Pregnancy and sports - by week: loads and contraindications

1-4 weeks of pregnancy

1-4 weeks. As a rule, at this time the woman does not yet know that she is pregnant. But at the slightest suspicion, you should reduce physical activity .
The very beginning of pregnancy is a difficult stage, during which all the organs and systems of the future fetus are formed, and any overload will not benefit the baby. Working in the gym until you sweat, long marathon distances (as well as sprint races), and ski slopes are prohibited for the expectant mother. Now she needs to learn to calculate her strength and dose the load taking into account her new condition.

Dance directions for pregnant women

Among dance types of fitness, virtually all are prohibited. The only thing that can be recommended in this case is to ask the nearest fitness clubs about the availability of special programs for pregnant women - fitness mom. Groups are formed taking into account the duration of pregnancy. The workouts are not similar to each other, and include exercises from all types of fitness allowed during pregnancy, where light dance and plastic “sketches” and improvisations are not excluded.

Pay attention to water aerobics for pregnant women. The part of the classes where you perform gymnastic exercises to music will help you satisfy the need of your body and soul for dance movements. The training also includes special exercises for holding your breath, short dives, exhaling into the water, inhaling when leaving it. Therefore, water aerobics will prepare you and your unborn baby for intermittent breathing during straining during childbirth.

4-8 weeks of pregnancy

4-8 weeks. From your daily workouts, you should exclude any types of exercises that put a lot of stress on your abdominal muscles . Squats, “swinging” the press, bending forward and backward are dangerous because they can provoke miscarriage. Try to avoid the so-called inverted poses: they are found in the “bicycle” and “birch tree” exercises, when standing on your hands, and in many yoga asanas. You should not do exercises that require you to pull your knees to your chest.

For expectant mothers, swimming and water aerobics are very beneficial for future mothers . You can do them (in the absence of contraindications) from any stage of pregnancy until almost childbirth.

What exercises and sports are prohibited?

Sports involving heavy lifting, jumping and running are prohibited. For example:

• athletic jumping and diving;
• shot throwing and barbell lifting;
• horse riding (some experts do not recommend cycling);
• acrobatics.

The following exercises can become burdensome during the gestational period:

• running - it must be replaced by walking;
• jumping rope;
• twisting a heavy hoop;
• pumping the press using the standard method;
• deep squats;
• sharp kicks;
• “bridge” and other dangerous acrobatic elements.

Trainings are carried out taking into account the term of the position. So, many instructors and trainers have clearly defined the permissible prohibited loads by trimester.

8-12 weeks of pregnancy

8-12 weeks. After the 12th week, avid figure skaters and roller will have to throw their skates on the mezzanine. The reason for refusal is not the specifics of the physical activity, which is just useful, but the fact that this sport is fraught with falls and collisions, which is very dangerous for the expectant mother. Running is also not the best choice, although if your doctor doesn't mind, running at a reduced intensity can be resumed in the second trimester of pregnancy. But until then, it is better to replace running with walking. Tennis is a sport that, in principle, can be practiced until the 4th–5th month of pregnancy. But we repeat: it is important that there are no contraindications, that the doctor gives his go-ahead, and that the load is reduced.

Be sure to drink during all physical exercises, because our body overheats and loses a lot of fluid. You should not exercise immediately after eating or, conversely, if you are hungry. The best time to exercise is 1.5–2 hours after breakfast.

Contraindications

In the following cases, it is better to completely refuse to play sports, unless the attending physician comes to a different conclusion. Contraindications :

• anemia;
• endocrine diseases;
• diabetes;
• arrhythmia;
• the presence of three or more previous abortions;
• the presence of a mother's history of miscarriages during previous pregnancies;
• increased risk of miscarriage, as evidenced by increased uterine tone and the presence of bloody discharge from the genital tract;
• presence of bleeding during pregnancy;
• increased or decreased blood pressure caused by pregnancy;
• constant pain in the abdomen and lower back;
• pronounced toxicosis.

