Exercising while pregnant may seem daunting but truly it will help you feel more comfortable before and during labor.   Think of labor like running a marathon; you’re going to need a lot of stamina, and it takes months of conditioning, which includes exercise and stretching.  Remember to check your heart rate periodically, you’re heart is pumping more blood now.   Generally the resting heart rate of a pregnant woman is about 85-90 bpm.   A safe exercising/active heart rate for a pregnant woman is 140 bpm.  While exercising take it easy, and if you have any pain, stop and consult your care provider.  Here are some great simple exercises to do daily as you prepare for the big day, much of which I  have borrowed from  The Bradley Method Student Workbook by Marjie, Jay, and James Hathaway.

1.  Tailor sitting – Sit on the floor, cross your legs and push your hips forward.  Remember to have good posture.  It’s best to not lean back or slouch into a couch or chair for long periods of time, when you do baby typically flips his/her back to your back and this can cause painful back labor (unfortunately, I  experienced this and it’s horrible).  This position encourages the uterus to move forward which increases circulation as well as stretches the inner thighs.  Do this whenever you are seated.

2.  Squatting - Start by standing straight, with legs shoulder width apart.  Next bend knees to about chair height and tuck hips under (relieving back pressure).  Then lean forward (keeping uterus forward) and squat further keeping your heels on the floor.  When coming up, go tail -first halfway, place hands on your legs to push up the rest of the way (this is to help support the lower back).   This is the most common exercise to do in preparation for childbirth.  This position helps to prepare your leg muscles and puts your body in natural alignment to put pressure on the uterus.   As this position becomes more comfortable try to do it more often.  Rather than bending over and reaching for something, squat. 

3.  Pelvic Rocks – Place hands and knees on the ground (like a crawling baby).  Relax your lower back and allow your pelvis to tilt forward, then retract the pelvis and level your back.  Do this movement for a few minutes several times a day.  Rock slowly with control.  This exercise maybe the most beneficial.  It strengthens the lower back and abdominal muscles.  It relieves pressure, increases circulation, relieves tension, and could improve digestion.  This position is also helpful if your baby has his/her back to yours, as you may be able to turn baby by doing pelvic tilts (and remember, no slouching). (see tailor sitting)

4.  Butterfly - Sit on the floor with your back against something.  Put your knees up and feet together, flat on the floor.  Have a partner put the flats of their hands on the outside of your knees and apply resistance while you try to open your legs.  Only apply resistance as your legs are going down, not on the way up.  Only go as far as is comfortable.  This exercise strengthens the abductor muscles, which help you to pull your legs back more comfortably during the second stage of labor.  Try doing it about 5 times a day.

5.  Kegels – This is the muscle you use when to stop urination early.  Tighten your kegel muscle.  It will feel like you’re pulling everything in your pelvic area upward.  Next, release the muscle and relax.  This exercise helps to strengthen the pelvic floor or the pubococcygeus muscle.  Poor muscle strength of this area may result in incontinence, discomfort, lack of sensation during intercourse, feelings of added pressure as well as other undesirable things.  Do this often, increase the amount daily.

also…

6. Side Sleep - Start by lying on your side.  Bend your knees and place your top leg forward.  Place a pillow underneath your head and breast, and another pillow under your top leg if that is more comfortable.  This position is a safe way to sleep while pregnant.  It will help with your circulation, and allows the bed to support the baby’s weight by taking the pressure off of your body.  It also helps to reduce stress on your body, which in turn enables your uterus to work without restriction.

Please remember to take it slow and progress only when comfortable and confident in doing so.  If you have any discomfort please talk to your doctor and ask for alternative exercise ideas.  Ask your partner to do these exercises with you as it will help encourage you to be consistent.  Enjoy caring for your body as you help create a safe and healthy environment for your baby to grow.

Please share your birth story I’d love to read it.  Here is mine…

I’ve heard that becoming a parent will change your life.  I believe the birth experience is also life changing.  Thankfully I had a positive one.

Once upon a -what am I saying, childbirth is nothing like a fairytale.  It’s  a lot of work, but then again that’s probably why it’s called labor.

My husband and I decided to hire a doula, we were going to be delivering at a local hospital and wanted to make sure that we were able to have the experience we wanted.  We understood that emergencies happen, but even in the case of an emergency we wanted to be educated and be part of the decision making process.

About 3 weeks before my due date of March 21st I was  already 1 cm dilated and 25% effaced.  Basically this means baby is getting ready to debut.  I started taking evening primrose oil, it’s supposed to help soften the cervix – seemed to be working.

I had contractions the night of Saturday, March 13th  at 8:30, they were 10 minutes apart and lasted a minute long.  I was feeling nauseous, so I drank lemon water to soothe my stomach.  I had a lot of back pain, so I did pelvic tilts to get baby to move.  We contacted Sabrina, our doula and she gave us things to try to see if the labor would slow or stay the same.  Contractions continued so, we (my husband, doula and I) decided to go to the hospital the next day.  When we arrived at the hospital we were taken to triage, where they ran a few tests.  Stephanie, the nurse on staff, told me that I wasn’t progressing, so if I was hoping for a natural, intervention-free birth then I should walk around a while to see if there is any change or go home before they suggest breaking my water or giving me pitocin. We found out that Stephanie was training to become a midwife, and was therefore very natural minded.  We couldn’t have asked for a better situation  I walked for an hour and although the contractions continued I didn’t dilate any further.  Frustrated and disappointed, we went home.

