Pregnancy Exercises: Three key exercises

Improve your posture

Backache is one of the most common pregnancy niggles. There are many causes, but one of the main ones is bad posture caused primarily by the weight of your bump. This exercise should get you in good habits.

Stand with your feet hip-distance apart, making sure your knees are soft. Feel the weight of your feet on the floor and feel your trunk lifted and open.

Tilt your pelvis forward, your tailbone down towards the floor, and pull your baby up and in towards your spine. Make sure you have a natural curve in your back - it shouldn't be arched. Lengthen through the spine and aim for a nice straight back. Keep your shoulders back and down, and imagine you have a string pulling your head upright.

Work your deep abdominals

Strong abdominals will also help you to maintain good posture. Before starting this exercise, though, you need to know what you're working and why. The deep abdominals refer to the transverse abdominal muscles, which come around from your back and act like a corset. It's these muscles that will help to give your stomach a flatter appearance after the baby is born.

Even though you're not directly working the rectus abdominals (the muscles that run down the front of your abdomen) as you would when you do a sit-up (which shouldn't be attempted during pregnancy), don't worry; this exercise still works these muscles. When they're strong they also contribute to core stability and good posture.

Breathe in and as you breathe out again, pull in your pelvic floor and the deep abdominal muscles. Lift the baby up and in towards your spine, drawing the navel to the back, then lift your pelvic floor muscles to deepen the contraction. Hold this position.

You can do this exercise standing or on all fours. If you're standing, check your posture. If you're on all fours, make sure your hands are in line with your shoulders and your hips are in line with your knees. In both cases, make sure you have a natural curve in your back. You may need to tilt the pelvis to align your back correctly.

Advanced versions of this exercise that you can do after the birth include the plank. Ask an instructor to show you how to do these exercises.

Work your pelvic floor

The pelvic floor describes the sling of muscles at the base of the abdomen that keeps all your internal organs, including your uterus, in place. Pregnancy puts pressure on these muscles, while during birth they are stretched to allow the baby through. You should do these exercises every day of your life, to avoid problems such as urinary incontinence and prolapse. A strong pelvic floor will improve your sex life, too.

Breathe in and as you breathe out again, close up your back passage as if you were trying to prevent a bowel movement. At the same time, close up the front passage and draw the muscles up and in, as if you were trying to stop a flow of urine (but never do this when you're actually on the toilet as it could increase the possibility of infection). Contract the muscles to a count of three - imagine a lift going up, one floor, two floors, three floors.

When you get to the top, hold and squeeze, making sure you keep breathing. Hold the contraction for five to ten seconds, then slowly and gently release the contraction. Repeat as often as you can (at least ten times a day).

Try to link the exercise routine to an activity such as washing your hands after you use the toilet, so you don't forget. Start with slow contractions; as you feel the muscles getting stronger you can speed them up.

This exercise may seem simple, but it does work. Norwegian researchers found that women who had followed an eight-week pelvic floor strengthening programme had less urine leakage a year after the birth than women in the control group. If you're one of the 20 to 30 per cent of new mothers who still suffer from stress incontinence three months after delivery, ask your doctor to refer you to a specialist obstetric physiotherapist. *

To Be Fit In Pregnancy

Improved circulation

You and your baby are linked by the placenta, so anything that affects your circulation will also affect your baby's. Good circulation supplies the baby with more oxygen and nutrients.

Good circulation also helps to reduce the incidence of piles, varicose veins, swelling, cramps and constipation in you. In fact, exercise is a great way to beat many of the minor complications of pregnancy.

Improved posture

The weight of the baby alters your centre of gravity. This, combined with the softening effects of the hormone relaxin on your ligaments, can lead to bad posture and backache.

Strengthening your abdominal and back muscles will improve posture and your chances of avoiding backache.

Better state of mind

Exercise releases feel-good endorphins into your system. Add to this the physical benefits - better body shape and definition, better complexion - of regular activity and you'll certainly feel stronger, happier and more positive about being pregnant.

Lower risk of miscarriage

Keeping active can also reduce your risk of miscarriage by 40 per cent, according to researchers at New York's Columbia University. This doesn't mean you have to be a slave to the gym. The researchers found that being active could include doing housework, walking or chasing around after young children.

However, if you've had more than one miscarriage in the past, you should contact your GP before embarking on any exercise programme during pregnancy.

Controlled blood pressure

Moderate exercise, such as walking or cycling, can help to prevent pregnancy-related high blood pressure, according to an American study. Researchers looked at 16 women with a personal or family history of hypertension. At 14 weeks of pregnancy, the women were split into two groups: exercisers and no activity. After ten weeks, the exercisers had a decline in diastolic blood pressure (the minimum arterial pressure, when the ventricles in the heart are relaxed), while the no activity group's pressure went up.

However, if you already have pregnancy-related high blood pressure, you should check with your GP before starting any pregnancy exercise programme.

A better birth

The better your cardiovascular system (your heart and lungs), the more stamina you'll have for huffing and puffing your way through labour. Improved muscular strength will also help you maintain birthing positions such as squatting.

Pregnancy fitness expert Dr James Clapp has found that women who exercise are less likely to have a caesarean or episiotomy, or go into premature labour. Recently, though, he updated his research and found that: "It is the amount of exercise in late pregnancy that helps. It takes a lot to achieve this benefit, about 40 to 60 minutes of moderate intensity, five times a week."

A healthier placenta

Dr Clapp found that when pregnant women exercised, the placenta grew almost a third faster in mid-pregnancy and had about 15 per cent more blood vessels and surface area at full term. This is good news for your baby because the placenta is her substitute lungs, kidneys and liver, and transfers oxygen and nutrients from you.

Your baby will be bigger

Women who exercise three to five times a week have babies that are heavier, longer and have a better overall weight and body fat than those born to mums who don't exercise, according to researchers from the Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology in Cleveland, Ohio. Dr Clapp also found that the offspring of exercising mothers stay leaner at five years of age.

The bigger babies were due to the spurt in placental growth, promoted by exercise. But is bigger better? Apparently so. Another piece of research in the British Medical Journal found that the bigger the baby, the better the future exam results.

You'll give your baby a head-start

Want a happier, more intelligent baby? Exercise might help. A study in the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology compared the newborn babies of women who exercised no more than once a week with the infants of mothers who ran, swam, used stair climbers or did aerobics three or more times a week for at least 20 minutes. Five days after the birth, the babies born to active mums were more alert and less fussy, suggesting that their mother's exercise may have given their babies a developmental boost. *