Great habits to start when you are pregnant
There are even some daily habits you could start during pregnancy to keep you and your baby safe and nourished.
It can be quite a predicament!
No pregnancy would be complete without a bit of junk food and a few Netflix marathons, of course, but overall it’s really important to maintain your healthy habits. That’s because a mother’s nutritional status at conception, during pregnancy, and throughout breastfeeding plays a key role in her health and well-being, as well as that of her child.
So before you reach for that second helping of French fries or ditch your gym membership, consider adopting these five habits for a healthy pregnancy.
5 Habits of Healthy Pregnant Women
1. They eat real, whole foods.
A surefire way to stay healthy while pregnant? Eat real food!
Of course, this isn’t always as easy as it sounds, since processed stuff is all around us. And when you’re tired or nauseated or extra hormonal—all caused by that little bun in your oven—it’s even tougher to choose real food.
But if a packaged food is filled with ingredients you can’t even pronounce, do you really want to eat it while you’re pregnant?
Instead, try your best to focus on colorful fruits and veggies, whole grains, low-fat dairy products, lean protein, healthy fats, and lots and lots of water. And don’t forget that prenatal vitamin!
2. They keep exercising—but listen to their bodies while doing it.
I was blessed with two routine, healthy pregnancies, and one of the smartest things I did was maintain a regular exercise routine throughout the entire nine months.
I consulted my doctor, of course, who told me to listen to my body about what felt good and what didn’t. As the weeks progressed, I found that jumping jacks and other high impact moves didn’t feel right anymore, so I cut them out. By the end, I was focusing solely on walking and low impact aerobics.
The point is that you don’t have to stop exercising just because you’re pregnant, as long as you listen to your body and don’t push yourself too hard. Ultimately you’ll feel better and be healthier if you keep moving.
11Oral Hygiene
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If you aren’t already a regular flosser, pregnancy is a great time to work on making sure your teeth stay their healthiest. Taking care of your teeth and gums is a great long-term investment in your health, so if you aren’t already make sure to brush and floss at least twice a day, this is a great habit to pick up. During pregnancy, your gums become more sensitive to plaque build-up, which can lead to swollen and bleeding gums. Pregnancy gingivitis is it’s own category of gum disease, and can even lead to bad breath, which is the last thing you need to be worrying about.
Once the baby arrives, it can be all too easy at the end of the day, when you’re tired of breastfeeding and diaper changing and infant entertaining, to crash into bed and neglect your pearly whites once again. Getting into the habit now of brushing and flossing at least twice a day will help you continue your dental care when your energy is at its lowest. Add in regular visits to your dentist too, and your smile will thank you.
10Napping
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Napping is something of an art, and artists aren’t just born, they are also made. There are some people that seem to be natural born nappers, while others need some practice. You’ll find babies are the same. But before baby arrives, pregnancy is as excellent time to get as much sleep as you can, and try and find your ideal nap duration. Short power naps that clock in at around the 20 minute mark are great for an afternoon pick me up – you often get up from them recharged and ready to tackle the latter part of your day.
Longer naps between 30 and 90 minutes are better for enhancing your memory and boosting your creativity. Pregnancy can also come with fatigue, and if you’re already tired in the afternoon from waking up earlier than usual, an afternoon nap may be less of a luxury and more of a necessity. When the baby comes, being able to nap well and knowing how long a sleep will help you feel energized will be extra helpful as you survive the early days of sleep deprivation. No matter which way you cut it, spending time on naps is never a bad idea.
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8Kegels
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If there is just one thing that you start as a new habit, it has the be kegels. Kegels are small exercises that are used to strengthen pelvic floor muscles, and they are a great exercise for women of all ages. In order to perform keels properly, try to stop urinating midstream when going to the bathroom. Once you get the flow to stop, you’ve engaged all the muscles you need to perform a kegel. These muscles support your digestive and reproductive organs, and working these muscles help prevent incontinence, which is basically leaking urine or fecal matter when you really don’t want to.
Doing kegels regularly during pregnancy can help prevent this occurrence, and also supports your pelvic floor muscle as they bear additional weight holding your uterus in place at it’s biggest in the last trimester. To do kegels, try contracting and holding the muscles for up to five seconds, and then releasing for five seconds. Build up to holding the contraction for up to ten seconds, then releasing it for the same amount of time. Try to do this ten times in a row, three times a day, and your bladder and dry underwear will thank you later.