As you may know, I made a free prenatal workout series on YouTube that includes 90 workouts. I knew research consistently shows that the benefits of working out far outweigh the risks, so I was willing to commit to creating such a program because I knew I would reap benefits as well. Here are the top 9 benefits of working out while pregnant I personally experienced.
1. I felt empowered to manage my aches & pains throughout my pregnancy.
Don’t get me wrong… I still had aches and pains, but I felt better equipped to manage them. Working out so consistently also meant I was warming up, strengthening, and stretching my muscles out regularly. This helped support my body as it was undergoing daily changes as the baby grew, and this helped alleviate aches and pains that arose along the way.
2. I quit peeing my pants when I sneezed!
I know now I had a weak pelvic floor from my two previous pregnancies. I thought it was normal to pee your pants from jumping, running, or sneezing after having kids. I can tell you now, that does not have to be the case. I was teaching high school during most of this pregnancy, so I know I was still peeing my pants when I sneezed. I had to take back up clothes just in case it happened; it was terrible! I worked out about five times during my 1st trimester because I felt awful. Then I had covid during weeks 14 & 15. Finally, I got back into fitness at week 16. During my workouts, we do prenatal core work with some pelvic floor work starting in Week 20 and going through Week 38. Besides this, I tried to do kegels, but I can honestly say there were many days I forgot to do those entirely. Regardless, I completely stopped peeing my pants somewhere in my 2nd trimester. This doesn’t make sense, right?! The baby is putting more and more pressure on your bladder and pelvic floor as you progress. The only thing I can attribute this change to is my fitness routine. After the birth of Baby Whit, I have not peed my pants when jumping, dancing, sneezing, or anything else. It's amazing!
3. I stayed really strong throughout pregnancy.
As I already mentioned, I didn’t workout much in my 1st trimester. Getting back into working out was rough from Week 16 through Week 18. It may not look like it on camera, but I was dying (now you know my dirty, little secret!). But working out four times a week, every week? That really paid off. I was in better shape at the end of my pregnancy than I was at the end of my first trimester, which is nuts. And feeling strong like that going into labor? Well, that was awesome.
4. I experienced the good ol’ endorphin rush after my workouts.
Pregnant or not, this is always a benefit. Even on my worst days when I went into a workout kicking and screaming, I always felt better afterwards. I worked out after work each day before picking up my 3 & 4 year old, and working out gave me the energy I needed to make it through the rest of the evening while also being a fun and happy mom.
5. Working my core (think glutes, stomach & back muscles) helped alleviate my lower back pain.
During my 2nd pregnancy (the one before this one), my back completely went out. I didn’t know how I was going to function in this state for the rest of my pregnancy. Luckily, it was out for two weeks, and then I got to a point where I could “live with the pain” until my pregnancy ended. I didn’t know you could workout your stomach muscles until this pregnancy, and, man, did it make a difference. Not only was my core stronger to support my back, but all the focus I put into good form during my workouts translated out into the rest of my day with having good posture. Continually working my core managed my back pain. Similar to my aches and pains, I still had lower back pain, but it was much less painful than my previous pregnancy. I also could warm it up and workout pain free. More workouts didn't mean a more painful back. More workouts meant I could continue to manage and alleviate my pain.
6. I became mentally tougher.
“I can do hard things.” I said this daily to myself because it was SO hard parenting, working full time, and creating this workout series on top of everything else. I committed to four workouts a week, and I did it (Okay fine - I got the stomach flu during week 32 and only did 3, but I'm not counting that!). This built confidence in myself and trust in my body. I told myself it was good for me, it was good for my baby, and, even if no one ever did these workouts (luckily people are :), they would be worth it anyway. I’m a goal-oriented person, and this was a goal I set. It brought me great pleasure working out and doing what I said I was going to do. I think this helped me in labor too. I wanted to do this one unmedicated, and I did. By the time I got to labor, I knew I could do anything if I set my mind to it.
7. Being physically fit to the end of pregnancy helped me comfortably move around during labor.
As I just stated, I had an unmedicated birth. Because of this, I could move around and do whatever I wanted throughout the process. Was it exhausting? Yes! I pulled an all-nighter: I went into labor around 10pm, got to the hospital around 12:45am, and he was born at 7 am. Despite being tired and needing sleep, I was moving all over the place to make it through the contractions. What felt good during one, didn’t feel good during the next, and I experimented with many different positions. Sometimes I was squatting or lunging, but in every position, I knew it was safe for my pregnant body, and I was strong enough to hold the position during a full contraction.
8. After the trauma of labor, I still felt strong and was confident in my body as I began to recover.
Even though I felt extremely weak in the 30 or so hours after labor, I started climbing out of the state quickly, and I have to attribute that to all the work I had done prior to labor. Our muscular strength does not atrophy that quickly. ** Bonus: we also immediately lose weight when the baby, fluid, and placenta exit the body. Our muscles get some immediate relieve from having a little less weight to carry around. I loved watching my postpartum body change in the weeks following birth. I was proud of what my body did and was much more gracious to myself.
9. Although I didn’t work out for many weeks (like… over 12 weeks) following birth, I still felt capable of completing the daily tasks needed to take care of my three kids.
This is the main reason I work out in general; I want to play, run, dance, all the things with my kids. Since I had worked out to the VERY end of my pregnancy, I felt strong in the weeks following birth. I felt able to do both the things I needed to do and wanted to do.
But enough about me… what about you? Did you workout or are you working out during your pregnancy? What have you noticed? What makes it all worthwhile for you?
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