Yoga with Ingela in Ross Pregnancy Yoga
Yoga in Pregnancy-
The following information has been compiled using various sources, including the Internet. It is by no means meant to override any advice given by your doctor. My knowledge and experience is based on a Yoga Teaching qualification (which included a general study of Anatomy and Physiology), but I am not medically trained. I will cover several “hot topics” and attempt to answer some questions that you might have now that you are expecting the most exciting event of your life! As you progress late into the second or third trimester, it might be advisable to join a prenatal yoga class where you can meet other Mums-to-be to share your experience. Just don’t forget to come back to my regular classes once you’ have recovered from the birth (usually 6 weeks after birth or whenever your GP gives you the go-ahead). Always discuss any exercise program with your GP first!
1) Is it safe to practice yoga during pregnancy?
Yes! Yoga can be very beneficial during pregnancy, as long as you take certain precautions. Yoga helps you breathe and relax, which in turn can help you adjust to the physical demands of pregnancy, labour, birth, and motherhood. It calms both mind and body, providing the physical and emotional stress relief your body needs throughout pregnancy.
Here are some recommended guidelines:
- If you're attending a regular yoga class (one not specifically geared to pregnant women), be sure to tell the instructor you're pregnant, and which trimester you're in.
- Don't do any asanas (poses) on your back after the first trimester – they can reduce blood flow to the uterus.
- Avoid poses that stretch the muscles too much, particularly the abdominal muscles. You're more at risk for strains, pulls, and other injuries right now because the pregnancy hormone Relaxin, which allows the uterus to expand, also softens connective tissue.
- From the second trimester on, when your centre of gravity really starts to shift, do any standing poses with your heel to the wall or use a chair for support. This is to avoid losing your balance and risking injury to yourself or your baby.
- Steer clear of Bikram or "hot" yoga – or working out in an overheated room. Overheating can endanger the health of your growing baby, according to studies.
- When bending forward, hinge from the hips, leading with the breastbone and extending the spine from the crown of the head down to the tailbone. This allows more space for the ribs to move, which makes breathing easier.
- Keep the pelvis in a neutral position during poses by engaging the abdominals and slightly tucking the tailbone down and in. This helps relax the muscles of your buttocks (your glutes) and the hip flexors, which can help reduce or prevent sciatic pain down the back of the leg, a common side effect of pregnancy. It also helps prevent injury to the connective tissue that stabilises your pelvis.
- If you're bending forward while seated, place a towel or yoga strap behind your feet and hold both ends. Bend from the hips and lift the chest, to avoid compressing your abdomen. If your belly is too big for this movement, try placing a rolled-up towel or a yoga block under your buttocks to elevate the body, and open the legs about hip-width apart, to give your belly more room to come forward.
- When practicing twisting poses, twist more from the shoulders and back than from the waist, to avoid putting any pressure on your abdomen. Go only as far in the twist as feels comfortable – deep twists are not advisable in pregnancy.
- Listen carefully to your body. If you feel any discomfort, stop. You'll probably need to modify each pose as your body changes. A good instructor can help you customize your yoga to suit the stage of pregnancy you're in.
In general, these poses are safe in pregnancy:
- Butterfly stretch
- Cat-Cow
- Cobra (in the first trimester, if you feel comfortable doing this face-down pose.
- Seated forward bend (with modifications as described above)
- Side angle pose
- Standing forward bend (with chair for modification)
- Triangle pose (with wall or chair for modification)
Avoid these poses:
- Backbends
- Balancing poses on one leg (unless supported by chair or wall)
- Camel
- Handstands
- Headstands
- Upward bow
The following information comes from http://yoga.about.com/ and provides some really helpful guidelines regarding yoga and pregnancy.
DOs
Hip Openers: Poses like pigeon, warrior II, triangle, ardha chandrasana (half-moon), baddha konasana (bound angle pose), and knee to ankle will help create the flexibility that can make giving birth easier.
Side Stretches: Gate pose and variations on side plank, among other side stretches, feel particularly good when your abdomen starts to feel overcrowded.
All Fours: Positions like cat - cow help get the baby into the optimal position for birth (head down, back to your belly). This pose can sometimes be used to try and turn a breech baby in later pregnancy, if recommended by your prenatal care provider.
Standing Poses: As your belly grows, begin to widen your stance in standing poses. Take your feet at least hip-distance apart to make room for your bump, especially if you are bending forward.
