Splish splash (Aquanatal Classes)

Member Name: wisemind

Product:	Aquanatal Classes
Date:	06/02/09 (181 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: great exercise

Disadvantages: limited places

When I was pregnant I attended Aqua natal classes at the Queens Street Leisure centre in Derby city centre.

The class could be attended one you were fifteen weeks pregnant but I was twenty weeks pregnant when I started.

The group was instructed by midwives and the instructor changed every week although there was a pool of midwives who were trained.

There should have been two midwives to run the group of up to fifteen women but on a few occasions there was only one midwife so the numbers allowed was reduced.

There was a crèche available for older sibling that a couple of the regulars used while |I was there and were happy with the staff and facilities.

The group cost £3.50 but it was reduced if you had a passport to leisure. This group was always full and regulars would pay then go into the cafe to wait for the class to guarantee a place. I went twice and was unable to get in but went into the big pool and had a swim.

On the first visit you are asked to fill out a form that gives Details of any medical problems and problems with pregnancy, the name of your midwife and Due date.
Each session you are asked to sign in which again takes dude date, and emergency contact. The nice thing is as everyone is in swimming costumes you really get to see other people's bumps growing week by week.

The class itself follows a usual warm up then exercise. The amount of effort required depends on who is teaching. I only ever ached once after a class.
There are aerobic sections but also in some sessions we did practise breathing and pelvic floor exercises. You are advised to do the class at your own pace and if it is uncomfortable don't do it. The session always ended with a relaxation section

The water itself is warm as it is in the baby pool. I found that my son would relax and go to sleep as soon as he got into the water and would push himself down into my pelvis which made some exercises impossible to do without pain. I went till I was 38 weeks pregnant and not once was he awake for the class. My favourite exercise was we climbed on the waggles and cycled round the pool. I also loved the fact of how much easier it was to move especially as my bump grew larger.

After the swim there was a room for everyone to meet and go and have a drink, this was included in the price. You could order food from the cafe and have it bought through. Many people were on best behaviour but most weeks I had chips with gravy. The Midwives also join this part of the group and it is a chance to as the trivial questions that you never bother asking your midwife when you see her. It is also chance to chat to other women that are roughly at the same stage of pregnancy and most weeks there was somebody's scan picture been passed round.

This group is not part of antenatal care so employers are not obliged to let you attend but a few people got letters from there midwives explaining why they needed to attend which covered this.
I found this group most enjoyable. I enjoyed both the exercise and the chance to chat with other pregnant women about both how exciting it was little worries and what we had been buying. It was the highlight of my week when I was pregnant.

I would recommend it to anyone who is pregnant

Summary: A great form of exercise during pregnancy