Home Exercises For Pregnant Women According to Every Trimester

Home exercises during pregnancy don’t only keep you fit and healthy also help you in normal delivery. Here are some home exercises for pregnant women that you can try out. Workout during pregnancy is extremely beneficial for you as well as your baby. Being active when you are expecting is recommended by doctors as it helps you in normal delivery. As soon as you get pregnant your body starts to change, nausea, morning sickness, swollen legs, constipation etc. are some of the most common challenges. Pregnancy comes with a lot of problems and while it is different for everyone, exercising can help you in most of it.

Women generally prefer easy home exercises but it is really important to choose wisely without diving into wrong ones. Before you start a workout regime it’s really important to consult your doctor about it. Generally, pregnant ladies opt for exercises that are helpful in normal delivery but most of them don’t realise that home exercises for pregnant women change every trimester.

So here is a guide of home exercises according to every trimester that will keep you and your baby healthy. So, pull up socks, lace up your shoes and get going.

First trimester

1. Jogging

Don’t confuse it with running at all. Jogging or brisk walking is one of the best cardiovascular exercises for pregnant women in the early trimester. It builds endurance and strengthens your heart. Make sure you keep it at a comfortable pace and don’t forget to wear supportive shoes.

2. Dancing or Aerobics

You can’t go crazy over it, but you can enjoy light pounding over your favourite music. If you like to dance make sure that it doesn’t include jumping, twirling and leaping, other than that you can dance every day for the first three months of your pregnancy.

Another home exercise routine for pregnant women who don’t like dancing is aerobics. You can opt for the ones that are specially designed for pregnant ladies.

3. Plank

Most of the pregnant ladies focus on planks for a full-body workout during pregnancy. Plank is among one of the best exercises for pregnant ladies for normal delivery. However, you cannot do it for a longer duration. You can stretch one plank from 30 seconds to 45 seconds at most.

If you are going for a 30 seconds plank then you can do 3-sets of it and if you are doing 45-seconds of plank then you can do 2 sets of it.

Second Trimester

1. Slow Jogging Or Walking

Walking or slow jogging is one of the simplest home exercises for pregnant women. Make sure you wear comfortable clothes and shoes. The walk or jog should not be intense or more than 40 minutes a day. Sway your arms while doing it and keep yourself active.

2. Squats

Squats are recommended for the second trimester during pregnancy to improve and strengthen the leg muscles and glutes. As long as you don’t have a high-risk pregnancy you can do 15 reps daily.

Make sure you don’t hold your squats more than 5 seconds and you must keep your body straight. If 15 reps are too much you can do 10 reps daily.

3. Forward Lunges

Another exercise to strengthen your hips, legs and back. You can do 15 reps with each leg. It is important that you keep your stomach pulled in, head up, shoulder relaxed and back straight. If you are in the later time of your second trimester, you might need to hold something such as; the back of a chair.

Third Trimester

Walking

Most of the pregnant women feel exhausted during their third trimester and opt for something as easy as walking. During this time you need to make sure that the pace is slow and your doctor also recommends it.

Walking during the third trimester reduces the chances of gestational diabetes and also soothes the growing belly. Needless to say, it keeps a check on weight gain.

Kegels

It is said that Kegels is the best home exercise for pregnant women during the third trimester. The pelvic floor which supports the uterus gets stretched and weakened during this time of pregnancy and doing pelvic floor exercises can help ensure a good muscle tone and avoid incontinence.

Suggested Read: How to Use Turmeric to Boost immunity During Pregnancy

Kegels are also one of the exercises for pregnant ladies for normal delivery and it is recommended even after birth. Make sure you do it on an empty bladder. 3 sets of 10 reps a day will really benefit.

When pregnant, keep a check on your endurance. Keep yourself hydrated and make sure that exercising makes you happy rather than tired. There is nothing healthier than a happy mom!