa Shetty maintained her fitness even after bearing a child. The simple answer is that she never gave up exercising.

Exercising during and after pregnancy is the best way to stay in shape and ensure your mental and physical healthiness. It also helps you in preparing for labour pain and delivery, and quick recovery postpartum.

However, there are some things you need to keep in mind while exercising during pregnancy:

Measure your fitness

You need to determine how fit you are. This will help in determining the type and duration of exercising during pregnancy and post pregnancy. Also, before you continue your old exercise routine or begin a new one, you should talk to your doctor about exercising while you’re pregnant.

Pregnancy is a balancing act

After the fourth month of pregnancy, it’s likely you will lose balance while you exercise. Though your baby is well protected with amniotic sac, it is better to be safe than sorry.

Safe exercises

Activities such as swimming, walking, yoga, pilates, and low-impact aerobics are good choices. Pregnancy is not the right time to start any new intensive exercise, but it is safe to continue with most types of exercise if you’re used to them.

The things you should avoid

Avoid exercises where you are likely to lose your balance or could make you fall or slip. Vigorous or extreme activities such as horse riding, skiing, mountain climbing are out of the question. They carry too high a risk of injury to your tummy. Avoid exercises such as:

1. Sit-ups
2. Standing on one leg
3. Separating your legs widely

You should also avoid most contact sports, such as football, basketball and so on. Finally, give racket sports a miss if you’re not a regular player as they can be tough on your knees and ankles.

Check with your doctor

Consult the doctor before starting with any new or unusual exercise. Check for any complications or unusual conditions. Also, discuss for any concern such as:

1. Pregnancy-induced high blood pressure
2. Early contractions
3. Vaginal bleeding
4. Premature rupture of your membranes, also known as waters (the fluid in the amniotic sac around the fetus) breaking early

The best outfit for exercise

Clothes should be comfortable and loose fitting while exercising. Wear a supportive bra which protects the breasts and is also relaxing. If your shoe size has changed because of mild swelling, you may want to buy a new one.

Duration of the exercise

Exercising three to four times a week is necessary. This reduces stress, fights fatigue, and stabilizes emotions in early pregnancy. Start gradually, may be with only five minutes a day, if you were totally inactive before. Add five minutes each day till you reach 30 minutes. Also keep in mind to avoid exercise on an empty stomach. Eat a snack 30 minutes before exercise.

Never over do

Listen to your body when it says ‘stop’. Over exercising causes overheating. Raising your core temperature too much can affect the baby adversely. Always sip water before, during and after exercising. Listening to your body when something hurts or doesn’t feel right – that means stop.

Drink a lot of water

Try to drink about two glasses of water two hours before you begin exercising. Take a sports bottle of water with you when you exercise and take frequent sips from it. It’s important you don’t get dehydrated. This may raise your body temperature, which may not be good for you or your baby.

Keeping these points in mind, exercise to stay healthy and fit. We hope you soon give birth to a healthy kid.