Prepare Your Body for Pregnancy: The Right Exercise

It is recommended to prepare your body at least 3 months before a future pregnancy, in order to:

1. Enhance fertility.
2. Provide good developmental conditions for the fetus.
3. Strengthen the mother's health.

A crucial part of preparing for pregnancy is engaging in moderate exercise. Exercise offers significant benefits for the body and mind at any life stage — especially when considering pregnancy:

• Balancing body weight — It is scientifically proven that being overweight or underweight can make it difficult to conceive. Therefore, it is preferable to have a normal body weight to increase fertility chances. Furthermore, weight gain occurs naturally during pregnancy. It’s important to start pregnancy with a weight within the normal range, making it easier to carry the additional pounds as the pregnancy progresses. There are online calculators available to help compute the BMI: Body Mass Index. This measure helps determine if one’s weight is appropriate for their height. Accordingly, you will know if you should lose or gain weight — or maintain your current weight. It is preferable to use this objective measure because women often have a tendency to want to lose weight — even if they are at a healthy body weight. This is the time to set aside self-criticism — objectively assess your current weight, decide, and act accordingly, b'ezrat Hashem. Nutritionists and naturopaths can help you calculate your BMI, and devise a diet suited to your body, life stage, and goals. A good professional will help set reasonable goals tailored to you — something that will enhance success chances and thus foster joy and enjoyment from the entire process.
• Weight gain during pregnancy places more stress on the body, so it is recommended to strengthen the body now through exercise to better handle the added weight.
• The childbirth process can last for many hours, during which the mother experiences both physical and emotional challenges. Regular moderate exercise can help prepare the body for these challenges and allows for reaching childbirth with strength and a body connection. The exercise strengthens cardiovascular endurance, increasing the ability of the heart, lungs, and blood vessels to supply oxygen throughout the body. This endurance can ease both pregnancy and the childbirth process.
• Strengthening core muscles, along with upper and lower limb muscles is beneficial. Core muscles support the spine and stabilize the body. They are the primary muscles affected by the pregnancy weight load and are felt, along with limb muscles, when holding the baby for long periods or frequently bending towards them post-birth.
• It is highly recommended to strengthen pelvic floor muscles — these are very important during pregnancy and childbirth, and it is advisable to strengthen them now to ease future pain. Many exercises available online focus on strengthening the pelvic floor. Additionally, Pilates exercises that strengthen pelvic as well as core muscles provide dual benefits...
• Improved mood — Exercise causes the release of dopamine, which is a key neurotransmitter in the nervous system that significantly affects the brain and body’s proper functioning. It is scientifically proven that a lack or excess of dopamine can lead to depression and imbalances such as attention disorders. Positive mood is crucial and can help improve fertility. Sometimes there are challenges to getting pregnant due to stress, tension, or anxiety — and exercise can help! In fact, thanks to numerous scientific studies, some psychiatrists in the U.S. recommend regular exercise before prescribing medication. Pharmaceutical companies invest significant resources, time, and money in developing drugs that raise or lower dopamine levels. Moderate exercise is an effective way to naturally release it — without medication. So before starting medication — consider moderate exercise to boost your mood, calmness, stress reduction (if present), and prepare for pregnancy...

Treat exercise as quality time you dedicate to yourself. Choose moderate physical activity you enjoy. It's about enjoyment — so pick an activity that feels good for you!