Get Your Fitness Fix

When it comes to pregnancy fitness, sticking with what you love—and learning to be flexible—can do wonders for both body and spirit. The benefits of exercise for moms-to-be (fewer pregnancy related symptoms, such as swollen feet and back pain; less weight gain; lower risk of gestational diabetes; easier post-birth recovery), and an increasing number of studies showing strong evidence that maternal activity results in healthier babies (possibly fewer heart defects; less excess fat), are hard to ignore. And whether you love yoga or running, boot camps or barre classes, movement is key.

FitBump’s Wellness Central at the New York Baby Show (May 16 to 17; Pier 92) will showcase a variety of fitness experts demonstrating a range of workouts. Learn modifications, ask questions and practice with our trainers. Here is what to expect.

Boot Camp

Certified personal trainer Melissa Paris, who teaches a mom-and-baby workout called B.Y.O.B. (Bring Your Own Baby or Bump; read our full review of the workout here) along with fellow certified personal trainer Anja Pierre, had her son last fall and takes a no-excuses approach to fitness. “Birth and motherhood are two of the most mentally and physically challenging things in life so why would you wimp out on your workouts?” she told us in an interview. “When people ask me what I’m training for I say, ‘Life.’”

B.Y.O.B. (suitable for pregnant women, too) combines strength training and cardio work in a group-fitness setting. Participants wear their babies, which act as “human weight vests” (as Paris and Pierre put it), increasing the intensity of the workout and providing an opportunity to bond. Along with a taste B.Y.O.B., Wellness Central will preview FitBump’s forthcoming prenatal workout called T3: targeted trimester training that features exercises designed specifically for pregnancy. Perfect for all fitness levels—throughout all three trimesters—it combines strengthening and stretching with cardio and interval training to help get moms-to-be in labor-ready shape and to help shorten post-baby recovery time.

Cardio Dance and Sculpting

Body Conceptions—a high-energy sculpting powerhouse that has won raves from the likes of Vogue, which named it one of the two Best Body-Sculpting Workouts in New York City, and Bazaar—offers a rotating roster of exercises (set to great music) that strengthens and tones every zone of the body. And founder Mahri Relin, a certified personal trainer and pre- and postnatal exercise specialist, is a motivator extraordinaire, making the most of every second she has with you.

Yoga

Yoga is arguably one of the most popular pregnancy workouts, focusing on flexibility, strength, circulation and balance. Wellness Central highlights two noteworthy instructors. Lana Masor, a certified prenatal and baby-and-me yoga teacher and owner of the wellness company Just for Today, helps women adapt more gracefully to bodily changes, paying special attention to breath awareness. Alie Flynt, of Yoga with Alie, specializes in yoga for athletes, therapeutic and restorative yoga and chair yoga. She will demonstrate how to modify poses and breathing techniques to reduce stress during pregnancy.

Recovery

Foam rollers have become one of the hottest recovery tools, but knowing how to use one to its fullest potential can be tricky. Kira Kohrherr and Ingrid Skjong, certified personal trainers and FitBump’s founder and editor in chief, respectively, will teach tips, tricks and techniques for learning to love your foam roller. Your entire body will thank you.

For the complete Wellness Central lineup, click here.