The effects of strenuous maternal exercise during gestation on maternal body components in rats

The effects of strenuous maternal exercise throughout gestation on the maternal rat were examined. The results indicated that maternal exercise of this nature (30 metres/minute, 10 degree incline, 120 minutes/day, 5 days/week) caused a significant decrease in the amount of weight gained by the running maternal rats when compared to controls. By analysing the maternal rat and various bodily components after parturition, it was suggested that subcutaneous tissue growth (fat deposits and mammary gland tissue) was significantly less in the running group. The carcass remainder component was also found to weigh less in the running group, even though the maternal running rats had just given birth to an equivalent (not significantly different) number of neonates of similar (not significantly different) weight to the control group.