A Guide to Safely Practicing Pilates During Pregnancy
At Collective Motion, our Pregnancy Pilates classes are our most popular Pilates class and we love that you love them! Our main point of difference at CMH is that our clients can participate in the classes all the way to full term. However, it is also the class we get asked the most questions about so we thought we’d take the time to answer our most frequently asked questions.
Can I do Pilates when pregnant?
Absolutely, in fact we encourage it! Whether you’re a long time Pilates lover who is looking to be able to continue during their prenatal period or you’ve never done Pilates before and are looking for some pregnancy specific exercise, our classes are perfect for you. Our Pilates classes can be adapted to suit mums at all stages up to full term, providing modifications to keep it suitable to where you are at and how you are feeling. Participating in a class that is specific to pregnancy, ensures that the exercises are specific to what your body needs and will change with you as your body changes.
Is pregnancy Pilates safe?
Doing Pilates while pregnant is a safe and gentle way to keep exercising without worrying about the wellbeing of you and your growing little one. We understand that each pregnancy is so unique which is why we keep our classes to a maximum of four clients so that we can provide feedback and make sure that you are always practicing in the best way possible. Our pre natal trained Pilates instructors have the knowledge and understanding of the pregnancy journey and can be guided by your limitations.
Can I do Pilates in my first trimester?
At Collective Motion we want to work with you through all stages of your pregnancy. You are welcome to join our classes from as early in your pregnancy as you feel comfortable. As our classes are safe to participate in throughout your whole pregnancy, all exercises in our classes will be suitable for you during your first trimester as well. Exercising while pregnant is beneficial at any stage and the same goes for Pilates while pregnant! Doing Pilates in the initial stages of your pregnancy helps build strong foundations that you’ll carry through to your bubs arrival. As your body is about to undergo a lot of change through the next few months, starting to do pregnancy specific strength and mobility work as early as you feel ready will only help you for the rest of your pre and post natal journey.
Is Pilates good for pregnancy?
Doing Pilates during pregnancy is a great way to stay active and mobile, without placing any unnecessary load or strain through your body and joints. Our Pilates classes can be adapted to you and as your baby develops our Pilates classes evolve with you, keeping you mobile and active as you grow closer to your bub’s arrival. Some of the ways Pilates is good for pregnancy include improving mobility, increasing strength and stability, increasing energy levels and circulation, improves pelvic floor strength and control, conditions muscles for a positive recovery, speeds up recovery postpartum and more!
Pilates exercises to avoid when pregnant
When doing Pilates while pregnant we can still work most muscles, just in a different way. The main thing to avoid is direct abdominal work. While your little one grows, the abs need to be able the lengthen and stretch to make room and grow. Doing ab exercises shortens these muscles placing more stress on the tissues while also increasing intra-abdominal pressure, which can contribute to a more significant diastasis recti, also known as ab separation. While it is completely normal to get some ab separation, we can work to minimise the degree of separation. Other than that, it is avoiding putting your body in a position that is compromising to you and bub. At CMH, we have Pilates wedges that allow you to safely lie on your back doing Pilates during pregnancy. We use a variety of other props as needed to make sure that you are always comfortable and pain free.
What things do you focus on doing Pilates while pregnant?
Your pelvic floor muscles play a vital role both pre and postnatally. We focus on building strength and control through these muscles as well as focusing on relaxing the pelvic floor, which is important when it comes to the birth of your baby. Throughout your pregnancy, there will be structural and load changes through your back and pelvis. Practicing Pilates during pregnancy helps to increase strength and stability through these areas by targeting our hip and back stabilising muscles, such as the glutes. Whether you’re a first time mum or been here before, we work to strengthen your body to help you deal with those challenging first few months and give you the tools to reduce soreness and injuries. We love to include stretching and mobilising exercises to help lengthen your muscles and keep your body moving freely.
If our classes sound like the right fit for you, we’d love to have you at Collective Motion! If you’ve never been to our classes before, you can take advantage of our 14 day intro offer of 3 classes for $45. To check out our Pilates Timetable, click here otherwise press the button below to book into a class!
If you still have some questions or want to learn more, click the button below for more information. Otherwise always feel free to give us a call to chat or send us an email, we’re here to help!
If you’re after some more advice or are in need of some hands on help, we’d love to see you at Collective Motion! Collective Motion offers Osteopathy, Dietetics, Clinical Exercise and Pilates and is conveniently located to service our Bentleigh community as well as its surrounding suburbs including Bentleigh East, McKinnon, Ormond, Glenhuntly, Murrumbeena, Carnegie, Oakleigh, Gardenvale, Brighton East and Hampton East.
