Studio Australia Blog
Why Pilates is ideal for pregnancy
If you are pregnant, Pilates is the best!
Contact us for your first consultation
First, and very importantly, you need to find a studio or instructor who is experienced in pre-natal Pilates.
Pilates is a detailed form of exercise and instructors should have completed comprehensive Pilates instructor training. In Australia you need to have completed training equivalent to an apprenticeship level to teach Pilates as a professional. At Studio Australia Barcelona our Pilates instructors have more than 3 decades of combined experience working with women through all stages of pregnancy and postnatal care.
Why Pilates compliments pregnancy
i. Strengthens your abdominal muscles
- Having strong abdominal muscles will help to support your back and posture. This will alleviate or reduce the amount of pain you will experience in you back.
- Ideally we would prefer to work with you before you get pregnant to strengthen, tone and make these muscles healthy but we can work with you through out your pregnancy until you feel that you are unable. It’s never too late!
- Over working your abdominals during your pregnancy is the gym and incorrectly can lead to the separation of your stomach muscles so it is important to have good instruction when exercising.
- During the last trimester of pregnancy, as the rectus abdominis muscles lengthen to accommodate the growing uterus, the stomach muscles known as our ‘6 pack’ can separate, this is called diastasis recti. Poor posture is attributed to this condition. Generally when there is a large separation the only way to repair this condition is surgery.
At Studio Australia Barcelona we are able to help women with this condition.
ii. Teaches you to control your front and back pelvic floor
- Your pelvic floor muscles support your bladder, bowel and uterus (womb) and are the muscles that you use to control your bowel and bladder
- During pregnancy these muscles can become over stretched and weak. When this happens it makes it harder for you to squeeze the muscles at the bottom of your bladder and you may have leaks when you cough, sneeze or exercise. This is called stress incontinence. Having a strong pelvic floor will stop this.
- Strong pelvic floor muscles will help to support the extra weight of pregnancy, help to prevent the risk of prolapse (when the uterus, bowel or bladder sag down and push against the walls of the vagina) and help to improve your sex life as it heightens the sensitivity in the vagina.
iii. Gives you core stability
- Core stability gives you ability to stabilize the body during movement and helps you with balance.
- It relates to the areas of the body surrounded by the abdominal wall and includes the pelvis, lower back and the diaphragm. In Pilates we use breath to engage all of the muscles in this region of the body including the transversus abdominals, internal and external obliques, the quadratus lumborum and the diaphragm
- During pregnancy having good core stability enables you to lift things without hurting yourself (think of how many times you lift your other little ones every day?), maintain your posture and help to support your back – to alleviate pain – and the pelvis – essential for child birth and the recovery after.
iv. Keeps you fit, flexible and in shape
- Pilates is a low impact form of exercise so it is safe for pregnancy. That doesn’t mean however that it we can’t work the body to maintain flexibility, fitness and keep you looking your best while your body changes.
- The best part is that the body and the muscles have a memory of all of this exercise information and once you have given birth you can return to Pilates soon after, as long as you do not have any complications, we can whip your body back into pre-pregnancy shape! If you have a cesarean you can return to Pilates after 6 weeks.
v. Gives you ‘me’ time
- Taking time to look after yourself when you are pregnant is essential for good health both physically and mentally. Going to Pilates every week gives you the moments to care for your body, rest your mind and give yourself some time to breath, relax and enjoy the experience.
vi. Helps you during the birth
- All of the muscles we use in Pilates are the muscles you use during labor.
- Having these muscles healthy, strong and toned is believed to assist in you an having easier delivery and better recovery.
Pregnancy Pilates at Studio Australia Barcelona
Hear first hand of Tamsin’s experience with pregnancy Pilates at Studio Australia Barcelona while carrying her twins on our YouTube channel.
