It’s important to stay fit during your pregnancy, but with the pandemic to contend with there’s also a sudden lack of exercise options due to gyms and yoga and pilates studios having been shut down. But that doesn’t mean you should hunker down on your couch and do nothing. That’s right, there are now tons of online prenatal workouts that will allow you to stay healthy and fit during pregnancy (and beyond). It’s also important to note that no matter your fitness level, always check with your doctor before starting – or continuing – a prenatal workout routine.
In the first trimester, when most of your baby’s foundation is being laid, it’s particularly important to be gentle with yourself. In the second trimester you might want to avoid things like laying flat on your back for too long (a work-around is using a pillow to elevate your hips slightly to relieve some pressure). Again, consulting with your doctor is critical. It’s also important to dispel the myth that wearing a heart rate monitor is critical across the board. For decades many experts recommended a heart rate of no more than 140 beats a minute for exercise during pregnancy (and many still needlessly recommend this), but the latest research shows that this heart rate limit is not particularly relevant. A good rule of thumb: you should be able to hold a conversation as you exercise when pregnant. If you become breathless as you talk, you should probably ease up.
Now that the housekeeping is out of the way, here’s a look at some of the best virtual prenatal workouts to keep you feeling strong, healthy and confident throughout your pregnancy.
Read More About Pregnancy Health:
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- Are Antidepressants Safe to Take During Pregnancy?
- What You Need to Know About Dental Hygiene And Pregnancy
The Best Online Workout Options For Pregnant Women
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Tracy Anderson: The Pregnancy Project
Tracy Anderson is an original in the digital workout space, and that includes pregnancy workouts. When she was pregnant with her second child Anderson filmed a series of DVDs - one for each month of pregnancy - in real time. That was nearly a decade ago! Some things never change, however, and the workout is as toning today as it was back then. If you have any doubts, it’s the workout model Hilary Rhoda credits with not only helping make both her pregnancy and delivery smooth, but for allowing her to bounce-back seemingly seamlessly post birth. This is Rhoda doing the workout about two weeks before giving birth; this is her doing Tracy Anderson about two weeks after birth. #goals.
Cost: $49.95 for a digitized version of the DVDs.
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Megan Roup: The Sculpt Society
It’s not a well-known fact, but superstar trainer Megan Roup actually started her career in the boutique fitness space working for Tracy Anderson. While Roup has a dance background, she was clearly inspired by Anderson when she branched out with her own workout that blends sculpting and dance cardio. While both Roup and Anderson’s workouts are equally challenging, Roup’s workouts tend to be a bit easier to master for those without a dance or fitness background - note, that does not mean they aren’t very challenging. Roup announced that she was pregnant a few weeks ago and since she has loaded her app and website with plenty of pre and postnatal workouts. She also does lives multiples times a week where both pregnant and non-pregnant women can watch her sculpt her growing body in real time.
Cost: $19.99/month after a two-week free trial.
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Amanda Kloots Fitness
Amanda Kloots has been instrumental in dispelling the myth that women can’t jump rope, or jump in general, during pregnancy. Her signature workout includes using a jump rope to, well, jump rope, but also as a prop (think side-to-side burpees over the jump rope). While you obviously need to clear everything with your doctor (particularly important in the first trimester), pregnant women who are used to jumping rope prior to pregnancy can feel secure continuing this healthy cardio activity when pregnant - as Kloots demonstrated when she continued to teach and workout throughout her pregnancy with her young son, Elvis. Not all of Kloots’ workouts involve jumping rope; she also has plenty of lightweight sculpting and pregnancy-safe dance cardio.
Cost: $19.99/month after a one-week free trial.
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Melissa Wood Health
This mama of two taught and worked out throughout her recent second pregnancy, as such her app and website are loaded with pre and postnatal workouts along with a treadmill series, guided meditations and hundred of full body and targeted workouts, most of which are 10-60 minutes. Because Wood focuses on low impact, Pilates-inspired workouts, even the ones not labeled pre and postnatal tend to be, for the most part, pregnancy-safe.
Cost: $9.99/month after a one-week free trial.
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Obé Fitness
Obé has thousands of on-demand and live classes with new ones added daily. Unlike the aforementioned options, this one allows you to choose from dozens of workout styles and instructors. While many of the workouts are pregnancy safe, they also have a dedicated prenatal section taught by a variety of instructors. In addition, subscribers will find short mediations and, after the baby arrives, they have “mommy and me” classes (including workouts you can do using your stroller as a prop!).
Cost: $27/month after a one-week free trial.
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Fit Pregnancy Club
New York City-based Fit Pregnancy Club is a workout studio with classes developed specifically for pregnancy and postpartum. They focus on strength-cardio exercises using 8lb, 5lb, and 2lb weights. They now have online class options as well. Their signature class, which varies from 10 to 45 minutes, will give you a full-body workout. Founder Joanie Johnson also recently launched Strong Mom Society, another fitness endeavor geared specifically to pre and postnatal fitness.
Cost: $15 for a single live class or $19.99/month after a one-week free trial for on-demand.
