Safe Prenatal Exercise: How to Stay Active Through the Hot Summer Months 

As the summer starts to heat up here in Texas, you look down at your pregnant belly and wonder how you’re going to exercise comfortably, and safely, when the temps soar. The benefits of exercise when you’re pregnant, for both you and your unborn child, are well worth finding some good workarounds.

To help, Dr. Fernando Otero and the team here at Women’s Clinic of the Rio Grande Valley pulled together a few tips for staying active during your pregnancy through the summer months.

The many benefits of exercise during pregnancy

It used to be that doctors advised women to take it easy during pregnancy, but researchers have confirmed, time and again, that there are myriad benefits to exercising. 

For example one study reports that exercise reduces your risks for:

• Gestational diabetes
• Preeclampsia
• Cesarean section delivery
• Lower back pain
• Pelvic girdle pain
• Urinary incontinence
• Macrosomia — high birth weight

It would be no exaggeration to say that if you’re worried about having a high-risk pregnancy, a little exercise can go a long way toward avoiding that classification.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recognizes the importance of exercise during pregnancy and recommends that women get about 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity.

Oh, baby, it’s hot outside

So, now that we’ve underscored the importance of exercising during your pregnancy, what can you do when the temps soar, making it unbearable outside?

There are several workarounds, such as:

• Heading out very early in the morning before the sun rises too high
• Going for a walk at night under the street lamps
• Exercising where there’s air conditioning
• Switching to the water 

We want to focus a minute on this last tip. Hitting a pool for a few laps is not only a great aerobic activity, it can also deliver a much-needed respite from carrying the extra weight around. All of your joints can float in the water and move more easily without compensating for the added baby weight.

We also recommend trying something new, such as yoga. You can sign up for an online class or app and practice in the comfort of your air-conditioned home. Or, you can head out to a yoga studio, many of which offer special classes for pregnant women.

If you have friends who are looking to avoid the heat, why not start a walking group and hit the local mall, which will have a cooler environment and room to stretch your legs for a couple miles?

If you do head outdoors, be sure to shade yourself from the sun as best you can and drink more water than you think you need.

With a few tweaks and adjustments, there’s no reason why you can’t exercise during the hot summer, keeping you and your baby as healthy as possible.

For more tips about exercising during pregnancy, no matter the season, please contact one of our offices in McAllen or Edinburg, Texas, to schedule a consultation.