Active Pregnancy: A Physical Exercise Program Promoting Fitness and Health during Pregnancy—Development and Validation of a Complex Intervention

Rita Santos-Rocha, Marta Fernandes de Carvalho, Joana Prior de Freitas, Jennifer Wegrzyk and Anna Szumilewicz
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Rita Santos-Rocha: ESDRM Sport Sciences School of Rio Maior, Polytechnic Institute of Santarém, 2040-413 Rio Maior, Portugal
Marta Fernandes de Carvalho: ESDRM Sport Sciences School of Rio Maior, Polytechnic Institute of Santarém, 2040-413 Rio Maior, Portugal
Joana Prior de Freitas: ESDRM Sport Sciences School of Rio Maior, Polytechnic Institute of Santarém, 2040-413 Rio Maior, Portugal
Jennifer Wegrzyk: HESAV School of Health Sciences, HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, 1011 Lausanne, Switzerland
Anna Szumilewicz: Department of Fitness, Gdansk University of Physical Education and Sport, 80-336 Gdansk, Poland

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 8, 1-19

Abstract: Physical activity during pregnancy is a public health issue. In the view of reproducibility and the successful implementation of exercise interventions, reporting the quality of such study design must be ensured. The objective of this study was to develop and validate a physical exercise program promoting fitness and health during pregnancy. A qualitative methodological study was carried out. For the description of the exercise program, the Consensus on Exercise Reporting Template (CERT) was used. For the validation of the program, the revised guideline of the Criteria for Reporting the Development and Evaluation of Complex Interventions in Health Care (CReDECI2) was followed and went through three stages of development, piloting, and evaluation. The customizable exercise program was designed and validated by exercise and health specialists based on evidence-based, international recommendations and supported by different educational tools to be implemented by qualified exercise professionals in health and fitness settings. A 12-week testing intervention addressing a group of 29 pregnant women was carried out. The program’s feasibility was subsequently evaluated by all the pregnant women. The CReDECI2 process guides practitioners and researchers in developing and evaluating complex educational interventions. The presented intervention may assist exercise specialists, health professionals, and researchers in planning, promoting, and implementing a prenatal exercise program.

Keywords: physical activity; exercise; health; fitness; pregnancy; complex intervention; CREDECI2; reproducibility (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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