Pregnancy yoga has advantages for both the mother and the unborn child. Breathing exercises and mild stretching are the main components of prenatal yoga.
You will become more adaptable and be more prepared for work as a result of these lessons.
Describing pregnancy yoga
For pregnant women, there is a special form of yoga called pregnancy yoga. Emotional, psychological, bodily, and spiritual levels are all meant to be balanced through yoga.
Pregnancy yoga aims to calm the body and concentrate on secure positions and methods at all phases of pregnancy to help you become ready for childbirth.
Not just during the length of your pregnancy, yoga can enhance your physical and mental wellness. Before beginning any prenatal yoga lessons, it is best to speak with your doctor if you hadn’t practiced yoga prior to becoming pregnant.
Supports the Changes in Your Body
Our bodies undergo constant change. However, during pregnancy, the body goes through “an intensified speed of change, and requires assistance adapting and making up for it.
“By giving women healthy, safe techniques for stretching their muscles and strengthening their bodies, especially their lower bodies, to make it easier to support a developing belly, pregnancy yoga is developed to facilitate the changes that occur in a pregnant body.
Strengthens Key Muscle Groups
In order to prepare the physical body for labour, pregnancy yoga tones the pelvic floor, hip, as well as abdominal muscles in particular.
A muscle that is correctly toned does have the ideal length-to-strength ratio; it is neither excessively loose nor too stiff.
Yoga movements including lunges and modest backbends may help reduce pregnancy-related aches and pains while also maintaining muscular tone, which is essential for returning your body to its pre-pregnancy state following delivery.
Prepares for childbirth and labour
Teaching pregnant women “they can believe that their bodies can open” up for labour and delivery is a primary emphasis in prenatal yoga programmes.
Fear causes us to stiffen up, which sets off a “fear-tension-pain cycle.
” This can undermine a woman’s efforts to maintain her composure and composure during labour, especially if she intends to give birth naturally without the use of any painkillers.
As the body begins to stretch and relax, trying to link with yogic techniques of deep, mindful breathing can assist women in reaching a “mammalian state,” where they can allow their bodies to perform what they naturally already know how to accomplish. give birth.
Addresses Common Pregnancy Complaints
If you’re experiencing typical pregnant aches and pains including lower back pain, insomnia, morning sickness, shortness of breath, headaches, even carpal tunnel syndrome, pregnancy yoga may be the answer to your problems.
It is possible to promote healthy circulation of blood around the body by flexing and training your muscles. Additionally, deep breathing can help your muscles and your baby get the oxygen they both need.
Although not all symptoms are sure to go away completely, yoga’s holistic approach to emotional and physical well-being can help your body deal with the undesirable side effects of pregnancy.
Ensures a healthier pregnancy for you
It should come as no surprise that studies have shown that healthy mothers are more likely to bear healthy babies.
In fact, a 2012 study showed that pregnant women who frequently practiced yoga had a lower risk of preterm labour and low-birthweight deliveries.
Helps You Make Friends With Mothers Who Share Your Views
Pregnancy yoga can be a terrific way to meet other expectant mothers and form a community with them. “The session will become a pregnancy support network of sorts, where ladies interact with other women who are facing the same decisions and lifestyle adjustments,” says one pro of the practice.
Making new acquaintances during your pregnancy might help you feel more at ease physically, as well as reduce your back discomfort and anxiety about becoming a mother.
Considerations for Safety
When exercise and movement are excellent strategies to stay healthy while pregnant, straining yourself excessively hard might have the opposite effect. You and your unborn child may be in danger from several stances and exercises.
Certain forms of yoga should be avoided during pregnancy. Due to the possibility of neural tube abnormalities brought on by intense heat, hot yoga can be risky.
Additionally, avoid bending and twisting. These motions can throw you off balance and make you more likely to fall. Poses that exert a lot of strain on your abdomen might also be harmful to your unborn child.
Some ideal yoga poses for pregnant women
Cat/Cow pose
This simple series of motions extends the spine and lets your tummy hang, which might help you decompress.
It can also assist in repositioning the baby for ideal delivery.
To get the most out of these positions, breathe in and let your abdominal expand when you perform the cow stretch, then exhale and let your abdomen compress when you do the cat pose.
Balancing table pose
Extend the right leg backward behind you while on all fours, reach the left arm ahead, stay for three to five breaths, and then switch.
This pose is beneficial for strengthening the abdominal muscles that will be crucial during labour because it requires core stability to stay balanced.
Bound angle pose
When in baddha konasana, also known as bound angle position, focus on maintaining proper posture and taking deep breaths.
You can indeed massage your own calves and feet to increase circulation and lessen the strain from carrying extra weight.
Garland pose
Step out slightly wider over hip-width from Mountain Pose with hands in the centre and turn your toes out at an angle of 45 degrees.
Squat till your hips are almost off the ground.
Under ischial tuberosities (sit bones), you can add a block or many folded blankets for stability. This is particularly useful if your heels are difficult to contact the floor when you are in a deep squat.
Conclusion
Even if you were active before to becoming pregnant, you must still consult your doctor before starting any prenatal yoga exercises.
Keep an eye out for symptoms such as intense discomfort during specific movements, decreased foetal activity or vaginal bleeding.
Bring yourself gently back to a relaxed place if a move or posture is uncomfortable.
