If you're thinking about exercising just to lose weight, you might want to change your view and priorities. When a woman gets pregnant, exercise can actually help reduce pain, lower the chance of premature birth, and also help control significant weight gain. It also helps avoid gestational diabetes, high blood pressure problems, and is great for fitness, easing lower back pain, and cutting down depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms. In this article, we offer you a set of the best exercises for pregnancy.
Cardio exercises for all three pregnancy stages:
Cardio exercises like walking, swimming, running, and stationary cycling are among the best exercise choices for all pregnancy stages.
Exercises to do in the first three months of pregnancy:
The first three months can be full of emotions from joy and happiness to worry and even fear as you realize you're responsible for the nutrition, growth, and health of the little human soon to be born. If you're not considered high-risk, you can keep your normal workout routine during these first months. Exercise frequency should be at least 2 to 3 times a week.
You should also focus on specific exercises that help make pregnancy easier and prepare your body for labor and delivery.
First exercise: Pump and kegel
- Stand straight with your hands on your belly. Slowly breathe in using your diaphragm. Then (imagine you're trying to squeeze into very tight pants) gently lift your pelvic muscles at the same time. Then breathe out and relax your belly and pelvic muscles.
- Do 20 reps
Second exercise: Dancer's triceps
- Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Point your left foot away from your body and your right foot forward.
- Hold a dumbbell in each hand with your arms bent and dumbbells raised near your shoulders.
- Slowly bend your left knee as much as you can without your foot going past it. While doing this, stretch your right arm away from your body on the ground, then return to the start.
- Do 20 reps on each side.
Exercise 3: Biceps Curl
- Hold a pair of dumbbells at your sides with your palms facing forward. Keep your back straight and chest up without moving your arms.
- Bend your elbows and curl the weights towards your shoulders. Then slowly lower the weights back to the starting position with your arms fully extended.
- Do 10 to 15 reps.
Exercise 4: Lunge pulse with overhead press
- Stand with your left foot forward and right foot back, holding dumbbells in both hands.
- Raise your arms overhead while bending your front knee. Then return to the start and repeat on the right side.
- Do 10 reps on each side.
Exercise five: Squat
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, hold a dumbbell in front of your chest with elbows pointed down. Then push your hips back and bend your knees down into a squat, lowering the dumbbell to the ground at the same time.
- Do 10 to 15 reps.
Exercise six: Side-lying leg extension
- Lie on your left side with your left forearm on the ground under your head, bend your knees, place your right leg over your left leg with your left hip on the floor. Then stretch your right leg straight back and up toward your upper body.
- Repeat 15 to 20 times.
Exercise seven: Clamshell
- Lie on your left side, place your left forearm on the ground, bend your knees, put your right leg over your left leg with your left hip on the floor, then lift your right knee toward the ceiling while keeping your feet together.
- Repeat the movement 20 times.
Exercise 8: Triceps Dip
- Sit with your hands right under your shoulders, fingers pointing forward. Put your feet on the ground with knees bent, keep your arms straight, lift your hips off the ground, bend your arms, lower your hips without touching the ground, then push your body back to the start position.
- Do 10 reps.
