To play sport when pregnant - just been banned from yoga!

[squirrelish]

I am only 4 and a half weeks pregnant. This is my first, so I am new to all this. I find exercise really important for reducing stress. Everything I have read says that you can carry on with your usual exercise at first.

I have already been asked not to come back to my gymnastics class (ok, maybe I was expecting that one) and my yoga(!) studio. Other sports I have enjoyed in the past are horse riding, watersports and martial arts. I don't think I'd be allowed to go back to these either.

I know swimming is going to be suggested, but A) swimming laps is boring B) I have a serious skin condition which gets worse when I swim.

So, am I being unreasonable to want to do something more engaging than walking and running for the next 8 months? As I said, I am new to all this, so maybe I am.

OP - I was also banned from yoga. Was sent out of the class in fact! I was told to "go home and concentrate on growing a baby". I was horrified and so embarrassed. I sent an email complaining about it.

I continued to swim and dance throughout both my pregnancies. In fact, I did my last dance class 2 days before giving birth to DD.

If you were active and played sport before you got pregnant then it is fine to continue. Just listen to your body, stay well hydrated and don't exercise to the point of exhaustion. You should never be so out of breath that you can't hold a slightly breathless conversation.

Attitudes towards exercise in pregnancy do my bloody head in.

It sounds like I should definitely try and find another yoga class then. This one was adamant that they could not take me back. They are a big studio, but apparently no one is trained to deal with pregnant women .

Trifle I phoned up and asked if there were any classes I should not do now that I was pregnant. Some classes can be quite intense, or are held in very hot rooms. We have been TTC for almost 2 years, so I definitely don't want to take unnecessary risks.

So...just don't tell people you're pregnant and be sensible?

I did ballet, tap, circuit training, aerobics, lengthy walks and all sorts right up until I was 38 weeks pg with DC1. I didn't tell my dance teacher until I was 12 weeks pg. I did tell my trainer for my other activities because she'd had three kids herself, done loads of pregnancy fitness training and I knew she wouldn't kick me out. She also, mainly, knew I was sensible and experienced. That's the main thing.

Did pretty much no exercise when pregnant with DC2. Too exhausted from the sleep deprivation inflicted on me by DC1 and being pregnant while chasing a toddler. Enjoy the smug feeling of being über-fit and pregnant. You only get it one time around.

I carried on doing spinning, body pump etc until 7 and a half months
Just had to let the instructors know and adapt a few of the moves x

ooh, honeybee, I had forgotten that I did a dance class for a bit! That is definitely non-contact.

I am only 4 and a half weeks pregnant.

I'm far too nosey - but why on earth are you telling people this early on?

there was a women in my zumba class who was 9 months pregnant only reason i knew that was she was talking about going in for her planned section the folowing week course she didnt do the class to the same intensity to the rest of us

I was also banned from yoga at my gym. The instructor was really bitchy about it too and told me in front of the rest of the class that it was too hard for me, and that her classes were 'very intense'. I practise regularly and am pretty decent so felt really chastised. Mentioned to the gym that she might want to work on her communication skills.
I found it really hard to get used to being told that I shouldn't be doing certain things as I always considered myself to have a decent amount of common sense.

Hope you find something that works for you xx

PS by week 24 or so the sickness had finally gone but the PGP and Carpal Tunnel had kicked in so I didn't feel like doing much of anything.

My mums a yoga teacher and can't teach pregnant women as she's not got the necessary experience and insurance. I've been going to pregnancy yoga classes and the gym for weights and cardio - currently 19 weeks. My midwife said so long as I wasn't doing horse riding or rugby, it was fine.

Yeah, maybe I should just not tell anyone I am pregnant. All the advice I read said it would be fine, but I should check with my instructor, in case there were specific moves/activities I should sit out.

I did Bodypump till 3 months and spin till 5 months and Pilates till 40weeks (3 days before i had dd).

All the horsey people I know carried on riding until the bump got too uncomfortable, I've never heard that you're not supposed to ride when pregnant. Maybe steer clear of anything that's too highly strung or any youngsters but having a quiet hack on a fat cob isn't exactly risky.

