5 Tips on Exercising While Trying to Conceive
Trying to conceive can come with many emotions and questions. For me there was excitement, anxiety, hope, and about 100 Google searches on if X was safe or if Y would bring us closer to our goal of conceiving.
I am not here to put exercise on your plate of things to worry about while trying to conceive (TTC). You likely have enough you’re thinking about. The bottom line is that moderate intensity exercise is recommended for most women while trying to conceive (source). So if you’re already in an exercise routine you enjoy keep it up, and if you’d like to start one, go for it as long as you have clearance from your medical team!
Now we could end this blog post here—yes exercise is generally good while TTC—but at Materra Method we’ve dug a little deeper and developed five general principles we follow when developing a program for those TTC. These principles center around the goal of aiming to prepare the body for the physical changes and potential pain problems that can come with pregnancy. These include changes in posture and hormones that may lead to issues like SI joint dysfunction, pubic symphysis dysfunction, low back pain, pelvic floor dysfunction and diastasis recti.
By focusing on the five principles below we can help to build a foundation that may help lessen the severity of or prevent some common pregnancy issues.
Notice my intentional use of the words “may” and “some” in the sentence above. I want to be clear that I’m not claiming these five things will make for a perfect pain free pregnancy. In fact, I would caution you against anyone claiming that. What I can confidently claim is that exercise is beneficial for you during this time and these principles are ways you can intentionally care for your body and mind during this season.
Okay, here we go!
1. focus on strengthening key muscle groups.
At Materra Method we believe in a full body approach to exercise but put an extra focus on strengthening the core, glutes, mid and upper back as well as the inner thighs when you’re trying to conceive and in the first trimester.
By focusing on these muscle groups we are building a strong foundation for preventing or lessening the severity of common pregnancy aches and pains mentioned above.
Here are a few of our favorite exercises for each muscle group:
Core: ball assisted curls, dead bug, side plank
Glutes: dead lift, lunges, banded side lying hip abduction
Back: supported bent over rows, prone arm raises
Inner thighs: copenhagen side plank, ball squeezes, side lying leg adduciton
2. learn to manage pressure in your core and pelvic floor.
So much of exercising while pregnant and postpartum is a pressure management game. Poor pressure management is one of the causes of issues like pelvic organ prolapse, severe diastasis recti and pelvic floor dysfunction.
Learning to breathe and coordinate your core and pelvic floor prior to becoming pregnant can do wonders for helping to prevent or lessen the severity of these issues later on. At Materra, our classes are centered around breath, core and pelvic floor connection and you’ll find us cueing on this principle in all of our classes.
3. get your spine and hips moving well.
The posture changes that come along with pregnancy tend to do a number on the spine and hips in particular.
At the spine we focus on establishing good thoracic extension(the ability to arch back near your bra line) and rotation (the ability to rotate at that same spot) through mobility drills like side lying open book (seen right) and puppy pose.
We also want the hips to move through their full range of motion and in particular flexion, internal rotation and external rotation. We work on these through mobility drills like a 90/90 hip switch and quadruped rock backs that you’ll find in our Lift class warm ups.
4. build cardiovascular fitness.
For many women, the first trimester is a time where low energy levels and nausea can make it hard to exercise. For me, this was especially true when it came to cardio. While a slow and controlled class sometimes made my symptoms better, cardio felt off the table for a while. This is why we recommend building up your cardiovascular endurance while you’re trying to conceive, as cardio might take a backseat in the initial months of pregnancy.
At Materra, we have a cardio class that incorporates options for low and high impact movement in an interval format, but we’re also fans of you finding cardio that feels good for you!
5. take care of any pelvic floor issues.
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”
This old adage certainly rings true when it comes to preparing the body for pregnancy. The physical and hormonal changes that come with pregnancy may worsen existing pelvic floor dysfunction. If you’re experiencing any of the following common but not normal issues, I would highly recommend you consider seeking out the care of an experienced pelvic floor physical therapist.
-Bladder: urinary leakage, urgency, frequency, retention, pain when emptying or difficulty emptying
-Bowel: constipation, painful bowel movements, or incomplete bowel movements
-Pelvic pain: tailbone, genital area, groin, perineum or vulva
-Sex: pain or change in function
If you need help finding a provider in St. Louis please don’t hesitate to reach out. If you aren’t local please visit this website for a directory.
I hope these tips are helpful for you as you plan your fitness routine during this special time.
If you’re looking for a program that already incorporates all of these principles we’d love to have you on our app with hundreds of classes created to support you on your journey to and through motherhood!