Is it Safe to Exercise While Pregnant

Just found out that you’re with child? Here are some exercises you can do while pregnant:

• Yoga
• Weight-training
• Swimming
• Kayaking
• Table tennis

Table tennis?

 

If you loved playing it before you were pregnant, there’s no reason not to partake in a hardcore ping pong match with the tenacity of Forest Gump—if that’s the intensity you played with before you became pregnant.

 

You can partake safely in any exercise on the above list while pregnant. Practically any exercise in general may result in the benefits of both an easier delivery and quicker recovery.

 

It’s probably a good idea to refrain from judo, lacrosse, extreme mountain biking and other contact sports and adrenaline-stimulating activities.

 

Myths about Exercising While Pregnant

Barely a generation ago, the school of thought was that pregnant women shouldn’t exercise at all.

 

Thankfully, women are no longer expected to be fitness celibates and the medical establishment recognizes the benefits of continuing or beginning an exercise program.

 

Within the last decade, some medical experts began to question the following common recommendations that still exist in some circles today: 

• Heart rate level should not exceed over 140 beats per minute.
• After the first trimester, exercises should not be performed supine (lying on back).
• Running is not safe due to the high impact to the fetus.
• Avoid abdominal exercises after the first trimester.
• Don’t exercise for more than 20 minutes to avoid depleting nutrients that would otherwise go to baby.

New School of Thought

Are these guidelines too conservative? Are these merely myths comparable to your mom telling you that if you don’t wear a jacket, you’ll catch a cold or if you shave, your hair will just grow back thicker?

 

According to Dr. James Clapp, author of what is considered by many to be the bible of gestational fitness, “Exercising Through Your Pregnancy,” the above guidelines are indeed too cautious.

 

The old-school suggestions, devised by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), have largely been discredited by Dr. Clapp and also by many women who safely exercised outside the antiquated parameters and delivered happy and healthy babies who grew to be perfectly normal children.

 

Get Clearance From Your Doctor, Clapp Says Higher Heart Rate Ok

The first thing any woman should do who just learned that she’s pregnant and wants to either begin or continue exercising is see their doctor and get clearance to do so.

 

As for your heart not exceeding 140 beats per minute, here’s what Dr. Clapp writes in “Exercising Through Your Pregnancy”:

 

“A heart rate of 180 or more – a racing heart – during high-impact aerobics in early pregnancy is normal for most women but would be unusual in a fit woman late in pregnancy; likewise an exercise heart rate of 130 to 140 during late pregnancy in a fit woman who trains 5 to 7 hours a week is not uncommon when she is working in excess of 70 percent of her maximum capacity.”

 

Women who exercise while pregnant will find that during the second trimester, the heart rate returns more closely to normal resting rate, according to Dr. Clapp.

 

Finally, during the third trimester, Clapp argues that it may be increasingly difficult to get the heart rate up high enough, so you won’t even have to worry about going much beyond the 140 threshold.

 

A good case for exercising while pregnant, Clapp states in his book is that “[r]egular exercise during pregnancy has positive effects on the growth and function of the placenta that help to protect the fetus from oxygen deprivation….”

 

Dispelling the Don’t Exercise on Your Back Myth

The old ACOG guidelines recommended women not to exercise on their backs because of pressure to the placenta.

 

Clapp suggests in his book that there will be no detrimental effects to you or to the fetus if you perform supine exercises. If you choose to do a few minutes of abs, Clapp thinks you’ll be fine.

 

The safe thing to do is exercise in side-lying position, which is widely considered the best for resting and for optimal blood flow during pregnancy. The one thing pregnant women should not do is stand for long periods of time to avoid blood pooling in the lower extremity, so take a rest off your feet between standing exercises.

 

Last But Not Least: Take it Easy at First

No matter your fitness level, it’s probably best to let your body get used to the physiological changes for about 2-3 months and exercise at a low intensity. Once you begin adjusting at least somewhat, crank up the intensity a wee bit.

A Few Tips to Break Bad Habits

Sure, breaking bad habits is easier said than done. But here are a few tips to help you get rid of those daily digressions which are no longer serving you.

First, it’s good to focus on the positive. Write down every single good habit you partake in. Eat an apple every day? Floss most days? Drink plenty of water? Walk to the mailbox instead of drive? Wash your hands frequently?

Writing all of your good habits down will change your perspective. No longer will the crutches and obstacles impeding your health and happiness seem as burdensome.

Hopefully, you’ll come up with a laundry list of good habits, which will prove you’re not as unhealthy as you think you might be.

