Working Out While Pregnant? Follow These Prenatal and Post-Pregnancy Exercise Tips

Curious about working out while pregnant or exercising postpartum? We turned to a fitness expert to get more info. 

Our Gympass Wellness partner NEOUfeatures a variety of fitness instructors and workouts, including ones focused on prenatal and post-pregnancy exercise. This includes workouts from Emily Fayette, the certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor behind the platform The Healthy Hustle. You can catch her treadmill workouts on NEOU, including routines created for new moms and moms-to-be like “Expecting Mama Power Walk” and “Feel Good Mama Run.”

We chatted with Fayette to learn more about what she recommends for pregnancy exercises and postnatal workouts.

Should I exercise during my pregnancy?

Before you start any sort of fitness program, it’s recommended to consult your health care provider. In most cases though, working out while pregnant (especially with low-impact movement) is completely safe. It can actually be beneficial, when approved by your doctor, and can help boost your mood and help with sleep. Just be sure to check in with yourself, take breaks, and make modifications when you need them. 

What can I expect from a prenatal or postnatal workout?

Many pregnancy exercises and workouts for new moms focus on low-impact movement to avoid putting too much stress on the body. If you’re doing a Healthy Hustle prenatal or postnatal workout on NEOU, Fayette focuses on keeping her runners and walkers at a conversational pace, or a pace where you can still hold a conversation. 

“I coach a lot to this and focus on breathing techniques throughout each class,” she said.

Fayette pointed out that other Healthy Hustle classes (in other words, not prenatal or postnatal) will push participants past a conversational pace and sometimes to an anaerobic state where they’re out of breath. This is often due to performing high-intensity exercises in short bursts.

I’m new to working out. Are there any fitness tips for new moms or moms-to-be?

One of Fayette’s most important rules for working out while pregnant or postpartum (especially if you’re a workout beginner) is to listen to your body. It’s undergone so many changes and a lot of things might feel really new or different right now.  

“Embrace the journey and know when to push forward or pull back within each workout,” she said.

She also reminds women looking to work out during or after pregnancy to remember they’re not alone and to take it one day at a time.

“There will be days where you feel like you can accomplish anything and everything, and days where getting off the couch is a hard task,” she said. “Embrace it all and enjoy the journey.”

Gympass is a fitness app available through companies like yours. Enroll now to try our live-stream classes, our digital wellness platform, and our virtual personal training feature. If your company offers Gympass, sign up now for free.