If you are in the second trimester, or preparing to be, you may be wondering what exercises are safe and beneficial during this stage of pregnancy. And the further along you get, the more questions you may have about the changing needs of your body. For example, what are some physical changes that you can expect? And can you lift weights during the second trimester?
We are here to provide you with that information along with specific exercises and modifications so you can make the best choices for your body (and baby) during this time.
Read on to learn:
- General guidance for exercise in the second trimester
- Key physical changes that occur and implications for physical activity
- Best training strategies and exercises for the second trimester
- Additional resources for creating a second trimester workout plan
Still in your first trimester? Check out our Guide to First Trimester Exercise.
General Guidance for Exercise in the Second Trimester
By the second trimester, many of the early discomforts (like nausea and fatigue) subside, leading to the period known as the “honeymoon of pregnancy.” You will likely feel an increase in energy, which can go a long toward being more active and purposeful in your workouts.
As your body adapts to the changes of pregnancy, including the growth of the uterus and baby, strength-based exercises and weight training are essential for maintaining fitness, alleviating discomfort, and preparing the body for labor and recovery. Even though the weight gain is ramping up, so is your capacity to handle greater intensities, if you so choose.
Before getting into specific training strategies and what modifications to make for second trimester exercise, let’s take a look at some of the changes your body is going through during this period.
Key Physical Changes that Occur
The body undergoes significant physiological changes to accommodate the growing baby. These internal shifts may also create new sensations in your soft tissues (muscles, tendons, ligaments, fascia, etc.) and joints. In addition, your cardiac and circulatory systems adapt to keep pace with the needs of nourishing your baby. So, you can expect the following key changes:
- Weight Gain and Alignment Shifts: As your baby grows and the weight accrues, your ability to maintain neutral alignment becomes more challenging. The bigger belly combined with the forward shift in your center of gravity means that the muscles in the back of your body are being increasingly taxed. This is typically when low back, hip, or neck pain can surface.
2. Increased Pressure in the Deep Core: As baby grows, there is a natural increase in the pressure in the abdominal cavity, called Intra-Abdominal Pressure (IAP). This pressure, combined with the mechanical stress from the growing baby and uterus pushes onto the front of the belly. In addition, higher IAP pushes downward onto the pelvic floor. While the body is designed to stretch to accommodate these forces, certain behaviors can increase IAP beyond what typically occurs from pregnancy. Chronic, elevated IAP can increase the severity of core issues, namely Diastasis Recti and Pelvic Floor Dysfunction.
3. Increased Cardiac Capacity: During the second trimester, blood volume increases significantly to supply nutrients to the growing baby. This confers a cardiac advantage similar to “blood doping!” Of course, increased weight gain and alignment shifts may mitigate this advantage as pregnancy progresses. However, with the increased oxygen flowing through your body, you may actually feel more energized, especially when it comes to cardiovascular activities.
Best Training Strategies and Exercises for the Second Trimester
If you have not done so already, begin by mastering the foundational training strategies provided in our Guide to First Trimester Exercise. These strategies are essential in laying the groundwork for success in second and third trimester training.
- Avoid Breath-holding upon Exertion
As mentioned in point #2 above, increased IAP is a fact of pregnancy. However, there are specific behaviors to avoid in order to reduce additional increases in IAP over what occurs naturally. The primary behavior to avoid is holding your breath during exertion (sometimes referred to as the Valsalva Maneuver). This incudes when lifting weights in the gym, picking up a heavy laundry basket or bag of groceries, and even when having a bowel movement. Holding your breath during a movement elevates IAP, which does result in greater force production. However, it has the side effect of placing added stress on the abdominal wall and pelvic floor. Instead, focus on exhaling upon exertion. This means to exhale as you perform the hardest portion of the movement.
