Millions of people all over the world have claimed the miraculous benefits of Yoga. Yoga has been used to treat major ailments like depression, obesity, and diabetes. A total body workout of yoga helps calm down the mind and gain control of your body.
Today, yoga is also widely used during pregnancy and there are numerous benefits of prenatal yoga. Prenatal yoga is a wonderful exercise for new moms-to-be and makes them prepare mentally for a healthy pregnancy, delivery, and beyond.
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Health Benefits of Prenatal Yoga
Yoga specifically targets certain areas of the woman’s body that is required during pregnancy. It effectively removes and improves certain pregnancy related health issues and complications. Listed below are some benefits of prenatal yoga
1 Helps develop strength and stamina
As months progress in pregnancy, the baby within the womb also grows in size. Hence more stamina and strength is required to carry the weight thereby battling fatigue. Yoga poses for pregnancy strengthens the arms, shoulders, back, hips, thighs, and legs.
2 Maintains balance
The balance in our body gets physically challenged as the baby grows from within the body. Due to changing levels of estrogen and progesterone, a pregnant woman is both emotionally and physically drained. Yoga helps bring back the balance in the body both emotionally and physically.
3 Relieves tension of the muscles
The growing baby puts more stress on various muscle groups in the body. Due to the growing size of our bellies, the lower back gets bent, hips get tighter, breasts increase in size, upper back and shoulders get stressed. Yoga helps relieve the tension and stress in these muscle groups, making you feel more energized.
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4 Helps in preparation of labour
During labour and delivery, you need to concentrate on her breathing technique. As you inhale, you take in the tension that is felt within the body due to contractions. As you exhale, you push out the tension. Yoga helps in practicing conscious breathing and masters the inhale-exhale process that should be done during labour and delivery.
5 Calms down the nervous system
In order for all the systems to function properly in pregnancy, the nervous system must be calm and function appropriately. Through deep breathing exercises practiced in prenatal yoga sessions, the nervous system goes into the parasympathetic mode. This induces relaxation and makes all the functions of the body function properly.
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6 Connection with the baby
The best benefit of prenatal yoga exercises is that it helps focus your attention on your body and growing baby within. By doing each pose and consciously focusing on your breathing technique, you are more aware of your body changes and develop a connection with the baby.
7 Improves circulation
Proper circulation is essential during pregnancy. Prenatal yoga exercises enhances circulation within the muscles and joints. Increased circulation reducing swelling inside the body and improves immunity. This creates a health environment for the growing baby.
8 Improves posture
One of the major things that get affected is your posture during pregnancy. Prenatal yoga poses involving sitting, standing, and lying down improves posture, and balance. Yoga also improves flexibility and strength in the body.
9 Tone pelvic floor muscles
The pelvic muscles face majority of strain due to the growing weight of the baby. Yoga kegel exercises focus on strengthening pelvic muscles and relieve the strain caused to these muscles due to increasing weight.
10 Improves sleep patterns
During pregnancy, your hormones are out of balance and your sleep patterns are disturbed. Inadequate sleep further increases fatigue and leaves you drained. One of the best remedies to improve sleep patterns is to perform prenatal yoga exercises. Good sleep boosts overall health and helps maintain a healthy pregnancy.
11 Reduces pregnancy complications
Disorders like high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, and intrauterine restriction is common during pregnancy. Prenatal yoga helps reduce the risk of developing these pregnancy related complications. There is also evidence that prenatal yoga exercises improve birth weight of baby and also reduces the risk of pre-term labour and delivery.
Becoming a mother is another re-birth for a woman. A woman requires endurance and patience to undergo the process of labour and delivery. Prenatal yoga poses helps you prepare to become a mother. It induces a positive effect in pregnancy, labour and delivery.
Prenatal yoga has different exercises for each trimester and is completely safe to perform. There are many types of yoga-some of which are more strain than others. Restorative yoga, hatha yoga, and prenatal yoga are the safest form of yoga techniques for pregnant women. By practicing prenatal yoga, you are not just taking care of yourself, but your baby too.
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References
http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/parenting/pregnancy/a26876/benefits-of-doing-pregnancy-yoga/
