5 Sports Tips That Are Safe During Pregnancy

Illustration of safe sports tips during pregnancy (Freepik/lookstudio)

YOGYAKARTA Exercise is important to do regularly because it is beneficial for the health of the body, mental, and fitness. However, for pregnant women, exercise needs to be adjusted to the type, intensity, and frequency so that it is safe for pregnant women and wombs.

Sports according to grateful de Mille, RN., RCEP., CSCS., USAT., reported by the Hospital for Special Surgery page, Friday, April 12, exercise for pregnant women has strict guidelines. As long as you know the guidelines, exercise for pregnant women can reduce the risk of many pregnancy problems, including constipation, bloating, sleep problems, excessive weight gain, fatigue, and other pregnancy disorders. Such as high blood pressure, gestational diabetes, preeclampsia. So, how about safe exercise tips during pregnancy, here's the list.

Experts recommend that pregnant women carry out moderate-intensity aerobic activity of at least 150 minutes, which is done throughout the week. Moderate intensity means you work hard enough to sweat and breathe harder, but you can still chat.

Regarding heart rate, it is better for you to rely on the rate of activity you feel, or RPE, than the heart rate monitor. REP (Rated Perceived Exertion) is a scale to measure how hard the body works during physical activity. For pregnant women, the RPE must be below 7 from a scale of 1 to 10.

Walking for pregnant women, can be done in 10 minutes. This easy and effective exercise, pumping the lower muscles of the body. This helps reduce leg swelling. Because walking holds the body's load, this will help protect bone density.

For pregnant women who walk, pay attention to several things. Stay on the paved road and avoid uneven or slippery terrain. Your center of gravity will shift along with the increase in your baby bump according to pregnancy age. Furthermore, because pregnancy can cause your feet to swell, it is necessary to buy a new pair of comfortable shoes.

Swimming exercise provides resistance with a low risk of injury. Water also makes pregnant women cool so they can work harder without overheating. If pregnant women are not diligent in swimming, the buoyancy can help you feel completely supported while walking or running in the pool, no matter how big your stomach is.

Even though swimming doesn't sweat, you can still get dehydrated so you need to drink enough mineral water. It's also important to be careful when entering and going out of swimming, especially when entering the third trimester of pregnancy.

Balance and stability during pregnancy are helped by yoga. Breathing techniques and yoga meditation can help relieve stress and relieve pain and pain that accompany pregnancy. Certain poses can also help open the joints of the hips, which are useful during childbirth.

During pregnancy, the pregnant woman's body produces more relaxation, the hormones that cause the ligament in your pelvis to soften. This may be good during childbirth but also makes you tend to stretch too far. Be careful when you change your position and always rise from the floor slowly.

Strength exercise is usually done by lifting weights. By lifting weights, the muscles around the joints become stronger and reduce the onset of pain related to pregnancy. Kegel exercises, also important to do during pregnancy. This strength exercise is also useful for training the pelvic floor and being stronger to carry a baby weighing 7-10 pounds.

What needs to be adjusted during strength training for pregnant women is to ensure that breathing out and in evenly rather than burdening the hip too much when holding your breath and pressing when lifting a load. In addition, it is necessary to choose a challenging burden but not too burdensome.

In addition to safe exercise tips during pregnancy above, it is important not to do some types of risky sports. Such as basketball, hockey, football, or martial arts. Also avoid greater risk of falling, such as equestrian, tennis, skiing, and skating. If you like sports, choose static exercise to minimize risks.