NJ's Premier Prenatal Yoga

May 14, 2011 - PRLog -- As a mother of a very active 6 year old, I feel confident sharing the benefits of prenatal yoga.  Prenatal yoga can assist you during your pregnancy, by easing some of the discomforts associated with pregnancy (low back pain, nausea, and fatigue), help ease your mind about the changes taking place in your life and give you the tools to assist you during your labor and delivery.  Prenatal yoga will also most importantly help you to begin building that special bond that only mother and child can share throughout a lifetime, which perhaps is the greatest gift of Motherhood.  The following is a more in-depth look at the benefits of this practice.

Yoga is a great exercise for every type of person.  Those who practice yoga can improve balance, strength, flexibility, and the mind/body connection.  The practice of yoga is welcoming for students at every level and every stage of life and holds benefits for expecting mothers as well.  Mothers-to-be will find that prenatal yoga can maintain strength and functioning during pregnancy which can ease the difficulty of labor and postpartum recovery.

As a former aerobics instructor (pre-yoga days) I can tell you that conventional exercises during pregnancy such as using the treadmill, abdominal strengthening exercises, or vigorous aerobic exercise classes can become uncomfortable or even dangerous as your belly grows and as your center of gravity shifts. A mother-to-be must be very aware of not overheating her body during pregnancy which can be extremely dangerous to the baby.  Another advantage of prenatal yoga is we are constantly checking in with ourselves, which is a wonderful way for an expecting mother to check in with her body and with her baby.  She must make sure that she feels well enough for exercise and become more in-tune physically with the presence of the baby as well.  When executed properly, prenatal yoga poses can conform to your growing belly and changing physiology perfectly.

One hour of intense focus or meditative concentration can help any student of yoga set aside the stresses and concerns of daily life.  It’s pretty easy to imagine how these relaxation techniques can assist a mother-to-be and benefit pregnancy.  Yoga helps relax the mind and from the stress of daily life which can not only benefit during pregnancy but also during the post-partum period which can be very stressful to new mothers. Prenatal yoga is a wonderful way to re-connect with the self which can be extremely important during this life changing event.

Breathing and meditation training can be an ace up your sleeve during labor and delivery, especially if your goal is to have a drug-free or "natural" labor and delivery.  Yoga movements can help to open hips and breathing can also help alter the pain perception during labor and delivery.  

A common concern of pregnant women is wondering if their abdominal muscles will ever be strong and look fit again.  Unfortunately, it is nearly impossible for your abdominal muscles not to be altered during pregnancy because the muscle wall actually starts to separate down the midline to accommodate the growing baby.  The good news is that yoga techniques can train and strengthen the deepest abdominal wall, the transversus abdominus (TA), which maintains strength through pregnancy and the recovery period.  The TA is like a mini corset that pulls in the abdomen, while the top layer of abdominal muscles, the rectus abdominus, sometimes forms the visible "six pack" of the abdomen.  Yoga and Pilates strengthen the deepest layers of muscles upon which top layers can then be strengthened.  The least useful exercise to reduce the "pooch" after pregnancy is sit-ups or crunches.  These exercises actually make your belly look bigger by strengthening the top layer of muscles only, and do little to train the TA.  It makes the most physiologic sense to strengthen the abdominal wall from deep layers to more superficial layers to most effectively to get back into pre-pregnancy shape.

One of the biggest complaints I had during my own pregnancy was that I could not find a comfortable sleeping position. Prenatal yoga addresses this, by teaching proper and comfortable positioning using the bolster (or even a few simple pillows from home) and blanket as props to the growing body.  The very positions you learn while practicing can be recreated in your bed which helps promote utmost relaxation and sound sleep.  Furthermore, yoga teaches you poses that can help relax the areas in your body which keep you up at night.  Prenatal yoga relaxes your mind through meditative techniques, such as deep breathing and calming the mind which can effectively stop images of strollers, cribs, and other baby accessories and allow you to drift comfortably to sleep.

When a woman practices yoga, she is always on a journey of exploration and of discovering her true self. Practicing yoga while pregnant is an especially gratifying experience; prenatal yoga can give a mother time to discover her deep, emotional bond with her baby even before he or she enters into the world.  This is a wonderful way to bond with baby, helping to create that beautiful gift of the inseparable bond of mother and child.

Wishing every mother-to-be the beautiful joys of motherhood….Namaste…Melissa

For more information please visit http://valleyyogafit.com/classes-nj/prenatal-yoga-new-jer...

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Valley YogaFit is a combination of exercise physiology and modern day Yoga serving Northern New Jersey. Specializing in Vinyasa Style "Flow" Yoga as well as Pre-Natal Yoga and Pilates all geared towards students in Montclair, Wayne, & Totowa areas of NJ.