Can I Exercise With a Low-Lying Placenta?
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Can I Exercise With a Low-Lying Placenta?

Can I Exercise With a Low-Lying Placenta?
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Marcy Reed
Updated on August 7, 2025
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Your baby's placenta attaches to the inside of your uterus early in pregnancy. As the uterus grows, the placenta attachment site typically moves away from the cervix, or opening to the uterus, and toward the top of the uterus.

However, if your placenta is close to the cervix during your pregnancy, your doctor may advise you to take special precautions to reduce the risk of complications. This could include modifying or restricting exercise.

Read on to learn more about if you can exercise with a low-lying placenta.

What Is a Low-Lying Placenta?

A low-lying placenta is located close to the cervix, but does not cover the cervical opening at all. According to a study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, a low-lying placenta is an internal cervical os distance of 2 centimeters or less without any part of the os (the opening of the cervix) being covered.

The same study associated a low-lying placenta with the following complications:

  • Antepartum and postpartum hemorrhage
  • Hospitalization
  • Cesarean delivery
  • Small-for-gestational-age neonates

An ultrasound is used to diagnose a low-lying placenta and, if present, the distance from the edge of your placenta to your cervix.

Exercising With a Low-Lying Placenta

If you have a low-lying placenta, your doctor may caution you to limit or avoid exercise.

The risk of a low-lying placenta to you and your baby depends on many factors, including the distance of the placenta to the cervix and how far along you are in your pregnancy.

For example, if you’re early in your pregnancy and the placental edge is several centimeters away from your cervix, you might be encouraged to walk or engage in light exercise, as the placental edge will likely migrate away from the cervix as your pregnancy progresses.

But if you are in your third trimester and your placenta is just a half centimeter away from your cervix, your doctor might recommend that you avoid exercise.

Cautions

A low-lying placenta can become a serious issue. Talk with your doctor regarding exercise if you have a low-lying placenta.

If you have been told your placenta is low-lying, your doctor may advise you to exercise caution and reduce your activity, refrain from intercourse, and closely observe the area for vaginal bleeding in case the placenta touches or covers the cervix.

Always discuss your particular diagnosis and precautions with your doctor. Seek emergency care if you experience new or unexplained bleeding during pregnancy.

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Reyna Franco, RDN

Medical Reviewer
Member of American College of Lifestyle Medicine

Reyna Franco, RDN, is a New York City–based dietitian-nutritionist, certified specialist in sports dietetics, and certified personal trainer. She is a diplomate of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and has a master's degree in nutrition and exercise physiology from Columbia University.

In her private practice, she provides medical nutrition therapy for weight management, sports nutrition, diabetes, cardiac disease, renal disease, gastrointestinal disorders, cancer, food allergies, eating disorders, and childhood nutrition. To serve her diverse patients, she demonstrates cultural sensitivity and knowledge of customary food practices. She applies the tenets of lifestyle medicine to reduce the risk of chronic disease and improve health outcomes for her patients.

Franco is also a corporate wellness consultant who conducts wellness counseling and seminars for organizations of every size. She taught sports nutrition to medical students at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, taught life cycle nutrition and nutrition counseling to undergraduate students at LaGuardia Community College, and precepts nutrition students and interns. She created the sports nutrition rotation for the New York Distance Dietetic Internship program.

She is the chair of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine's Registered Dietitian-Nutritionist Member Interest Group. She is also the treasurer and secretary of the New York State Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, having previously served in many other leadership roles for the organization, including as past president, awards committee chair, and grant committee chair, among others. She is active in the local Greater New York Dietetic Association and Long Island Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, too.

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Marcy Reed

Author

Marcy Reed has been a certified nurse midwife since 2004 and a writer since 2007. She has been published in "Midwifery Today." Reed earned a bachelor's degree in nursing in California and received her midwifery education in Kentucky.

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