To HIIT or not to HIIT? The question pregnant women may be searching for online: a descriptive observational study

Abstract

Aims: An increasingly popular exercise modality for women is high-intensity interval training (HIIT). Limited research has assessed HIIT during pregnancy, and as a result, pregnant women may inquire about HIIT on their own through online searches. The purpose of this study was to systematically search and critically evaluate online resources that women may access when inquiring about performing HIIT during pregnancy. Methods: Following previously published methodology, we systematically examined the online search engine Google with the terms ‘HIIT’ and ‘pregnancy’. Using the 2019 Canadian Guideline for Physical Activity throughout Pregnancy as a reference, we identified evidence-based safety recommendations that apply to all prenatal exercise regimes. All selected links were assessed for whether or not they included evidence-based exercise and pregnancy safety recommendations. Descriptive analyses were performed to report the frequency of each construct. Results: Seventy-six links were retrieved, and 33 relevant links were selected for inclusion. The majority of the retrieved links recommended that women should consult a healthcare provider before beginning any exercise programme (67%), and modify the intensity and types of exercises in the active HIIT bout based on general pregnancy-related changes (73%) and individual comfort level (55%). Just under half of the links recommended modifying intensity based on prepregnancy activity level (46%), offered trimester-specific recommendations (42%), and only 12% mentioned contraindications to exercise. Conclusion: Publicly accessible information online on HIIT during pregnancy does not routinely adhere to evidence-based safety recommendations for prenatal exercise. Further research on HIIT during pregnancy and public dissemination of findings is required.

Glycemic response to acute high‐intensity interval versus moderate‐intensity continuous exercise during pregnancy

“…An abundance of advice columns and prenatal workouts promoting vigorous‐intensity intervals continue to be developed in the absence of scientific evidence (Nagpal et al, 2021 ). In contrast, evidence‐based prenatal physical activity guidelines offer limited insight into the effects of interval training during pregnancy due to the paucity of available evidence.…”

ACTIVE PREGNANCY: Workshop on Promotion of Physical Activity in Pregnancy for Exercise Professionals

“…One example of such a shift is high-intensity interval training (HIIT), which is gaining popularity in a wide variety of populations, including pregnant women. 65 As shown by Nagpal et al, 66 publicly available sources of information on how to implement HIIT in pregnancy are inconsistent and not evidence-based, which can lead to uncertainty in women and discourage them from continuing their favorite form of exercise. Another example of a significant change in the approach to exercise during pregnancy in some countries is the emphasis on the responsibility of the pregnant woman for her own health and that of the child.…”

Physical Activity Misinformation on Social Media and Digital Mediums: Systematic Review

“…Of the 14 relevant studies, eight addressed physical activity misinformation pertaining to specific diseases or conditions (Ekkekakis et al, 2018;Heisinger et al, 2021;Kanthawala et al, 2016;Kocyigit et al, 2019;Kunze et al, 2020;Nagpal et al, 2021;Snyder et al, 2020;Yildiz & Toros, 2021), four involved general physical activity and messaging (Borah & Xiao, 2018;Marocolo et al, 2021;Michelini, 2017;Ori et al, 2021), one focused on weight loss (Gonzalez, 2018), and one study addressed workplace sitting vs. standing guidelines (Chau et al, 2018).…”

“…Physical activity topics for specific diseases and conditions included physical activity for depression (Ekkekakis et al, 2018), diabetes (Kanthawala et al, 2016), ankylosing spondylitis (Kocyigit et al, 2019), breast feeding women (Snyder et al, 2020), pregnancy (Nagpal et al, 2021), vestibular rehabilitation (Yildiz & Toros, 2021), meniscus injury (Kunze et al, 2020), and lumbar disc herniation rehabilitation (Heisinger et al, 2021).…”

“…Two studies assessed Google Search results for misinformation prevalence, both finding high prevalence. In an analysis of guidance on high intensity interval training (HIIT) for pregnant women, (Nagpal et al, 2021) found that most of the linked resources lacked key information such as adjusting exercise intensity for pre-pregnancy activity level (54.5%) or trimester (57.6%), and 87.5% failed to mention contraindications to exercise. Although it included more topics in addition to physical activity, a study comparing Google Search results with WebMD online community answers to diabetes related health and wellness questions found that answers were only clinically valid, or accurate, 50.8% and 52.5%, respectively (Kanthawala et al, 2016).…”