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Home > Tips and advice > Pregnancy > Pregnancy wellbeing

When you’re a new parent or parent-to-be, you’re bound to be overwhelmed with a whole host of emotions and lifestyle changes, and so exercise might not always be top of mind.

Couple that with coronavirus restrictions on gyms and sports and you might feel like there's no chance of keeping up an active lifestyle.

However, you don’t always need to be making time especially to work out – there’s plenty of simple ways to build physical activity into your routine, both before baby arrives and then once they come along. And doing so can be of huge benefit to both your physical and mental health.

During pregnancy

When you’re carrying a baby, it can be physically and mentally demanding in a number of ways and there will obviously be times that you just want to relax. But exercise can have benefits for both your body and mind, so it’s worth keeping active when you can. The NHS recommends keeping active during pregnancy, without significantly upping the amount of exercise that you would normally do.

Of course, if you have any doubt about the exercises or level of exercise that you’re doing, it’s worth speaking to your midwife or GP.

Walking

Walking is a low-impact form of exercise, meaning it’s something that most people are able to do without any stresses or strains, even if you’re carrying the extra weight of a baby.

Other members of the household can join in too, whether it’s your partner or your older children. This might spur you on to walk further than you would alone, as their company will help to keep you entertained.

Walking is also a great way to explore your local area. You might be surprised what’s on your doorstep, whether it’s a new green space, some interesting buildings in an urban area, or even a new café to take baby along to when you can.

Walking is a safe activity throughout your pregnancy, right up to the birth. And it’s something that gets you out of the house during a time when you’ll likely be spending most of the time within the same four walls, due in part to your pregnancy, but also with the ongoing lockdown restrictions.

Stretching

Stretches are a great way to relieve some of the tension that may build up in your body over the course of your pregnancy.

Gentle stretches can help to enhance your body’s range of motion, which can help with childbirth and the general day-to-day demands of carrying a baby.

What’s more, simple stretches and breathing exercises are a great way to calm the mind. This is particularly important at the moment too, as many of us are feeling the strain a little more than normal.

Yoga poses and breathing exercises

There are a number of pregnancy safe yoga poses and breathing exercises which can help you to gain flexibility and calm the mind.

It’s something that partners can join in with too.

If you’re in any doubt about what moves are safe, it’s best to check with your midwife.

When baby arrives

It's often all go once baby arrives, so finding the time to exercise can be tough. However, without thinking too much about it you’re bound to be keeping active in everyday parenting life, whether it’s getting up and down to play with them on the floor, carrying them around the house or pushing them around in their pram.

And there are loads of ways you can keep active while introducing an active lifestyle to your little one by getting them moving too.

Baby aerobics – try with newborns

Even a newborn can get exercising with a little bit of help – but of course, we’re not expecting you to put them in a lycra romper and sweatbands.

Let your tiny baby learn about their body by introducing them to gentle leg and arm movements down on the floor. Your touch is great for boosting bonding hormones and it’s a great way of improving their focus. Keep eye contact and talk them through their body parts. They’ll love hearing your voice.

You’ll be getting a bit of movement in too by getting up and down to play with them.

Work out with baby on board – great from around 3-6 months

As your baby gets a little bit bigger, your movements with them can get a bit bigger too. Why not try popping baby on your knees, supporting their head and bouncing them gently up and down with some pelvic lifts?

This is a nice easy exercise for you and is bound to get them smiling too. Even better, try singing to them as you do it (no matter what your voice is like). It’ll not only help you keep a rhythm, but will help your baby to learn new words.

Trips to the park – things to try from 6 months+

Once baby comes along, you’ve immediately got company for your walks – and now you’ll be forced to put in extra effort as you’ve got a baby to push along or carry.

As they get older, why not take them on a listening walk? This could be to a local park, nature reserve or other green space, or even around the city streets. Make an effort to stop and listen to the different things around you and name them and talk about them with your child. Can they hear birds? Cars? Crunchy leaves and twigs underfoot?

If you head to the park, then the swings are a great option to both bond with your child and build their understanding of the back and forth of conversation – if you say things like ‘where are you going?’ as you push them, you’re giving them a chance to take turns and respond. At the same time, pushing swings is a great as a cardio workout for you and for helping to build your upper body strength.

Be sure to check out the NHS advice on exercise and as

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