10 disadvantages an inactive mother-to-be need to face
What most of us know is proper physical exercise is very important for a woman during pregnancy. But do you know, what happens if women don’t does exercise during Pregnancy? Read further to know the startling results.
Pregnancy is the phase of woman’s life which is filled with a lot of happiness along with high scale of stress. To balance health, under such rigorous flow of emotions, exercise is extremely important.
Most of the women tend to feel they are ill during pregnancy. But remember, you are not down with an ailment. This is the time you need to charge yourself up with exercises as it is safe for both mother and fetus and several studies also have been conducted to prove the same. Exercising regularly results is healthy mother, healthy baby and healthy pregnancy. Also, pregnancy is the time of Woman’s life when the importance of exercise is understood and about 90% of women continue the regime even after delivery. Thus to lay a foundation for healthy living, pregnancy is the best phase.
Now let’s look into the factors which make an inactive pregnant woman differ from active pregnant woman.
1. Length of Labor
Labor is the scariest thing for a pregnant woman. The pain she has to go through makes the mom-to-be extremely nervous. However, studies prove that women who have not performed any kind of physical exercises on a regular basis during or before pregnancy have long labor. But those who are strict on daily workout shall have easy delivery and in lesser time.
2. Risk of Gestational Diabetes
It is very important to stay active to reduce the chances of onset of Gestational Diabetes which is caused when the insulin receptors stop functioning normally as human placental lactogen interferes with the susceptible insulin receptors.
Regular physical exercise helps the pregnant and non-pregnant woman to protect herself from the development of Gestational Diabetes.
3. Risk of Preeclampsia
High level of protein in urine and high blood pressure marks a condition in pregnant woman called Preeclampsia. Swelling in hands, feet and legs is often observed during this condition.
It has no cure but can be controlled only with nutritious diet and regular physical exercise. The onset of Preeclampsia also can be avoided to a great extent with mild to moderate physical activity.
4. High Risk of Obesity
If combined with proper nutritious diet, regular Physical exercise post delivery can reduce the chances of obesity. If you are on breast-feeding, having proper diet is extremely important failing which the baby will be badly affected. Baby gets nutrition only from the milk he drinks. Therefore, do not go on a dieting spree to cut down those extra kilos.
5. Lack of Maternal Well being
Maternal well being includes both physical and mental well being. Lack of exercise might lead to poor physical as well as mental health. A healthy delivery requires the mom-to-be to stay relaxed. Meditation or mild yoga is perfect to ensure she stays fit and fine throughout the delivery. The physical and mental health of the baby also will be affected badly if its mother is not happy.
6. Low Birth Weight baby
Regular exercise during pregnancy does not usually change the body weight of mother. However, moderate exercise has commendable effect on the weight of baby. The baby will be neither heavy nor light. This helps to ease the delivery and also improve the quality of life of both mother and baby.
7. High scale of difficulty with Nausea and Fatigue
Nausea and Fatigue is very common in almost all the pregnant woman. But the severity changes with difference in lifestyle. The mom-to –be should take special measurements to make sure her body get proper nutrition. Failing which, the growth of baby will be hindered.
Women who work out regularly have the capacity to minimize the effects of Nausea and Fatigue compared to women who are physically inactive during the pregnancy phase.
8. Hypertension
Hypertension disorders threat the health of both baby and mother. The onset of hypertension during pregnancy can be avoided to a vast extent with proper physical exercises. Lack of physical activity can deteriorate the effects of hypertension and also increase the danger of cardiovascular ailments.
9. Mental Well Being
Mental health is very important throughout every stage of pregnancy. Happy women usually give birth to happy and healthy child compared to women with mental disturbances.
You can be happy if you decide to be. To achieve this, it is very important to work out and maintain mental balance. Workout can soothe mind and soul; thereby improve the chances of delivering a healthy baby.
10. Loss of bone mass
During pregnancy, the baby needs a lot of calcium for the development of Skeleton. The requirement is high during the first three months of pregnancy. If the intake is not sufficient, the baby takes the calcium it requires from the mother’s bones. Post delivery, lactating woman tend to lose bone mass in the form of milk the baby drinks.
Fortunately, to compensate the loss of bone mass, pregnant woman have high capacity of absorbing calcium from food compared to non-pregnant woman. They can also produce comparatively high levels of estrogen, the hormone that helps in protecting bones. This whole process of restoring bone mass can be improved with proper physical exercise.
What kind of exercise is best for a Pregnant Woman?
- Walking
- Aerobics
- Yoga
- Swimming
However, whatever is the mode of exercise, it is always important to not overdo it. For better and safe results, exercise under the watchful eye on an expert. Always remain hydrated for Thermoregulation of fetus as physical activity might increase the temperature of fetus.
Indications which caution you have over done the exercise:
During pregnancy, your body keeps changing with every passing day. Therefore it is extremely important to take care of your body better than ever before. Workout is very important during pregnancy; buy too much is too bad. Listen to your body and don’t let it strain when it doesn’t want to.
1. Faint:
Fainting during pregnancy is not something which you should take lightly. Fainting indicates you body is not getting enough oxygen and this means the baby is also deprived of oxygen. Don’t exercise to an extent that you end up fainting.
2. Leakage of Fluid from Vagina:
This signals your body is ready for labor. However, exercising rigorously for a long time leads to vaginal discharge due to the premature rupture of membranes.
3. Decrease in fetal movement:
If you have started feeling the movement of fetus, this is by far the best sign to realize you have over done it. If you feel the movement of fetus has decreased, take a minute and try to observe what your baby is doing. If you don’t feel the movements like before, contact your doctor immediately.
4. Overheating:
Overheating of the body is the most common problem most of the pregnant women face during exercise. This increases the temperature of the baby which is not advisable. When you feel overheated, stop exercising immediately. Your body gets overheated not only due to exercise, but also when the temperature of your surroundings is high. To get over this problem, drink lots of fluids or water.
5. Vaginal Bleeding:
If vaginal bleeding is a concern during pregnancy, it is advisable not to exercise for more than 15 minutes. Though some women observe light bleeding during the initial months, it is always a cause of concern.
Other factors that warn you have overdone the exercise include double vision, pain in chest or abdominal region, swelling in your feet or hands, out of breath, dizziness and burning sensation while passing urine.
If you don’t feel just right while exercising, better stop doing it at that point and take some rest. The center of gravity of your body changes during pregnancy due to which there will be some disturbances in your balance. Therefore don’t do exercises that have chances of fall. Sometimes this can prove fatal to your baby though uterus and amniotic fluid cushion your baby very well.
Last but not the least, have proper diet which includes lots of fruits and vegetables. This is the best secret mantra to give birth to a healthy and happy baby.
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