Pregnancy is a beautiful time but has its share of pains and aches. You might often find out that your body is aching in new places. To have a highly comfortable pregnancy period, what can you do? Exercise. You might feel tired, but it is vital for you and your baby. You often feel like doing nothing, but do you know that your body achieves excellent benefit when you take time to move your body? But that does not mean that you will start a marathon, but it means trying and remaining active throughout the day.
Yoga is one of the most significant physical activities because anybody can do it anywhere without equipment. Yoga is safe and efficient for pregnant women as it is an entirely mind-body exercise that makes you clear-headed, relaxing, and open-minded.
Some poses of yoga are beneficial for pregnant women, known as prenatal yoga. These poses will benefit your body physically and offer mental clarity. It becomes like an outlet to release all anxiety and tension that you might be holding. All expecting moms who practice prenatal yoga have significantly less chance of suffering from prenatal disorders. Yoga helps in preparing your body for delivery and labour.
Here are some of the yoga poses that are best for pregnant women that are taught in the yoga school of Rishikesh.
Ukatasana or chair pose:
This yoga pose helps strengthen the thigh and the pelvic muscles. All you require is taking a position like you are sitting in a chair and balancing.
Bhadrasana or Butterfly pose:
This yoga pose helps relax and stretch your painful thighs, enhances flexibility, and assists in opening up your thighs and hips. It relieves stress and tiredness and makes your digestive and reproductive organs energetic. It also helps in easing all pains of natural birth.
Malasana or yoga squat:
This yoga pose is best for tight hips or the pelvic areas and assists in opening them for preparing for childbirth. This yoga pose is very easy, and you can practice it anywhere. Start this yoga pose by keeping your feet shoulder-width apart and pointing a little in an outward direction. Keep your hands in a prayer position, and then lower down until you can use your elbows to push your knees away from each other. Hold on for a few breaths while focusing on slow and consistent breaths.
Vajrayana or twisted pose:
At first, sit erect, keeping your feet extended in front. Start inhaling while you raise your arms at shoulder level with your palms facing downward. Now exhale while twisting your body towards the right side, keeping your head and hand to one side. Then again, inhale and come back to your original position. Repeat this one on the other side. Doing this yoga exercises your spine, hands, neck, and legs. In addition, your abdominal organs are massaged a bit.
Sukhasana or Easy pose:
Meditation is an integral part of yoga, so practicing this pose is good for you to focus on it. Initiate in a seated position, with your legs crossed and your hands resting on your knees. If you have a yoga mat for this pose, you will feel more comfortable. Playing soothing music or looking for a quiet place outside for practicing is a bonus.
Cat or cow pose:
If you suffer from back pain, this movement helps stretch the spine and allows your belly to hand, easing tension. This also assists in moving the body into an ideal position at birth. Tart on your yoga mat, down on all fours, and alter between two poses. Initiate by breathing in while you lower your belly in a downward direction and heal and tailbone in an upward direction. While exhaling, drop your head and neck in a downward direction and keep your spine curved, dropping your tailbone in a downward direction. Altering between these two yoga poses helps you feel great for the spine and helps maintain flexibility.
Balasana or child pose:
This yoga pose works wonders for your spine, legs, hips, and back. Start this yoga pose by kneeling on your yoga mat, keeping your feet together and knees wide apart. Support your body while you fold in the forward direction and position your upper body on the mat. You can hold on here as long as you love to. If you find out that the stretch is more on your shoulders, you can move your hands to your side in a child pose.
Nutrition diet during pregnancy
Whatever a woman consumes at the time of pregnancy is her baby’s primary source of nourishment. Therefore, it’s essential to include a lot of healthy food and drinks to give your baby vital nutrients for their growth and development.
Some of the essential nutrients that pregnant women need are
- Vitamin B9 also called folate or folic acid, assists your body in metabolizing proteins and helps your body grow red blood cells. This is also important during periods of growth, like children are in their growth spurt or women who are pregnant. Even though you can get this from some food sources like leafy greens, fruit juices, and eggs, many experts have found that your body benefits greatly from folic acid supplements.
- Protein: Protein plays a significant role in building up muscles in your body and assists in providing energy all through the day. Protein is a combination of several building blocks known as amino acids. Your body cannot make it on its own, and it depends on you to add them to your diet. Many people consume protein shakes because they struggle to meet their protein requirement, which is very high for pregnant women. You can get protein by eating high-protein foods like whole nuts, Greek yogurt, milk, etc.
- Calcium: It is known to everyone that calcium helps build strong bones and teeth. Therefore, women need more of these nutrients for a fit baby. You can obtain the required calcium by drinking milk and eating leafy vegetables like broccoli, kale, collard greens, etc. A high amount of calcium is also found in acorns and butternut.
- Iron: Some women might be familiar with the requirement of taking iron supplements as women are more prone to suffer from low levels of iron than men. You can have a diet that includes iron-rich cereals and offers a consistent source of iron. When you introduce foods that are rich in iron, it is an excellent way to eat healthily and offers your body what it requires. Some iron-rich foods are green leafy vegetables, seafood, whole grains, and eggs.
So, prenatal yoga, along with nutrition-rich foods during pregnancy, helps in growing a healthy baby. But it’s essential to consult a doctor to know about your limitations. Knowing about yoga during pregnancy, a yoga teacher with a minimum 200 hour yoga teacher training certification can assist you in giving necessary advice and guidelines.