8 Things You Need To Know About Practicing Pilates While Pregnant
Firstly, you may be reading this if you are pregnant so sending you tons of love on this new journey. Perhaps you are a little unsure of how to move forwards with your exercise routine during your pregnancy and I hope that this journal post helps give you peace of mind and gets you excited to continue moving that wonderful body of yours.
I am a Pilates teacher and this advice is recommended from pre and post natal courses I have taken as a Pilates teacher as well as from personal experience teaching pregnant women. However, I am not a medical professional and the below is guidance only. You should always make sure you have clearance from your doctor/ medical professional to exercise throughout your pregnancy and continue to take their advice throughout.
So the below advice is assuming you have that safe to exercise tick from your health professional, now here’s some general need to knows to consider when embarking on your Pilates routine.
You need strength for pregnancy and labour- Pilates is amazing for you!
Before we get into any nitty gritty, it’s important to take a deep breathe, relax and know that exercise is good for you throughout your pregnancy. You will not harm the baby by doing Pilates and pregnancy Pilates does not need to only be relaxation classes. Yes relaxation is essential but we can work strong throughout our pregnancy too, it’s important to maintain the strength in your upper and lower body to help with labour and with carrying your baby around when they arrive. We want to strength those joints which will have the added hormone relaxin encouraging more movement. We want to encourage good posture which might be effected due to your growing bump. The benefits to exercise during pregnancy are endless we just want to take a little care and listen to our bodies while doing so.
2. Avoid strenuous abdominal work
My prenatal training has always had one rule throughout; avoid supine work (lying on your back), this is due to the compression on the inferior vena cava. Do not panic if you’ve been lying on your back but just know that as a Pilates teacher, I will not get you laying on your back during your sessions with me and I’d encourage you not to while practicing at home. In general we will be avoiding any strenuous abdominal work like curls up, planks or anything loaded like roll ups. Woohoo, no more hundreds or series of five for while.
3. Flow of movement is the key pilates principle
Flow of movement is luckily one of Joseph Pilates key principles and it’s one that we want to focus on throughout your pregnancy. Blood volume increases during pregnancy, cardiac output increases, your heart size increases (pretty cool), your resting heart rate increases, venous capacity increases (the amount of blood held by the veins). Therefore flowing exercise is great for helping to increase circulation with all this extra pumping and blood moving around. So ensure your classes and workouts include lots of flowing and continuous movement and try not to stand for long periods of time.
4. Work within your range of movement
Going back to that hormone I mentioned earlier, relaxin. It kind of does what its says on the tin which is quite nice for once for an anatomy term. The main point with relaxin is that is relaxes the ligaments of the pelvis and allows separation of the joints to provide more space for your growing foetus and for birth. But relaxin is not just confined to this area, it can increase mobility in all your joints. Backache or pelvic pain can occur from the result of relaxin so we would encourage to take care when lifting (make sure you have safe lifting techniques). Also, do not overstretch or push past your usual range of movement as you may be unstable in certain joints. Also avoid inner and outer thigh loaded exercises due to the instability.
5. Cramping and tired legs are a thing
Cramps are common during pregnancy, one reason being the muscles of the legs are bearing increased weight and strain of the growing baby. You may also be a little lacking in certain nutrients and salts such as calcium or magnesium. This can lead to tired and cramping leg muscles during the day and night. So try to include some ankle circling and calf stretches to your exercise routine to help circulation to this area and drink plenty of water.
6. You may get out of breath quicker
You might have noticed this already if you are pregnant and suddenly walking up the stairs takes it out of you. Progesterone increases the sensitivity of the respiratory centre and this can cause more breathlessness. In addition the uterus restricts the movement of the diaphragm. Therefore we want to encourage lots of our lovely Pilates lateral breathing techniques. Also note not to push yourself too hard, maybe take shorter sessions and ensure you do a nice warm up and cool down.
7. The pelvic floor is important (it’s about control not strengthening)
Because pilates is gentle movement with co-ordinated breathe, your pelvic floor is likely to be working efficiently if you have a regular pilates practice however of course you may know it’s especially important for pre and post natal women. We want the pelvic floor muscle to be like a new piece of elastic, to have the ability to stretch to allow baby to pass through during birth and to return to normal afterwards. Spending a little time a day performing some pelvic floor exercises pre and post baby is important but of course refer to a physiotherapist if you feel you need more help in this area. 8. Considerations for later pregnancy and preparing for birth
This one may require a separate post however for now here’s a few tips as you approach later pregnancy. In all my prenatal trainings, they encourage squatting. Hopefully you’ve been squatting and building up that leg strength with good technique throughout your pregnancy so you will probably be a pro by now. Squatting is amazing to get the baby in the correct position for birth and to help delivery. Avoid squatting too low, maybe use a Pilates ball and the wall to help support. Being on all fours, is also another great position to prepare for birth.
*All LMP pregnant clients, without exception, should have permission from their medical practitioner to continue or to start exercise during pregnancy. Medical permission should then be sought at regular intervals throughout pregnancy. Always listen to your body and stop exercising if you feel pain, have bleeding, chest pain, faintness, palpitations, pubic pain, severe headache, fever, development of swelling in legs, face or hands.
Tutorial from myself and Emily about Adaptions and Considerations for Pregnancy plus full prenatal series will be coming to the Lottie Murphy Pilates Virtual Studio this Autumn.