Visualize how your bad habits physically affect you.

Now, to confront the demons: It’s critical to be aware of what your bad habits are and the full extent to which it is causing disharmony in your life.

For example, if you smoke a pack of cigarettes every day, you’re probably aware that smoking is bad for you, but chances are, for every “cancer stick” you shorten your life with, you’re not thinking about the exact physiology that occurs with every cigarette consumed.

If you know this vice is detrimental to your health, mentally picture yourself with one of the many deadly conditions and diseases that smoking causes and how it would affect you and your family and friends.

Perhaps if you focused on how you’d look with a tracheotomy tube or having to talk with a voicebox (satirized and made popular by the South Park supporting character Ned) each time you smoked a cigarette, it would perhaps help you cut down and eventually quit.

This bit of advice might sound like tough love, but tobacco addiction is a life and death matter and a bad habit you’ll be glad to break.

Recite an affirmation each time you’re about to partake in your bad habit.

Continuing with the smoking cigarettes example, each time before you light up, try to say out loud, or even in your head, an affirmation—even if you don’t believe it. Try this one: “I enjoy a superior state of well-being and health. I have the choice to continue to be healthy from this moment forward.”

Combining visualization of what your bad habit can physically—and psychologically— manifest if you continue indulging in it, along with saying positive daily affirmations can help you eventually break your bad habit.

It’s especially important to state the affirmation every time before you’re about to indulge. Make it as automatic as reaching for that cigarette or extra bonbon. 

Speaking of candy, I don’t smoke, but I do eat lots of sugar.

What about less egregious bad habits than smoking cigarettes? Maybe you’re not one of the approximately 35 percent of American adults who are overweight but you do over do it with junk food.

Many people struggle with overindulging in simple carbohydrates that convert easily into sugar, or just plain sugary treats that cause a rush of energy and then eventually a sugar crash.

What kind of energy do you want to have?

It’s important to visualize how you want to feel during the day. If you genuinely enjoy the rush you feel from drinking 3 cups of coffee in the morning, while skipping breakfast and then ultimately hitting the proverbial brick wall at 2 p.m., you probably won’t break the bad habit of drinking too much caffeine, which can wreak havoc on your adrenal glands.

But if you do prefer to have steady energy throughout the day without crashing in the afternoon, you’ll stand a good chance of kicking your sugar addiction.

Eating more often and making sure that you consume some protein and a little natural fat with every meal will help keep your blood sugar levels steady and you’ll feel satisfied for longer. Instead of feasting on candy bars and countless other junk snacks, you’ll find that you only need a tiny portion of a sweet, preferably a healthier one like a piece of fruit or a tiny wedge of dark chocolate to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Shortly after you start the good habit of eating more frequent smaller well-balanced meals, you’ll be able to conquer your sugar habit.

Get the “dope” rush. Also try other needles.

Overeating, drug addiction and other bad habits can cause a surge and then an eventual long-term suppressed levels of the pleasure chemical in our brain, dopamine.

Exercising can bring about the “natural” high feeling, which will hopefully replace the false pleasures our bad habits trick us with.

Exercise, visualization and positive affirmations all can help in trying to break bad habits. It won’t be easy but at least you’ll have a few tools to start with. Also consider acupuncture and hypnotherapy. Acupuncture points can help mitigate withdrawal symptoms. 

Are Fasting and Cleanses Necessary?

I'm sure you've heard of someone who's done the Master Cleanse diet, where you consume nothing but a concoction of water with lemons, maple syrup and cayenne pepper for 7-14 days. 


Sound like fun? 


I've known a few people who have actually done the Master Cleanse. The first few days, they are miserable. If they can make it past day 5, then they begin to adjust. Those that complete the 10 or 14 day cleanse report more energy and a flatter stomach. 


But what happens when they stop the Master Cleanse and eventually go back to what they've been eating and other bad habits? The weight comes right back on.


And it's not the weight that's a problem in the first place. It's the body-fat percentage. You will lose weight on any calorie restricted diet. If you had nothing but 3 Snickers bars a day, you'd probably lose weight. 


Most people need to add muscle mass and melt away body fat. Going on a calorie-restricted diet will waste away your muscle tissue and probably won't burn any fat. 


Every religion has a fasting holiday. This is an exception to the rule. It's probably a good idea to fast once or twice a year for a 24-hour period, if for nothing more than a spiritual appreciation of the energy that foods provides for us. It's also nice to experience once in a blue moon what more than half of the world's population experiences on a daily basis: hunger.


