No athlete can ever appreciate running benefits more than a pregnant one. Running and exercising during pregnancy is proven to bring many physical and mental benefits and help make the giving birth experience easier.
Running has also proven to significantly reduce and eliminate many pregnancy side effects that women usually experience such as swollen ankles, excess weight gain, general pains, aches, constipation etc. Since pregnancy is considered to be one of the most natural conditions a woman’s body can ever be, it also means your life as an athlete or even running fanatic doesn’t have to stop.
Sometimes, the best way to handle a certain change is by changing nothing else in your life…
Running during your expecting months…
Try to always keep in mind that during your pregnancy period, unfortunately, there are some things you need to change from your running routine. For example, you cannot continue pushing your limits and challenging yourself in the way you used to do.
You shouldn’t seek for a progress since the only real progress you need to mostly focus on, is the human being you’re making inside you. Getting overheated during your running session is not a smart thing to do. Your favorite activity should become your companion, but not your guider.
Experts recommend trying and incorporating as many relaxing and breathing exercises you can during your pre and post running session. Stretching exercises should also be in your main focus. Running should be easy, should last no more than half an hour a day and you should be able to control and manage your breathing process better than before. Keeping an eye on what your body is trying to tell you, is a must.
Essential guidelines to follow
Let’s assume you’re pregnant. Congratulations!
Now, we also assume since you are still reading this material, it means you’re really searching for some basic guidelines to help you better manage your physical activity while pregnant. Don’t worry, there are some things you can do to keep your pregnancy safe and on the other hand, you can continue doing what you mostly like to do; run.
– As soon as you find out you’re pregnant, the first thing you should do is to always discuss your new physical condition with your health adviser and your coach (if you have any). If you don’t, find one. He/she will give you some specific instructions related to your specific body condition.
– Try to always keep your training session between 30 and 40 minutes. During this time, you should also try to incorporate as much stretching and warming-up exercises as you can.
– The books say your heart rate should not be over 140 beats per minute. Keep this in mind and constantly monitor your heart.
– Skip training during the freezing cold days or hot summer ones.
– Take your hydration process more seriously and never skip it.
– 3 to 4 times a week is the ideal number of running and training sessions you should have.
– Skip the kind of stretching exercises that force you to lay down since these type of moves can block the blood supply to your baby.
Final thoughts…
The reason you need to make sure your running session isn’t too harsh, is because in most of the cases, learning your baby is harmed happens too late. Remember, the baby only cools down when you do. Running increases your body temperature which should always be something you must manage due to the fact it may significantly overhead the baby and cause dangerous issues. That is why your running session should not be long and intensive. Continue doing your passion in a moderate way.
Remember, you heart rate is also your baby’s heart rate. Experts will usually recommend you to not train every single day. You and your baby need your resting days too.
