Ep. 5: Finding your way to move

Ep. 5: Finding your way to move

In the previous episode, we explored why movement helps when you have gestational diabetes. In this episode, we move from the science into the practical side of things: what movement can actually look like during pregnancy, and how to find options that feel supportive instead of overwhelming.

Celia is joined again by women’s health exercise physiologist Kristen McCluskey from Meri Exercise Physiology. Together they explore why walking is so commonly recommended, but also why it’s far from the only option. They discuss alternative ways to move during pregnancy, the role of resistance training, and how everyday activity like housework or chasing toddlers fits into the bigger picture.

They also talk about some of the real barriers women face when trying to exercise later in pregnancy - including fatigue, pain, and discomfort - and share practical ways to work around them. This episode is about finding movement that works for your body, your energy levels, and your stage of pregnancy.

What you'll hear in this episode

  • Why walking is often recommended for gestational diabetes
  • Why the recommendation is really about movement, not just walking
  • Alternatives like resistance training, swimming, exercise bikes, and dancing
  • The difference between incidental activity and structured exercise
  • Whether housework and chasing toddlers count as exercise
  • Why compound movements can be more helpful for blood glucose management
  • Simple ways to work around fatigue during pregnancy
  • When pain or discomfort during exercise might mean getting extra support
  • How women’s health exercise physiologists can personalise movement plans during pregnancy

Resources & links mentioned:

About the guest

Kristen McCluskey is an accredited women’s health exercise physiologist and founder of Meri Exercise Physiology. She supports women through pregnancy, postpartum, and conditions such as gestational diabetes and offers in-person or remote support.

Transcript

This transcript was auto-generated and lightly edited for clarity.

Celia (00:28)
In our last episode, we unpacked what's actually happening inside your body when you move. And now we're shifting from the science into practicality. What does movement actually look like when you are pregnant with gestational diabetes? And how do we make this feel supportive instead of like another task on the list of things you now need to do? Kristen from Meri Exercise Physiology is back to walk us through it. Welcome back, Kristen.

Kristen (00:51)
Hello, thanks so much for having me back.

Celia (00:54)
So walking seems to be the most common suggestion that is made for women with GDM. Can you explain why that's the go-to recommendation?

Kristen (01:04)
Well, walking is generally very safe and accessible for most women. So that kind of drives this recommendation. However, I would love to advocate for the recommendation to be movement after a meal, as for some walking isn't super straightforward.

You may be experiencing pain or fatigue, or the weather might not be ideal. You might not feel safe walking around your neighbourhood, or it might be super hilly with no footpaths.

Celia (01:32)
Makes sense. Yeah.

Kristen (01:34)
There's also really consistent research that after 35 weeks your baby's pretty big by this stage. So walking is probably not as comfortable as it once was.

Your centre of gravity kind of moves more in front of your body, so it's a bit harder and not as comfortable to walk anymore as well. It is generally the safe, accessible option.

But if you can find a way to move that suits you at this particular time, then that's great. That doesn't have to be walking.

Celia (02:05)
What are some other options then aside from walking that are pregnancy safe?

Kristen (02:10)
So it's hard to blanket certain types of exercises as being safe or unsafe during pregnancy. It really depends on the person. But if you're doing a particular movement or exercise and it feels good for you, then that's probably the safest thing you can be doing. And if you're doing something and it causes pain or discomfort, that's probably not ideal for you at this time.

If you are experiencing any discomfort or pain during any movements, you can seek support. There are a lot of things that we can do to help you to get through that pain during movement and prepare your body a bit more for pregnancy generally and birth.

In terms of alternatives for walking, we're able to do resistance training, which is great. You can do it sitting or laying down at home. You don't have to leave your house. Exercise bikes are great. I know you and I have mentioned to each other that we both got a hold of an exercise bike during our gestational diabetes time.

Celia (03:06)
Yes. I'm glad there were no videos taken at that point because yeah, I was like eight months pregnant on an exercise bike. Yes. Watching maths.

Kristen (03:14)
Parked it in front of the TV and just like two birds, one stone. I was like, that's good.

Swimming is a good one too. I'm fortunate enough to be in Queensland and had my pregnancy during warmer months. I often got in the pool afterwards if I wasn't up for a walk.

Celia (03:34)
Also meant to be great for just giving your body some relief from gravity, right?

Kristen (03:38)
Oh gosh, yeah.

Because of that change of centre of gravity, where your centre of gravity is sort of a little bit in front of your body, more like where your belly is, I found that I would just get into the water and do really long steps. Like these huge steps.

When you're super pregnant you have to do these tiny little steps, and I felt like my hips would just love getting in the water and doing the giant lunge laps around the pool.

And then dancing - dancing is a good one. It gets your heart rate up too if you want to really just bust it out. My toddler and I often have dance parties in the afternoon. They definitely get my heart rate up and going. Great way to keep the kid entertained at the same time too.

Celia (04:09)
That does sound nice.

Bonus. So with resistance training, can you explain a bit? I'm imagining doing some weights, but is there more to it than just that?

Kristen (04:37)
It's basically anything that gets your muscles contracting. That can be with your body weight, which would be like standing up and sitting down from your chair, or an air squat, or doing some push-ups against your kitchen bench.

Or you can do resistance bands. There's a lot you can do with bands and the booty bands as well.

And then weights too.

During this time, a lot of people are intimidated by the idea of doing resistance training because they think they're just going to put a barbell on their back. But there's a wide variety.

