Pregnancy Workouts & Exercises

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During pregnancy, exercise works wonders for both you and your baby. Here are the best and safest ways to break a sweat while you’re pregnant. Low-impact aerobics and dance workout classes like Zumba are a great way to increase your heart rate and get the endorphins flowing if you’re a newbie exerciser. A pregnancy-appropriate Pilates routine focuses mainly on strengthening your core and lengthening your muscles with low- to no-impact, which will help ease backaches and improve your posture as well as your flexibility (and that all comes in handy during labor). Barre classes — a mix of Pilates, yoga and ballet-inspired moves — are excellent for expecting women because they involve strengthening your lower body and core without much jumping. They also involve balance exercises, which help keep you stable as your baby bump throws off your balance. Prenatal yoga is another ideal workout for moms-to-be: It encourages relaxation, flexibility, focus and deep breathing — all great preparation for giving birth. Pregnancy ball exercises can help engage your core and improve hip stability. There are plenty of stability ball exercises you can do at home with this simple and inexpensive piece of equipment.