Your Guide to Safe Exercises During Pregnancy

Research shows that working out while pregnant comes with numerous benefits for both mother and baby, from more energy and less pain during pregnancy to a smoother delivery and postpartum recovery. But while activity during pregnancy is almost always a good thing, there are some forms of exercise that are not advised. 

So, what exercises are safe during pregnancy? We’re giving you a rundown below, plus sharing how to modify your favorite workouts while you’re pregnant and how to know when you need to stop.

Read on to learn more about: 

• Exercise during pregnancy: An overview

• The benefits of safe pregnancy exercises

• Types of safe pregnancy exercises

• How to adapt your workouts when pregnant 

• Exercises to avoid during pregnancy

• Exercising while pregnant: Precautions and warning signs

Let’s dive in! 

Exercise during pregnancy: An overview

If you are healthy and your pregnancy isn’t experiencing any complications, it is safe to carry on with the amount of exercise you were doing pre–pregnancy (though not necessarily the specific workouts—more on that below!). In fact, the exercise recommendations for pregnant women are the same as the Physical Activity Guidelines for the general population: at least 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity.

If you were an avid exerciser pre-pregnancy, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists gives you the all-clear to keep doing the same workouts you were doing before becoming pregnant. If you weren’t an ardent exerciser, you can certainly start exercising after becoming pregnant—just make sure to start slow.

Before we get into the safe exercises during pregnancy, it’s important to remember that every pregnancy and every person is different. You and your healthcare provider are the only ones who know exactly what you should and should not be doing at different stages in your pregnancy, and there are multiple factors that influence what workouts you will be able to do while you’re pregnant. These include things like your fitness level and exercise experience pre-pregnancy and any existing medical conditions. 

What’s more, people with the following pregnancy complications should not exercise during pregnancy: 

• Cerclage

• Carrying multiples

• Placenta previa after 26 weeks of pregnancy

• Preterm labor

• Preeclampsia

• Severe anemia

The benefits of safe pregnancy exercises

Engaging in safe pregnancy exercises will allow you to reap all the benefits that working out can offer during pregnancy without having to worry that you’re doing too much or risking injury. Those benefits include: 

• Improved energy and endurance

• Sunnier mood

• Reduced pain

• Enhanced circulation

• Less constipation

• Lower risk of gestational diabetes and preeclampsia

• Healthier weight gain

• Smoother delivery

• Faster recovery and weight loss post-delivery

Types of safe pregnancy exercises

So, what exercises are safe during pregnancy? Technically, you can adapt almost any workout program to be safe enough to do during pregnancy. However, it’s much easier to stick to the types of exercise that will give you the benefits above without risking overexertion or injury, including: 

• Walking

• Rowing

• Swimming and water aerobics

• Light strength training

• Yoga and Pilates

• Indoor cycling

• Prenatal exercise programs

Walking

Walking is one of the best forms of physical activity that anyone can do, so naturally it comes highly recommended for pregnant women. Walking can be done anywhere, at any time, plus you can easily modify your speed and distance to suit your fitness level. 

Since walking is a weight-bearing activity, it will help keep the bones and joints of your lower body strong and flexible enough to support the extra weight your growing baby creates.

Rowing

As a totally low-impact, highly adaptable form of exercise, using a rowing machine is an excellent choice for pregnancy. You can easily adjust your stroke rate and the length of your slide (or how much you compress your body at the catch) as your belly grows while also engaging in full-body, moderate intensity cardio.

Related Blog: Rowing While Pregnant: What You Need to Know

Swimming and water aerobics

Thanks to the buoyancy of water, you feel roughly 50% to 70% lighter in a pool, depending on how deep the water is. This makes swimming and other water-based exercises ideal for pregnant women, who will be able to achieve a larger range of motion and a longer duration of activity in a pool thanks to their muscles, bones and joints being relieved of most of the physical pressure of pregnancy.

Strength training

While you should avoid lifting too heavy of weights during pregnancy, lighter strength training with weights and resistance bands is smart to maintain strength and stability. As much as your lower body and core are literally carrying the weight of your pregnancy, your arms will be carrying your baby when it arrives, so you don’t want to neglect them in the months prior to your baby being born. 

