Pilates Moves to Avoid During Pregnancy (And What to Do Instead)

Not every Pilates move needs to disappear from your routine during pregnancy — but a handful genuinely should, and exactly which ones depends on your trimester. Here's a straightforward, trimester-by-trimester breakdown of what to leave out and what to do instead.

First trimester: light cautions

Nothing changes dramatically, but ease off anything that saps your energy, and increase your focus on pelvic floor activation and release, and diaphragmatic breathing.

Second trimester (weeks 14–26): four categories to focus on

• Pressure managment. As your rectus abdominis muscles are already lengthening to accommodate your growing bump you may start to notice a slight 'doming' through the midline of your abdominals. This is called diastasis recti and an essential adaptation to make room for your growing baby. Learning about 360 breathing, deep core and pelvic floor activation will help manage intra-abdominal pressure and support the pelvic floor and abdominals as they change with your growing bump.

• Glute strength. Focusing on strengthening your glutes will stand you in good stead for supporting the growing baby, during labour, and in the post partum period (and beyond!). Standing, side lying or seated glute and outer-hip work remains accessible throughout pregnancy, so good news all round!

• Prone (front-lying) positions. These simply become uncomfortable as the bump grows, and there are better alternatives for the same muscle groups from seated, kneeling or standing positions.

• Supine (flat-on-your-back) positions held for any length of time. Lying flat can compress a major blood vessel and cause dizziness or nausea. I have had clients who feel comfortable lying supine right up until birth, but best practice indicates that side-lying or inclined variations of the same exercise are the fix — a good instructor will always offer and alternative.

Third trimester (weeks 27–40): the same approach, but take it easier

This is the trimester where working with a prenatal-specific instructor really helps, since so much of the practice is instinctive substitution rather than a fixed list. Focusing more on staying mobile, managing any aches and pains that crop up, releasing the pelvic floor in preparation for birth, and positive affirmations of how strong and capable your body is.

General red flags at any stage of pregnancy

• Holding your breath during effort (breath-holding raises intra-abdominal pressure and blood pressure — exhale on exertion instead)

• Contact movements, or anything with a real fall risk

• Anything that you instintively don't feel comfortable doing

What to do instead

The theme across all of the above is substitution, not subtraction: kneeling instead of prone, seated or inclined instead of flat-on-your-back, pelvic-floor activation, standing or side-lying variations of glute and hip work. A well-run prenatal class builds all of this in automatically, so you're not left guessing session to session.

When to stop completely

Beyond the specific moves above, stop any exercise and contact your doctor or midwife if you notice vaginal bleeding or fluid leakage, dizziness or fainting, chest pain, calf pain or swelling, regular painful contractions, or a noticeable reduction in your baby's movements.

For where you are right now, see Is Pilates Safe in the First Trimester? or the full guide, Is Pilates Safe During Pregnancy? A Trimester-by-Trimester Guide. Once you're past week 14, a structured, trimester-matched programme takes care of these modifications for you — see the Pregnancy Pilates Programme.

This article is for general information and isn't a substitute for personalised medical advice. Always check with your doctor or midwife before starting or continuing exercise in pregnancy, especially if you have any pregnancy complications.