Benefits of Pilates for Pregnancy

Staying active and eating healthily helps an expecting mum to have a healthier pregnancy, a safer birth and a healthier baby. Exercising improves the stamina and circulation, and tones and strengthens the muscles. Plus, it boosts your mood and energy level.

Antenatal Pilates offers multiple benefits including, developing your natural corset to support your back and baby, helping with the changes to your posture, pelvic floor education, breathing technique, toning the muscles and, thus, helping in weight management. Practising Pilates on a regular basis can improve posture, alleviate backaches, and, ultimately, help with labour and delivery. In particular, the latter is achieved through pelvic floor release exercises and exercises that may encourage a baby to rotate into a desired position.

Some of the main changes in the body and their implications for exercising safely are discussed below.

Breathlessness during pregnancy

Mild breathlessness is common in pregnancy. Pilates lateral thoracic breathing technique helps make an expecting mum’s breathing more efficient. A properly tailored Antenatal Pilates exercise programme helps her keep fit and feel less breathless during pregnancy. Focusing on breathing in an antenatal class also has a relaxing and calming effect.

Muscle, ligament, joint and postural adaptations

Hormonal changes during pregnancy have an effect on muscles, ligaments and joints and can cause postural issues. The stability provided by the musculature surrounding the joints becomes more important.

Pilates exercises focused on functional core stability, in particular pelvic stability, are beneficial for a mum-to-be. On the contrary, exercises involving a wide range of movement and long levers, holding positions or stretches and asymmetrical exercises should be avoided.

Pregnancy affects posture and proprioception, as the centre of gravity shifts. The posture is likely to be affected from the second trimester, as the baby grows.

An expecting mum-to-be postural changes need to be assessed and re-education of good alignment is required. Appropriate thoracic extension exercises together with scapular stability exercises are important for the upper body. As the sense of balance is likely to be affected, exercises that improve proprioceptive awareness are also helpful.

Other physical activities

It is advisable to do swimming and walking. Swimming can be done throughout the whole pregnancy, and it is particularly great during the last trimester due to the feeling of weightlessness in the water. Walking is also safe through the pregnancy, as long as the mum-to-be feels comfortable.

Certain classes and exercises in the gym are not appropriate for pregnancy, as there is a risk of putting too much strain on the expecting mum’s joints or muscles.

Antenatal Pilates class run by an instructor, qualified to work with ante and postnatal clients, will offer exercises appropriate for pregnancy.