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Ease Your Pregnancy With Prenatal Yoga
A big part of prenatal yoga is learning to listen to your body, says Jamie Kalynuik, founder and CEO of Toronto Yoga Mamas, a prenatal and postnatal wellness centre in Toronto. What feels good in the first trimester may not feel good in the third, so its important to modify and evolve as you and the baby grow together.However, there are a couple of general rules for practising yoga during pregnancy. The first if you already have a strong yoga practise, Kalynuik suggests continuing as you normally would until it doesnt feel comfortable anymore. For example, as your belly gets bigger you may need to begin to adapt certain poses. The second if youre brand new to yoga, really try to focus on your breath as you move, and pay attention to where you feel tension and where you feel ease and strength.
In fact, deepening your connection with your breath is one of the biggest benefits of prenatal yoga. Its not only a great tool to use during pregnancy, but also throughout labour and childbirth. So, whether youre a yogi or a beginner, there are advantages to practising prenatal yoga during each trimester.
First trimester :
Every pregnancy is unique however, during the first trimester you may feel an increased sense of anxiety because of this new change, says Kalynuik. Prenatal yoga can help you relax, feel connected and grounded, especially when the mind is overactive.
Second trimester :
Third trimester :
Second Trimester: Childs Pose
Purpose: Create openness in the hips
Repetitions: 1
Hold pose: 5-10 full cycles of breath
- Begin on your hands and knees with your wrists directly under your shoulders. Place your knees on a folded blanket under your hips.
- Bring your big toes to touch, and take the knees wide. Walk yourself down to the mat, bringing your forehead to the mat if its accessible.
- Arms reach out in front of you on the mat, palms pressing down.
- Send your breath to the hips. With each inhale, fill up your belly, and let yourself melt into the mat with every exhale.
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Prenatal Yoga: Poses For Pregnancy Benefits Safety Tips
Prenatal yoga is a gentle form of exercise that focuses on stretching, mind-calming techniques, and deep breathing especially designed for pregnant womens bodies. It improves the babys health and prepares women for labor.
Pregnancy changes a woman, both physically and emotionally with so much going on with the hormones leading to leg cramps, backache, fatigue, mood swings, and what not that too for complete nine months. Besides these, it is the most crucial time to take extra care of yourself for the sake of a new life growing within you.
The best possible way to stay healthy and prepare the body for the journey of nine months and even during delivery is opting for prenatal yoga classes.
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Sitting cross-legged on sticky mats arranged in a wide circle, seven women inhale deeply, fling their arms wide, and turn their faces up toward the ceiling. Exhaling slowly, they round forward and wrap their arms around their big bellies to embrace their growing babies. The room, sea-foam green and mirrored, is pleasantly dim. Unstructured, relaxing music plays quietly in the background. It is almost like being underwater. Or in the womb.
ReadYoga Mama: The Practitioners Guide to Prenatal Yoga
See also 10 Family-Friendly Yoga Vacations
ReadIna Mays Guide to Childbirth
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Strength Building Pregnancy Yoga Poses For The Second Trimester
The second trimester of pregnancy is often called the honeymoon period as most of the fatigue and nausea have typically subsided. You might also notice that your emotions are on a more even keel. Now that youre getting back into the groove of daily life, Desi believes this is a great time to gently bump up your exercise routine and to focus on building strength. Youll need this strength for the rest of the pregnancy as well as for labour and delivery.
It is not recommended to exercise lying flat on your back after the first trimester. This was discussed in a recent webinar with Dr Hayley Mills Youre pregnant should you be doing that?
Shavasana Or Corpse Pose
This is the cooling off pose which is perfect to calm down and relax the body after the physical activity. After the first trimester, it is advisable to lie on your side while doing Shavasana.
How to Perform
- Lie down with your back on the floor
- Close your eyes
- Relax your body and mind. Take your time to think happy thoughts and let go of negativity. Take your time while you do this. Breathe normally and do not hold your breath
- After a while, stand up straight
- This asana marks the end of a yoga workout and works well to cool off the body
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Meditation Walking & Abs Exercises
It is important to remember that it is not just your body that had the experience of labour and delivery. It was your entire being, including your mind and your heart. Desi writes in her book about some amazing and inspirational birth stories from the thousands of women shes worked with. But some experiences left the parents feeling disempowered. Desi advises that you take a moment to tap back into the tool of meditation and check in with your innermost self.
Walking is also important. Walking is one of the basic movements that the human body can perform. A great way to begin your reentry into movement is a simple walking schedule that includes an a.m. walk and a p.m. walk. Inside Your Strong, Sexy Pregnancy this is explained further.
Your Strong, Sexy Pregnancy also has a belly blaster with some great and fun exercises you can do with you newborn baby.