- Increase Intensity to Build Strength
In our first trimester guidance, we emphasized the importance of prioritizing strength training to prepare your body to better manage the increased stresses placed on it throughout pregnancy. Now, as you head into second trimester, you want to begin to increase intensity when it comes to strength training, or increase the amount of resistance you use so that you are working at a moderately-hard level. While it may seem counterintuitive to add load as your pregnancy progresses, consider that the more your body’s weight increases, the stronger you need to be to manage that additional weight. The second trimester is an ideal time to build this strength so that your body is prepared to manage the added stress of third trimester. Just make sure to exhale upon exertion.
- Emphasize Lower-Body Strength
Given that your legs move you everywhere you want to go throughout your day, they are going to get increasingly taxed as your weight gain ramps up. Therefore, the stronger your lower body is, the easier time it will have managing the added weight. Focus on a mix of bilateral moves with your weight evenly distributed on two feet (like squats and deadlifts) as well as unilateral moves like reverse lunges, split squats, step-ups, or step-downs. Just be mindful that, during pregnancy, hormonal changes can lead to increased mobility and decreased stability — especially in your pelvic hip region. So, you may feel a bit more “wobbly” than usual. For some safe & effective lower body exercises to help increase your stability, check out these 5 moves to build lower body stability. NOTE: If you experience any symptoms of SI Joint Pain, SPD, or Sciatica, avoid weightbearing unilateral (single-leg) moves and stick with bilateral.
- Strengthen Your Core (in All Directions)
As the belly starts to grow and weight gain increases in the second trimester, this can start to pull your body out of neutral alignment. These shifts in alignment (combined with potential decreased stability) could lead to potential pains or injuries, but a strong core can help mitigate these shifts. Because we want to train the body to remain in neutral alignment, the best types of core exercises are those that attempt to pull the body out of neutral alignment — forward, backward, sideways, and into rotation. Applying these varied stresses to the core in all directions enables the core muscles to adapt and grow stronger (and therefore better resist being pulled out of neutral alignment). We call these types of exercises “anti” core exercises, and they are highly beneficial during pregnancy (and any other time for that matter).
- Avoid Loaded Core Exercises Outside of Neutral
As you begin to develop a belly — and the pressure in your intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) increases, you want to begin avoiding core exercises that further elevate IAP. So, we advise avoiding loaded movements (strengthening exercises) outside of neutral alignment. This includes loaded spinal flexion (i.e. sit-ups), spinal extension (i.e. back-bends), lateral flexion (i.e. dumbbell side bends), and twisting (rotation with dissociation of hips and shoulders). Note: unloaded movements (like stretches or cracking your back) in these positions are perfectly fine. For more details — including two signs to look for to know when your body needs a modification — review these core exercises to avoid during pregnancy.
Final Thoughts: Listen to Your Body
While strength training during the second trimester is an excellent way to support your body’s changing needs, it’s important to listen to your body and make modifications when needed. Your second trimester focus will be on maintaining neutral alignment, exhale during exertion, and practice good movement mechanics while increasing intensity for less pain, more energy, and improved preparation for the big day coming soon!
Get a Safe & Effective Workout Program
Understanding what exercises and training strategies to do is one thing, but figuring out how to structure workouts — and evolve them as your pregnancy progresses — is another. We’ve done all the work for you with our self-guided Prenatal Workout Programs. Just select the program that’s right for you based on how far along you are in your pregnancy, and the app will guide you through a complete training program (with three total-body workouts per week) for the duration of your pregnancy. The workouts are strength-focused to prepare your body to successfully manage the stresses ahead, but you’ll also get in your cardio with our proprietary LIIT™ (Labor Intensity Interval Training) to help you physically and mentally prepare for the demands of Stage 1 Labor.
Are You A Health & Fitness Professional?
Are you a health & fitness professional interested in training pregnant and postpartum clients? Our Pre/Postnatal Fitness Specialist Certification gives you detailed guidance on program design — with programming templates, sample workouts, and a video exercise library to make it easy for you to design safe & effective programs for pregnant and postpartum clients of all stages and fitness levels.
Or, if you’re a Group Fitness Instructor interested in simply learning how to safely & effectively support the pre & postnatal members who attend your classes, check out our short (but powerful) course: Pre/Postnatal Education for Group Fitness Instructors.
