I recently obtained a certificate in Pregnancy and Pilates by attending a workshop led by Sarah Skaer at Pilates Studio City. The workshop was awesome! Sarah is a great teacher. She is so patient and so eager to share her knowledge with you. Lately, I’ve been worried about getting stuck in a rut and boring my pregnant clients with the same old routines. I really wanted to add to my pregnancy repertoire, to learn new exercises, variations, and modifications–and I was not disappointed. I left feeling inspired and ready to get back in the studio with my preggo clients to try out some new things.

My client Jennifer, expecting her first baby!

The workshop was very informative and, in my opinion, well worth the price. While I can’t go into full detail here (mostly because the information we received is copyrighted), I will say that we covered the following areas:

• Contraindications for exercise
• Normal pregnancy presentations/symptoms
• Safe exercises/modifications for each trimester
• How to check for/prevent diastasis recti
• How to work with a pregnant athlete
• Postnatal care
• Liability information

I do want to mention a few key things to keep in mind when working with pregnant clients. This information is mostly common knowledge, but just in case you haven’t dealt with any pregnant clients yet, it would be useful to know the following:

• Always make sure a pregnant client has been cleared for exercise by a doctor, especially if they have never done Pilates before.
• Generally speaking, during the first trimester of pregnancy, very few modifications are needed. A client can typically continue her normal exercise routine, although she may feel more tired than usual. Encourage your clients to take a break when they need to, as they will fatigue more quickly as the pregnancy progresses. I like to encourage quick water breaks. It allows your client to catch her breath and also promotes hydration, which is important during pregnancy.
• As you progress into the second trimester, you will want to limit the amount of time a client spends in the supine position (lying flat on their back). Start to use pillows or wedges to keep your client’s head above her heart. Lying flat in the later stages of pregnancy can cause compression of the Inferior Vena Cava, a large vein that carries de-oxygenated blood from the lower half of the body back to the heart. It’s dangerous for your client and dangerous for the baby. Keeping your client elevated will also help alleviate heartburn/acid reflux, a common pregnancy symptom.
• You’ll also want to keep your client off of her belly after the twelfth week–although this will naturally taper off as the baby bump starts to show.
• During pregnancy, the Relaxin hormone is working to relax the ligaments in the pelvis and soften and widen the cervix, in preparation for delivery. Some pregnant women will experience a significant increase in flexibility and will want to work within their new range of motion, but this is not at all recommended. This false sense of flexibility can cause injuries, including a separation of the pubic symphysis. Avoid over stretching and avoid any extreme adduction or abduction.
• Avoid inversions (any exercise where the legs are over the head or the head is pointing downward). This one seems pretty obvious, but just in case you were thinking about doing a little Short Spine Massage or Elephant…DON’T! Inversions can disrupt blood flow and supply, harming your client and the baby. Just don’t do it.

Remember that a Pilates professional never teaches outside the scope of their practice. If you don’t feel that you have the knowledge necessary to work with a pregnant client, or if you just don’t feel comfortable working with someone through pregnancy, don’t do it! Be upfront about your concerns and refer the client to someone who knows what they are doing. Trust me, the last thing a pregnant woman wants is an instructor that makes them feel uncomfortable or unsafe.

My awesome client Amy, who is expecting twins!

Personally, I love working with pregnant women. It is so rewarding to help them maintain a level of fitness that’s appropriate for their bodies. Exercising while pregnant can reduce stress, ease aches and pains, and help an expectant mom prepare her body for labor. The whole process is truly amazing, and I enjoy seeing the bellies get bigger and hearing all about the preparations for the new arrival. I plan on continuing my Pilates and pregnancy education, both for the sake of my clients and for my own personal knowledge. My husband and I are hoping to try for a baby in the next few years, and the more I know, the better (and easier) I hope my pregnancy will be! 🙂