Pilates for pregnancy to keep you active in your third trimester

Pregnancy Pilates can provide low impact exercises without causing too much pressure on your body or baby. Pilates teacher Sarah Vrancken, who specialises in Pilates for pregnancy demonstrates a gentle pilates workout for the third trimester of pregnancy

A new study has suggested that water aerobics can help to reduce a pregnant woman’s risk of suffering a vaginal tear during labour.

Expectant mothers who took part in water aerobics from weeks 20-to-37 were nearly 13 times more likely to have an ‘intact perineum’ following childbirth. The perineum is the area between the anus and the vulva, that can tear due to the force of the baby coming out during childbirth.

Researchers believe that water aerobics helps to strengthen a woman’s core muscles, which in turn may lower the force with which she has to ‘push’ during childbirth.

Injuries and ‘perineal trauma’  is common during childbirth, and to avoid these complications, expectant mothers are typically advised to do exercise that strengthens their core.

A suitable type of exercise for pregnant women that works the core is pilates.

The third trimester is the final chapter of your pregnancy and this is the stage where the weight of the bump is going to be challenging for your body to cope with.

However, if you have stayed strong and mobile all through the first and second trimester, you will be reaping the benefits in the third trimester and as you continue with your Pilates routine, you may get all the way to the delivery date without any aches and pains.

It is absolutely possible to exercise up to the date you will give birth – just listen to your body and if you feel up to it, roll out your mat and do this Pilates routine designed for the third trimester by qualified Pilates instructor Sarah Vrancken.

SHOP: Healthista’s expert-selected range of supplements for pregnancy here

The question we get asked regularly is if doing Pilates during pregnancy helps with the actual birth. The Pilates breathing, the increased body awareness and the strength you have gained are all positive attributes that you can take with you into the delivery room.

And although there is no set path as every birth is different, having a strong and mobile body will always be a good thing. From having taught many pregnant and post-natal women, we can for sure tell you that exercising during pregnancy helps you to recover more quickly after birth, so it’s well worth the effort.

Sarah Vrancken is a qualified Pilates and Fitness Instructor who believes we can all benefit from a stronger, healthier and more flexible body free from aches and pains.

With two young kids, a busy household and a consultancy business to run, Sarah turned to Pilates to help her cope with daily life. She teaches in Surrey and set up Kalm Pilates to offer online Pilates programmes to spread the virtues of the practice.

Sarah decided to get her qualification as a pre-natal and post-natal fitness instructor as the information available on exercising during pregnancy was often contradictory.

The knowledge she gained from the qualification combined with Pilates helped her stay pain free during her pregnancies and aided her recovery post-partum.

Like this article? Sign up to our newsletter to get more articles like this delivered straight to your inbox.