ArticleBMJ open sport & exercise medicine2019
Elite athletes get pregnant, have healthy babies and return to sport early postpartum.
Article in BMJ open sport & exercise medicine, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 34 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
34 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 81 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effects of Maternal Exercise During Pregnancy on Perinatal Growth and Childhood Obesity Outcomes: A Meta-analysis and Meta-regression.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2021Pooled it
- Exercise in pregnant elite athletes: Physiological considerations, risks, and benefits.Physiological reports · 2026Review
- The Mum-Alete: An Observational Survey-Based Study of Australian Athletes Returning to High-Performance Sport After Pregnancy.Sports medicine - open · 2026Article
- Patterns in exercise behaviour across pregnancy: a retrospective cohort study of physically active individuals from pre-conception to postpartum.European journal of applied physiology · 2026Observational
- Pregnant Pitches: Navigating Football Before and During Pregnancy.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2026Review
- Elite and Sub-elite Athletes and Pregnancy: Training, Performance, Health and Psychological Aspects Across the Pre-, Peri-, and Postnatal Stages: A Scoping Review.Sports medicine - open · 2026Review
- Considerations of Fertility in Elite Sportswomen: A Narrative Review.BJOG : an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology · 2026Review
- Experiences and perspectives on pregnancy and motherhood in elite athletes - a qualitative study.Sexual and reproductive health matters · 2025Article
- Advancing Care for Pregnant and Postpartum Athletes: A Call to Action for Athletic Trainers.Journal of athletic training · 2025Article
- Exceeding the guidelines: A descriptive study of exercise, pregnancy, maternal and neonatal health outcomes in elite and recreational athletes.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2025Article
- Gynaecological Health Patterns and Motherhood Experiences of Female Professional Football Players.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Exploring the postpartum return to sport and performance in Canadian elite athletes.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2025Article
- Prioritise safety, optimise success! Return to rugby postpartum.European journal of sport science · 2024Review
- Prevalence of low back, pelvic girdle, and pelvic floor complaints in pregnant elite athletes: a narrative review.The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association · 2024Article
- Predictors of Pregnancy Disclosure in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III Athletes.Journal of athletic training · 2024Article
- Waking Up to the Issue! Research Inattention and Sex-Related Differences Warrant More Sleep Studies in Female Athletes.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2024Review
- Fostering the social and physical challenges of female recreational or professional athletes in pregnancy and postpartum.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2024Article
- Finding the optimal balance: father-athlete challenges facing elite Nordic skiers.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2024Article
- Self-reported reproductive health of retired elite women's footballers: a cross-sectional study.BMJ open sport & exercise medicine · 2024Article
- The Influence of Physical Activity during Pregnancy on Miscarriage-Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesTo enhance knowledge on pregnancy and return to sport in the postpartum period in elite female athletes.
methods34 Norwegian elite athletes (33.1 years) and 34 active controls (31.5 years) were asked about training and competitive history, pregnancy-related issues, injuries, body dissatisfaction (BD), drive for thinness (DT), eating disorders (ED) and practical experiences, through a questionnaire and interview. Independent samples T-tests or χ² tests for between-group differences and paired-samples T-tests and repeated measures analysis of variance for within group differences were used.
resultsNo group differences in fertility problems, miscarriage, preterm birth or low birth weight were found. Both groups decreased training volume all trimesters and the first two postpartum periods compared with prepregnancy, and more athletes returned to sport/exercise at week 0-6 postpartum. We found no group differences in complications during pregnancy and delivery, but athletes reported fewer common complaints. Four athletes experienced stress fracture postpartum. Athletes had higher BD and DT postpartum, while controls reduced DT score. Number of athletes with clinical ED was reduced postpartum, while constant in controls. Athletes were not satisfied with advice related to strength training and nutrition during pregnancy.
conclusionElite athletes and active controls get pregnant easily, deliver healthy babies and decrease training during pregnancy and the first postpartum periods compared with prepregnancy. Most athletes and every third control returned to sport or exercise at week 0-6 postpartum. Athletes report stress fractures and increased BD and DT, but decreased ED postpartum. However, since relatively few athletes were included these findings need further investigation.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.