Movement during pregnancy literally shapes how the child's brain develops.
En los parques y consultas de toda España, una brecha silenciosa separa lo que la medicina sabe sobre el movimiento durante el embarazo y lo que muchas mujeres gestantes practican en su vida cotidiana. Investigadores de la Universidad de Valencia han documentado que casi una de cada tres embarazadas no alcanza los niveles mínimos de actividad física recomendados por la OMS, exponiendo tanto a la madre como al feto a riesgos evitables. El cuerpo en gestación no es un cuerpo en pausa: es un sistema en plena construcción, y el movimiento —tan antiguo y tan humano— sigue siendo una de sus herramientas más poderosas.
- Un 31% de las embarazadas estudiadas en Valencia no cumple ningún criterio de actividad física, y apenas el 6,6% mantiene niveles vigorosos de ejercicio.
- La inactividad durante el embarazo eleva el riesgo de diabetes gestacional, hipertensión, partos prolongados, cesáreas y depresión posparto, con consecuencias que se extienden años después del nacimiento.
- Para el feto, el sedentarismo materno se asocia a un menor desarrollo neurológico, mayor riesgo de macrosomia y obesidad infantil, convirtiendo la inactividad en un problema intergeneracional.
- Los expertos señalan que 150 minutos semanales de ejercicio moderado —caminar, nadar, pedalear— bastan para transformar significativamente los resultados maternos y fetales.
- El sistema sanitario enfrenta el reto de convertir el consejo sobre ejercicio en una práctica rutinaria, personalizada y accesible desde la atención primaria, antes de que las complicaciones se instalen.
Cualquier domingo en el Retiro de Madrid puede verse a una embarazada trotando con auriculares, el vientre visible bajo la ropa deportiva. Es una imagen cotidiana que representa algo que la medicina está terminando de documentar: la diferencia profunda que el movimiento marca durante la gestación, no solo para la madre, sino para el hijo que lleva dentro.
En 2020, la Organización Mundial de la Salud emitió sus primeras directrices completas sobre actividad física en el embarazo, reconociendo que mantenerse activa reduce el riesgo de diabetes gestacional, preeclampsia y depresión posparto, y favorece el desarrollo neurológico fetal. Sin embargo, un estudio de la Universidad de Valencia y la Red Española de Investigación Biomédica reveló que casi una de cada tres embarazadas no cumple los estándares básicos de actividad. De las 228 mujeres analizadas en un hospital universitario valenciano, el 31,1% eran sedentarias; solo 15 —el 6,6%— mantenían niveles vigorosos de ejercicio.
Las consecuencias son considerables. Las mujeres inactivas enfrentan mayor riesgo de diabetes gestacional, hipertensión, dolor lumbar y pélvico, partos prolongados y cesáreas. La matrona Cristina Franco Antonio subraya que el sedentarismo también frena la recuperación posparto y aumenta el riesgo de obesidad a largo plazo. Para el feto, se asocia a menor desarrollo neurológico y mayor riesgo de obesidad infantil.
Los especialistas recomiendan 150 minutos semanales de ejercicio moderado, repartidos en al menos tres días, comenzando idealmente antes del embarazo. No hace falta que sea intenso: caminar, nadar, pedalear o practicar yoga adaptado ofrecen beneficios significativos. La obstetra Tatiana Figueras Falcón destaca que el ejercicio regular mejora la función cardiovascular, la fuerza muscular y reduce el riesgo de incontinencia urinaria y desgarros en el parto vaginal.
El reto está en la personalización. María de la Calle, jefa de obstetricia del Hospital La Paz de Madrid, recuerda que los objetivos de ganancia de peso varían según el índice de masa corporal previo al embarazo, y que médicos, enfermeras y matronas tienen la responsabilidad de orientar a cada mujer con planes adaptados a su realidad. La brecha entre lo que la ciencia sabe y lo que muchas embarazadas hacen sigue siendo amplia —y cerrarla no requiere soluciones complejas, sino que el consejo sobre el movimiento se vuelva tan rutinario como cualquier otra revisión prenatal.
On any given Sunday in Madrid's Retiro Park, you might see a pregnant woman jogging past with earbuds in, her belly visible beneath her athletic shirt. It's an ordinary sight—and yet it represents something the medical world is only now fully documenting: the profound difference movement makes during pregnancy, not just for the woman carrying the child, but for the fetus itself.
In 2020, the World Health Organization issued its first comprehensive guidance on physical activity for pregnant women, recognizing that staying active during gestation reduces the risk of gestational diabetes, excessive weight gain, preeclampsia, and postpartum depression. For the developing child, maternal exercise supports neurological development and lowers the risk of complications at birth, including excessive birth weight and fetal death. Yet despite these clear benefits, a new study from researchers at the University of Valencia and the Spanish Biomedical Research Network found that nearly one in three pregnant women are not meeting basic activity standards.