How Is Prenatal Yoga Different From Regular Yoga
Common positions in regular yoga such as those where your feet are spread far apart may be too stressful for your joints and pelvic area when youre expecting. As your baby grows, theres a lot more weight pushing down on your bladder and pelvis. Pregnancy hormones also loosen your ligaments, making joint and bone problems a source of discomfort. In addition to modifying positions for pregnancy, prenatal yoga also emphasizes breathing, stretches and strengthening moves that help your body prepare for labor.
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To Twist Or Not To Twist
You may have heard that twists are a no-no during pregnancy, but that is not strictly true. Open twists towards the third trimester are generally OK with your doctor’s approval and they will most likely feel great.
Twisting should be done from the shoulders, as opposed to from the abdomen. Continue to ensure that your entire baby bump stays open and does not fold or bend at all. “Instead of twisting, think about gently rotating only the upper back and broadening your collar bones,” explained Leah Keller, founder of Every Mother and certified personal trainer.
During the first trimester, however, it is advisable to avoid twists altogether. Twists can cause uterine contractions.
Early on in pregnancy, when your developing baby is the smallest and the risk of miscarriage is the highest, twists are not considered safe.
What Are Pregnancy Yoga Poses For The Third Trimester
These ones! This pregnancy yoga sequence shows Kerryn in her third trimester. Releasing back ache and tight hips, this yoga sequence is ideal for third trimester.
This is the perfect pregnancy yoga workout you can do in the privacy of your own home. Reduce stress during pregnancy and tension in your body and relax a busy mind with this short pregnancy yoga video.
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Recommended Reading: What Yoga Poses To Avoid In Pregnancy
Third Trimester: Supported Squat
Purpose: Open hips and pelvis
Repetitions: 1
Hold pose: 1-3 minutes
- Bring a blanket, bolster or block to your mat. Stand in front of it with your feet a little wider than hip-width apart.
- With your exhale, come down into a supported squat and sit on your bolster.
- Bring the palms of your hands to the heart, pressing the elbows to where they meet your knees or thighs.
- Continue rooting down through the soles of your feet, and lift through the chest.
- Slow down your exhales here.
What Yoga Poses To Avoid In Pregnancy
During pregnancy, women go through a sea of changes within the body as well as in the mind. This can be a time of extreme joy as well as apprehension for the new life to come. At this time of pregnancy, women can turn to yoga for their physical and mental upkeep. This ancient and holistic science has many levels of postures and practices suited for various levels of practitioners. Yoga is a great tool that can be used for healing and therapeutic purposes along with fitness. Yoga asanas, meditation techniques, and breathing exercises are recommended during pregnancy as they are proven to eliminate stress reduce anxiety and help keep women calm in pregnancy and labour.Also Read Yoga For Digestion: 5 Asanas For Strong Digestive System
Yoga poses and practices can be gentle on both the mother and the baby. It is vital that you practice yoga under the guidance of an expert. There are certain postures that need to be avoided during this time which include inversions, supine stretches, backbends, abdominal twists, and intense asanas.Also Read Mira Rajputs Fitness Routine Will Make You Jump Out of the Bed and Hit the Gym!
1. Sukhasana
Feel free to use the support of cushions pillows and other props to sit down. Stretch your legs out forward and gently fold your right leg and your left leg crossing them at the ankles. Keep your back straight and gently close your eyes. You can place your palms on your knees facing upward.
2. Marjariasana
Beej Dhyan/ Aarambh Dhyan
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Second Trimester: Pelvic Tilts
Repetitions: 1
Hold pose: 5-10 full cycles of breath
- Sit on the edge of a folded blanket, cross your legs, and allow your hands to connect to your thighs.
- Rock your pelvis backwards and forwards with your breath. Inhale as your chest lifts toward the sky, and exhale as you round your back .
- Flow with your breath between each movement.
Vishnu Asana Or Anantashayanasana
Lie on your right side with your left leg on your right leg. Bend your right arm, placing the elbow on the floor. Support your head on the right palm. Place your left arm on the left thigh. Gently raise the left leg as high as possible, slide the left hand towards the left foot, and grasp your leg wherever your hand reaches. Repeat on other side.
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Take Space & Create Stability
As you grow, take up more space in standing poses, starting with Mountain Pose. Step the feet a bit wider to ensure you have a stable base.
Lunges are safe and best with a focus on pelvic floor lift. It is also great to focus on that outer hip hugging in during lunges. As you grow, take a wider stance for more stability in the posture.
Unicorn And Rainbow Pose
Benefits
This pose sequence, often called cat andcow, helps to strengthen and maintain flexibility in the lower back andabdomen.
Feeling
This sequence is a very gentle way to warmthe core muscles. Invite the feeling of warmth from the inside out.
