The Role of Physical Fitness in EmotionalWell-Being and Distress during Pregnancy: The GESTAFIT Project Marín Jiménez, Nuria De la Flor Alemany, Marta Baena García, Laura Corres, Pablo Molina-Hidalgo, Cristina Aparicio García-Molina, Virginia Pregnancy/gestation Fitness Positive affect Pregnancy involves various physiological, physical, and social changes that can impact the mental health of the woman, causing her to have a stressful experience. Physical fitness (PF) is postulated as a powerful marker of health in this population. Therefore, this longitudinal study examined the association of PF with maternal emotional well-being and ill-being outcomes at 16th and 34th gestational weeks (g.w.) in a sample of 158 pregnant women (32.9 ± 4.7 years old). Selfreported PF was assessed with the valid and feasible International Fitness Scale [i.e., overall PF, cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), muscular strength, speed–agility, and flexibility]; positive and negative affect, emotional intelligence, and resilience were measured using validated questionnaires specifically designed for this purpose. The results showed that women with greater overall PF and its components showed higher positive affect and lower negative affect (all, p < 0.05); greater emotional intelligence (all, p < 0.05); and greater resilience (all, p < 0.05), with similar results both in the 16th and the 34th g.w. These findings underscore the pivotal role of PF in promoting emotional health and resilience during pregnancy, thereby highlighting the need for integrating PF enhancement strategies in prenatal care programs. 2024-09-16T10:39:18Z 2024-09-16T10:39:18Z 2024-08-25 journal article Marín-Jiménez, N.; Flor-Alemany, M.; Baena-García, L.; Corres, P.; Molina-Hidalgo, C.; Aparicio, V.A. The Role of Physical Fitness in EmotionalWell-Being and Distress during Pregnancy: The GESTAFIT Project. Healthcare 2024, 12, 1692. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare12171692 https://hdl.handle.net/10481/94529 10.3390/healthcare12171692 eng info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/FP7/MSC 291780 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ open access Atribución 4.0 Internacional MDPI