Staying active is great during this time because your body usually responds better to conception when you are healthier overall. Exercise has been shown to improve fertility, especially if you are overweight or have (PCOS). While in the conception stage, we focus on cardiovascular and total body strength training, while bringing awareness to body alignment, posture, movement and exercises that will better prepare you for pregnancy, labor and post-birth.

The prenatal phase is an essential phase broken down according to first, second and third trimester.

1st Trimester: There’s good news about staying active during your first trimester. Exercise can help ease the effects of morning sickness, improve your mood and keep you and your fetus healthy. We will focus on total body strength training during this phase, working the pelvic, core and gluteal areas (this will especially help with back pain as your baby starts to grow and more pressure is put on your lower back). We will also incorporate cardiovascular exercises but with light to moderate intensity. Note: the intensity and types of exercise is also dependent on your physical activity level before getting pregnant and your unique needs/pregnancy.

2nd Trimester: During the 2nd trimester, we target strengthening and stabilizing the hips, pelvic floor, and glutes. Training 2-3 times per week will also help keep natural weight gain to a healthy limit. As your body produces relaxin in preparation for labor, the ligaments in the pelvic region begin to loosen so keeping the pelvic region strong will help to reduce pain and potential injury while the relaxin fills your body. We will avoid long periods of laying on your back and twisting exercises.

3rd Trimester: During this phase, basic strength training exercises like squats and elevated chess presses will be continued, but core exercises (especially those involving twisting) will be limited and/or avoided (but we will continue to work on involving the deep core in a safe way). We will also avoid heavy weights. Stabilizing and breathing exercises will be increased to help give strength and stamina for labor.

Once you have gotten approval from your doctor, we will ease into total body strength training and make sure the baselines are covered as far as pelvic floor/core connection, proper breathing and body/posture alignment. We progress and collaborate continuously together, finding that sweet spot of honoring and challenging your body.

Postnatal fitness is great for moms even years after giving birth because unfortunately, most moms get back into fitness after pregnancy and pick up some bad habits that can cause decades of lingering issues. With the correct information, exercises and understanding of your body post-pregnancy, moms of all stages can start training effectively and safely. Additionally, it can be hard to give yourself that extra push needed to kick your fitness goals back into gear. We understand that with the demands of motherhood, more accountability is often needed…which is where we come in!