Fitness Expert Announces "Mother" Of All Workout Tips For Pregnant Women

LONG BEACH, CA, August 17, 2012 (Press-News.org) Fitness expert Jennifer Cohen, regular contributor for "Today" and author of the bestselling book, "No Gym Required," has announced her new trimester-specific fitness plan for pregnant women. Cohen, who gained national acclaim for creating workout routines for those who aren't inclined to visit their local gyms, has developed a workout for moms-to-be after learning that she herself was pregnant.

"Your workouts have got to adapt as you go through your pregnancy with specific areas of emphasis during each trimester," said Cohen, who said that those who don't currently workout should ask their OB/GYNs before embarking on a fitness routine.
Among her tips:

First Trimester - Engage in gentle exercise so that you don't jeopardize your pregnancy and focus on developing pelvic strength:

· Pelvic Tilts: Stand straight with your back to the wall and relax your spine. Breathing in deeply, press the small of your back against the wall. Exhale and repeat.
· Kegals: Contract the muscles at the base of the pelvis, then relax (imagine that you are trying to stop the flow of urine).

Second Trimester - Your belly has begun to grow and your center of gravity will be a problem. You will need to work on balance and it's important to stay away from crunches or lying on your back.

· Perform abdominal exercises on a ball. Also try planks and standing side crunches.
· Tone your back muscles. As your belly grows you don't want your shoulders to hunch over. Always have a wide stance because your balance and center of gravity may be off. You can do lat pulls, shoulder extensions and reverse flys all while standing.
· Wall squats build leg strength plus you get support of wall and it strengthens your pelvis.
· Squats and Lunges: Always use a chair to help you with balance and keep your feet as wide apart as possible.
· Being on the ground on all fours is a great move for your uterus, it is very soothing. You can do leg lifts, arm extensions and other toning exercises in this position.

Third Trimester - The focus is on moves that will help your posture and back.

· Back rows with resistance band: Sit on the ground and wrap a band around your feet. Pull band and squeeze shoulder blades together.
· Shoulder press with resistance band: Stand on the band with both feet then press your arms up over your head with the ends of the band gripped firmly in both hands.
· Incline push-ups: Works not only your back but strengthens your core and chest.
· Plie squats with a chair: Stand with a wide stance, using a chair for balance with feet pointed outwards. Squat down while keeping knees behind toes.

In addition to the specific exercises described above, Cohen reminds pregnant women to drink one cup of water for every 15 minutes of exercising, always workout in a cool area, wear supportive shoes (during pregnancy your feet will get flatter) and avoid all contact sports. For more information visitwww.jennifercohen.com find Cohen on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/therealjennifercohen.