Yogi Mama
Advice for a Healthy
and Happy Pregnancy
by Anne Ferris
flow and aids circulation, opens and strengthens the hips and midsection. It also strengthens your back and will tone and strengthen your legs and bum. You strengthen your arms for all the time you will spend holding your gorgeous baby. Perhaps even more importantly, accordingly to Hali, yoga creates a calm mind and an open heart. Through yoga practice you create body awareness, self-love and a deep connection to your baby through movement, sound and visualization.
Everyone has different thoughts on how much exercise is good during pregnancy. My view is to listen to your body. If you listen, your body will tell you what it needs. Trust your instincts. On the days when you feel the most tired and grumpy and literally have to drag yourself to class, that’s when you will find that you benefit the most. The workout is energizing and restorative, and the slow yogic breathing through your nose calms your nervous system, quiets your body and mind and is a great stress and pain reliever.
I highly recommend going to a prenatal yoga class before any other yoga class (even if you are in the first trimester). In prenatal yoga, you learn what poses you need to modify to accommodate your pregnancy and how to do that. Once you’ve done a few prenatal classes, you can try any other type of yoga if you feel up to it. In his book on pregnancy, ‘Magical Beginnings’, Deepak Chopra especially recommends the wide-knee child’s pose, pigeon pose and the yogi squat malasana (great hip openers) for pregnant women. Most twists are forbidden, open twists you can do with care. And forward bends must be done with the legs wide to accommodate the baby bump.
On sluggish days, I opt for a yin or a restorative class (think nap time with bolster pillows, ahhhhhh). Now in my second trimester, I find that I often crave a more vigorous vinyasa flow class. Just be careful and listen to your body in a more upbeat class and make sure to always tell your teacher that you are pregnant before class begins.
So to all you gorgeous mommies and moms-to-be: get up, get out and get fit and happy!