Baltimore News Journal

Yoga-A blessing for pregnant women

The advantages of yoga are world famous. Due to these advantages, this holistic way of exercising is being practiced all over the world. It helps in relaxation and breathing in a normal manner. If pregnant women use this technique during different stages of their pregnancy, they can derive a lot of benefits. It helps them to relax, breathe easy and stay stress free. You must be wondering how yoga can prove to be beneficial. We all know that a pregnant woman has to undergo a lot of changes, not only physical changes but also psychological ones. A woman has to come to terms with her pregnancy, then deal with a variety of challenges like morning sickness, nausea, bloating, weight gain, lack of sleep, labor, birth of the child and then motherhood. Practicing yoga can help her keep her mind as well as body calm and relaxed. Emotional stress and physical stress can be avoided to a considerable extent this way.

Best Poses for Prenatal Yoga During Pregnancy

These days, prenatal yoga classes are gaining quite a lot of popularity among pregnant women who wish to sail through the demanding days of their pregnancy and enjoy good health for the entire term. This class also offers an opportunity to meet other women who are going through the same stage of life. Exchanging notes help them to feel relaxed. Yoga for pregnancy has several benefits. Some of the best poses for prenatal yoga during pregnancy proves to be quite beneficial during early stages of pregnancy are-

Butterfly stretch

Since this yoga pose helps in stretching of upper legs and groin area, it is considered to be very beneficial for moms-to-be. The muscles get toned and it is very helpful during labor time.

Dog and cat pose

This pose helps in easing pain in the lower back. This helps in relieving muscle of the back, which helps with pain and discomfort reduction.

Tree pose

This yoga move helps in stretching back and thighs. The muscles of this region get toned and help in easy labor and delivery. The person also learns to balance which also helps.

Triangle pose

Entire body gets a proper stretch through this famous yoga move. This also makes women relaxed and stress free. This yoga pose may be repeated by pregnanct woman as it will help them to prepare their body for natural delivery.

While doing these yoga exercises, certain precautions must be taken

# Make sure to attend a prenatal yoga class. In case, you are attending a regular yoga class, tell your instructor about your pregnancy.

# Difficult and complicated yoga exercises that put pressure on your belly must be avoided.

# Any poses or asanas which are done on your back must be avoided once you have completed first three months of your pregnancy. This is because the flow of blood to the uterus may get reduced.

# Extra stretching must be avoided in any case, particularly the abdominal muscles as it may have a detrimental impact on the growing baby. Avoid strenuous poses as it may result in muscle pull, strains or any other injuries. Taking care of all these precautions will help you to enjoy yoga activities without any negative impacts on the baby.

Yoga for post pregnancy

Becoming a mom is truly a blissful feeling. Though, the enjoyment and the pleasure of holding your bundle of joy cannot be explained in words, another issue that crops up is excess baggage carried by women right after delivering a baby. Shedding this excess baggage is important not only for their health, but also for their psychological well being. Women wish to revert to their old self without wasting any time and certain yoga for post pregnancy can help them in this endeavor.

Indulging in yoga right after delivery will help new moms to tone up their loose muscles. The stomach and core muscles that become flabby during pregnancy gets strengthened once again. As the muscles get toned, the women regain their self confidence. Their sex lives come back to normalcy, which is a great confidence booster for them. Some yoga moves that would prove to be highly beneficial for them are-

Kegel Exercises

In this exercise, the pelvic floor muscles are squeezed tightly and hold on for a count of five and released. This exercise can be done several times through the day. It will help in tightening of the loose pelvic muscles.

Supta Baddha Konasana

This is basically a restorative pose wherein the woman needs to lie on her back with the foot bottom joined together and knees opened sideways. For support, pillows and blankets can be used beneath the knees.

While doing these yoga exercises, it is very important for the mom to be very careful as the postpartum body is quite delicate. Getting back into shape may take longer than expected.

Yoga for weight loss after Pregnancy

Yoga brings about harmony within body and soul and this is the reason, many women try yogic moves after pregnancy to get back into shape and also reduces excess weight. Yoga for weight loss after pregnancy can help women shed this weight, which was welcomed during the pregnancy months is very difficult to shed after delivering a baby. Yoga can help a lot in this regard. After starting yoga, one must not expect any miracles as a loose body takes a little while to get back into shape. Initially, the body will lose inches and women will get back their long lost curves. After some time, she will start losing weight. The excess weight of the belly and stomach region will be lost and the core muscles with become hard and toned up.

Plank Vinyasa

In this exercise, one needs to get on her fours. The wrists must be placed on the floor, while lowering onto the forearms. For support, a woman can make use of pillows or a blanket folded under the wrists. It increases strength and stamina.

Exercises like Locust Pose, pelvic tilts, legs wide pose, and scissors exercise can help a woman to shed weight after delivery.

Yoga is an age old practice and has been rendering a lot of advantages and benefits to ensure excellent health and general well being and this applies to women enjoying parenthood.