Physical and psychological changes with vigorous exercise in sedentary primigravidae

Purpose: The present study examined the effects of exercise on physical and psychological variables in sedentary primigravidae (PRA). Methods: A total of nine women randomly assigned to an exercise (E) (mean age = 31.3 +/- 3. 1 yr) and six subjects randomly assigned to a control (C) group (mean age = 27.8 +/- 3.1 yr) fulfilled all requirements for the study. Exercise includ ed a variety of exercise activities performed to a target heart rate of 150 -156 beats.min(-1) three times per week for 15 wit. Results: Results,showed no significant differences beta een E and C groups in physical characteris tics initially. A repeated measures ANOVA showed a significant group effect (P < 0.05) and a significant group by time interaction (P = 0.001) with th e E group showing a significantly longer amount of time on the PWC150 test than the C group. There was no significant:roup. rims, or group by time int eraction for lactate accumulation. This occurred, despite the fact that the E group spent 56% longer on the PWC150 test and the C group spent 30% less time on the same test at the conclusion of the study. Finally, the E group in comparison to the C group showed more favorable improvements in several items related to health and well-being on the Body Cathexis Scale. There w ere no significant differences between E and C groups in any pregnancy outc ome measures. All babies were delivered healthy at term. Conclusions: These data suggest that a vigorous exercise program can lead to significant impr ovements in aerobic fitness at similar lactate concentrations compared to a control group and can be well tolerated by low risk sedentary PRA without any deleterious effects occurring to herself or unborn child.