Activity and rest in pregnancy - PDF checklist
This checklist helps you prepare everyday activity and rest in pregnancy and a conversation with your midwife or doctor. It is not an exercise programme, clearance for exercise or treatment for insomnia. Health conditions, complications and worrying symptoms need individual assessment; ticks do not replace it.
A guideline target is not a personal plan
NHS gives 150 minutes of moderate activity a week as a reference point. This is not an obligation to fulfil despite symptoms or confirmation that an activity suits every pregnancy. If you have health conditions or complications, agree necessary changes with your care team. If you did not exercise before, start gently and increase movement gradually. Shorter periods count too; do not make up minutes at the expense of how you feel.
Being able to talk helps you judge the pace
During moderate activity, you should be able to talk. If you cannot, slow down or stop. This is a guide to intensity, not a pregnancy safety test. Water, breathable clothing and avoiding heat help provide suitable conditions. Do not continue through pain, dizziness, overheating or feeling unwell. Discuss exercise adaptations and more demanding activity with a suitably qualified person and your pregnancy care team.
Rest needs a place in everyday life
Tiredness is common in pregnancy. Share tasks and leave time for rest and sleep. From 28 completed weeks, go to sleep on your side, either left or right. If you wake on your back, turn onto your side and go back to sleep. Discuss excessive exhaustion, troublesome lack of sleep or low mood with your care team. This checklist does not set sleep hours or choose treatment for insomnia.
Do not assess symptoms by exercising again
Stop activity and contact maternity care immediately for bleeding, fluid leaking from the vagina, regular contractions, a change in your baby's usual movements, severe abdominal pain or a severe headache, calf pain or swelling, breathlessness before or during exercise, or dizziness. These are examples, not a complete list. Sudden or severe breathlessness, breathlessness with chest pain, palpitations, dizziness or bleeding, and severe chest pain require immediate emergency help.
Preparation checklist
Discuss your needs and previous activity
- Note your previous activity, how you feel and questions for your midwife or doctor.
- Discuss health conditions, complications and symptoms before starting a new or more demanding activity.
- Choose accessible, comfortable movement, such as walking, in line with individual recommendations.
- If you attend classes, tell the instructor you are pregnant and ask about adaptations.
Prepare suitable conditions and breaks
- Have water, comfortable clothing and conditions that avoid overheating; consider the weather and a place to rest.
- Avoid activities with a risk of falling or a blow to your abdomen; do not scuba dive.
- Start gently and build up gradually; do not exercise through pain, dizziness or feeling unwell.
- Discuss changes to exercise positions; in later pregnancy, avoid lying flat on your back for prolonged periods.
Make room for sleep and support
- Plan breaks and help with tasks that exhaust you; resting is not a failure.
- From 28 completed weeks of pregnancy, settle to sleep on your left or right side.
- Tell your care team about excessive tiredness, pain that disrupts your day or troublesome lack of sleep.
- Note care and urgent-help contacts; discuss symptoms that mean you should stop activity.
Questions to discuss with a professional
- Which movement and adaptations suit my health and pregnancy?
- How can I make rest easier, and when do tiredness or lack of sleep need assessment?
- Which symptoms mean I should stop exercise, and where can I get help outside appointment hours?
Frequently asked questions
Must I complete 150 minutes every week?
Do not treat the guideline target as a task to pass. Ability, previous activity, symptoms and pregnancy circumstances vary. Individual recommendations take priority; do not make up exercise despite symptoms.
What if I wake up on my back?
Waking in that position alone is not a reason to worry. Turn onto your side and go back to sleep. You can settle on either your left or right side.
Does a ticked checklist clear me to exercise again after a worrying symptom?
No. The checklist is not clearance for exercise or a test result. Stop activity and get appropriate help; do not wait for a routine appointment if you have warning symptoms.
My arrangements: movement and rest
Print and complete by hand during a conversation with your care team. Include only necessary details. The card is not clearance for exercise or a treatment plan.
- Date and week of pregnancy; professional providing care
- Previous activity and main questions
- Agreed activities and adaptations needed
- My signs of tiredness and how I take breaks
- Rest, sleep and positions agreed with my care team
- Help with tasks and a support person
- Contacts for symptoms and outside appointment hours
- Next contact and reasons to review arrangements
Keep the card private and update arrangements. Do not publish a photo of it. Notes do not replace medical records or individual recommendations.
How to use this checklist
Tick the points you have discussed or prepared and add your own arrangements. Ticking a box does not confirm safety, health status or completion of a medical procedure. Revisit the checklist as your family's needs change.
Sources and updates
- NHS - Exercise in pregnancy
- Health Service Executive - Safe exercise during pregnancy
- Health Service Executive - Activities to avoid in pregnancy and recommended exercises
- NHS - Tiredness and sleep problems in pregnancy
- World Health Organization - Physical activity
- Health Service Executive - Shortness of breath during pregnancy