But at no other time, in my opinion, are fasting and cleanses necessary, unless directed by a medical professional. 


Your liver is a very resilient organ. You actually cleanse every day. Your liver does it for you. 


The best way to cleanse is to just start eating healthy from this point forward. Eat healthy 90% of the time. That means figuring out what ratio of macronutrients (carbs, fats, proteins) best supplies you with rock-steady energy throughout the day (health coaches like myself will help you figure this out). 


This also means eating foods that don't spike your blood sugar. 


Allow yourself to fall off the bandwagon about 10% of the time, which means that if you're eating 21 meals per week (breakfast, lunch and dinner), then 2 of your meals can be a "cheat" meal like pizza or a burger. 


Most people actually don't eat often enough to speed up their metabolism. Anybody who skips breakfast is literally telling their brain to go into starvation mode and slow down metabolism. Fasting is not wise, even "healthy" juice fasting. 


We should be eating foods that encourage muscle building. Juice fasting, unless, again, you're ill and can only consume juices or it's been recommended by a dietitian, will not encourage fat burning and lean muscle tissue growth. 


So don't be like a trendy celebrity and go on a cleanse or fast. You'll only be hurting yourself. Exercise so that your lymphatic system helps flush out metabolic waste byproduct (helps get the gunk out). Do this and eat cleanly 18 or 19 meals out of your approximately 21 meals a week and you'll be functioning at optimum speed--no cleansing or fasting necessary.

Healthy Snacks

Don’t reach for that donut just yet. Here are some guidelines for choosing healthy snacks….

When snacking, it’s a good idea to think about blood sugar levels. If you consume a sugary snack, chances are your blood sugar levels will spike. Although you might feel a temporary rush of energy and possibly an elevated mood, you’ll most likely feel like you’ve hit a brick wall and experience a crash shortly after snacking on high-glycemic index foods.

After crashing, you’ll feel hungry again and repeat the vicious cycle.

In order to stabilize your blood sugar levels, when snacking, apply the same fundamental rule to that of each of your regular meals. (Hopefully, you’re eating breakfast, lunch and dinner daily, to maintain steady blood sugar and help burn fat.)

Always combine the following three macronutrients when eating:

• protein 
• carbohydrates
• natural fat

Combining macronutrients ensures that you’ll feel full for longer and won’t need to binge on sweets. In fact, if your regular meals have a good ratio of the three macronutrients, you might find you may not have to snack at all.

Start paying attention to how you feel after eating a meal. If you feel full for three to four hours after eating and don’t have bloating or a drop in energy, then whatever you just ate is the right macronutrient proportion for you.

For example, a breakfast of two eggs, one piece of sprouted whole grain bread with a little dab of butter and two small slices of all-natural bacon may satisfy you for several hours.

To keep your blood sugar levels steady, it’s a good idea not to go more than four hours during the day without eating. So taking the breakfast example above, say, eaten at 8 a.m., you’ll want to eat lunch at about noon.

Maybe you don’t get home till 6 p.m. If you wait till then to eat dinner, you’ll likely be tired and cranky, so it’s a good idea to have a late afternoon snack.

Here are some examples of healthy snacks that combine all 3 macronutrients:

• Celery and raw almond butter: celery is a carbohydrate; almond butter is both protein and natural fat.
• Cheese and crackers: opt for grass-fed cheese for higher essential Omega 3 fatty acid content if possible and gluten-free rice crackers for less intestinal bloating.
• Hummus and carrot sticks: hummus contains both a little protein and natural fat.
• Nitrate and nitrite-free jerky: contains protein and natural fat; you don’t always have to include a carbohydrate if you can digest meat efficiently.
• Edamame sprinkled with sea salt: edamame is the whole soybean and it contains both protein and essential trace minerals if sprinkled with sea salt.
• Greek Yogurt: unless you’re on a restricted diet, go for the full-fat variety, which will keep you full for longer and includes all three macronutrients
• Apple slices with honey and olives: perfect for those who crave sweet and salty.
• Organic turkey breast slice with crackers: it’s very easy to bring a package of healthy deli slices with you to work, just make sure none of your co-workers steals it; turkey contains both protein and natural fat.

Even nutritionists, dieticians and health coaches fall off the wagon. If you do and reach for a donut, the best thing to do is to eat a little protein and natural fat (preferably before eating the donut) to stabilize your blood sugar levels.

But if you adopt these healthy snacking guidelines, hopefully, your cravings for sugary junk food will subside.