Yoga and Pilates

Gentle forms of exercise that promote flexibility and stability, like yoga and mat Pilates, are great for pregnancy. As your belly grows, it shifts your center of gravity, which can pull your spine out of alignment and create problems like lower back pain. Yoga and Pilates help ensure you stay connected to your core to downplay these issues.

Indoor cycling

Similar to rowing, indoor cycling is a low-impact exercise that promotes good circulation and checks the moderate intensity exercise box. 

Prenatal exercise programs

If you don’t want to take any chances of doing something wrong or unsafe, try a prenatal-specific exercise program. These programs, which are designed for pregnancy, will target your body’s needs during each unique stage of pregnancy and ensure you’re staying safe along the way.

How to adapt your workouts when pregnant

There are two primary methods for adapting your workouts while you’re pregnant:

• Applying general modifications to all workouts throughout pregnancy

• Adapting your workouts by trimester

General modifications

The basic modifications that make exercise safe during pregnancy are relatively common sense. You’ll want to avoid moves that require you to lie flat on your belly (since your baby is growing there) or lie flat on your back (which can cause your blood pressure to decrease). 

Scale back your weights to avoid injuries from overexertion and modify your core exercises, limiting twisting movements and exercises like crunches that primarily target the rectus abdominis, or six-pack abs. 

By trimester

Each trimester of pregnancy comes with unique challenges and changes, so it’s key to adapt your workouts accordingly.

First trimester

The first trimester is particularly taxing on the body, so this is the time to slow down your workouts and focus on gentle movements that help you connect with your core, pelvic floor, and other muscles that will support your growing baby.

Second trimester

Many people experience an increase in energy during the second trimester, which you can take advantage of in your workouts. This is the time when you can increase your intensity slightly, if given the OK by your healthcare provider, as well as use a bit more weight in your strength training. Labor and delivery is essentially an interval workout, so you can use the second trimester to prepare.

Third trimester

This is the time to really listen to your body and slowly scale back your workouts as you get closer to your due date. Being careful and gentle is the key.

Exercises to avoid during pregnancy

While there are many safe exercises during pregnancy, there are also a few to avoid. They include:

• Contact sports, like basketball, soccer, and boxing

• Activities that come with a risk of falling, like downhill skiing, horseback riding, and outdoor cycling

• Hot yoga and hot Pilates

• Scuba diving and skydiving

Exercising while pregnant: Precautions and warning signs

Even if you’re engaging in one of the safe pregnancy exercises above, there are precautions you should take while working out and warning signs to watch for. During workouts, we recommend taking the following precautions:

Drink plenty of water before, during and after your workout 

Pregnant women should be drinking between 64 and 96 ounces of water a day, and that’s before losing any fluids to sweat. Drink, drink, drink.

Wear supportive, comfortable clothing 

Choose pieces that are comfortable and protect your growing belly and breasts without being too tight to impede circulation.

Listen to your body

Just because your workout is technically safe to do at your particular stage of pregnancy doesn’t always mean it’s right for you on a given day. Only do what feels right.

Watch for warning signs

According to The American Academy of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, if you experience any of the following while working out you should stop right away and call your doctor or healthcare provider. 

• Bleeding from the vagina

• Dizziness

• Shortness of breath

• Chest pain

• Headache

• Muscle weakness

• Calf pain or swelling

• Regular, painful contractions of the uterus

• Fluid releasing from the vagina

Safe exercises during pregnancy: The takeaway

Is it safe to exercise during pregnancy? Absolutely. As long as you choose a form of exercise like those we discussed here, adapt your workouts appropriately, and take the proper precautions, you can expect to reap numerous benefits that will make your pregnancy, labor and delivery, and postnatal recovery that much smoother.

If you’re looking for a place to start, Hydrow offers many of the safe pregnancy exercises above, including a variety of rowing workouts and other helpful classes like yoga, Pilates and stretching. Plus, all our workouts are filmed in stunning locations around the world, transporting you to gorgeous global destinations that will keep you motivated to come back again and again. 

Learn more about Hydrow today!