Is It Safe to Exercise During Pregnancy?
Pregnancy is a remarkable season of change. With every passing week, your body adapts to support both you and your baby. Understandably, many women wonder: is it safe to exercise while pregnant?
The reassuring answer is yes. But the details are a little more nuanced.
What the Evidence Shows
For mothers, exercise:
reduces the incidence of gestational diabetes; improves glucose tolerance
reduces the rate of hypertensive disorders
supports healthy gestational weight gain
helps manage severity of lower back and pelvic pain
helps manage mood and energy levels
supports overall function
For babies: Exercise is not associated with increased risks of miscarriage, stillbirth, preterm birth, or low birth weight. In fact, some studies suggest it may lower the risk of having an overly large baby (macrosomia), which can reduce delivery complications. Importantly, no evidence suggests harm to the baby when mothers follow current exercise guidelines.
Guidelines for pregnancy are broad & need more specificity
Current exercise guidelines for pregnancy from American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the Canadian guideline for pregnancy recommend women aim for:
>150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week
& strength training on two or more days
This could look like walking, swimming, cycling on a stationary bike, a circuit based workout, alongside machine weights or free weights.
These guidelines are designed to apply to all pregnant women, which means they’re quite broad. In reality, every pregnancy is different. Some women feel strong and energised. Others are navigating nausea, fatigue, pelvic pain, or complications which can change the goalpost.
Sometimes, “exercise” isn’t always a workout at the gym but could be caring for a toddler, carrying groceries, or doing household tasks. These all place demands on your body and deserve recognition.
Support for your Changing Body
Pregnancy brings enormous physical and hormonal changes. Your centre of gravity shifts, ligaments soften, and your core and pelvic floor take on more load.
That’s why the most helpful approach isn’t just about whether you exercise, but how.
The best exercise during pregnancy supports your body through these changes, prepares you for labour, and helps you recover postpartum.
Think of exercise as building resilience for motherhood.
Strength training helps maintain muscle and bone health, protects joints, supports postural changes, and strengthens for daily movements.
Pelvic floor and core work reduces the risk of incontinence and supports delivery and recovery.
Aerobic activity improves stamina for labour and supports cardiovascular health.
Mobility and alignment help manage common discomforts like low back or pelvic pain.
Exercise for high-risk pregnancy or flagged for caution
Some pregnancies need to take extra precautions when considering exercise, for example if you have placenta previa, pre-eclampsia, a history of preterm birth, or medical issues like significant heart or lung disease. “Exercise” can still be part of your plan, but it should be medically cleared and guided. Guidelines agree on two things:
most women can and should be active in pregnancy, and
when complications exist, activity needs to be modified with your obstetric team’s input.
When caution is indicated and your obstetrician agrees you can be active, an AEP works alongside your OB/GYN to create an exercise program for your situation.
Exercises to avoid when pregnant
Pregnant women should avoid activities with a high risk of falls or activities that could cause abdominal trauma such as contact sports, gymnastics, cycling, horse riding, skiing, sky diving and scuba diving.
High intensity exercise during pregnancy
What are the upper limits and is it safe?
For obvious reasons, there is a lack of research looking at the safety of high intensity exercise in pregnant women.
The consensus remains- pregnancy is not a time to push for PBs and progressively overload beyond what you’ve been doing.
However, if you have been active in the past, there is research emerging about the safety of continuing at similar intensities rather than drawing back completely.
One recent study (2025), observed 10 healthy women with >2 years strength training experience lifting up to 90% 10RM in the back squat, bench press and deadlift. No fetal distress was observed including while they performed exercise with breath holding and bench pressing laying on their backs on the bench.
Another looks into acute bout of HIIT exercise consisting of repeated 1-min near-maximal to maximal exertions, as well as MICT exercise to be well tolerated by both mother and fetus.
We suggest thinking about the following:
What’s important to you during your pregnancy?
What are the risks vs rewards?
Are you comfortable with the amount of evidence for the level of intensity you want to work at?
How is this type of training and intensity going to affect my energy levels and my pelvic floor throughout my pregnancy?
Always work alongside your OBGYN and AEP to make informed decisions for your exercise program throughout your pregnancy.
How an Accredited Exercise Physiologist Can Help
A women’s health AEP understands the physiological changes of pregnancy and tailors exercise to your needs with each trimester, symptoms, energy levels, and goals.
If you feel well, an AEP can guide you to exercise confidently and safely. If you’re having a difficult time with pregnancy, they can help you find restorative ways to keep moving, even when traditional exercise feels out of reach. It’s not about pushing harder or ticking boxes but it’s about supporting you through this unique season.
The Takeaway
Exercise during pregnancy is safe, effective, and one of the best things you can do for your health and your baby’s. But every woman’s journey looks different. The key is finding the right kind of movement that fits your pregnancy.
If you’re wondering where to start, an AEP can guide you with optimal movements to support your body, prepare for labour, and set you up for recovery and life with your newborn.
A much as your pregnancy is unique, your exercise plan should be too. 💜
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Absolute contraindications: ruptured membranes, premature labour, unexplained persistent vaginal bleeding, placenta previa after 28 weeks, pre-eclampsia, incompetent cervix, intrauterine growth restriction, high-order multiples (e.g., triplets), or uncontrolled medical conditions (e.g., type 1 diabetes, hypertension, thyroid disease), or other serious cardiac/respiratory/systemic disorders.
Relative contraindications (where benefits vs risks must be weighed and exercise is typically modified) include recurrent pregnancy loss, gestational hypertension, prior spontaneous preterm birth, mild–moderate heart/lung disease, symptomatic anaemia, malnutrition/eating disorder, twin pregnancy after 28 weeks, and other significant medical conditions.
