Does Working Out During Pregnancy Make Labor & Delivery Easier?
We’re back with another installment of our myth-busting series to separate the myths from the facts with science-backed answers you can trust.
Today, we’re answering a question we’ve heard a lot: Can working out during pregnancy make labor and delivery easier? Let’s get into it…
Can working out during pregnancy make my labor and delivery easier?
The answer to this one isn’t black & white, because the truth is, there’s nothing that will guarantee an “easier” delivery (and what would an “easy” delivery look like anyway?!). However, there are some studies that show that exercise may have a positive impact on labor for some women…
One study found that women who exercised regularly during pregnancy had:
Reduced the risk of gestational diabetes & preeclampsia
Lower rates of a c-section birth
Shorter labor time
Another study found that women who did aerobic exercise 3 times a week throughout pregnancy at a moderate level had a shorter labor time & faster recovery time after birth
As we said, there’s no way to guarantee your labor and delivery are easier, but an active pregnancy has so many benefits — one of them being potentially improved labor outcomes. If being proactive makes you feel more in control of your pregnancy then it’s worth making the time for it – just try not to put too many expectations on your birth experience, mama.
What else can I do to prepare for labor and delivery?
As you get closer to meeting your little one, it’s natural to feel excited— but it’s also natural for the lead-up to childbirth to feel intimidating, and maybe even scary. Like we said, one of the ways to overcome that is to be proactive about the things you can control, like exercise.
Here are 5 other things you can do so you feel more prepared for labor and delivery:
Take a prenatal class
Consider taking a prenatal class to help you feel more prepared for what’s coming up in your pregnancy, labor, and in postpartum. Being educated and informed about what to expect can really help to soothe any anxieties you might have, plus it’s a chance to ask an expert any burning questions!
Work your pelvic floor
You know those pelvic floor exercises we’re always telling you to do? Well, it’s never too early to start them. The stronger they are the less damage they are likely to sustain during pregnancy and birth and the faster they will spring back to shape after. As these are the muscles that stop you from unexpectedly having a pee every time you laugh or sneeze you’ll want them to bounce back as soon as possible. To do your exercises all you need to do is find a quiet couple of minutes two or three times a day and squeeze the muscle you use when you need to pee 30-40 times, holding for 5-10 seconds each time you squeeze. You can do this on the bus, at work, in front of the telly, no one will know. We have a daily exercise for you over in the Baby2Body app!
Practice your daily breathing exercises
We’ll hand over to breathwork expert Amrita Daas for this one: “Our brains are concerned primarily with keeping us safe by preparing us for danger. By controlling our breath we are signaling our brains that we are safe, and this reduces our fear, anxiety, and stress. We don’t always have the solutions to our perceived problems but we can try to manage our reactions to them. Coming back to our breath is a way for us to take small moments of control, during the ups and downs of daily life.”
This logic can be applied to labor as well — controlling your breath can be a way to reduce fear and help work through the pain of contractions. Practicing breathing techniques not only helps relieve pregnancy anxieties but means you have this technique in your labor toolkit. Hint: we have daily breathing exercises in the Baby2Body app!
Make a birth plan
A birth plan is a checklist that you fill out indicating your wishes in terms of your environment during labor, which non-pharmacological pain coping mechanisms you’d like to try, and guidelines for medications or interventions you do or do not want to be offered to you.
Here’s some advice from Labor & Delivery Nurse Lauren Marino: “Coming to the hospital prepared is always a good idea! … Birth plans should be constructed with knowledge about the interventions you’re planning out as well as considerations for your unique condition in pregnancy/delivery. So it’s a good idea to do some research into what you would like on your birth plan ahead of time and then discuss it at a prenatal appointment with your provider. If you do not want to bring a written out birth plan with you to the hospital, it is still a good idea to take a basic childbirth class to understand what to expect.”
Read more: 8 Questions For A Labor & Delivery Nurse: What Every Woman Needs To Know.
Stay open-minded and flexible
Even with all of these tools in your pocket, one of the most important things you can do is to stay open-minded and flexible about what your delivery might look like. And that means using your birth plan as a helpful guide rather than a rule book and your tools as support rather than guarantees. No one can predict what your labor will be like and the things you put in your birth plan may not go as you expect — it’s important to listen to your body and talk to your doctors or caregivers about what the best plan is for you as your labor progresses.
Find out more about exercise and labor from Baby2Body CEO & Founder, Melinda Nicci:
Have a question about pregnancy or labor? Leave it in the comments!
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