Exercise During Pregnancy and Maternal Sleep Quantity and Quality

Background: Sleep disturbances are common in pregnancy and have negative implications for the health of the mother and offspring. We aimed to test the effect of prenatal exercise on sleep quantity and quality. Methods: This study was a retrospective, secondary analysis of pooled data from 2 blinded, prospective, randomized controlled trials (control n = 15; exercise n = 71). Sleep quality and quantity were assessed via self-report at 16 (baseline) and 36 weeks’ gestation in women assigned to exercise (aerobic, resistance, or combination) or an attention-control group. Sleep metrics were compared between exercise and control groups using independent-samples t tests. Tests for exercise mode and sleep characteristics were completed using mixed models, and the influence of exercise dose on sleep was assessed via Pearson correlations and independent-samples t tests. Results: Women exercised for an average of 21.8 weeks during pregnancy (range = 13–28 weeks). Exercising women slept 15–30 min longer per night than controls at 16 weeks’ ( P = 0.049) but not 36 weeks’ gestation (control 7.27 h, exercise 7.52 h; P = 0.26). Whereas the aerobic and resistance exercise groups showed an increased probability of reporting good sleep quality at 36 weeks ( P < .05), combination exercisers had no decrease in sleep quantity compared with decreases in the other groups ( P = 0.19). Conclusion: Whereas exercise benefits sleep quantity during pregnancy, our results show an exercise mode–dependent influence on sleep quantity and quality at 36 weeks’ gestation.