Every pregnant woman wants an easy and complication-free delivery. Staying active and practising safe exercises can help make the entire delivery process a little easier and smoother. You need to be careful about what exercises you do when pregnant. If you are looking for exercises for normal delivery, here we have curated 10 of the best pregnancy-safe exercises- that are both simple and effective.
Talk to your doctor and get clearance to start exercising during your pregnancy. Not all women can start exercising right away. Your doctor knows your health condition well and is the best person to advise you on when to start exercising and what exercises to avoid. Once you get your doctor’s approval, you can start doing these:
Walking is the simplest and the easiest exercise you can do at any stage of your pregnancy. It can help improve digestion and regulate blood pressure and glucose levels. Walking also helps improve your breathing and stamina.
When your leg muscles are active throughout the pregnancy, they will be strong without any stiffness. You can even walk when in labour. It can help speed up your labour.
Precautions
● Ensure you wear proper walking shoes
● Avoid speed walking if you are new to it
● Avoid walking on slippery surfaces.
This is a great stretch for your abdomen and back during pregnancy. Get down on all fours – your knees and hands. Arch your spine, look up and inhale deeply. Hold your breath for about 2 or 3 seconds and exhale slowly as you arch your back up and tuck your abdomen in.
This stretch can help relieve back pain, improve your spine’s flexibility, and strengthen the core muscles.
Precautions
● Use a mat beneath you to cushion your joints.
● If looking up makes you feel light-headed, avoid this exercise.
● Contract and tighten your abdomen muscles rather than just holding your breath.
This exercise helps strengthen your pelvic floor muscles. Strengthening these muscles can help in easier delivery, faster recovery, and better control over the bladder. Urinary incontinence is one of the most common issues women suffer from post-delivery.
Lay flat on your back with your legs bent and feet planted on the ground below your knees. Keep your hands palm facing down by the side of your hips. Take a deep breath in, and as you breathe out, contract your abdominal muscles and push your hip up. Your body should be sloping downward from your knees to your chest. Hold this position for about 3 seconds, and then lower your body and relax. You can do this exercise daily as long as it doesn’t hurt your back.
Precautions:
● Breathe freely when exercising and not holding your breath.
● Do them slowly to get the maximum benefit.
● Avoid squeezing the pelvic muscles and stop if you experience pain or discomfort.
This exercise helps strengthen your core, pelvic floor, and hip muscles, which are very important for easy delivery. It can also help ease the strain on your back. It is very similar to the hip bridge but without the lifting. So, if you are not comfortable lifting your baby bump, you can try this.
Lay flat on your back with arms by your side and legs bent at the knees. Take a deep breath, and as you breathe out, start contracting your abdominal muscles and tilt your hip inwards. Hold your breath for about 5 seconds and relax. You can do this every day before bed or after waking up.
Precautions
● Focus on your breathing and avoid quick breaths
● Contract the muscles slowly
● In case of any discomfort, stop doing the exercise immediately.
Prenatal yoga is a good option if you want to be active throughout your pregnancy without straining. Pregnancy yoga for normal delivery can help strengthen the pelvic floor muscles, ease back pain, and improve breathing.
Prenatal yoga classes are safer than solo practice if you are new to yoga. Doing the asanas correctly and breathing properly is very important in yoga. Having a professional spotting and guiding you can ensure safety during pregnancy.
Precaution
● If you are not comfortable doing some asana, avoid it.
● Don’t try to stretch or strain too much if your body is not cooperating.
● Ensure the room is well-ventilated, as your body temperature can rise quickly.
Perfecting your breathing can be very handy during delivery. Breathing exercises help strengthen your lungs and also help you relax. When you are in labour, the pain and contractions can make you start taking quick, shallow breaths.
Breathing exercises can help you slow down and breathe deep, which can not only make the contractions less painful to endure but can also help in pushing the baby out in a vaginal delivery.
Precautions
● Learn from a trusted professional.
● Deep and slow breathing can make some feel light-headed.
● Keep a close watch on your baby’s movements and how you feel when doing these breathing exercises.
Squats focus on your glutes, thighs, and leg muscles. They help strengthen and loosen the muscles required to push during a vaginal delivery. If you are looking for a pregnancy exercise for normal delivery, squats can help get the baby in position.
As your pregnancy progresses, do your squats with support. Hold on to a chair or the door frame as you go down and come up. This will prevent falls due to the added weight and shift in your centre of gravity.
Precautions
● Do not do squats if your placenta is low-lying (placenta previa).
● Avoid squats if your amniotic fluid is leaking.
● Avoid tilting your hip backwards when you get up from the squat. It can feel easier to get up with the baby weight, but it will hurt your back.
This is one of the best stretches for the groin muscles, which tend to tighten as pregnancy progresses. It is also a safe 9th-month pregnancy exercise for normal delivery, as it helps open your legs and pelvic muscles.
Sit down on the floor with your legs crossed. Now, open the legs so that your feet are touching each other. Next, try pushing down on your knees or thighs to make each leg go down to the ground. You can hold the position or just pulse if your legs feel too tight.
Precautions
● Do not push down on your knees too hard.
● Don’t stretch too much if it hurts.
● Ensure both your sit bones are on the ground.
An exercise ball can be a great addition to your pregnancy fitness routine. As your pregnancy progresses, standing for too long or sitting down on the floor can be difficult. You can sit on the exercise ball and do your workouts in such cases.
Precautions
● Use the ball on rough flooring – preferably with a carpet or mat, to prevent your feet from slipping.
● Always use the ball near a wall or support you can hold on to for balance.
● Have someone to spot you. They can help if the ball moves away.
Lunging can help stretch the inner thigh muscles and improve posture. As pregnancy progresses, the strain on your back and thighs increases. Loosening and strengthening these muscles can help you endure labour better.
Stand up straight and take one big step forward. Now lower your body until the front knee is bent to 90 degrees. Exhale and use the strength to push your weight back up and bring your leg back to position. Repeat this on the other leg. If moving forward is difficult, you can do a reverse lunge as well. All you have to do is take the leg back instead of forward.
Precautions
● Avoid long lunges, as you can lose your balance
● Avoid this exercise if your groin area hurts
● Don’t do this exercise if there is a placenta previa or fluid leak.
Exercising regularly can help during labour and delivery. Remember, everything is not under your control. Despite all the exercises, you may need to undergo a C-section delivery for various reasons. It is okay if your delivery does not go as planned. Staying strong and healthy can help in speedy recovery, too.
Deep core breathing and exercises that strengthen your pelvic muscles can speed up the delivery process once you go into active labour. You can use muscle strength and breath control to push as your contractions happen.
Deep squats, deep core breathing, and butterfly stretches are very helpful in opening up the pelvic area. When your pelvis opens up and gives way for the baby, the chances of a normal delivery are high.
Once you are in active labour, keep moving around to help the baby move along. Deep breathing can help relax the muscles and loosen them up for delivery. You can also try different positions to identify, which feels easier.
Once you are close to your due date, you can try walking, squats, lunges, and prenatal yoga poses for delivery. Ensure you get your doctor’s approval before you try all this to bring on labour.
