Yoga, an ancient Indian discipline that allows its practitioners to achieve a spiritual balance between the mind and the body, is also beneficial for expectant mothers. Pregnancy and yoga go well together. Yoga exercises for pregnancy aim to open up a woman’s pelvis so that the birthing process becomes easier. There are a lot of poses in yoga which are specifically designed to have a beneficial effect on a woman’s health. These exercises for pregnancy not only stretch your body in a gentle fashion, but also help you to maintain your ideal weight during and after your pregnancy while keeping you healthy and active.
Since exercises in pregnancy should be gentle, so that you don’t injure yourself or your baby, yoga offers an extremely gentle and useful workout. Pregnancy exercises in yoga are drawn from the various branches and disciplines of Yoga.
Yoga exercises are especially beneficial for reducing the swelling due to water retention, an irritant which is often experienced by pregnant women. Apart from that, cramping, which is another common symptom of pregnancy, can also be prevented by the regular practice of yoga.
Sometimes, when the baby is not able to position itself correctly for birth, pregnancy yoga exercises can help reposition the baby by turning it inside the womb of the mother. This can prevent complications and C-sections at the time of birth.
Yoga has other health benefits like strengthening of the muscles and joints. The abdomen gets massaged with the help yoga. If you practice yoga during pregnancy, you won’t even have to worry about your appetite or your bowel movements. With the help of yoga, you can increase your stamina, raise the general energy levels, and restore your metabolism to pre-pregnancy levels.
Since yoga is a spiritual discipline, the exercises also help you to strike a balance between your body and mind, helping you keep calm and focused. If you are under a lot of stress regarding the impending birth of your baby, you can relieve this stress and tension, expanding the tensed birth canal. Discomfort in other areas of body, especially the lower back which is stressed due to carrying so much weight, can also be eased using yoga.
Keeping in mind its many yoga benefits for women, it is not only recommended during pregnancy but also as an integral part after the delivery. Post natal yoga is a fast catching concept that helps mothers restore the size and strength of their uterus, pelvic floor and abdomen.
