Pregnant Women's Perceived Barriers and Facilitators Related to Antenatal Physical Activity

Despite the fact that the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists recommends that pregnant women who are free of obstetrical complications engage in regular leisure physical activity (RLPA), pregnant women engage in less RLPA than their nonpregnant counterparts. Given the low rates of RLPA among pregnant women, coupled with the many maternal benefits associated with antenatal RLPA, there is a definite need to promote engagement in antenatal RLPA. The primary objective of this study was to examine barriers and facilitators to physical activity engagement among pregnant women in order to inform the development of an antenatal physical activity intervention. Informant interviews and focus groups were conducted with 50 pregnant women (aged 18-46 yrs and in their second or third trimester) to better understand what facilitates and prevents pregnant women from engaging in RLPA and whether or not and to what extent these may differ among pregnant women who are first time or veteran mothers; pregnant women who currently engage in RLPA versus those who do not. Atlas/Ti software was used to code the verbatim interview transcripts by organizing codes into categories that reflect symbolic domains of meaning, and within domains, relational patterns, and finally overarching themes. Participants' beliefs, self-efficacy, facilitators, barriers, and sense of empowerment related to physical activity differed among RLPA, nonRLPA, first time and veteran mothers. Findings among these groups will be presented and how these informed the development and implementation of an antenatal physical activity intervention.

This work was funded by the CDC 1 K01 DP001127-01.