Old fashioned OBGYN? What do you think of this advice

[SunStruck]

So I had my first early scan yesterday at 6+6, and all was fine, good heartbeat and spot on for size.

I'm healthy (have done tests), and 35 years old. this is my first pregnancy.

OBGYN said for me to not exercise ('maybe just a bit of walking' and to not have sex the entire first trimester. And she wasn't happy that I'm traveling for a weekend tomorrow because I should 'just take it easy and not move much'.

I asked if there's any particular reason because I'm very fit (exercised all my life, gym 5 days a week just weights and cardio). Please note I've already cut back, lifting light weights and just walking with an incline on treadmill, not training abs etc.

Also nothing is wrong (no bleeding or anything like that) to give the no sex advice. I also know lots of women traveling when pregnant, surely that's not an issue?!

So my question is if you guys have had a really old fashioned OBGYN? Mine is quite old and from a different culture (as I live abroad), so I'm just wondering what your UK OBGYN say about the above points?

I thought that you can carry in exercising with modifications if that's what you've done all your life, and sex is not an issue if all normal?

I didn't want to tell her I have another trip abroad booked for next month for a week, and another back to the UK for 2 weeks the month after to avoid judgement... 🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

There's a girl that still goes to body pump and attack classes and the last time she was there she was about 35 weeks pregnant. She's lowered her weights a little at pump and does lower impact options at attack. I don't see why you couldn't continue exercising if that's what your body is used to.

Is there a reason you’re seeing a OBGYN at this stage?

Because she isn't in the UK so it may be more standard to see them at this stage where she lives

Never saw an obstetrician in this country, but yes that is absurdly "old-fashioned" advice, and can be safely ignored if there is no reason to think your pregnancy is high risk.

Also you don't need to cut back your exercise at this stage, or at all really if it still feels fine, although post 20 weeks you may need to make some modifications.

I have to say it would worry me if my obgyn was giving me outdated, non-evidence based advice. It would make me wonder what else they were out of date with.

If you lived in the UK, you wouldn’t see an obstetrician unless you were high risk, you wouldn’t have even seen a midwife by now, you definitely wouldn’t have had a scan unless there were a current or previous problem, and there’d be no one to advise you not to do these things. She sounds ridiculous unless there’s a huge drip feed coming!

Definitely out dated advice unless she thinks you are developing placenta praevia and at your dates it would be too early really to tell.
I'd ask her why and what is the evidence base for her advice.. Sounds like different cultural expectations of pregnancy and its management.
Do you know many people where you live that you could ask for recommendations?
For a more utd consultant.

I didn’t notice the fact that the OP wasn’t in the U.K.

But I think I would still worry about telling anyone to ignore medical advice even if it seems bonkers to me (which it does) Can you get a second opinion, OP?

www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/pregnancy-exercise/

www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/sex-in-pregnancy/

Thanks so much for your opinions guys!

I'm in an Arab country so it's a bit different here, and everything is on insurance so being 35 means I can opt for early scans etc (just for my peace of mind). So in that way it's good, but obviously it's a bit strange with the advice. I'm going to go after NHS advice!

Yeah I haven't even heard of midwifes out here. Usually healthcare is good and it's private medical which is also good. In the Arab world I guess being 35 is super old so need to be super careful lol!