Lucy is a yoga teacher and personal trainer, specialising in pre and post-natal exercise. She is based in Hove and is delighted to be 15 weeks pregnant with her first baby.
Firstly … Congratulations!
Whether you’ve just found out you’re pregnant or are a several months in, looking after your body (and your baby) over the 9 months of carrying a baby is one of the most important physical journeys you’ll go through. I’m here to tell you some of the best ways to train and important things to think about, throughout your pregnancy.
Not only will proper, planned exercise help to get you strong and support your frame for your changing shape and distribution of weight but getting moving can help reduce the feeling of morning sickness in some ladies. It helped me a lot in my first trimester — even if it just lifted my spirits from feeling glum and sickly!
As a personal trainer working with a pregnant client and now working on myself, my priorities for the body are as follows:
- Releasing tension and stretching out tight spots using relaxation and breathe work.
- Stabilising the core and pelvis, helping to strengthen the area and prevent pelvic girdle pain.
- Strengthening your back, legs and bottom for the steadily increasing load.
- Learning how to effectively recruit and control the pelvic floor muscles (both to tighten and to release) in preparation for the birth and beyond.
- Improving your posture, especially in the upper body when a heavier chest and cradling the baby can draw the shoulders forwards.
Image courtesy of Ambro/freedigitalphotos.net
1. Taking a holistic approach and using yoga and breathing techniques, I will firstly address any tension or muscle imbalances. This is so that we start from a place of minimal tension and therefore greater comfort.
Image courtesy of Renjith Krishnan/freedigitalphotos.net
2. Pelvic girdle pain (also known as symphysis pubis dysfunction) is a common complaint in pregnancy. It is caused when the bones of the pelvis are even just slightly out of alignment. This can result in varying amounts of pain, and sometimes difficulty moving around without assistance. To prevent this happening, one should work to increase strength and stability in the core (the muscles above the pelvis), the pelvic floor and in the whole hip complex e.g. the glutes (bottom) and legs.
Image courtesy of Adamr/freedigitalphotos.net
3. As your bump grows and you become more ‘front heavy’, your back is put under increasing pressure. The same goes for your lower body. I use functional training movements (that apply to everyday activities), targeting big muscle groups e.g. the legs and bum, to get them strong and toned, so that you’re not so tired out doing things like climbing the stairs or simply walking around.
4. After having a baby, or for other reasons (hysterectomy, menopause, etc.) one can lose the amount of control we have over the pelvic floor muscles. This can vary from peeing yourself a little when you laugh, cough or sneeze, to more serious complications. One can work to physically prepare ourselves before these major life stages. I work with pregnant ladies, helping them to contract and release the pelvic floor on cue so that they can strengthen when they need to (holding in the urge to pee) and release when needed (during childbirth).
Image courtesy of Victor Habbick/freedigitalphotos.net
5. I’m a stickler for good posture. It makes a huge difference, not just in your appearance and stature but because it physically effects the rest of the body also. Believe it or not, problems at the feet can directly apply to issues further up the body and visa versa.
