Pregnant?! 7 Essential Videos To Ensure The Health Of You & Your Baby

Getting pregnant is exciting but also scary. Suddenly everyone has an opinion, you’d like to think life can carry on as normal but let’s face it, your body (and its ability to hold in pee) drastically changes. I decided to do some research on the best videos online to help you stay healthy and fit so that you can soon go back to googling what different food cravings mean.

Here’s some of what these videos will cover:

• How to make sure you don’t get fat during your pregnancy
• How to exercise in a way that’s safe for you and your baby
• Specific exercises that may assist in your birthing process
• Developing good habits that make it easier to lose weight after birth
• Easy to follow along exercises that you can do at home or at the gym
• How increasing your health will benefit you and your baby

I’ve spent hours filtering a ton of videos and these are my top 7 picks:

1. Yoga Class – Led by a Prenatal Yoga Specialist & Doula

Getting your zen on is essential for good baby vibes. The instructor at Prenatal Yoga starts off with a bit of meditation and then does a relaxing sequence that helps reduce body aches like lower back pain. It’s not strenuous and is a great body opener. She gives lots of adjustments depending on how far along you are, explains how to deal with fluid retention in the legs, and ends with Mamastay 😛

Plus she calls “table top” position a “baby hammock” – how cute is that?

I felt super stretchy and relaxed after doing this video.

This yoga sequence is great for all levels.

2. 25 Minute Full Body Workout

This is a great workout for any trimester. It’s led by BodyFit By Amy who has a Masters degree in Exercise Science, so she knows her stuff.

Here’s a core workout from her as well:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fzef0PQhS5M

3. Hip Opening Exercises to Alleviate Pain & Help Prepare for Birth

Everyone’s heard about hip openers being useful for labour, well why not get started on them? This video, led by the Prenatal Yoga Center, gives some cool poses to do, especially ones you may not have thought of. They show some good ways to use blocks to assist you. Too tired? There’s a great resting pose at the end that shows you how to position your top leg when lying on your side. This pose has definitely helped me sleep better!

This video is good for all trimesters.

4. Ab Exercises – Led by a renown fitness trainer

Your abs are going through changes, don’t worry, here we figure out what you can and can’t do. This video shows 3 different ab exercises you can do, from beginner to advanced. The fitness trainer who leads it also trains super models, so there’s that. Andrea Orbeck says exactly how many reps and how often you should do them. She also mentions an important point: prop yourself up with a pillow so your heart is above your navel. No lying on your back for the second and third trimester – it puts strain on your organs.

5. Diet and Nutrition – Advice From a Registered Dietician

This video is thorough and informative. Becca Bristow goes into specifics of what you need, how much to eat, and even tells you it’s ok to just get whatever you can down during the first trimester if you have morning sickness! PS morning sickness is a lie, I had it all day long!

PPS She stresses drinking a ton of water (think 8 cups).

PPPS The main nutrients needed while pregnant: folate, iron, magnesium, calcium, vitamin D, protein, DHA

Here are a couple more of her videos:

A day of what she eats while pregnant (this one makes you feel ok about eating cheese 🙂 )

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYkmcQeFlcs

What she ate while she had morning sickness:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96KaTHNtuuQ

6. Strengthening Exercises to Reduce Pain, Increase Circulation, and Prepare for Labour – US San Diego Health Physiotherapist

These can all be done lying down or sitting. They’re done slowly, but that really works the muscles!

7. The 3 Best Positions for Doing Kegels – Demonstrations by a Physiotherapist

The reality of getting pregnant is that at some point you might pee your pants! I’ve definitely had a few scares, be careful of sneezing! Kegels strengthen your pelvic floor, which helps you avoid such mishaps. Physiotherapist Michelle Kenway shows the best positions to do your kegels (I never thought of this before!)

PS She has another video on this that goes waaay more in depth…I haven’t watched it all, just saying…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfmWkHSOi7U&t=170s

A few things to remember:

When I first fell pregnant, I was worried about how this magical experience would affect my body and health in the long term. I also wanted to make sure I did what was best for my baby… If you’re currently expecting, my only advice is YOU’RE NOT ALONE! 🙂 There are a wealth of resources out there, this doesn’t have to be a scary journey. Feel free to leave a comment at @siyaflo and chat to other expectant moms. Also, follow me at @amandajanewebb if you want to see more about my own journey during pregnancy.

Here are the key things to remember from all of the experts profiled in this post:

• Yoga is great during pregnancy, do it! The more bendy the better.
• Working out while pregnant is good, just avoid jumping & doing exercises on your back (after the first trimester, anyway)
• Work on opening those hips!
• Eat a healthy diet, rich in iron, calcium, magnesium, and folate
• Work on strengthening your muscles to increase circulation, reduce pain, and prepare for childbirth
• Kegels are your friend, do them 😉
• Bookmark these videos and follow along regularly!