Adherence to ACOG guidelines on exercise during pregnancy: effect on pregnancy outcome.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the extent to which exercising women adhered to the ACOG guidelines on exercise during pregnancy and the effect of nonadherence on pregnancy outcome.

DESIGN

Nonexperimental, retrospective survey.

SETTING

Two national physical fitness conferences.

PARTICIPANTS

One hundred seventy-three women who exercised during their pregnancies.

OUTCOME MEASURES: Maternal weight gain, neonatal birth weight, occurrence of cesarean delivery, and gestational age of newborn.

RESULTS

Eighty-three percent of the women knew of the ACOG guidelines. A total of 87 (53%) adhered to the guidelines. Women who exercised with heart rate intensities above 150 beats per minute, for durations longer than 40 minutes through the 3rd trimester, or both had no significant difference in maternal weight gain, fetal birth weight, or gestational age of the newborn (p > .05) than those who exercised more moderately. The long-duration and moderate-intensity groups had significantly fewer cesarean deliveries (p < .05).

CONCLUSION

Women who exercised regularly before conceiving and who had uncomplicated pregnancies did not adversely affect their own or their offsprings' health by exercising in excess of the ACOG guidelines.