Columbus, OH,
02
June
2017
|
20:41 PM
Europe/Amsterdam

10TV: Pregnant women should make exercise a priority

When a woman becomes pregnant, it is a time for celebration but also a time when many questions arise. Women want to feel their best while ensuring that their baby remains healthy. One question many ask is related to exercise – is it safe to do so while pregnant?

Anita Somani, MD, is an obstetrics and gynecology physician with Comprehensive Women’s Care and OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital who told 10TV reporter Jeff Hogan that exercise is key to pregnancy wellness for women. Although women might be worried about what exercising while pregnant might encompass, it is important and better for them in the end.

“People are always concerned, they have this fear that ‘oh I’m going to miscarry’ or ‘something's going to happen’ but the reality is that women who exercise have much better outcomes in pregnancy,” Somani told Hogan.

But some expectant moms like Hilary Ritter take full advantage of staying fit and healthy during their pregnancies. With people cheering her on, Ritter was not alone when she crossed the Boston Marathon finish line. She was 20 weeks pregnant when she started to tear up after finishing the 26.2 mile race.

“I get to finish this and my daughter does too,” Ritter says.

A few of the benefits of exercising while pregnant include shorter and easier deliveries and recoveries, and healthier babies with less risk of obesity and better brain development. Somani says there are no negative effects that exercising has on pregnant women.

Ritter confirmed that a few of her friends who walked or ran during their pregnancies had a much quicker recovery.

Somani told 10TV that if there was a prescription she could give for everything in terms of health, she would recommend exercising to everybody.

Make sure you talk with your physician before beginning an exercise regimin while pregnant. To find an obstetrics and gynecology physician at OhioHealth, click here.