"A pregnant woman's attitude toward exercise influences her intention to exercise," says Dr. Danielle Symons Downs, assistant professor of kinesiology at Penn State. "Her intention to exercise is the strongest determinant of her actual exercise behavior," she told attendees at the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance meeting today (April 4) in Philadelphia.
Downs and Dr. Heather A. Hausenblas, assistant professor of exercise and sports science, University of Florida, are conducting a longitudinal study of pregnant women. They are looking at how attitudes, intentions and behavior change throughout pregnancy.
"Pregnancy is an important time in a woman's life, that may place her at greater risk for decreased physical activity," says Downs, who runs Penn State's Exercise Psychology Laboratory. "In fact, nearly 60 percent of women are sedentary during their pregnancy."
However, most medical professionals believe that exercise during pregnancy improves health and general well being. In order to convince pregnant women to exercise, the researchers need to know pregnant women's attitudes and beliefs on exercise.
"We do not know if some women are afraid exercise will harm the baby, that it will cause miscarriages or if cultural prohibitions against exercising while pregnant exist," says Downs.
Pregnant women are a major unresearched population. While gestational physiology is well studied, the psychology of pregnancy, why pregnant women do or do not do something, is an unexplored area. Partly, this is because the studies are difficult to do, requiring access to physicians' offices and cooperation of the patients.
The researchers worked with Women's Center of North Florida Regional Hospital in Gainesville, Fla., a clinic that sees 20 to 30 pregnant women a week. Of a potential population of 300 women, 130 chose to participate in the study. By the second/third trimesters, the study group was down to 89.
The women received mail questionnaires during their second trimester and again in their third trimester to gauge how their attitude and intention influenced behavior. The researchers found that "women's attitude about exercise – that it improves overall health and mood – most strongly determined their exercise intention, followed by the control over the factors obstructing their exercise – vomiting, nausea, fatigue."
In the second and third trimesters, women who had positive attitudes toward exercise believed that it improved physical condition, decreased discomfort, improved self-esteem and provided more energy. Preliminary information from the postpartum portion of the study suggests that beliefs change to focus on weight lose and feeling better about themselves. The postpartum study will follow women from one or two weeks to a year after they give birth.
Many barriers to exercise during pregnancy are physical limitations, while postpartum barriers include a combination of exhaustion and lack of time.
**aem**