Most medical consultants recommend a weight gain of 10 to 20 kilograms in pregnancy. Some women will put on more, others less, and still have a healthy-sized baby and not have gained excessive weight themselves. We are all different. The key is a balance between your energy needs, your baby’s and the amount of kilojoules you consume.

The weight you gain during pregnancy will be made up of extra circu¬lating blood, larger breasts, extra muscle and fat and, of course, your baby, uterus, placenta and amniotic fluid. It is the distribution of the extra fat on hips and thighs that causes some women to be very concerned about their weight gain, particularly if they do not understand that this weight distri¬bution is normal and is caused by the hormones of pregnancy.

Excessive weight gain in pregnancy is not recommended because this puts extra strain on your body and can lead to physical discomfort for you and a less than optimal environment for your baby. Controlling excessive weight gain by diet and exercise is therefore a healthy alternative. Research has shown that the best exercise for anyone, pregnant or not, wishing to control their weight is mild to moderate aerobic exercise, maintained over an extended time. This is also an ideal type of exercise during pregnancy. Walking and swim¬ming are probably the most common forms of aerobic exercise used by pregnant women.

Make sure controlling excessive weight gain remains your aim with your program and don’t become obsessive. Exercising in order not to gain weight at all tips the balance to unhealthy exercise. If you are concerned about your weight gain during pregnancy or whether your diet is adequate nutritionally for the demands of both pregnancy and exercise, you may wish to consult a dietician.

Labour is a very physical event, an event that requires you to have both endurance and strength. If you enter this event physically prepared, your ability to handle it will be enhanced. Just as no sensible athlete would ever consider entering an endurance event without suitable training, adequate rest and appropriate diet, neither should you. Suitable training for child¬birth aims to make you strong and flexible, both in body and mind, and to give you specific skills and movements such as pelvic rocking for use during labour.

Physical strength and flexibility can be gained from the exercises, and mental preparation from the relaxation time you spend at the end of each session as you become in tune with your body and your baby. It can be used on its own or as a complement to other general fitness activities.