The Benefits of Water Exercises for Birth

Exercising during pregnancy provides so many healthy benefits to moms and babies. But the biggest reward comes in labor. Being that it’s Summer and a lot of people are either heading to a beach or lounging by a pool, let’s dive into the benefits of water exercises for birth.

For starters, water exercises are a safe and low-impact way to workout while pregnant. This is because the water will support your belly and reduce the pressure from your spine and pelvis as you swim or move about the water. Water exercises will also give you a full body workout because you will use many of your muscles. And studies show that exercising in water causes fewer injuries and muscle strains than that of exercising on land. But I’m sure you’re asking yourself now; “okay this is great, but how does water exercising benefit my birth?” It benefits your birth greatly and here’s why.

Giving birth is not a sprint by any means. It’s likened a lot to more of a marathon. And as an athlete would train and prepare their body for a marathon, expecting moms should also train their bodies to prepare for the marathon of labor. Exercising in water is a perfect but easy way to do so. It will strengthen your muscles and increase your cardiovascular endurance which has shown to help have a smoother and possibly even faster labor. Additionally, studies have shown that water exercises may even help in preventing the use of pain medications or an epidural because moderate physical activity such as this increases the chances of a less painful delivery. That alone sold me when I was pregnant.

I encourage healthy, low-risk pregnant moms to talk to their healthcare provider and then give exercising in water a chance. You don’t have to jump on in and do a full hour of swimming or water aerobics. Start slow and then build from there. Just to give you some ideas, below you will find the link to my YouTube video called 3 Easy Water Exercises For Pregnant Moms. Also, an important FYI is to remember to drink lots of water. You can easily become dehydrated being in the summer heat, and not notice you’re sweating because you are in water.

Thank you for reading! Please share your comments or questions below. I would love to hear them.

-Doula Taina