Now in the third trimester, a few weeks ago I had to abandon running in pregnancy replaced by fast walking, free body exercises and, taking advantage of the summer, swimming.
I admit that swimming as an end in itself is not normally one of my favorite sports practices, however I believe that at the moment it can give me numerous benefits, taking some small precautions:
- Avoid too hot water as it can harm the baby.
- Don’t stay too long in the water, I typically do a 30 minute workout
- Drinking, advice that is always valid but especially if you have circulation problems or low blood pressure: drinking 2 glasses of water before training will help in case of dizziness.
There are also some tricks on which style of swimming to practice based on the quarter:
- First trimester: there are no particular restrictions but I always recommend that you consult your gynecologist before practicing physical activity in this delicate trimester.
- Second trimester: The back style helps strengthen arms and back, which are useful for bearing weight in the following months.
- Third Quarter: This is the quarter of tension as the pain and weight will begin to be felt. The advice is to decrease the “breaststroke” pools to stretch the muscles, reduce the load on the back and avoid neck pain. I eliminated the back style and gave priority to the freestyle.
We know that in pregnancy every day is different and we have to indulge our body. There are days, for example, in which I can do 10 consecutive laps, others in which I have to take a break every two laps and still others in which I have to stop completely after 10 minutes. It happens, let’s get over it without feeling guilty. In general, I recommend that you stop training in case of dizziness or dizziness, pain, bleeding, shortness of breath and palpitations.
Take your time!