Instruction
- Begin on all fours with hands shoulder width apart and knees hip-width apart.
- Inhale and gaze to the sky, lifting the breastbone and the coccyx toward the sky as you softly contract in your lower back .
- Exhale and round the spine in the shape of a rainbow. Take it easy with the pelvic tuck in the second and third trimesters, and focus more on the curve in the upper body .
Adjustments
You can use a folded blanket under yourknees to cushion them. Or you can practice this sequence standing, with feethips width apart, a soft bend in the knees, and hands on top of the thighs.
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Third Trimester: Restorative Figure Four
Purpose: Stretch glutes
Hold pose: 1-3 minutes on each side
- Place a block down on your mat with a bolster resting on top.
- Sit down so your tailbone meets the end of the bolster.
- Bend your knees so the soles of your feet are pressing down into the mat.
- Bring your hands to the mat and start to walk yourself back until your lying on your bolster.
- Place your right ankle to left knee/thigh, then let your legs fall to the left side so the right sole of your foot comes to the mat.
- Breathe into this gentle glutes stretch.
Prenatal Yoga: The Perfect Pregnancy Exercise
You probably already know that doctor-approved fitness during pregnancy is good for you: It helps alleviate pesky pregnancy symptoms like constipation, back pain, bloating, swelling and fatigue. And according to the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, staying active helps moms mentally, too, increasing energy, mood and ability to sleep . But prenatal yoga may just be the ideal exercise for pregnant women. Heres what you need to know before starting a prenatal yoga routine.
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What Research Says About Doing Yoga When Pregnant
1. Yoga has been shown to ease stress and anxiety during pregnancy.
2. It has also shown to reduce levels of the stress hormone cortisol.
3. Yoga during pregnancy can be effective for reducing depression.
4. When started early in the pregnancy, it can help you mentally.
5. Yoga can also reduce pain and discomfort.
6. Yoga can improve overall quality of life during pregnancy.
Youre Likely Too Tired To Have Sex But Also Too Hormonal To Want It
Youre probably exhausted. Maybe you feel soreand sex isnt pleasurable at the moment. Maybe youre worried about changes to your body or getting pregnant again. Or maybe youre just touched out and feel like the only thing you have control over is your body.
But underneath all of these perfectly legitimate reasons is a current of raging and waning hormones that have an even more powerful impact on your sex drive.
When youre pregnant, the levels of your reproductive hormones are at time 1000 times higher than when you are not pregnant. And once you give birth, those hormones come crashing down to menopausal levels. The low estrogen that results can cause uncomfortable vaginal drynessespecially if you are breastfeedingand a loss of sex drive.
This is how evolution ensures that you dont want it while you are healing and investing your energy into keeping your new baby alive before you start to work on the next.
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Ardha Titali Asana Or Ardha Baddha Konasana
Sit with your legs outstretched. Fold your right leg and place your right foot as far up on the left thigh as possible. Place your right hand on top of your folded right knee. Hold the toes of your right foot with your left hand. While breathing out, gently move your right knee up towards your chest. Breathing in, gently push your knee down towards the floor. Make sure that you are keeping your torso straight. Repeat with your left leg. Slowly practice about 10 up and down movements with each leg.
Safe Yoga Poses When Pregnant
1. Easy pose
Prenatal Yoga exercise Easy Pose Sukhasana
Sukhasana Benefits
a. Strengthens muscles of the back
b. Improves body posture.
c. Relaxing effects on mind and body.
d. Works as a preparatory pose for more difficult meditative poses.
e. Builds physical and mental balance.
f. Reduces stress and anxiety.
2. Standing forward bend
Prenatal Yoga Standing forward bend, Uttanasana
Paschimottanasana Benefits
a. Helps relieve stress and mild depression.
b. Stretches the spine, shoulders, hamstrings.
c. Soothes headache, anxiety and reduces fatigue.
3. Cat pose
a. Stretches the back torso and neck
b. Softly stimulates and strengthens the abdominals.
c. It opens the chest, encouraging the breath to become slow and deep.
4. Cow pose
Prenatal Yoga exercise Cow Pose Bitlasana
Cow pose Benefits
a. Stretches the front torso and neck.
b. Provides a gentle massage to the spine.
5. Warrior I, Virabhadrasana I
6. Warrior II, Virabhadrasana II
7. Chair pose, Utkatasana
8. Extended side angle pose, Utthita Parsvakonasana
9. Extended triangle pose, Utthita Trikonasana
10. Tree pose, Vrksasana
What if I am New to Yoga?
If you are new to yoga, you find that the right class will allow you to enjoy a slow pace while gaining the required guidance as you work your way through the foundations of yoga.
Beginner classes will help you improve your strength, flexibility, and de-stress your life.
What can you expect from a prenatal yoga class?
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