I spent the next week trying everything to get baby out!  My husband and I even walked Walmart in the wee small hours.  That was a strange week, looking back it seems like a dream. All I thought about was the birth process, how it would go, and when it would happen.   I imagined holding my baby and actually leaving the hospital with her.  And I walked, and walked.  It got kind of ridiculous when I was up in the middle of the night using the treadmill.   I guess I was just so focused.

March 19th at 7ish in the evening I had regular contractions again.  They continued through the night, but were bearable so we stayed home and slept.  Sleeping through contractions is no easy task, but with my Bradley Class training I actually got some sleep.

5 am March 20th I popped awake with much stronger contractions.   (Popped probably isn’t the right word, because when you’re 40 weeks pregnant you really don’t move very fast, but I think you get the picture).    I tried to handle it myself for a while so my husband could sleep, but that only lasted a few minutes.  I woke him and was barely able to grunt, “this is it.” The contractions were two minutes apart and so much more intense that I had a hard time breathing through them.  I knew this was it, it felt different then the week before.  We arrived at the hospital at 6:30 am and were taken to triage again.  With all the anxiety I felt, my contractions slowed, but the nurse was sure that this was it since I was already 4 cm dilated.   The nurse pushed me in my wheel chair to the labor and delivery floor of the hospital and I finally got a room.

My husband and Doula were with me the whole time, comforting me and helping to calm my nerves.  Once we were settled in the room the nurse came in and started me on penicillin for GBS and also put a hep lock in my right hand – so painful!   We asked if Stephanie, our previous nurse, was there (she told us her next work day would be that Saturday).  She was, so we asked for her to be our nurse.

We spent the next few hours walking, sitting in the whirlpool tub, and trying other positions  in order to get things moving.  Every once in a while Stephanie would come in to check my progress, but being monitored ironically slowed my labor.  Stephanie told me maybe this isn’t it.  Convinced that it was, I asked what our options were.  She suggested breaking my water, but if we chose this we’d have to give birth within 24 hours or there would be other interventions.  My husband, doula and I discussed this privately and weren’t really for it. So we asked to wait another hour and then see if anything changed (it didn’t).   Reluctantly, we decided to break my water.  So, at about 4pm one of the Doctors came in to break my water .  My doctor/midwife, Cheryl wasn’t at the hospital yet, she’d get there minutes before baby came.  Having my water broken was scary, this meant that no matter what, we were leaving with a baby.

After my water was broken my contractions really intensified.  I found most relief sitting on the toilet bent over resting my head on my husband as he and my doula rubbed my back.  I remember my husband trying to be funny telling me not to give birth on the toilet.  Needless to say I wasn’t doing much laughing, which is a good sign that the last stages of labor were in effect.   We tried a few different positions to relieve pain, but I couldn’t seem to get rid of the back pain I had.  The scariest part was when I started to shake, I mean really, like uncontrollably.  Apparently this is normal, but even though I was warned this would happen it was still frightening and weird.  A few more hours went by, hours filled with contractions (very intense at this point) and  nurses checking me with monitors .  I finally ended up in the hospital bed when the contractions were one on top of another.  I needed my husband to massage my shoulders during this time, the counter pressure really helped.  I’m sure this took about an hour or two but, I wasn’t watching the time.  My only relief was having my husband rub my shoulders and back, so if he’d walk away to use the bathroom, needless to say, I got upset – “seriously, just hold it!”   My doctor came in my room when I was at about 10 or 11 cm dilated. I felt this unstoppable need to push.  It was amazing how my body knew just what to do.  The nurses asked if I wanted a mirror to watch. “Of course!”  They set up a large mirror at the end of the bed and within minutes I could see my baby’s head crowning.  The mirror was such a help for me.  My doctor had me side-lying while giving birth.  I’m not sure why, but it worked just fine.  It was strange that the only pain I felt was in my back, it felt like she was going to burst through my spine.  As her head was crowning I remember my husband saying, “what, already?!”  Everyone seemed surprised at how quickly I pushed her out.  I took about three good pushes and there she was, our beautiful baby girl.

To my amazement, she immediately started to climb up my body to eat. My doctor said, “I guess she’s hungry, better offer her something.”  My doula helped me get her latched on and she fed while they were cutting her cord and stitching me up (I got three small stitches).  She was officially born March 20th at 8:04pm.  I labored 15 hours total at home and at the hospital.  After baby B was born, she stayed with my husband and I the whole time.  She never left our sight, Daddy even went with her for her first bath.  We had family and friends visit that night,  and the next day.  We stayed one more night at the hospital, so they could run all their tests.  My husband would tell you the hardest part was getting sleep in the hospital after baby was born.  The nurses were in and out of the room all day and night to check on me and the baby (and offer pain killers almost every time and I refused each time.).

We finally made it home and slept.  Baby and I slept every two hours between feedings pretty much every day for the first couple of weeks.  Dad went back to work, life didn’t stop, now we get to enjoy it with our daughter.

I know that while childbirth is difficult, it is the most rewarding experience I’ve ever had.  I know that I can do anything now that I’ve given birth naturally; it’s very empowering.