Current research has proven that it is not only safe for pregnant women to exercise, it is absolutely beneficial. Even if you are considered a high-risk pregnancy or are restricted to bed rest, you can and should exercise during this crucial time. This book includes specially designed exercises just for you.
Among the benefits of exercise and proper nutrition during pregnancy: -Shorter, less painful labor -Fewer birth defects -Less excess weight gain -Ease of regaining pre-pregnancy figure -Healthier, calmer, and more intelligent babies
Birgitta Gallo's Expecting Fitness doesn't lead you through some leg lifts. It shows you how to modify your current sports activities-including tennis, golf, aerobics, swimming, even kickboxing-safely throughout your pregnancy. It also includes nutritional guidelines, relaxation and breathing techniques, and an illustrated guide to the changes the pregnant body goes through. It is a unique and comprehensive guide for any woman who wants to give her baby the best possible start in life.
"Birgitta always encouraged me to work to my capacity during my twin pregnancy. This included listening to my body and resting when necessary. Exercise during pregnancy is a metaphor for life. It can be difficult at times, but you learn to just keep going. When my boys were born, the purpose was clear. The exercise had been for their health as well as mine. This book is full of Birgitta's knowledge and help. You won't find one like it anywhere else!" --Jane Seymour, Actress and mother
"...[Birgitta] provides a fresh, new insight into pregnancy fitness, which has been generally lacking from a conventional medical and overly paternalistic approach to pregnancy care." --John F. Kerin, M.D., Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, UCLA School of Medicine, and past director of the Reproductive Medicine Program, Cedar Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles
"This book is an excellent, balanced source of information that should find its way to each pregnant woman who desires to remain active in pregnancy." --Raul Artal, M.D., Fellow, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and American College of Sports Medicine
From the Publisher
Birgitta Gallo's Expecting Fitness doesn't just lead you through some leg lifts. It shows you how to modify your current sports activities - including tennis, golf, aerobics, swiming, even kick boxing - safely through out your pregnancy. It also includes nutirional guidelines, relaxation techiniques, and al illustrated fuide to the chages the pregnant body goes through. It is a unique and comprehensive guide for any woman who wants to gife her baby the best possible start in life.
Birgitta Lauren is a certified expert in pre and postnatal fitness and nutritional services. She has 28 years of experience in the fitness industry from teaching classes, to corporate programming, gym design and health cub management, public speaking, seminars, to personal training, and now works with a high end clientele of expectant mothers, including some celebrities in Beverly Hills. 16 years ago, thanks to a pregnant client Birgitta saw the need for the untapped and underserved prenatal market. Realizing the need for serious insightful information for "new-moms-to-be" on how to safely exercise during pregnancy, based on a thorough understanding of the biomechanical and kinesiological changes in a pregnant woman's body, Birgitta collaborated with top international medical experts and authored the book Expecting Fitness. The book Expecting Fitness has won the coveted iParenting Media Award in 2007. This book has become the definitive guide for not just moms, but many websites (Stork Magazine, Earth Mama, Splendora, Urban Baby, etc...and many health/medical sites), health professionals, medical schools, and universities, including Columbia. Birgitta has worked with many celebrities in the music and entertainment business including Jane Seymour, Suzy Amis Cameron, and Laura Dern (some remain anonymous) as well as several European and Saudi royalty including 2 princesses. And presently working with Katie Wright (pregnant with Hank Azaria). Ms. Lauren writes healthy baby articles for HuffingtonPost on and was the fitness editor for ePregnancy Magazine, and has written and been featured in many maternity, baby, fitness and celebrity magazines (Pregnancy, Fit Pregnancy, ePregnancy, Baby Talk, American Baby, B, Self, Life&Style, Celebrity Living, US etc...) and various newspapers as well as on TV news and entertainment shows (ABC, CBS, E!, & CNN.). She conducts seminars on these subjects for large corporation's wellness programs; like Warner Brother's, Disney, Ingram Micro, Western Digital... Birgitta has also sat on various March of Dimes committees, compiled new pregnancy exercise curriculums, and pamphlets for the March of Dimes, the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition (HMHB), and the American College of OB/Gyn (ACOG). She sits on the Executive Board of Directors for HMHB in DC and organizes her annual Maternity Team for the March of Dimes walk for babies. Born and raised in Stockholm, Sweden and Australia, Birgitta always excelled in athletics. She became a competitive swimmer and studied dance. Her passion for bodybuilding led her to win city, state and the Australian national championship in 1987. Having studied in America for a year, she later moved to Los Angeles. A pregnant client made her realize the importance of prenatal exercise not just for the mothers' sake but even more so for the baby's health. Helping moms have healthier pregnancies and babies became her passion. She took her interest and specialty further and even created new programs to keep women with "high risk" pregnancies in better condition, designing special exercise techniques for women for whom bed rest is prescribed by their doctors. Birgitta insists, "all women can and should exercise during pregnancy, even if you are in a 'high risk category'." She is also the only one in her field to have designed prenatal modifications for almost all sport and fitness activities. In her quest to relieve moms of pregnancy aches and pains, Birgitta invented a new exercise; the LAUREN ROTATION (trademark pending), that eliminates hip and low back pain by rebuilding the vertebrae facets. When Birgitta couldn't find a great prenatal vitamin for her many clients, she collaborated with Jem Welsh, a "maternity savvy" nutritionist and biochemist, to formulate the ultimate in prenatal supplements. The HEALTHY BABY Complete Prenatal vitamins were born, with more products in pipe-line to help moms prevent problems and have healthier babies.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 starsWonderful Guide and Resource, March 14, 2001
By A Customer
This review is from: Expecting Fitness: How To Modify And Enjoy Your Exercise Program Throughout Your Pregnancy (Paperback)
This book has exactly what I was looking for in a pregnancy related exercise guide. I am an active woman, and I had been disappointed by other books that were vague or only gave 'beginning' exercise information. I think this book is appropriate for beginners or athletes - basically for anyone who wants to remain fit during pregnancy.
I appreciate the amount of detail and background information on muscles used during and after pregnancy as well as the role of hormones which helps the reader to unerstand why the exercises are important. The author seems to be operating with the latest medical advice regarding excercising in pregnancy. She also identifies the key exercises needed to assist in a smooth delivery and gives several different options for doing them (at a gym or at home and in several different positions in case your pregnancy is high risk or you are bed ridden).
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This review is from: Expecting Fitness: How To Modify And Enjoy Your Exercise Program Throughout Your Pregnancy (Paperback)
This pregnancy workout book is the best I've seen so far. So many others I had looked at only addressed "normal" pregnancies. As a woman who had previously miscarried, I was concerned about my workout intensity level. This book addresses ALL pregnancies, from "normal, low-risk" to women confined to bed rest.
There is a very thorough discussion of what exactly is happening to your body during pregnancy and how those hormones affect everything from your joints to your heart. Also, there are great photos to help explain the exercises. For after the baby is born, there is a post-natal excersise chapter as well.
All in all, I think this book is wonderful and, for someone who thought they had read everything about pregnancy, I learned a lot!
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5.0 out of 5 starsExpecting Fitness, November 3, 2003
By A Customer
This review is from: Expecting Fitness: How To Modify And Enjoy Your Exercise Program Throughout Your Pregnancy (Paperback)
I want to compliment on this desperatly needed book. The book is excellent. It is medically accurate, motivating and on point. I couldn't put it down. - Michelle Kosik MD
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