attention pregnant ladies!
Gentle, daily exercise is super important for a healthy pregnancy and natural birth, so I wanted to share how I stayed active during my pregnancy. I simply went on daily walks. There were some days or weeks when I didn't, but for the most part, I was able to walk around three miles every day.
My friend Lalanya and her midwife, the wonderful Margo Kennedy (who was also my midwife), swear that walking was part of what made her pregnancy and birth experience so nice. Lalanya walked three to five miles a day, like she was training for a marathon - the marathon of birth! If you're pregnant I highly recommend it. Meet your friends or make your husband, boyfriend, or partner take you. The fresh air and trees will do wonders and help the baby get into the right place. It's so important to help your baby get positioned head down, facing the right way.
Lalanya walked three miles the day before she gave birth. She walked slowly, but she did it! Anywho, I walked a lot during my pregnancy, and it made me feel really good. I think I walked a full hike the day before I gave birth, too. Try it, especially if you are planning a natural birth.
Have any of you Kind Lifers experienced the benefits of walking during pregnancy? What other types of exercise have made you feel great while expecting?
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Photo Credit: Content in a Cottage
16 comments
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I am 15 1/2 weeks pregnant and I am walking every day that I have off. We just got a new puppy so that is making it easy to get several 15-45 min walks in every day. I love it. I feel like it's at least keeping me active enough even if I can't get in a cardio or yoga workout. I am planning an unmedicated birth with a midwife at a birthing center. As a labor and delivery nurse I have seen the wide spectrum of labors and feel at least a little prepared for my labor/delivery. But I still have to do everything I can to stay physically and mentally ready for the marathon ahead of me! Thanks for the great info Alicia!
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is it ok to have natural birth? i am thinking about it (i am not pregnant). our culture has taught us to rely on hospitals/medicines too much, i guess.
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Thank you for this post! My hubbie & I want to start trying to get pregnant soon. I would LOVE to see you write a Kind Pregnancy book- hint, hint- :-)
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I just got trained as a doula, and I've been vegan for several years - so it is super interesting for me to read these posts on healthy vegan pregnancies. I'm so excited to start working with women and will hopefully continue learning lots about healthy pregnancies and labors, especially as I continue my training toward becoming a midwife. Blessings and congratulations to Alicia and all of you moms and moms-to-be!
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I just got trained as a doula, and I've been vegan for several years - so it is super interesting for me to read these posts on healthy vegan pregnancies. I'm so excited to start working with women and will hopefully continue learning lots about healthy pregnancies and labors, especially as I continue my training toward becoming a midwife. Blessings and congratulations to Alicia and all of you moms and moms-to-be!
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Although both of my births were completely natural, the second labor and recovery was a lot easier. It can be attributed to many things I think, namely my awesome diet with my 2nd compared to my terrible diet with my first. The other thing, I think, was that I walked 3 miles a day faithfully throughout my entire pregnancy the 2nd time around. Not even 2 days after delivery, my body felt like "normal" again, like I hadn't even given birth. Easier to get back to working out too!
Alicia, I would love to hear more about how you prepared mentally and physically for your labor with Bear, and what you changed, if anything, in your diet during your pregnancy.
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I'm a physical therapist and I love working with mom's to be. I'm a big advocate for doing gentle daily exercises to strengthen the core, especially the pelvic floor muscles, open up the hips, and work on cardio/endurance to get ready for delivery (no matter how you decide to deliver) and get ready for the physical demands of being a mom. Walking is a great way to work on your cardio/endurance, keeping the hips flexible and enganging the core. Other great exercises are swimming, stationary biking, yoga, and Pilates. Exercising during pregnancy also helps you recover from deliviery, get back into shape after your delivery, and have more energy for the coming sleepness nights. And bonus is you have more cardio capacity after pregnancy, kind of like a postpartum body high, from all the extra blood you needed for the pregnancy that you'll have more endurance postpartum than pre. Just remember to check with your midwife, ob-gyn or family practitioner before you start anything you didn't do regularly before pregnancy.
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I walked almost every day when I was pregnant. I hiked in the woods and climbed steep hills. I walked for hours around the mall of america the day before I had my daughter. I had a natural birth with no drugs, 24 hour labor. I would do the same if I were to get pregnant again. I also lost all but 5 lbs of my pregnancy weight within a couple weeks of having her.
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wow 5 miles the night before giving birth! thats impressive. i've heard swimming is excellent exercise for preggo ladies too!
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I am a Belly Dancer-and contrary to the stereotype Belly Dancing was originally done for women by women to prepare their bodies/birth canal for birth. if you are planning on getting pregnant or already are, it is a fun way to get exercise and prepare your hips and stomach for birth. I would highly recommend it!
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I walked my dogs every day when I was pregnant and even drove home during my lunch hour to do so. I also lifted weights, but lighter weight than I lifted prior to pregnancy.
My labor and delivery was relatively easy and my doctor believes a lot of that had to do with my fitness level at the time I gave birth.
Gretchen
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I am 7 months pregnant and have been walking my dog, Roxy, about 2 miles in the morning and a short 20 minute walk in the afternoon. I also have a 2 year old and was walking Roxy with the BOB stroller. I've found that being so pregnant it's nice to walk alone and focus on the environmnet and being a "pack leader". It feels really great and relaxing. Good news to know that this could help my natural birth as well.
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Unfortunately I'm not pregnant yet (I'm just 20 years old), but I agree so much with what you say. I go out for a walk everyday (sometimes I walk 7 kilometres, sometimes just 3 km), and I feel each time I do it, how much energy and happiness the trees and the nature give me. I really believe that the baby in you feel that.
I'm really looking forwards to live a vegan pregnancy, and I'm glad that you write about it.
Were do you walk? What kind of landscape is around L.A.?
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several of my fellow yogis practiced up until one week before birth! hardcore vinyasa flow classes, too! it's recommended not to practice during the first trimester and to avoid twisting. according to my friends, the yoga allowed their hips to be open, yielding a very comfortable birth.
in my life after bulimia, i am growing everyday, opening up my heart to the prospect of one day finding comfort in being pregnant. this post has given me additional inspiration. you are so kind, alicia! i wrote about my thoughts on pregnancy here: http://nicoleandgwendolyn.com/2011/10/18/the-ex-bulimics-baby/.
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does running around after a 2 year old help? With my first pregnancy i did yoga, walked, worked out and felt better than ever before. This pregnancy... i'm barely awake and barely can keep up with my 2 year old who thinks when his 8 month pregnant mommy is running to get him is his favorite activity.
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