Yes, Pilates is probably the best thing you can do while you are pregnant: low impact, it prepares your body for birth, and you will recover faster. And you can do it all at home. Get cleared by your midwife first.
What actually changes in your Pilates once you are pregnant?
Less than you would think. The modifications start in the early second trimester, and the main one is lying flat on your back. From about week 16 we stop that for long stretches, and it is the modification that matters most. It is an easy fix: you prop yourself up onto your elbows, or pop a Pilates ball behind your shoulder blades, or cut the on-your-back work out altogether. There is so much other work we can do: sidelying, four-point kneeling, lots of standing work. That one change affects things like shoulder bridges and any core work lying on your back.
We also avoid a lot of overstretching. There is a lot more relaxin in your body, the hormone that loosens off the ligaments to help prepare you for birth, so we just want to make sure we are not putting your joints in a compromising position by leaning into the extra flexibility you have suddenly got. We cut out lying on your belly, which is not going to be comfortable anyway, but mostly we cut it for safety. And we are careful with overheating, and really careful with balance. If you are following Wild Prenatal, all of that is built in already, you do not have to remember any of it.
Should you stop core work when you are pregnant?
No, and stopping it altogether is the most common thing I see.
And I get it. The baby is in your belly, and it is tricky to get your head around the fact that you should still be keeping those muscles really strong. But those are the muscles you need for birth, and more importantly, they are the ones you need to be able to reconnect and rebuild postpartum. Stopping completely is not the answer.
So instead of stopping, it is about switching it. We modify crunches and long planks, that kind of work puts a lot of pressure on the really superficial abs, that six-pack muscle, and that is what can increase ab separation, or diastasis recti. Instead we focus on the deep core: the pelvic floor, the transverse abdominis and the obliques. Lots of four-point kneeling work, 360 breathing, and the movement we call hug the baby, where you really wrap those muscles around and support your lower back at the same time. It is still genuinely challenging, you have to think about that connection through the entire core, and it is far more beneficial anyway.
Can you do prenatal Pilates safely at home on your own?
Yes, and in some ways it is better. In a studio you have obviously got someone watching your form. At home, I am there doing the class with you. I was pregnant filming every one of these videos, so I know exactly what the movements feel like in my own body, and I know the really common mistakes after twelve years of teaching.
I will talk you through it. If your shoulders creep up to your ears, I will remind you to relax them down. I will give you a modification the moment something does not feel good, or more challenge if you want it. And I will talk you through the breath on every single movement: when to engage, and just as importantly, when to relax the pelvic floor.
Honestly, when you are pregnant, home just works better. Getting out to a studio and parking and doing the whole thing takes an hour and a half, whereas you can do a really targeted 15 or 20 minutes on your lounge floor, in your pyjamas, on a day you are feeling too nauseous to face anyone. You can pick a class for how you are feeling: something for glutes and core on a good day, prenatal stretching when your body is sore, instead of turning up to whatever is already planned and modifying it a thousand times at the back of the room. The only thing people get wrong on their own is rushing through and not listening to the cues. Slow it down, and stick a mirror beside you if you want to check your back is not overarching. That is the message I get most: “Thanks Laura, I did not feel like moving today but feel so much better afterwards.”
“When I was pregnant, I was doing more core work than I have ever done before. It just looked a little bit different.”
How do you start prenatal Pilates at home?
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Get cleared first.
Talk to your midwife, GP or obstetrician before you start, it is what should happen in those first appointments anyway, just to check there is nothing we need to factor in. You can also go and see a women’s health physio and get a few modifications before doing your own workouts.
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Start with classes built for pregnancy, not modified for it.
Wild Prenatal has the modifications already built into every week, so you are never guessing.
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Move on the good days, rest on the bad ones.
Make the most of the energy when you have got it, and when you have not, prioritise rest. That is not falling behind, that is the plan.
Common questions
No. We are not doing big crazy crunches or anything like that. The core work is modified from the second trimester and focused on the deep core and pelvic floor, which is far more beneficial anyway.
Yes, as a precaution we always say get cleared to exercise by your midwife, GP or obstetrician first. That should happen in those first appointments anyway, just to make sure there is nothing we need to factor in.
Absolutely. It is really targeted work: the deep core, the glutes, the upper back, so you get all that you need and nothing you do not. That beats an hour and a half of getting to a studio and back.
This article is general information, not medical advice. Always talk to your midwife or doctor about your own pregnancy before starting any exercise.