As women’s health EPs we're going to meet you where you're at. We're not going to push you super hard during this time, but just enough to get the good adaptations — like opening those little doors to help with the blood glucose that we discussed in the last episode.

A really cool resource from the World Health Organization - they recently updated recommendations for women experiencing diabetes during pregnancy, which includes gestational diabetes. They recommend doing regular resistance training to reap those benefits of the muscles helping with the mechanism of getting the glucose out of the blood and into the cell.

Celia (06:07)
Yeah, okay. You've got on your Instagram as well these 10-minute mini resistance training sessions I've seen. It's specifically for gestational diabetes, is that right?

Kristen (06:17)
Yes.

It's hard to think of a workout just then and there on the spot if you suddenly have 10 minutes. So I developed a series on my Instagram called the 10-minute mini series where I do really straightforward resistance training workouts that last 10 minutes and you can do them at home.

Just trying to make them super accessible for women with gestational diabetes.

Celia (06:39)
Yeah, super helpful. I definitely saved them. I am yet to do one, but I feel like since talking to you I've got to get my butt into gear.

Kristen (06:47)
So good.

I do find that you get all these recommendations — you should be exercising — but it's like, okay, what does that look like? What is a safe, effective workout that I can be doing at home when I don't have a gym membership?

So just trying to address that barrier and help women.

Celia (07:09)
Yeah, definitely. I'll pop a link to it in the show notes so people can get to it easily if they're listening and want to give it a go.

So what about if I already have a fairly physical job, or I'm running around after a toddler all day? Does that kind of incidental exercise count towards anything?

Like if I do a mad housework effort but really get my heart rate up — is that equal to doing half an hour of exercise, or should we be looking at this separately?

Kristen (07:40)
This is a great question.

We call this incidental physical activity throughout the day. These help contribute to your overall active time.

But for the best results, we recommend doing this in addition to allocating time for structured exercise. Structured exercise helps from that intensity point of view, so you're maintaining a particular intensity for a certain amount of time and getting those benefits.

Celia (08:29)
Hmm.

Now I've seen calf raises mentioned a lot as a bit of a secret weapon when it comes to soaking up glucose. As someone who's worked in an office for most of her life, that sounds great because you can kind of do it under your desk.

Is there any truth to that?

Kristen (08:54)
I do often recommend and prescribe these to my clients, particularly if they spend a lot of time at a desk or have long flights or long drives coming up.

You're basically just sitting there doing little calf raises under your desk.

They're great because you're working the muscle and when the calf contracts it helps squeeze the vessels and push your blood back up to your heart, which can help with excess fluid and puffiness around your ankles.

But in terms of helping your muscles suck up extra blood glucose, we do prefer movements that use more muscles.

So standing up and sitting down from your chair, or doing air squats, would be more beneficial for blood glucose management. Those are compound exercises where you get more bang for your buck.

Celia (10:22)
That makes sense. If you were to do either calf raises or something like that, is there a timeframe before they actually make a difference?

Kristen (10:34)
It will work pretty quickly, which is good. But it's also about consistency.

Sometimes when people are strapped for time they'll do squats while the kettle is boiling or the microwave is on. We call these little exercise snacks.

Even if it's not part of an official workout, doing those little movements consistently throughout the day can still be really beneficial.

Celia (11:13)
Okay. Any other tips or workarounds to common barriers to exercise while pregnant?

Kristen (11:21)
Fatigue is a big one, especially since gestational diabetes tends to be diagnosed later in pregnancy. If you're experiencing a lot of fatigue, try keeping tabs on how you're feeling throughout the day. You might notice a pattern where you feel better in the morning or afternoon. Try fitting movement into that window when you feel the least sluggish.

It seems counterintuitive, but exercise can actually start to make you feel better once you get going. You also get those mental health benefits and dopamine hit afterwards. Another tip is building your support network. Maybe a friend, partner or loved one can walk with you, or you call someone while you're walking. Classes can help too. If walking is uncomfortable, you can switch to resistance exercise sitting or lying down, an exercise bike, or swimming.

Another barrier is pain and discomfort. Women's health exercise physiologists and pelvic physiotherapists are great in this space. We can personalise exercise plans to help ease discomfort and help you move more confidently.

There's a lot happening with posture changes during pregnancy - your ribs expand, your pelvis tilts, and your centre of gravity shifts - which can lead to discomfort. But we can help train certain parts of the body to deal with those changes and prepare for birth and postpartum too.

Celia (14:21)
Yeah. Our conversation before doing this podcast reminded me how sore your arms get holding a newborn. I'm already thinking I need to start doing something to build up my arms again.

Kristen (14:29)
Yes! You go from not constantly carrying things to suddenly carrying this little four-kilo baby all the time. The stronger you are, the easier it is to deal with those extra loads once you become a new mum.

Celia (15:12)
Yeah, definitely. So if someone could use some more personalised support, what's the best way to connect with you?

Kristen (15:19)
I love working with women with gestational diabetes because I had it myself and I found it hard to find support, especially around exercise. I do mobile in-person consults on the Gold Coast in Queensland, and also online or telehealth consults for women elsewhere.

My website is meriexercisephysiology.com.au and on socials I'm @meri.exercisephysiology.

Celia (17:01)
I'll include links in the show notes for that, and for those really handy 10-minute workouts too. Well, awesome. Thank you so much, Kristen.

Kristen (17:23)
Thank you so much for having me. It's been wonderful chatting with you.

Celia (17:33)
Cool, alright, thank you.

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