Busting the Top 5 Pregnancy Fitness Myths
Upon finding out I was pregnant, I had an initial call with my doctor’s office where they went over general pregnancy recommendations and guidelines.
“Start taking a prenatal vitamin, don’t eat lunch meat or anything raw, no alcohol or drugs, no weight lifting over 25lb, and no high intensity exercise (wait, what?!).”
I tried to dig a little deeper with the nurse on exercising while pregnant - What was safe? What wasn’t?
She just rattled off some very general advice, which is totally understandable since that isn’t her area of specialization. But it didn’t help me get the answers I needed.
And unfortunately, many women are in the same boat. Given very general “old school” advice to keep exercising moderately but no heavy lifting, and certainly no high-intensity exercise.
This leaves us unprepared for the task at hand: pregnancy and childbirth! Might I mention, this is not an easy task and, if you want to FEEL GOOD for the next 9 months, you need to prepare your body to perform for that!
Having been in the fitness profession for 8+ years, I wasn’t going to stop there without doing my own research. You can say this was the start of my developing passion for pre/postnatal fitness!
Today I want to bust 5 common myths we’re told about fitness during pregnancy.
5 PREGNANCY FITNESS MYTHS
Disclaimer: If you’re a high risk pregnancy or have questions about personal limitations, always discuss with your provider before starting an exercise program. This information is for education purposes and not intended to be taken as medical advice.
1. Don’t lift over 25 pounds
OK. This is only true if you’ve never lifted anything over 25lb before or you feel like you cannot safely do so.
If you have been strength training before getting pregnant, you have nothing to worry about. Continuing your same routine (with some modifications later in pregnancy) is totally fine. And there is no weight limit. Though, as you gain weight and your center of gravity shifts, some strength training exercises may not feel as good to you. Your body will tell you!
If you have not been strength training before getting pregnant, most providers will tell you not to start. However, if you’re guided by a pre/postnatal fitness professional you can safely implement strength training even if you’ve never done it before.
2. Keep it light with walking or yoga
Don’t get me wrong, walking and yoga have been some of my favorite types of exercise as I’ve progressed in my pregnancy! However, just doing these activities alone will not prepare your body for the strength and endurance it needs to have a pain-free pregnancy and endure an intense labor/delivery.
These recommendations are really meant to keep people from doing crazy things like starting a Crossfit routine or starting a marathon training program when they become pregnant.
Bottom line: A well-rounded routine includes cardio, flexibility, and strength training so you can train your body to minimize pregnancy risks and maximize performance.
3. No high impact exercise
I hear it all the time: “Can I run while pregnant?”
Answer: “How does it feel?”
If you love to run and want to continue running in your pregnancy, there is no rule that says you have to stop. While I don’t recommend training for a marathon during pregnancy, if your body feels good running, go for it!
Same goes for jumping exercises like squat jumps and skaters.
[Sidenote: I LOVE HIIT training and was able to do this type of exercise until late in my second trimester. At that point, it wasn’t feeling so good on my body anymore and I made low-impact modifications]
Warning: High impact exercise does cause a significant amount of strain on the spine, pelvis, and other supporting muscles. If you start to feel low back pain, pelvic pain, sciatica irritation or anything else abnormal, cut back a bit to see if high-impact exercise is the underlying issue. Consider adding in some extra mobility or strength training to offset the high-impact effects.
4. Keep heart rate below 140bpm
This is a very old school claim (like 1980’s). New research consistently shows that heart rate is not a good gauge of intensity during pregnancy. Reason being, the amount of blood your heart is pumping in each beat increases and this effects your heart rate.
During pregnancy, your heart rate can vary day to day. But overall, your resting heart rate will increase by as much as 15 beats per minute!
To better gauge your intensity based on how you feel, use the RPE (rate of perceived exertion) scale. During exercise, rank how you feel on a scale of 1 (sitting on the couch) to 10 (extreme exhaustion). Keep low/moderate intensity between 4-6 and high intensity exercise between 6-8.
If you wear a fitness tracker, don’t rely too heavily on it. Though it is OK for your heart rate to be above 140bpm, base it on how you feel!
(Source: ACOG)
5. Eat for two
You may already be well-versed on this myth, but I thought I’d throw it in anyway and give you something a little more tangible!
You do NOT need to eat for 2 full size humans while you’re pregnant. That’s a fast track to overeating which can lead to excess weight gain during pregnancy. Think of how tiny your little human is. Instead of eating for 2, you’re really eating for about 1.1.
Here are the caloric recommendations by trimester (if you’re pregnant with 1):
Trimester 1: No additional calories needed
Trimester 2: Additional 300 calories needed (easily add an extra snack)
Trimester 3: Additional 450 calories needed (easily add an extra snack and a bit more protein to each meal)
(Source: Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 2014)
FINAL THOUGHTS
Don’t believe everything you hear about pregnancy fitness recommendations. Many of the things we hear are based on old school research.
You’re capable of a lot more than you think, AND, if you want to keep it that way throughout pregnancy, you need to train your body for it!
Which myth surprised you the most? Let me know in the comments!
Hey there! I’m Nicole, Pre/Postnatal Fitness Coach and founder of Strong Mama Wellness. I take the confusion out of prenatal fitness and help women prepare and strengthen their body for pregnancy, delivery, and recovery. You and your baby deserve to have a thriving, healthy pregnancy!
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