Pregnancypilates is supposed to be better than pregnancy yoga as the yoga will be stretching already lax tissues but Pilates strengthens the muscles.

I continued my ballet classes up until 5 months (then my core began to slacken off so it was tricky) so I cannot understand why they will not allow you to do yoga. I would think it would be beneficial - flexibility, strength, stamina not to mention the calming effects you enjoy. Time to find another class I think!

X-posted with you OP - you shouldn't do hot yoga/Bikram in the first trimester, so if that's what you were doing, that's why they weren't letting you back. You shouldn't do anything to raise your core temperature too significantly.

When I was pregnant (first time) I carried on all the exercise I did before - spinning, HIIT and weight training. I changed the weight training so the weights were lighter and with spinning and HIIT I just adapted it as my bump got larger/I found it more difficult. I think I stopped spinning when I was 36 weeks as I didn't feel safe getting on the bike but carried on the rest until the week before I gave birth. I don't think you're meant to start any new exercise while pregnant but carrying on what you've been doing is fine 😊
Congratulations!!

Whaaa?? That's crazy! I played competitive hockey until 13 weeks (meant to stop at 12 - dates wrong) so sprinting, tackling, 70 minutes of intense exercise, the lot! In TWO pregnancies! But to be fair I was naturally a bit less "rough and tumble" than usual, and i never did anything I wasn't comfortable with. I stopped at the end of the first trimester because at that point the uterus pops up from behind your pubic bone where it's well protected, so you're more at risk from blunt trauma.

Last pregnancy I had a personal trainer until I was 28 weeks once I'd quit hockey; we were doing kettle bells the whole time. She was a specialist in pre-natal training though, so perhaps it's a case that your instructor didn't feel comfortable teaching you, not that they thought you shouldn't be training.

I did pregnancy Pilates in my first pg and pregnancy yoga in my second, also Aquarobics (pregnancy specific and otherwise). I also walked miles, as running made me sick.
i may also have gone mountainbiking at the 7 Stanes when I was 30 weeks

and then there was the ski trip at 7 weeks that was already booked and paid for

squirrel - I found that carrying on with my dance classes really helped me through the pregnancy. It's non-contact and if you're are having an off day and feeling a bit tired then it's easy enough to bring it down a level for a bit. I told my dance instructors early on and explained that I had the all clear to continue from midwife and GP and they were fine with it and really supportive.

The yoga teacher who kicked me out was bloody awful. I did the honest thing in telling her before the class when I was about 7 weeks as I expected there would be some parts I couldn't do/that would require modification. Wasn't expecting the public shaming!

I did ballet twice a week up until 36 weeks (my hips started hurting), found a pregnancy yoga class which was great and I'm trying to walk at least 30 minutes a day (i'm 39 weeks). There's lots out there, you just have to find a sympathetic, qualified instructor, and listen to your body.

Congratulations! I carried on with regular yoga class but the instructor offered me alternatives, no reason to ban you

perhaps it's a case that your instructor didn't feel comfortable teaching you, not that they thought you shouldn't be training.

I agree with this.

I was exercise crazy when I fell pregnant with my first, I carried on doing everything, circuits, kettle bells, aerobics, running, HIIT, but at 9 weeks I had a small bleed and was off work to rest. All was well but I just couldn't get back into it without being paranoid. I joined some pregnancy specific exercise classes and swam.
This time around I'm just doing the same, never did get back into the excerice.

I agree with ThatsALovelyBush - I would expect in most cases it's lack of insurance rather than you shouldn't do it. I wouldn't jump to conclusions that it's automatically a shit instructor or the wrong advice.

I'm also not really sure what you're asking or whether you're just having a rant as if you've been trying to TTC for 2 years and don't want to risk anything then surely walking and swimming for a bit isn't the end of the world?

*I am only 4 and a half weeks pregnant.

I'm far too nosey - but why on earth are you telling people this early on?*

Clearly because she wasn't sure whether or not it was safe? Just like you'd, for instance, tell the pharmacist if you were buying cold medication at five weeks pregnant, but you wouldn't tell your office mates! I think women can tell whoever and whenever they like, but asking a professional if you're not sure that what you're doing is advised is clearly sensible.

Pregnancy Yoga and speed walking.