Tips for Yoga During Pregnancy

The Benefits of Yoga during Pregnancy

Yoga can be beneficial during your pregnancy term as it helps you to stay fit, improve your energy level and allows you to become more in tune with your body.

It can also be a great way to stay flexible to prepare you for birth! Yoga exercises, through a series of gentle stretches, help tone the reproductive organs, pelvis and the rest of your body to ensure an easier childbirth. Posture is also improved by yoga and this can help ease back problems, which are common in pregnant women.

However, as with any exercise program, it is always best to consult your physician before beginning!

Should You Practice Yoga During Your Pregnancy? 

Yes, mommies-to-be you should practice yoga during your pregnancy!

Here are the many reasons why you should:

1. Increases overall strength, flexibility and well-being 
When practicing yoga, you are not only stretching your muscles! Instead, you are also stretching the tissues that encase your muscles, stimulating your organ systems, promoting the circulation of blood and oxygen, breathing more intentionally, and focusing your attention inward through imagery and meditation.

2. Reduces low back pain & sciatica 
With yoga, you are taught to become acutely aware of proper body alignment so you can carry yourself and your belly in an integrated manner. This helps to reduce the degree of pelvic tilt associated with pregnancy and significantly reduce the lower back pain which it can cause!

3. Reduces aches and fatigue in the thoracic and cervical regions of the spine 
During pregnancy, it can be difficult to find a space for yourself when trying to sleep at night. As a result, spinal alignment can become compromised during the night. This can leave congestion and muscle tension in the middle and upper regions of spine. Practicing yoga regularly can create more fluidity in the spine by stretching the para spinal muscles. It also involves very gentle rotation of the upper torso! When these sequences are combined with directed yoga breathing, it can have the effect of relieving stress. Therefore, creating more breathing room in these regions of the spine!

4. Reduces swelling and inflammation around your joints
A regular and consistent asana (a sitting meditation pose) practice improves and promotes the circulation of blood and oxygen throughout your body. This in turn, reduces swelling and inflammation around ankles and wrists!

5. Aids in digestion
As your little one grows in your belly, your intestinal organs get pushed around which may affect your regularity and cause indigestion. A regular practice of safe and gentle rotations and forward folds can help to promote regularity and aid in overall digestive flow.

6. Helps prepare you physically for giving birth 
A regular practice of squatting asana helps to tone muscles of your pelvic floor and to help you gain strength to remain comfortable in a squatting position. You will want to be able to use these muscles efficiently and effectively when nature calls upon you to push your baby into the world!

7. Improves your emotional well-being
Participating in a prenatal class provides a community of support from people who understand what you are experiencing! It will be a place to make new friends with whom you feel similarly situated as well. The combination of the physical or asana portion of yoga with the emotional and spiritual component can be an aid in reducing pregnancy-related anxiety. It will also help mommies-to-be to fully experience the miracle and empowerment of pregnancy.

Yoga Poses

Here’s a short video on how you can practice yoga during your pregnancy! These poses can help you deal with the symptoms of pregnancy, ensuring smoother and easier delivery, and faster recovery after childbirth! Do take note that these poses that put pressure on the abdomen and other difficult poses should not be done during advance stages of pregnancy. To begin with, please be seated in a comfortable position.