The uterus reaches the navel, and the mother usually feels her baby's movements. The fast increase in weight observed during this period is a result of the larger consumption of food due to the mother's increased appetite, in addition to an accelerated increase in the weight of the fetus, and its annexed organs.
The increasingly prominent abdomen requires the woman to counterbalance her center of gravity, creating a greater curvature of the sacrolumbar column. This naturally affects the rest of the locomotor system and some disturbances may appear in other articulations such as knees and ankles. The pain in the spinal column often spreads to the area of the ovaries, thus confusing the woman. All of these adaptive changes remain with her until the end of the pregnancy.
The future mother may also suffer leg cramps, especially at night.
