A Prenatal Workout for the "Nearly-Immobile" Pregnant Woman

I realize that I have not shared a fitness friday / prenatal / pregnancy workout in a few weeks. I have been exercising, but admittedly, not as much as I should have or should be! So, at the end of October and beginning of November, I started experiencing HORRIBLE pregnancy pelvic pain. I got these pains when I was pregnant with Lilly, but not this early. It is totally normal, but it is EXTREMELY uncomfortable. Walking, standing, etc. are quite painful. So, needless to say, exercising while having that pelvic pain is not on the top of my “to-do” list.

And then, right before Thanksgiving, I got a cracked rib. Yep, a cracked rib. Apparently that’s a thing that can happen to you. And let’s just say… it is not a cup of fun. Laughing, coughing, sneezing, breathing, twisting, etc. are all excruciating. The baby will kick me near my rib and just send me into oblivion… and, of course, since I’m preggo, there’s really nothing that can be done for it other than ice and heat and some Tylenol when necessary.

So, pelvic pain coupled with a cracked rib makes for one very uncomfortable pregnant woman. Thus, working out… not so much a priority. HOWEVER, I know it’s something I need to be doing and I know that it can help. In fact, one of the things that is GOOD for pelvic pain and a cracked rib during pregnancy, is light cardio and light strengthening exercises. It’s just picking the right ones and knowing what to do and to what extent to do them.

My AMAZING trainer, Rachel from Shape Fitness, was so awesome and really worked with me to come up with some exercises and stretches that I can do to get my blood flowing, heart rate elevated, and keep moving during these stages of pregnancy. It can be SO easy to just want to sit back and not do anything and veg out on the couch, but I know that this is the point where I need to NOT be doing that. I’m very glad that I’ve only gained about 18 pounds so far this pregnancy and I’m in my third trimester (I had gained like TWICE that by the time I was in my third trimester with Lilly)…. and I know that a lot of it has to do with Rachel’s training and my diet. I just don’t want these physical setbacks to be the thing that really pushes me over the edge and I lose the traction I’ve gained so far.

Anyway, this is a GREAT low-intensity workout for those days when you just can’t move or you’re just in pain, but you KNOW you need to do something! I hope you enjoy!

NOTE FROM MY TRAINER: So, it was funny because while preparing my clients’ workouts for the week, I decided to not prepare anything for Molly. I had a feeling there would be something in particular she was in need of for her session and I wanted to find out what that was before preparing too much. Sure enough, she was in need of a VERY low key, soothing workout thanks to her recently cracked rib. So here’s what I had her do…

Cat Stretch:

Begin on your hands and knees with a neutral spine. Slowly round your back all the way up, folding your pelvis in toward your ribs. Hold for 3 seconds, then slowly reverse the movement, arching your back as deeply as you can. Hold for 3 seconds. Repeat 10-15 times to really stretch out your midsection.

Chest Stretch:

Find a doorway or at the corner of a wall. Stand right next to the corner and place your forearm completely on the wall, palm flat to the wall, your elbow by your side. Press your chest forward, allowing the wall to induce a stretch through your chest and front of the shoulder. Hold for 20-30 seconds on each side. Repeat if needed.

Bicep Curl with Shoulder Press:

Stand tall, core in tight and a dumbbell in each hand. Slowly curl your dumbbells up toward your shoulders. Once at the top of the curl, turn your palms to face forward and then press the dumbbells straight up, fully extending the arm. Your biceps should be right next to your ears. Slowly lower the dumbbells back to your shoulders, turn your palms back to face you, and lower back down to start. Repeat 12-15 times.

Back Row:

Begin with your feet hip width apart, core pulled in, and hinging forward at the waist as far as you can go (but no farther than parallel to the floor). Make sure your back is flat and chest is up. Hold your dumbbells directly below your shoulders. Squeeze your shoulder blades together as you pull your dumbbells up toward your chest, thinking about squeezing your elbows together behind your back. Slowly lower the dumbbells back down to start and repeat for 12-15 reps.

Squat with Pause:

For this preggo squat, place your feet a little wider than hip width apart and turn your toes out slightly. Keeping all of your weight in your heels, lower your body down, pushing your butt to the back of the room. Be sure to keep your knees behind your toes. Pause at the bottom of the squat for 2-3 seconds, then push through those heels and squeeze the glutes to lift all the way back up and repeat for 12-15 reps.

Lunges:

Begin by standing tall, core pulled in. Take a giant step back with one foot and slowly lower your body until both knees are at a 90 degree angle. Most of your weight should be in the heel of the front foot and your upper body should be tall. Push through the front heel to return to start and repeat for 12-15 reps per leg.

Lying Leg Raise:

Start out by laying on one side, supporting your head in your hand. Point the toe of the top leg, and while keeping the knee and toes facing forward, raise your leg as high as you can. You will feel this working your outer thigh, obliques, and glutes. Control the leg as you lower it back down and repeat for 12-15 reps per leg.

Inner Thigh/Hip Stretch:

Sit on the floor with the bottoms of your feet together. Keep your back flat as you lean forward slightly to increase the intensity of the stretch. Hold for at least 20-30 seconds. Enjoy! (This is my personal favorite!!!)

What about you? Any exercises you like to do when you’re just “not feeling it” or you’re in a lot of pain? Which ones do you like best?

Be sure to check out Shape Fitness for more AWESOME tips!

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