Prenatal and Postnatal Activity

Antenatal physical activity is activity performed during pregnancy that improves the physical and psychological well-being of the woman. This includes everyday activities like walking the dog, using active transport, gardening, and playing with children, as well as structured exercise and sporting activities. 

Below, you will find a set of guidelines for antenatal and postnatal physical activity, along with suitable activities via Moving More:

Antenatal PA Guidelines

• Useful infographic: Physical activity for pregnant women (publishing.service.gov.uk)
• Useful wording for web page: Physical activity for pregnant women (text of the infographic)  (www.gov.uk)
• Link to NHS recommendations from the following NHS web page: Exercise in pregnancy (www.nhs.uk)
• Start for Life: Exercising in pregnancy - Start for Life (www.nhs.uk)

Postnatal PA Guidelines

• Useful infographic for PA post child birth: Physical activity for women after childbirth (birth to 12 months) (publishing.service.gov.uk)
• Useful wording for web page: Physical activity for women after childbirth: birth to 12 months (text of the infographic) (www.gov.uk)

Both Antenatal and Postnatal 

• As part of the Herts Sport & Physical Activity Partnership’s collaboration with Hertfordshire County Council, the Moving More platform now includes a dedicated search feature to help users easily identify physical activity opportunities suitable for pre- and post-natal participants. This tag ensures that expecting and new mothers can quickly find sessions tailored to their specific needs. The new search function is now live on the Moving More Activity Finder.

Other useful links:

• Health Visiting web page: Service details | Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust (hct.nhs.uk)
• Midwifery web page: 
  • Your pregnancy: Maternity – West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (westhertshospitals.nhs.uk) 
  • Maternity – East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust (enherts-tr.nhs.uk)
• Hertfordshire Weight Management Service – have a My Healthy Pregnancy service –  (tbchealthcare.co.uk)
• Hertfordshire Love Your Bump Campaign: Love Your Bump (www.hertfordshire.gov.uk)
• Family Centre Service: Family Centre Service (hertsfamilycentres.org)
• Healthier Together – ICB run web pages: Pregnant/New Baby (www.hwehealthiertogether.nhs.uk)
• Hertfordshire Health Walks (www.hertfordshire.gov.uk)
• Love Your Bump: https://www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/services/health-in-herts/news-events-and-campaigns/love-your-bump/love-your-bump.aspx