Is Prenatal Yoga the Best Answer for Exercise During Pregnancy?

Pregnant patients often ask whether they should be exercising during their pregnancy. The answer is a resounding yes! But, we always follow that with a reminder that it’s very important to discuss exercising with your physician. There are certain medical conditions related to pregnancy which may not allow you to exercise, such as placenta previa, an incompetent cervix, history of preterm labor, severe hypertension, or a multiple pregnancy like triplets. If you don’t have any risk factors, then we are a big thumbs up on exercising during pregnancy.

In my opinion, the best pregnancy exercise is prenatal yoga. That’s because yoga helps you with three basic things that can influence pregnancy: flexibility, mental stability and focused breathing.

Prenatal yoga has countless proven benefits. It helps you with sleep, which most of my patients complain about. It increases muscle strength, relieves nerve compression that causes back pain and it improves overall cardiovascular performance which helps the baby grow more effectively. In addition to physical benefits, prenatal yoga helps with stress and anxiety. The key is finding an instructor that is well versed in these types of exercises.

As you probably know, there are many different kinds of yoga poses, but there are a few that have been found to be especially beneficial for pregnant women:

If you have the right prenatal yoga instructor, he or she may alter positions through the different trimesters of your pregnancy as your belly gets bigger. Prenatal yoga is a great exercise, and if you do it regularly it will bring a lot of balance into your pregnancy. It will definitely help you get ready for labor, as well as helping your body bounce back after the baby is born. Remember, take your time, make sure you give yourself a cool down period and keep yourself hydrated.

As always, if you have any questions about your health, or the health of your baby… please call us at 407.857.2502. We’re here to care for you and for your soon coming baby!