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Gentle exercises for pregnancy

Gentle exercises for pregnancy

Claire Harris
Pregnancy

Pregnancy is a time of transition. With each passing week, your body works hard behind the scenes to accommodate your growing baby or babies. It may feel difficult or overwhelming to figure out what you can do to support this process. As a physiotherapist with a special interest in pelvic health, I am passionate about providing people with tools during and after pregnancy to feel their best physically and emotionally.

 
A baby with dark curly hair lays on their back on a bed with white bedding. They're head is turned towards the camera. A person's hands with red nail polish gently hold baby in place.
 

There are numerous health benefits to movement during pregnancy. In fact, research has shown that strengthening and aerobic exercises during pregnancy can facilitate labor and set people up for success postpartum. The following are a series of exercises that can be safely done during pregnancy.

This list is not comprehensive but rather some of my favourites to prescribe to my pregnant patients. Please consult with your care provider before engaging in an exercise program. I highly recommend seeking the expertise of a physiotherapist in pelvic health to help tailor a movement and rehabilitation program to your needs during and after pregnancy.

In the following exercises, I suggest timing movements with your breath, but the most important thing is that you are breathing (not breath-holding) when you exercise.

Hug the Baby Breathing

As you inhale, let your belly and pelvic floor soften and relax completely. As you exhale, breathe out through pursed lips slowly. Feel your pelvic floor begin to draw up, and let your abdominal muscles hug your baby in towards your spine. This is a great exercise to practice throughout the day or to utilize through transitional movements (especially if you experience round ligament pain) like rolling in bed, lifting other children, or moving from sitting to standing.

Woman standing sideways to the camera with her belly relaxed and her hands resting below her belly. She wears a mask, a stripped shirt, and grey leggings.
Woman standing sideways to the camera with her belly in and her hands resting just above her belly. She wears a mask, a stripped shirt, and grey leggings.

Butterfly

Sit tall (right on top of your sit bones) with your spine long, and the soles of your feet together. It is often easier to maintain this position with a pillow or exercise ball behind your back for additional support. Let your knees fall out to the side as far as is comfortable. Focus on relaxation of the pelvic floor and softening of the hips in this position. Use your breath to visualize bringing space to any areas of tightness or resistance. Maintain this position for 3-5 minutes, repeat 1-2 times per day.

A woman sits on the floor with the soles of her feet together and her knees relaxes out to the side. Her back is towards the wall with an exercise ball between her lower back and the wall. She wears a mask, a striped shirt, and grey leggings.
A woman sits on the floor facing the camera. The soles of her feet are together and her knees are relaxed outwards to her sides. She wears a mask, a striped shirt, and grey leggings.

Squats

A wonderful, functional exercise to do during pregnancy. This may be done freestanding or using a ball against the wall to support you as you lower. Inhale as you drop down, exhale, breathing out through pursed lips, and hug your baby in and up as you stand tall. Focus on keeping your weight distributed throughout your feet. To maintain length in your low back, you may also imagine just slightly tucking your tailbone between your legs. Begin with 2-3 sets of 12-15 repetitions.

Upper Back Mobility

For many individuals during pregnancy, the upper back may start to feel stiff or uncomfortable. To address this, hold a hand towel or dish towel taut between your hands. Inhale as you lift it up overhead (without letting your low back arch), exhale as you bring the towel back down with control. Repeat this 10 times. For the second variation of this exercise, raise the towel up overhead, and side bend to your right as you inhale, exhale as you return to center. Repeat this 3-5 times on each side.

A woman sits in a chair facing the camera. Her arms are above her head and she's holding a white towel stretched between her hands, about shoulders width apart. She wears a mask, stripped shirt, and leggings
A woman sits in a chair facing the camera. Her arms are above her head, tilted to the right, and she's holding a white towel stretched between her hands, about shoulders width apart. She wears a mask, stripped shirt, and leggings
A woman sits in a chair facing the camera. Her arms are above her head, stretching to the left, and she's holding a white towel stretched between her hands, about shoulders width apart. She wears a mask, stripped shirt, and leggings

Clams

As pregnant people become more empowered to birth in different positions (such as side-lying or on all fours), it can be helpful to strengthen muscles that will facilitate this. Begin by laying on your side, head supported by your arm or a pillow, with both knees bent forward so your heels line up with your bum. Engage your core to draw your lower side body up (we often refer to this as imagining you are lifting your side off of a โ€œmouse houseโ€). Exhale to draw your top knee up, inhale to lower. Focus on quality of movement, keeping the hips stacked, torso still, and isolating the movement to your upper hip. This exercise can also be done with a straight leg for more of a challenge. Aim for 2-3 sets of 12-15 repetitions.

A woman lays on the floor, on her side, facing the camera. She has a pillow under her head. Her upper arm is across her belly and her knees are bent slightly. She wears a mask, stripped shirt, and grey leggings.
A woman lays on the floor, on her side, facing the camera. She has a pillow under her head. The hand of her upper arm is on her hip and her knees are bent slightly. She's opened her knees so that the knee of her upper leg points to the ceiling.
A woman lays on the floor, on her side, facing the camera. She has a pillow under her head. The hand of her upper arm is on her hip. Her lower leg is slightly bent and her upper leg is straight and lifted a few feet off the floor.

Chest and Shoulder Opener

Sit cross-legged and place your arms behind you, palms on the floor, fingertips towards your body. Gently push into your palms to open through the chest, letting your sternum lift your upper body towards the ceiling. Keep length in the neck. You will feel this through the front of your shoulders and your chest. Breath slowly into this stretch for 20-30 seconds and repeat 2-3 times.

A woman sits on the floor, sideways to the camera, with her legs crossed. Her arms are behind her back with the palms of her hands pressed into the floor. Her fingers are pointing towards her back. She wears a mask, stripped shirt, and grey leggings.

References

Silva-Jose, C., Sรกnchez-Polรกn, M., Dรญaz-Blanco, ร., Pรฉrez-Medina, T., Carrero Martรญnez, V., Alzola, I., Barakat, R., Refoyo, I., & Mottola, M. F. (2021). Influence of a Virtual Exercise Program throughout Pregnancy during the COVID-19 Pandemic on Perineal Tears and Episiotomy Rates: A Randomized Clinical Trial. Journal of clinical medicine, 10(22), 5250. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm10225250

Mottola MF, Davenport MH, Ruchat S, et al. 2019 Canadian guideline for physical activity throughout pregnancy. British Journal of Sports Medicine 2018;52:1339-1346.

M. Roฬˆst Cecile C, & Buttinger, C. (2007). Relieving pelvic pain during and after pregnancy: How women can heal chronic pelvic instability. Hunter House.

Claire Harris
Pregnancy
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Claire Harris

Claire Harris is a physiotherapist with Intrinsi in Calgary, AB. Claire completed her Master of Science in Physiotherapy from the University of Alberta. Her interest in physiotherapy stemmed from several years of volunteer work in pediatric rehabilitation during her undergraduate degree in Kinesiology. It was through treating chronic low back and pelvic girdle pain that Claire developed her special interest and passion - pelvic health. She realized that the impact of the pelvic floor on overall health is often under-appreciated, and the pelvic floor under-treated. Conditions such as pelvic pain, urinary incontinence, diastasis recti, pelvic organ prolapse and others can have a major impact on quality of life.

Her postgraduate certifications reflect this special interest, and Claire has taken additional advanced training in pelvic health including pregnancy and pelvic girdle pain

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