The research, led by María M. Morales Suárez-Varela, examined 228 pregnant women at a university hospital in Valencia as part of a larger project tracking lifestyle and health during pregnancy. The findings were sobering: 31.1 percent of the women—71 in total—were sedentary, failing to meet any meaningful physical activity criteria. Of the remaining 157 women, most engaged only in light exercise. Just 15 women, or 6.6 percent, maintained vigorous activity levels. The pattern suggests that many pregnant women either do not know about exercise recommendations or face barriers to meeting them.
The consequences of inactivity during pregnancy are substantial. Sedentary women face elevated risks of gestational diabetes, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, lower back and pelvic pain, prolonged labor, and cesarean delivery. The effects extend beyond pregnancy itself. Cristina Franco Antonio, a midwife and secretary of Spain's Federation of Midwifery Associations, notes that physical inactivity slows postpartum recovery and makes it harder for women to return to their pre-pregnancy weight, increasing the risk of long-term obesity. For the fetus, maternal sedentarism is linked to reduced neurological development and higher obesity risk in childhood.
Experts recommend that pregnant women aim for 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week, spread across at least three days. This should ideally begin before pregnancy and continue after birth, though intensity may be reduced in the first weeks of postpartum recovery. The exercise need not be intense or specialized. Walking, swimming, cycling, and adapted yoga all provide significant benefits. Tatiana Figueras Falcón, an obstetrician and member of Spain's Society of Gynecology and Obstetrics, explains that regular moderate exercise improves cardiovascular function, muscle strength, and flexibility while reducing the likelihood of urinary incontinence, large babies at birth, and serious tears during vaginal delivery.
The challenge lies in personalization. Every pregnancy is different, and exercise must be adapted to each woman's individual circumstances and fitness level before conception. María de la Calle, head of obstetrics at Madrid's La Paz University Hospital, emphasizes that weight gain targets during pregnancy depend on a woman's pre-pregnancy body mass index. A woman with normal weight should gain nine to fourteen kilograms; those overweight should gain six to eight; and obese women should not exceed six kilograms. Healthcare providers—doctors, nurses, and midwives in primary care—have a responsibility to counsel pregnant women on appropriate activity, monitor their health status, and help them develop personalized plans that fit their daily lives.
The research underscores a gap between what medicine now knows and what many pregnant women are actually doing. With nearly a third of expectant mothers sedentary, the opportunity to prevent complications and support fetal development is being missed. The solution is not complex: it requires healthcare systems to make exercise guidance routine, accessible, and tailored to each woman's circumstances. A walk through the park, a swim, a bike ride—these simple acts, done regularly and with proper medical oversight, can reshape the health trajectory of both mother and child.
Citações Notáveis
Physical inactivity slows postpartum recovery and makes it harder for women to return to pre-pregnancy weight, increasing the risk of long-term obesity.— Cristina Franco Antonio, midwife and secretary of Spain's Federation of Midwifery Associations
Regular moderate exercise improves cardiovascular function, muscle strength, and flexibility while reducing the likelihood of urinary incontinence, large babies at birth, and serious tears during vaginal delivery.— Tatiana Figueras Falcón, obstetrician and member of Spain's Society of Gynecology and Obstetrics
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why does it matter so much whether a pregnant woman moves or stays still? Isn't the body already doing enormous work just growing a baby?
The body is doing enormous work, yes. But that's precisely why movement matters. Pregnancy changes how a woman's metabolism works, how her cardiovascular system functions, how her muscles respond. Staying still during those nine months doesn't protect the pregnancy—it actually increases the risk of complications like gestational diabetes and high blood pressure that can harm both mother and baby.
The study found that nearly a third of pregnant women aren't meeting activity standards. That's a lot. What's stopping them?
That's the real question. Some women don't know the recommendations exist. Others face practical barriers—fatigue, pain, lack of childcare, or simply not having been active before pregnancy. And there's still a cultural assumption that pregnancy means rest, that movement is risky. The research suggests healthcare providers aren't consistently counseling women on this either.
If a woman has never exercised before getting pregnant, is it too late to start?
No. In fact, the experts say it's essential to begin during pregnancy if you haven't before. The key is starting gently and building gradually—150 minutes of moderate activity per week, spread across at least three days. Walking, swimming, cycling. Nothing extreme. But it has to be consistent and adapted to your individual condition.
What happens to the baby if the mother stays active?
The fetus benefits in measurable ways. Better neurological development, lower risk of being born too large, reduced obesity risk in childhood. The mother's movement literally shapes how the child's brain develops. It's not metaphorical—it's biological.
And after birth? Does the activity matter then too?
Absolutely. Women who've been active during pregnancy recover faster postpartum. They're more likely to return to their pre-pregnancy weight and less likely to develop long-term obesity. But the intensity drops in those first weeks while the body heals. Then gradually, it builds back up. The point is continuity—before, during, and after.