Sports and pregnancy

Exercise is healthy, even during pregnancy. The following applies to all sports: listen carefully to your body and do not overdo it. If you've been exercising and afterwards you have a lot of stomach pains, or abdominal pain, this is a sign of your body that you have been too active. Be a little less fanatical in the future.

When you are pregnant, several changes occur in your muscles, joints and bones. Your body therefore reacts differently to sports and exercise than you are used to. This will make your tires a little slacker, which increases the chance of spraining or overloading joints and muscles. If you have not done sports before, it is not wise to suddenly become very active during pregnancy; start slowly and build up gradually.

SPECIFIC SPORTS

  • Aerobics: just continue during pregnancy, but keep listening to your body
  • Aqua aerobics: just continue, or start on your own, during pregnancy. Very good exercises for the heart and circulation without putting a lot of strain on the musculoskeletal system.
  • Basketball: allowed, just watch out for punches in the abdomen and hard falls. Be especially careful with advanced pregnancy.
  • Diving: not allowed during pregnancy. From studies done so far it can be assumed that diving poses great risks to the fetus. English studies have shown that the chance of abnormalities in the baby is 15 times higher if the mother dives during pregnancy. Although it has not yet been scientifically proven, it can still be assumed that diving causes an increased risk of abnormalities in the baby.
  • Cycling: just keep doing this during pregnancy.
  • Inline skating: allowed for experienced skaters, but be more careful to prevent falling.
  • Jogging: you can continue doing this during pregnancy, but keep listening to your body
  • Horseback riding: experienced riders allowed, watch out for falls.
  • Skydiving: not allowed
  • Squash: you can continue doing this, but not too fanatically. Pay particular attention to sprints, turns and sudden stops. Your musculoskeletal system changes when you're pregnant and squash can be very taxing, especially if you're a fanatic. So pay attention and take it easy.
  • Skiing: only for experienced skiers and on slopes that are not too steep. Especially in an advanced pregnancy, the risk is greater when falling on the stomach. So, in the beginning of the pregnancy no problem yet, but with a thickening belly, be very careful and perhaps limit it to small hills. Preferably no higher than 2500 meters.
  • Tennis: you can continue doing this.
  • Volleyball: allowed with caution.
  • Walking: you can continue doing this.
  • Windsurfing: allowed for experienced surfers.
  • Swimming: very good during pregnancy, exercises many muscles without great strain on the musculoskeletal system.