Swimming is incredibly beneficial for our bodies, and even more so during pregnancy!
1) Swimming is an awesome cardiovascular exercise.
When your body is active, your heart rate increases.
An increased heart rate boosts the circulation of blood through your body, which then improves the transport of vital nutrients to your baby.
Cardiovascular exercise is great for burning calories, which keeps your weight within a healthy range.
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Cardiovascular exercise stimulates the release of endorphins, which are “feel good” hormones, also known as a “runner’s high”.
Endorphins help ease depression, irritability, and they are amazing mood boosters!
2) Swimming is a pregnant woman’s only time to feel relief from the weight of her pregnancy.
People weigh 1/10 of their body weight when they are in the water, than what they weigh on land.
The weightlessness experienced by being in the water is a boon to your bones, by taking the weight and stress off them.
For those who suffer from Sciatica, swiming eases sciatic nerve pain by lifting the baby weight off of the sciatic nerve, offering amazing pain relief! I had sciatica pain during my last pregnancy and when I started swimming three times a week, the pain went away!
3) The pressure of the water in the pool pushes fluid back into the vein, thereby relieving ankle and feet swelling.
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4) Exercising in water is safer than other exercises
As water supports joints and ligaments during swimming, injury is much less likely.
This makes swimming one of the safest exercises to do when pregnant.
5) There is little chance of overheating when swimming.
Overheating when pregnant can harm the fetus, and swimming is unlikely to cause this problem, as opposed to other types of exercise.
Be sure to follow these guidelines for swimming pool safety.
Doing any exercise when pregnant is vital, as it prepares your body for the work of labor. When your body is toned and fit, labor tends to be shorter.
Swimming during pregnancy is an excellent choice!
