Yoga can help you before, during, and after pregnancy. Yoga will help your mind be at ease and peaceful, relieving you of worries and stress. It can also keep you in shape. There’s no denying that you’ll put on some weight, but who says it has to be a bad thing, or a permanent thing? What’s best is, yoga works.
The proof is in the poses! Yoga can be traced back for thousands of years, with accounts of its great effects on the human body. The many different poses, (also referred to as asanas), that require different breathing techniques (AKA pranayamas). Each of these poses effects a different target area, to help improve function, vitality, and over-all energy. The end result of performing yoga regularly is that your entire being is more centered and harmonized.
During pregnancy, yoga can do more than keeping you looking healthy! With virtually no discomfort, yoga can be performed in a way that will help with the birthing and post-delivery aspects of pregnancy. Doing yoga can help you become more limber, which makes it easier to position yourself correctly when delivering your child, but it also stretches your ligaments, which will help to reduce your labor pains.
Stretching the correct way can help with your average mommy pains and aches. Not only that, but because your posture is corrected when doing certain poses, your back problems will decrease. Yoga also continues to have wonderful effects after your pregnancy, too. Postnatal yoga, which can typically be started around 6 weeks after birth, will help to strengthen your abdominal muscles as well as the pelvic floor. This sort of yoga will also decrease the time it takes you to get your pre-pregnancy body back!
Even if you’ve practiced yoga in the past, consult your instructor before starting new poses. If you’ve never done yoga before, I highly recommend that you start out taking yoga classes to properly learn how to do the poses under certified supervision. It’s fine if you want to practice in the comfort of your own home, but only AFTER your doctor has approved it, and your instructor has shown you how. However, if you are well practiced in yoga and feel confident enough, there are several books and DVDs that you can acquire to start practicing. Just remember, please, to always ask your instructor and doctor first! Pain or nausea while performing pregnant yoga is NOT normal. Stop and see a doctor immediately if this happens.

Remember, your new body is precisely that – NEW. You can’t waste time wishing that you still had your abs, or thinking about how you used to be able to do this pose or that pose. Practicing yoga is all about listening to your body, exploring it, and learning what it can do. You have to practice with the new post-pregnancy body, not the one you had 9 months ago.

If you’re uncomfortable with the way your new breasts feel when you lie on your stomach, ask your instructor if there’s an alternative or similar pose, or simply take a break. Breastfeeding is hard enough without the extra torment of having them squished!

As you know by now, you and your newborn are inseparable, but it will do you a ton of good if you can get someone you trust to watch your baby for a couple of hours while you get away for a little yoga. It will be so revitalizing both to your mind and body. Make sure that you inform your instructor that you’ve just had a baby. This is very important!

If you like, you don’t have to take your classes solo! There are actually quite a few baby-mommy classes available.