European Journal of Midwifer 1 Short report Published by European Publishing. © 2022 Hyvärinen M. et al. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0) ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION Despite scientifc evidence on health benefts of an active lifestyle during and afer pregnancy, a gap still exists between current and recommended practice in physical activity counselling. Undergraduate education in midwifer is fundamental for physical activity promotion in professional practice. The aim of this article is to present pedagogical aspects, preliminar results and discuss the relevance of the educational program Move Your Baby. METHODS Between 2018 and 2020, 23 midwifer students (BSc) participated in the program at the School of Health Sciences (HESAV), HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western, Lausanne, Switzerland. Theoretical and practical workshops as well as adapted physical activity sessions, in direct contact with pregnant women, were ofered and supervised by professional midwives and one expert in adapted physical activity. Data analysis based on an explorator self-administered questionnaire was performed to rate pedagogical efectiveness, perceived skill level and identify barriers and facilitators to promote physical activity in their future profession. RESULTS Midwifery students perceived improvement in their knowledge, skills and confdence to promote physical activity during pregnancy. They rated the program as pedagogically efective. However, several barriers were identifed such as lack of time and material resources to promote physical activity in professional practice. CONCLUSIONS This community-oriented educational program based on interplay of theor, hands-on experience and interprofessional collaboration was rated successful. Teaching physical activity in real-life settings facilitates midwifer students to identify with their professional role in the feld of health promotion. Midwifer students require more opportunities to promote physical activity in their professional practice. Eur J Midwifer 2022;6(May):32 https://doi.org/10.18332/ejm/146629 INTRODUCTION Over the past three decades, rates of complications such as gestational diabetes, pre- eclampsia, gestational hypertension, and macrosomia, have strongly increased, mainly due to an increased sedentar lifestyle in pregnancy 1 and maternal obesity 2 . Physical activity (PA) during pregnancy is strongly recommended. An active lifestyle improves health of both mother and child, and notably reduces obstetrical complications and the risk of developing non-communicable diseases in adulthood 3,4 . International guidelines recommend 150 minutes of moderate-intensity PA per week during pregnancy 5 . Pregnancy is an opportune time for the promotion of healthy lifestyles because health behavioral determinants evolve naturally; women are getting in regular contact with healthcare professionals (HCPs), and are more likely to adopt a healthy lifestyle if recommended 6 . PA promotion should be addressed in an interprofessional approach between gynecologist, midwives, nurses, physiotherapist and exercise professional 3,7 . Midwives are ideally placed as they deliver woman-centered care during pregnancy 8 . They can act as mediator between pregnant women and other HCPs to promote PA and should be familiar with the content of PA recommendations and basic exercise training. However, midwives lack either knowledge of AFFILIATION 1 Department of Research, HESAV School of Health Sciences, HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, Lausanne, Switzerland 2 Department of Health Promotion and Prevention, University Center for Primar Care and Public Health (Unisanté), Lausanne, Switzerland 3 Department of Midwifer, HESAV School of Health Sciences, HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, Lausanne, Switzerland CORRESPONDENCE TO Mathilde Hyvärinen. Department of Research, HESAV School of Health Sciences, HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, Lausanne, Switzerland. E-mail: mathilde.hyvaerinen@hesav.ch ORCID ID: https://orcid. org/0000-0001-6137-5322 KEYWORDS pregnancy, education, students, physical activity, midwifer, health promotion Received: 22 December 2021 Revised: 18 Januar 2022 Accepted: 10 Februar 2022 Pedagogical innovation to promote physical activity in pregnancy: Interprofessional and real-life settings on the example of the educational program Move Your Baby Mathilde Hyvärinen 1,2 , Franziska Schläppy 3 , Claire de Labrusse 3 , Jennifer Wegrzyk 1