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Prenatal Yoga. Once the excitement of finding out you are pregnant has worn off you are likely thinking ahead to what your pregnancy is going to hold for you. Will you have a great pregnancy or one full of trials and tribulations? While no one can answer this question definitively, one thing that will influence how you feel through your pregnancy is how well you take care of your body. One of the best ways to ensure your body stays fit and your mind stays clear through it all is to take a prenatal yoga class.
Pregnancy yoga is a great way to exercise through your pregnancy as it offers the following benefits:
Helps to maintain balance, which becomes more difficult as baby grows bigger.
Relaxes muscles that can become tense carrying extra baby weight.
Improves posture
Increases flexibility of muscles and joints, which comes in hand during delivery!
Teaches you how to clear your mind, release stress and focus on relaxing.
Tones muscles needed during labor and delivery to make for an easier birth.
Allows you to connect with other pregnant moms
Many pregnant yoga poses can be used during labor and delivery to relax muscles and help the baby maneuver into a better position. The poses you learn in yoga can be utilized at home, at the office or in the car when you feel the need to relax or stretch a certain muscle, or clear your cluttered mind.
While prenatal yoga is considered safe for pregnant moms, there are a few poses that you should avoid for your sake and the sake of your baby:
Deep squats (after the second trimester): while great for releasing tight pelvic and hip muscles it is best to avoid this pose later in the pregnancy.
Poses on stomach (after the first trimester): this is more for comfort than anything else, and many poses can be altered at this point to accommodate big bellies.
Intense stretching (late pregnancy): the close you are to delivery, the looser your joints will become, meaning that you won't always know where your limit is and may push too far.
As with any type of exercise, your pregnancy yoga class should be something that you feel comfortable doing. If any pose feels wrong or too much ask your instructor for help. And before you sign up for a yoga class talk to your doctor to ensure that yoga for pregnancy is a recommended exercise for your particular pregnancy.
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