Workouts have long been a great way of keeping your body in shape as well as improving your health. Pregnancy is a beautiful thing and is always a delightful time. The thought of having a young one is what makes most people look forward to it. So which exercises are the best during pregnancy?
- Squats
When in labor, your pelvic outlet should be open for your baby to get out easily with less hustle. Squatting when pregnant is an excellent way of exercising your pelvic muscles. For effective squats, ensure your back is straight, keep your heels on the floor and ensure that your knees don’t protrude past your feet. You can Squat between 10-30 seconds and repeat this for three or more times.
- Pelvic Tilts
Some people always complain of back pains during pregnancy. However, this doesn’t have to be so especially if you perform pelvic tilts. They are perfect for working on your abdomen muscles. They are a miracle worker as they do away with any possible pain associated with the back. For pelvic tilts, get on all fours (knees and hands) and tilt your hips forward and pull your abdomen in.
- Swimming
Swimming is an excellent way of relaxing your muscles. One benefit of swimming is that for people who have issues related to blood pressure, it increases blood circulation. It also helps in relaxing abdominal and shoulder muscles.
- Tailor Exercises
Tailor exercises are a combination of working on mostly hip, thigh and pelvic muscles. One activity is tailor sitting. Here, you sit as you bend your knees and ankles crossed as you lean forward slightly. Meanwhile, make sure you keep your back straight.
You can also tailor press. This is done through tailor sitting, but in this case, you press your knees towards your hands as you count like for 10 seconds or more depending on how far you can go.
- Planks
Planks are a great way of strengthening your arms and back. Get down in a parallel position with your hands and feet. Keep your legs straight until your body is in a straight position as you hold your breath. Make sure your belly doesn’t sag as you perform the planks.
- Running
Before you result in running, you can start with simple walking exercises. After getting used to that, you can start running. Ensure that you run on the level ground especially later in pregnancy as the belly may block your view of any hindrances on the way.
- Aerobic Classes
Choose low impact aerobics that will help increase your heart rate. During aerobics, stay away from exercises that need attentive balance. Always listen to your body and avoid straining it.
- Cycling
Most preferably, you can cycle indoors. This avoids putting too much pressure on your knee joints. Also, it helps you cycle at your own pace. You can choose to have an immobile bike or get into an indoor cycling class.
- Yoga
You can opt for prenatal yoga. It is an excellent way for relaxing, flexibility and helps in improving your breathing. Find yoga classes specifically for pregnant women as they understand the specific requirements. Avoid Bikram Yoga where you have to be in a hot room as exercises that heat you up too much are not healthy for you.
Exercises To Avoid
There are exercises that you need to avoid when pregnant as they can be risky.
- Activities involving twisting your waist
- Those that require jumping or skipping.
- Those done when it’s hot.
- Performing intense workouts that will overstretch you.
- Avoid pushing yourself too much when exercising.
- Avoid exercises where you are most likely to fall.
Before starting on any exercise, pay a visit to your doctor and seek clarification on what exercises you can do. The doctor will analyze your current condition and will give you the go-ahead on the safe activities you can do.
The exercises discussed above are a great way to keep your body healthy. Choose low impact ones that will not strain you. Have a laid-out plan on which days to exercise weekly. In case you need to purchase any workout equipment using your credit card, ensure that you pay your monthly credit card expenses to avoid having a poor credit score. Find out more on this at https://aaacreditguide.com/late-payments/