5 Yoga Movements for Pregnant Women at Home - Prenatal Yoga
Like yoga? During pregnancy, prenatal yoga is good to do and provides benefits. However, citing the Yoga Journal, experts agree on some conditions for practising yoga during pregnancy.
First, if you have never practised yoga or practised very little before pregnancy, you should only practice prenatal yoga while pregnant.
If you already had a strong yoga practise before pregnancy, you may be able to continue with a moderately vigorous procedure with modifications and beyond the first trimester.
Here are five yoga moves for pregnant women at home:
1. Cat/Cow Pose
This pose helps relieve any tension or discomfort in your back and takes the weight off your tummy that feels so good during pregnancy.
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| Prenatal yoga - Yoga positions in Cow Pose |
The trick starts with a crawling pose, knees hip-width apart, hands spread shoulder-width apart on the mat. Inhale and look up, allowing your back to move naturally. On exhaling, the spine is rounded, and the head is lowered.
2. Extended Child's Pose
A child's pose is a pose that gives a gentle stretch through the hips, lower back, shoulders, and arms. The trick is to sit with your knees slightly wider than your hips. Lean forward slowly. Make sure you are breathing and not holding your breath while doing the pose.
3. Standing Hip Circles
The standing hip/torso circles will help relieve lower back discomfort and hip pain. This is also a great stance to practice during labour as it encourages the baby to descend into the pelvis.
How? Stand with your feet about hip-width apart. Place your hands on your hips and bend your knees slightly. Move your hips to the right, then roll back, left, and then forward. Continue rolling in one direction ten times, then move in the opposite direction.
4. Warrior
Warrior pose helps focus the mind on the breath and inner strength, which is helpful during labour. To do this:
- Stand with your feet hip-width apart with your hands on your hips.
- While breathing, step your right foot back.
- Make sure your right toes point at a 45-degree angle toward the long side of the mat, your left toes straight ahead.
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| Prenatal Yoga - Woman doing yoga warrior II pose during sunset |
Inhale and lift your arms, palms facing down. Exhale forward, bending the left knee. Extend left arm forward, right arm back. Keep the body in the center. Let the shoulders relax. Look at your front fingers; feel strong. Inhale to straighten your legs, exhale to release your arms. Repeat on the other side from the beginning.
5. Seated Squat
This pose helps to open the hips, tightens the perineum, and creates space in the womb for the baby. This is a great pose to do in the last few weeks of pregnancy.
The trick, squat with bent knees, lower back, and feet as wide as the mat; feet face out. Put the weight on the legs. Keep your back straight and put your hands on your chest in a prayer position. Mothers can use props such as blocks/bricks under the buttocks or folded blankets.