I'm surprised to hear that a Japanese doctor said to eat whatever including sushi. Perhaps this is a regional thing, or a personal preference.
When I was in Japan, several of my Japanese friends became pregnant. They were told to not eat sushi and they didn't.
Even so, Japanese women probably eat a lot more fish (cooked) than Western women, since we are told to eat no more than 8oz a week of fish. This is not one doctors advice, but several, including many various publications.
As far as tuna, we are also told to avoid that, and just last summer the FDA said to avoid canned tuna especially, be it in water or oil. They have been finding greater concentrations of mercury than previously. (used to be that you were ok to eat some canned tuna in water).
Among other fish women are told to avoid are shark, tilefin and other large fish, because they tend to live longer, eat other fish, and therefore have higher concentrations of mercury.
The reason we are not supposed to eat sushi is the same reason we are not supposed to eat any deli meats or things like egg salad not prepared by us. There is a slight chance that the food may have been left out too long, or that it may have come in contact with other bacteria. Listerosis is something that is very hazardous to babies, and although the mother may feel fine, it could affect the baby in a much more serious way.
As for exercise, that's always on a case by case basis. I have a friend who was confined to bed rest for 6 months in Japan while she was pregnant. I don't know the reason why, but there are many reasons why someone could be confined to bedrest. Most of the time, at least in the US, women are encouraged to exercise moderately. I was encouraged to exercise by walking or swimming, but to not let my heart rate get above 150 bpm. But it seems that by the 3rd trimester, the advice is to greatly reduce exercise, if not stop.
Of course, I'm only telling you my experiences after being 7 months pregnant. I read several websites such as babycenter.com, went to birthing classes, and have several preganancy books to go by. None of these are Japanese, but as I said, when I was living there, Japanese friends were told to avoid raw sushi and of course alcohol.
Good luck to you!
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