DON'Ts
Over-stretch: The body produces a hormone throughout pregnancy called relaxin, which is intended to soften your inflexible parts (like bones and ligaments) to make room for the baby and prepare for birth. This softening of the ligaments can make them vulnerable to over-stretching. Try to avoid going further into poses than you are accustomed because a pulled ligament is a serious injury that takes a long time to heal. Be especially aware of your knees.
Twists: Deep twists from the belly, such as ardha matsyendrasana (half-fish pose), compress the internal organs, including the uterus. Instead, twist more gently from the shoulders, or take an open twist, which means twisting away from your forward leg so that your belly has a lot of room instead of getting squashed.
Jumps: Jumps pose a slight risk of dislodging the fertilized egg from the uterus and should be avoided early in pregnancy. Later on, you probably will not feel like jumping.
Fast Breathing: Any pranayama requiring breath retention or rapid inhales and exhales (such as Kapalabhati) should be avoided. Begin to practice birthing breath instead. This technique has a direct application to the birthing process. Learning to focus on the breath and use it to keep you anchored in the present moment may be the most useful thing you learn from prenatal yoga.
Inversions: Turning yourself upside down doesn't pose any inherent risk to your baby, but you want to avoid falling. If you are not super comfortable with inversions, this is not the time to work on them. More experienced yogis with established inversion practices can make the call on which inversions to do, but should be mindful that the expansion of the belly changes your balance. Use the wall or avoid inversions if you don’t feel like doing them. You can always substitute legs up the wall in a class setting.
Backbending: In general, avoid deep backbends, like full wheel pose. If you performed this pose easily before the pregnancy, you may continue to do it in the first trimester if it feels good to you.
Abdominal work: Poses that are abdominal ‘strengtheners’, such as navasana (boat pose), should be avoided. Softening the abs a bit allows them to stretch more readily, which may help you avoid conditions like diastasis recti.
Lying on the Belly: Poses in which you lie on the belly, such as cobra, can be practiced in the first trimester as the foetus is still very small. Later in pregnancy, these poses should be avoided, and can be discontinued at any time if they cause any discomfort.
Lying on the Back: In your second trimester, your doctor may advise against lying on your back for long periods, even encouraging you to sleep on your side. You can start doing Savasana lying on your left side as early in your pregnancy as you like. You may want to use blankets or bolsters for support to make yourself comfortable. If you eventually cannot get comfortable lying down, you can also sit up in a cross-legged position.
Practice safely and if in doubt- ask!
The following information has been compiled using various sources, including the Internet. It is by no means meant to override any advice given by your doctor. My knowledge and experience is based on a Yoga Teaching qualification (which included a general study of Anatomy and Physiology), but I am not medically trained. I will cover several “hot topics” and attempt to answer some questions that you might have now that you are expecting the most exciting event of your life! As you progress late into the second or third trimester, it might be advisable to join a prenatal yoga class where you can meet other Mums-to-be to share your experience. Just don’t forget to come back to my regular classes once you’ have recovered from the birth (usually 6 weeks after birth or whenever your GP gives you the go-ahead). Always discuss any exercise program with your GP first!
1) Is it safe to practice yoga during pregnancy?
Yes! Yoga can be very beneficial during pregnancy, as long as you take certain precautions. Yoga helps you breathe and relax, which in turn can help you adjust to the physical demands of pregnancy, labour, birth, and motherhood. It calms both mind and body, providing the physical and emotional stress relief your body needs throughout pregnancy.
Here are some recommended guidelines:
- If you're attending a regular yoga class (one not specifically geared to pregnant women), be sure to tell the instructor you're pregnant, and which trimester you're in.
- Don't do any asanas (poses) on your back after the first trimester – they can reduce blood flow to the uterus.
- Avoid poses that stretch the muscles too much, particularly the abdominal muscles. You're more at risk for strains, pulls, and other injuries right now because the pregnancy hormone Relaxin, which allows the uterus to expand, also softens connective tissue.
- From the second trimester on, when your centre of gravity really starts to shift, do any standing poses with your heel to the wall or use a chair for support. This is to avoid losing your balance and risking injury to yourself or your baby.
- Steer clear of Bikram or "hot" yoga – or working out in an overheated room. Overheating can endanger the health of your growing baby, according to studies.
- When bending forward, hinge from the hips, leading with the breastbone and extending the spine from the crown of the head down to the tailbone. This allows more space for the ribs to move, which makes breathing easier.
- Keep the pelvis in a neutral position during poses by engaging the abdominals and slightly tucking the tailbone down and in. This helps relax the muscles of your buttocks (your glutes) and the hip flexors, which can help reduce or prevent sciatic pain down the back of the leg, a common side effect of pregnancy. It also helps prevent injury to the connective tissue that stabilises your pelvis.
