Exercise & Pregnancy

Exercise is of benefit to anyone. Pregnant women are no exception.

Some studies have shown that exercise can reduce the length of labor, shorten the recovery time, and even help with postpartum weight management.

The fact that we need to exercise is not in question. The bigger questions is how and when do we exercise? Life has everyone a bit more hectic than we used to be, not to mention lots of convenience items to "help" us out.

No longer do we need to walk in the airport, climb stairs in the mall, or walk the lawn mower, we have machines to help us out. Not only are we not getting our regular exercise but our daily activities are more likely to be desk related.

There are quite a few ways to get some easy exercise into your day:

• Take the stairs whenever possible.

• Park further away and walk to stores.

• Walk to do short errands.

• Use a video if you can't get to the gym.

• Walk around the house or up and down stairs while commercials are on television.

• Schedule your workout like any other appointment.

• Get up to change the television channels.

• Use a push mower.