One of the great doubts of women when we get pregnant is if we can continue practicing sports on a regular basis. Now that the number of women who are fans of running has been growing for a few years, it is not strange to see future mothers running around on the street and showing off their bellies, but is it right to keep running when we are pregnant?

Every woman is a world and everything will depend on our level of physical activity before pregnancy, how the pregnancy is going and, of course, the advice of our doctor. Below we explain the general guidelines you have to follow if you want to continue practicing running during pregnancy.

The first and foremost is to consult with the gynecologist : the medical professional indicated to guide us during pregnancy. It will be the one to evaluate if we are facing a risky pregnancy and we should take certain precautions when playing sports or if we have a normal pregnancy that allows us to continue with our usual physical activity adapting the intensity of it.

Second, we must assess our fitness: have you been a runner before pregnancy? If so, there is no problem in continuing with this sport, as long as you adjust the intensity and effort. If you have never run, pregnancy is not the best time to start doing it: better wait until the quarantine after childbirth to begin.

Can I run in all the trimesters of pregnancy?

In the event that you have already run previously , what can you do in each quarter?

• First trimester: it is the most delicate moment since it is when there is a greater risk of losing the baby. In addition, many pregnant women in this quarter report discomfort, nausea and other disorders of pregnancy. During the first trimester it is better to take things calmly and perform soft physical activity: the best option if you already ran before is the continuous race, leaving aside other training such as series, fartlek or slopes.
• Second trimester: in the second trimester, this discomfort usually disappears and pregnant women have more energy. It is a good time to keep running smoothly and to intersperse the race with other sports. It is important that the sensations are always taken into account during training in order to regulate the intensity and frequency of the same. To train with a pulsometer to control that we do not raise the pulsations too much (they should arrive around 140 ppm and never to be exhausted) is always a good idea.
• Third trimester: During the third trimester pregnant women already have a prominent belly that can make them feel less agile. In any case, as long as they feel comfortable and do not over-fatigue, they can keep running. The moment we notice that we can not continue or that we simply do not want to, we can choose to walk at a good pace.

Once again we remember that our gynecologist is the medical professional we must turn to in case of doubt, and that it is important to follow his instructions. A pregnancy combined with sport and physical activity , whenever possible, is a healthy pregnancy.