- If you're bending forward while seated, place a towel or yoga strap behind your feet and hold both ends. Bend from the hips and lift the chest, to avoid compressing your abdomen. If your belly is too big for this movement, try placing a rolled-up towel or a yoga block under your buttocks to elevate the body, and open the legs about hip-width apart, to give your belly more room to come forward.
- When practicing twisting poses, twist more from the shoulders and back than from the waist, to avoid putting any pressure on your abdomen. Go only as far in the twist as feels comfortable – deep twists are not advisable in pregnancy.
- Listen carefully to your body. If you feel any discomfort, stop. You'll probably need to modify each pose as your body changes. A good instructor can help you customize your yoga to suit the stage of pregnancy you're in.
In general, these poses are safe in pregnancy:
- Butterfly stretch
- Cat-Cow
- Cobra (in the first trimester, if you feel comfortable doing this face-down pose.
- Seated forward bend (with modifications as described above)
- Side angle pose
- Standing forward bend (with chair for modification)
- Triangle pose (with wall or chair for modification)
Avoid these poses:
- Backbends
- Balancing poses on one leg (unless supported by chair or wall)
- Camel
- Handstands
- Headstands
- Upward bow
The following information comes from http://yoga.about.com/ and provides some really helpful guidelines regarding yoga and pregnancy.
DOs
Hip Openers: Poses like pigeon, warrior II, triangle, ardha chandrasana (half-moon), baddha konasana (bound angle pose), and knee to ankle will help create the flexibility that can make giving birth easier.
Side Stretches: Gate pose and variations on side plank, among other side stretches, feel particularly good when your abdomen starts to feel overcrowded.
All Fours: Positions like cat - cow help get the baby into the optimal position for birth (head down, back to your belly). This pose can sometimes be used to try and turn a breech baby in later pregnancy, if recommended by your prenatal care provider.
Standing Poses: As your belly grows, begin to widen your stance in standing poses. Take your feet at least hip-distance apart to make room for your bump, especially if you are bending forward.
DON'Ts
Over-stretch: The body produces a hormone throughout pregnancy called relaxin, which is intended to soften your inflexible parts (like bones and ligaments) to make room for the baby and prepare for birth. This softening of the ligaments can make them vulnerable to over-stretching. Try to avoid going further into poses than you are accustomed because a pulled ligament is a serious injury that takes a long time to heal. Be especially aware of your knees.
Twists: Deep twists from the belly, such as ardha matsyendrasana (half-fish pose), compress the internal organs, including the uterus. Instead, twist more gently from the shoulders, or take an open twist, which means twisting away from your forward leg so that your belly has a lot of room instead of getting squashed.
Jumps: Jumps pose a slight risk of dislodging the fertilized egg from the uterus and should be avoided early in pregnancy. Later on, you probably will not feel like jumping.
Fast Breathing: Any pranayama requiring breath retention or rapid inhales and exhales (such as Kapalabhati) should be avoided. Begin to practice birthing breath instead. This technique has a direct application to the birthing process. Learning to focus on the breath and use it to keep you anchored in the present moment may be the most useful thing you learn from prenatal yoga.
Inversions: Turning yourself upside down doesn't pose any inherent risk to your baby, but you want to avoid falling. If you are not super comfortable with inversions, this is not the time to work on them. More experienced yogis with established inversion practices can make the call on which inversions to do, but should be mindful that the expansion of the belly changes your balance. Use the wall or avoid inversions if you don’t feel like doing them. You can always substitute legs up the wall in a class setting.
Backbending: In general, avoid deep backbends, like full wheel pose. If you performed this pose easily before the pregnancy, you may continue to do it in the first trimester if it feels good to you.
Abdominal work: Poses that are abdominal ‘strengtheners’, such as navasana (boat pose), should be avoided. Softening the abs a bit allows them to stretch more readily, which may help you avoid conditions like diastasis recti.
Lying on the Belly: Poses in which you lie on the belly, such as cobra, can be practiced in the first trimester as the foetus is still very small. Later in pregnancy, these poses should be avoided, and can be discontinued at any time if they cause any discomfort.
Lying on the Back: In your second trimester, your doctor may advise against lying on your back for long periods, even encouraging you to sleep on your side. You can start doing Savasana lying on your left side as early in your pregnancy as you like. You may want to use blankets or bolsters for support to make yourself comfortable. If you eventually cannot get comfortable lying down, you can also sit up in a cross-legged position.
Practice safely and if in doubt- ask!