16-20 weeks of pregnancy

16-20 weeks. The expectant mother, together with the doctor, must choose for herself the optimal load and regularity of exercise. It is believed that 3-4 times a week is best, but for some pregnant women this is not enough, and they exercise every day. Cheers! It is important that exercises bring only good feelings and mood, and not shortness of breath and a feeling of fatigue. For beginners, the duration of classes should not be more than half an hour (10 minutes each for warming up, intense exercise and relaxation). And for more advanced athletes, the duration of a set of physical exercises can increase to an hour.

How do you know if the load is high? If after class you feel unbearably sleepy, it means you are overtired. Signs of overwork include excessive sweating, pain and tension in any of the muscles, and especially in the abdominal and back muscles, as well as a rapid (over 100 beats per minute) pulse within 5 minutes after the end of the gymnastics.

Yoga for pregnant women

A good night's sleep gives you strength

Mothers love to practice yoga; there is even a specially designed complex for pregnant women. These trainings help patients relax, provide psycho-emotional relief and help resolve many internal problems. Many people mistakenly believe that the use of yoga is just a fashionable trend, but this is not so. This technique has been known since ancient times, it is very effective and has earned many positive reviews from pregnant women.

Mothers who practice yoga during pregnancy never experience postpartum depression after childbirth, and their psychological state is always normal. Exercise helps improve digestive processes and breathing; they help quickly remove toxins and improve blood circulation. In the first trimester, yoga prevents constipation and varicose veins, migraines, morning sickness and other unpleasant symptoms.

In the first trimester, it is acceptable to use techniques like ujjayi, chandra bhedana or surya bhedana. You can even stand on your head, but only after that mommy should not have any negative symptoms or discomfort. It is necessary to exclude from the list of acceptable asanas that involve squeezing the abdomen, jumping, or prolonged tension.

20-24 weeks of pregnancy

20-24 weeks. At this time, many expectant mothers sign up for the pool . After all, the tummy is already noticeably growing, the back is starting to ache from overexertion. And swimming perfectly relaxes and at the same time trains all muscle groups. In water, a heavier woman seems weightless, because her weight decreases by 6 times. Water also reduces stress on the joints and spine, but the exercise requires much more effort: water resistance is 12 times stronger than air resistance. “Water procedures” perfectly strengthen muscles, promote flexibility, and restore restful sleep. Swimming can be practiced until birth. But you need to approach the choice of a pool responsibly . Ask how often the water there is purified, in what way (harmful chlorine or more gentle ozonation), whether a doctor’s certificate is required to visit the pool (good, if yes), how many people are in the pool (good, if not).

Key Limitations for Strength Training During Pregnancy

There are 4 main risk factors when exercising during pregnancy.

1. Firstly, the possibility of abdominal injury when using a barbell or dumbbells. Therefore, pregnant women are not recommended to train with free weights, especially if they do not have sufficient training experience. Even experienced athletes need to be extremely careful to completely avoid the risk of dropping the projectile on themselves or hitting their stomach.

2. The second complication is the restriction of breathing when performing the exercise. This may place increased stress on the cardiovascular system and possible harm to the fetus, so strenuous exercise that requires holding your breath should be avoided.

3. Thirdly, due to hypermobility of the joints during pregnancy, high-intensity and power (explosive) loads must be excluded. Working weights should be selected more carefully, and the movement should be performed slowly and under control to avoid potential damage.

4. And lastly, to maintain normal venous flow after the 13th week, it is advisable to avoid exercises performed while lying on your back. Such exercises can be modified and performed on an incline bench (head up) or while sitting.

24-28 weeks of pregnancy

24-28 weeks. During pregnancy, long walks in the park, forest, and in general, in the fresh air, are very useful. Walk for at least 1 hour, since the blood begins to intensively absorb oxygen only 30-40 minutes after the start of the walk.

If during pregnancy you engage in the now popular belly dancing - belly dancing - then in the second and third trimesters you will have to exclude any movements that cause a feeling of shaking. Movements should be smooth and careful.

