Benefit of Exercise During Pregnancy
It is pretty basic knowledge that exercise helps keep the body healthy and is recommended for every person. But it is not as commonly known that there are SO MANY benefits of exercise that are specific to pregnant women.
Pregnant women often are restricted by others or themselves when it comes to physical activity. Although every woman is different and each pregnancy is different, there are many overall benefits to exercising during pregnancy. By just getting her body moving for at least 30 mins every day of her pregnancy, a mother may experience several of these benefits of exercise in her pregnancy and in labor.
Physical activity during pregnancy can help decrease discomforts during pregnancy. Of course, a pregnant woman will gain weight, but exercise keeps that weight gain in a healthy range by decreasing excess fat. By staying in a healthy weight range, this decreases the risk for gestational diabetes and preeclampsia- conditions that can put mom and baby at greater risk for complications. Not only will mom feel better during pregnancy, but training throughout the pregnancy can shorten the time spent in pregnancy. Women who exercise spend an average of 5-7 days less in pregnancy, without increasing the risk of preterm labor. Basically, moms are more likely to deliver on time without prolonging pregnancy.
Every movie and TV show depicts the horrors of labor, with screaming, pain, medicine, and everything that could possibly go wrong. What if I told you that exercising during pregnancy can help make labor easier? Well, IT CAN!
Exercise can decrease the need for pain relief during labor by increasing the body’s ability to access certain hormones. Hormones such as catecholamines (that boost energy), endorphins (the happy, pain fighting hormones), and oxytocin (increases muscle contractions, pair bonding and love with baby) are more readily available to the body if mom has been exercising. Another benefit is spending less time in labor. Exhaustion is decreased by 75% because mom is able to handle the physical challenge better.
Exercising mommas also are less likely to need interventions (surgical and non-surgical) during labor. Studies have shown that those that exercise are 50% less likely to need to be induced or use pitocin and 35% less likely to need pain relief such as epidurals. Maybe the most outstanding statistic is that consistent exercise can decrease the chance of needing a C-section by 75%! These numbers speak for themselves- if a momma is wanting a more natural birth, exercising can help her achieve that!
These benefits were found when mothers exercised 5 days or more each week for 30-90 minutes, and continued to exercise until term. Believe it or not, these women exercised at a moderate to high intensity (not low intensity) and completed weight bearing exercise.
Remember, each woman is different. If you don’t know what kind of exercise is safe or would like more specific direction during exercise, we have a Pre & Post Natal Corrective Exercise Specialist on staff here at Active Life Chiropractic. To schedule your first visit, call our office at 701-255-4241 or email Kayla directly at activelifekayla@gmail.com.
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