During my first pregnancy, I was so excited to be one of those moms who keeps on running and going to the gym until 38 weeks. But like most of our stories, things never quite turn out as planned. At 24 weeks I started with Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction (SPD) (keep an eye on our blog, a blog post all about SPD is coming soon). I tried to run through the pelvic pain (which you should never do) but at 26 weeks pregnant the severe pain stopped me in my tracks. Since then I could not even go for long walks. I could just do stationary exercises. This was very frustrating for me because I am extremely dependant on exercise and light exercise felt like a waste of time in the gym.

We as a physio practice truly believe that exercise is medicine and throughout pregnancy, you can continue to exercise within the right limits, taking in consideration your health, age, well-being and risk factors.

Although I did not experience a great release of endorphins after every exercise session, I soon experienced that light exercise is still better than no exercise. I felt more mobile, stronger and more confident. It helped me to manage stress at work and to sleep well at night and it definitely helped with postpartum recovery. I can testify that even though I sometimes had to drag myself to the gym or swimming pool, I had a better overall pregnancy experience, well being and recovery due to exercise.

All in all, listen to your body, keep on exercising and enjoy your pregnancy.

And of course, for any advice on general exercise, the pelvic floor, and other core exercises or to receive an exercise program designed specifically for your needs and for the different phases of pregnancy, make an appointment with us. We would love to assist you.