Don’t Rock The Boat: Restricting Exercise During Embryo Transfer
Women who are undergoing frozen embryo transfer need to protect their reproductive organs during this time. This means avoiding a strenuous workout. High-impact or high-intensity exercise puts the whole body under physical stress. Such stress and over-exertion can impact your embryo transfer in a negative way and prevent successful implantation.
Exercises like cycling, running, and intense aerobics are definitely out. They are much too hard on your body when you are going through an IVF cycle, particularly during embryo transfer. Other exercise programs which are unsuitable include spinning, and extreme fitness regimes such as interval training.
Testing the water: Gentle exercises during embryo transfer
This doesn’t mean that women have to become completely sedentary during embryo transfer. Gentle exercise can help maintain fitness and reduce stress. IVF can be a stressful process, so it’s important for women to use all their resources to stay stress-free at this time. However, any exercise should be gentle and low-impact.
Low-impact exercise during embryo transfer
For women who are craving some exercise during their IVF cycle, here are some gentle, low-impact exercises that will not affect embryo transfer.
Yoga
Yoga’s gentle stretching exercises are perfect for the IVF cycle. As well as keeping you in shape, yoga can also keep stress to a minimum. Intense yoga sessions such as Bikram (hot yoga) or power yoga should be avoided.
Elliptical training
An elliptical trainer simulates walking or stair climbing. This is a low-impact exercise that can be performed during embryo transfer. The machine is specifically designed for exercise that doesn’t to put pressure on the joints.
Tai chi
The gentle stretching exercise of tai chi is perfect for women undergoing embryo transfer. It reduces anxiety, helps maintain flexibility, and is good for balance and core strength. Women can also continue tai chi comfortably through their pregnancy.
Although low-impact is good during embryo transfer, women should not force themselves to exercise. The IVF cycle is a good time, to relax and enjoy the possibilities of starting a family.