Include in your set of exercises in the gym those that will strengthen the muscles actively involved in childbirth: the muscles of the perineum, abdominal cavity and pelvic floor. These are, for example, Kegel exercises, which develop intimate muscles. But you should start training as carefully as possible and only after mandatory preliminary consultation with a doctor: after all, if there is the slightest threat of pregnancy, it is better not to risk it.

conclusions

Strength training is an important part of a healthy lifestyle, even during pregnancy. During this period, of course, you should treat them with increased caution, modify the exercises and carefully monitor the body’s reaction.

Both on their own and in combination with aerobic exercise, reasonable strength training is safe and beneficial for the expectant mother and child. Get your doctor's approval, study any contraindications, and follow the prescribed frequency, duration, and intensity of exercise to ensure you get the best benefits from your workouts.

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28-32 weeks of pregnancy

28-32 weeks. The closer to childbirth, the more restrictions : you have forgotten what racing, jumping, running, and swinging your legs are. And from now on, you also can’t do “arms up” exercises, because they promote tone in the abdominal muscles. Don’t get carried away with balance exercises either—due to your growing belly, your center of gravity has shifted slightly, and it’s quite difficult to maintain balance.

In the last trimester of pregnancy, you need to reduce the intensity of exercise. You can return to intense exercise 6 weeks after giving birth, but in the meantime, replace it with long walks.

Water aerobics

Water aerobics classes are incredibly beneficial for the expectant mother. They are safe, improve the emotional state of patients and are allowed for almost all pregnant women, if there are no contraindications. The undoubted advantage of water aerobics is the fact that it is allowed in most cases when other activities are contraindicated. The advantages of water aerobics are:

1. The ability to work on the pelvic muscles and abs, which must be in shape to facilitate childbirth;
2. During training, patients learn to manage and control their breathing;
3. Any exercise in water relieves stress from the limbs and improves blood circulation in them, preventing venous varicose veins;
4. If you do water aerobics regularly, the gain of extra pounds will be minimal, which means that after giving birth, mommy will quickly return to her former shape;
5. Aerobic exercises in water help to successfully cope with stress, help you relax, and relieve stress on the spinal structures;
6. Moreover, exposure to water improves metabolic processes, stimulates renal activity and the work of other intraorganic structures;
7. Aerobics in the pool helps cope with hyperedema.

Visiting the pool during pregnancy helps strengthen the body and helps strengthen the immune barrier. But before training, you need to familiarize yourself with the contraindications to water aerobics. These include severe toxicosis, the threat of miscarriage, a history of miscarriages, exacerbation of chronic pathologies, the presence of fungal diseases, etc. You should also avoid water aerobics if you have the flu or respiratory diseases.

32-36 weeks of pregnancy

32-36 weeks. At the end of the 8th month of pregnancy, doctors advise stopping training with elements of step and water aerobics . In general, an expectant mother shouldn’t be too active—and she doesn’t want to. But it’s time to start developing flexibility and relaxation exercises. After all, before giving birth, a woman’s body releases many hormones that weaken the ligaments, the woman literally becomes gutta-percha. And this effect can be used to prepare for childbirth. For example, even at this time it is useful to get acquainted with the basics of yoga . There are a lot of flexibility exercises in this practice, and almost every one of them teaches you how to relax. Choose simple poses that improve blood circulation in the pelvic area, neck and shoulder girdle, breathe smoothly and deeply. And even without any meditation, you will immediately feel how the accumulated tension will leave your body.

36-40 weeks of pregnancy

36-40 weeks. Usually at this time, the expectant mother is concerned not so much with her sporting achievements as with the upcoming birth . And the state of health is not conducive to activity: the uterus is greatly enlarged, the load on the heart, spine and arch of the foot increases, changes occur in the lungs, and the pregnant woman is plagued by shortness of breath. breathing exercises and exercises that improve blood circulation in all organs and systems will be very useful They will ease the mother’s condition and prevent hypoxia in the baby. The exercises are most often performed while sitting - the starting position of standing can be used in no more than one out of every five exercises.