Your baby is growing and you may start wanting to slow down a bit. Sleep will become harder to come by so rest when you can throughout the day and get ready for many trips to the bathroom. But you’re in your home stretch! Try to stay motivated to keep moving even though you will be larger and more winded. You want to be strong to birth your baby. Go for walks, try to stretch, and breath to connect with your baby daily. Vary your workouts because each discipline will make you feel different and it is good for the body to do a variety of workouts. Walking and prenatal yoga are at the top of my list for the third trimester.
Avoid: Twisting, forward flexion, and high impact exercises.
We want to be kind to the joints and the pelvic floor. Your baby is getting heavy and we do not want to bounce all of that weight onto the pelvic floor muscles.
The Routine: Hip Openers
Try to sit in a half squat or full squat daily to prepare your hips for birth. Other great hip openers you can start to introduce to your exercise routine include child's pose, butterfly pose, straddle stretch, figure four, pigeon pose, and lunges. If your baby is breech, you will want to avoid doing hip openers as you try to get the baby to flip head down, in the optimal birthing position. Instead, try daily exercises to flip a breech baby.
The Routine: Chest Openers
These are really important because pregnancy causes women to roll their shoulders forward, which causes bad posture and discomfort in the upper back. This is from a larger breast and belly while pregnant and constantly bending over to feed and care for a baby during postpartum. To combat that, incorporate chest openers into your daily routine and exercises to strengthen the upper back. Try it:
- Interlace your fingers behind your back.
- Pull your fist towards the ground, opening up your chest.
- Finish with arm circles and shoulder circles on each side.
Additional chest openers to try are reverse prayer pose, side bends, and tricep stretches with a side bend.
The Routine: Abdominal Toning + Pelvic Floor Exercises
Remember to continue to do your abdominal toning and pelvic floor exercises we discussed in your first trimester to continue to prepare your body for labor.
How are you feeling in your third trimester? Tell us by joining the Perelel community on social or by subscribing to our newsletter.
Rachel Nicks is a trainer for Mirror, the first nearly invisible interactive home gym. She is a certified prenatal and postpartum fitness instructor that specializes in hatha yoga, barre, TRX, kettlebell, and pilates. In addition, she’s a certified DONA doula, lactation counselor, MAMA, and Juilliard-trained actress.
This article is for informational purposes only. It is not, nor is it intended to be, a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment and we recommend that you always consult with your healthcare provider. To the extent that this article features the advice of physicians or medical practitioners, the views expressed are the views of the cited expert and do not necessarily represent the views of Perelel.
