Health and Safety

Physical Activity

Staying physically active during pregnancy will cut down on swelling, leg cramps, fatigue, shortness of breath, backache, and constipation. It will also help you maintain a healthy weight during pregnancy. For more information on healthy weight gain in pregnancy, click here.

It is best to combine different types of activities:

• Endurance or Aerobic activities are best for strengthening the heart and lungs.
  Try: brisk walking, jogging, low‑impact aerobics, dancing, and swimming.

• Weight‑bearing or Strength activities strengthen muscles and bones, and improve your posture.
  Try: weight/strength training regimes (modified as needed as your pregnancy progresses).

• Flexibility activities that involve bending and stretching, help to keep your muscles and joints mobile.
  Try: yoga, dancing and stretching.

For more information and ideas for physical activity, refer to the Physical Activity webpages in each trimester section:
1st Trimester: Physical Activity
2nd Trimester: Physical Activity
3rd Trimester: Physical Activity

How Can I Start?

• Before you begin, check with your health care provider. For some women, physical activity may not be recommended during pregnancy.
• Choose activities that you enjoy.
• Start with three times a week and gradually increase to every day.
• When starting to be physically active build up gradully.
• If you haven’t been active before, begin with 15 minutes of continuous activity three times a week.
• Gradually work up to 30‑minute sessions four times a week.

General Guidelines

• Try to be physically active for 30 minutes four times a week.
• Drink water before, during, and after exercise.
• Eat a small snack one to one‑and‑a‑half hours before physical activity.
• Warm up before and cool down after physical activity. Take 10 to 15 minutes to stretch, then do relaxation exercises or mild aerobics before and after.
• If you become short of breath, stop the activity.

Safety

• Your ligaments are more relaxed when you are pregnant, so you can be injured more easily. Avoid bouncing and fast changes in direction, including games such as squash or racquetball.
• It is much easier to lose your balance when you are pregnant so be careful while doing new activities that require balance. Avoid activities that might make you fall and hurt your abdomen. These include contact sports, such as rugby and karate, downhill or water skiing, hockey, horseback riding, and softball.
• Do not scuba dive when pregnant. The fetus is not protected from decompression sickness (the bends) and gas embolism.
• Do not become overheated. If you are physically active in a pool, the water should not be higher than 26 to 28°C.
• Don’t lie flat on your back after the fourth month of pregnancy. The weight of your baby presses on your major arteries and veins and can reduce the blood flow to you and your baby. Put a small pillow under one hip to shift the weight of the baby off your arteries.
• Breathe throughout an activity. Breathe out on exertion and breathe in when you relax. Do not strain while holding your breath. This will cause changes in your blood pressure and can also create pressure on your pelvic floor and abdominal muscles.
• Use low weights and high repetitions if doing strength training. Use lower weights as you get closer to your baby’s birth.
• Don’t overdo it. Pregnancy is a time when you need to balance rest and activity.

For more information about physical activity in pregnancy, visit the BC Perinatal Program Healthy Weights for Women website.