Keen to stay active during pregnancy? This guide shows you the exercises you can safely do at home during every trimester

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Want to stay active in pregnancy? The below guide takes you through the exercises you can safely do at home during every trimester.

Providing you are not suffering from morning sickness or fatigue, you can continue your normal exercise routine during your first trimester but avoid long-distance running and contact sports.

Weight-training, swimming, yoga and jogging are all recommended in the second trimester, but keep in mind your balance may be affected and you may need to sit while lifting weights.

For the final stage of your pregnancy, swimming and walking are gentle exercises that maintain your fitness ready for labour. 

Joan Murphy, fitness instructor and co-founder of London-based exercise studios Frame and pregnancy classes MumHood, told MailOnline: ‘Regular exercise during pregnancy reduces back pain, it improves your general fitness, strengthens your heart and blood vessels, and decreases your risk of gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia and Caesarean section.

‘Keeping up your exercise routine during pregnancy can also make getting back into pre-pregnancy shape much easier. A new lifestyle and the sleepless nights to come also mean you need to build up your endurance and strength.’ 

For women who regularly exercised before becoming pregnant, Ms Murphy advises they reduce the intensity of the workout to what they find comfortable, while those who were not previously active should build up to it slowly.

She adds: ‘As a general rule you can keep up your existing exercise routine but reduce the intensity. Always listen to your body, you know your body better than anyone. Pregnancy is not a time for personal bests so be mindful of how your body feels.

‘If you are new to exercise, start out slowly with even as little as five minutes a week and build it up until you can stay active for 30 minutes a day. Prenatal yoga is always a good place to start.’  

35891f3233c696f652d7e08f37d68504 Keen to stay active during pregnancy? This guide shows you the exercises you can safely do at home during every trimester

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