Pregnancy comes with its own set of physical, emotional and mental challenges. To make your pregnancy journey easy, you must do yoga. Don't forget to try these yogic breathing exercises during pregnancy. To help your body remain flexible and to alleviate pain, try these yoga asanas as recommended by Mayur Karthik, senior yoga instructor at Sri Sri School of Yoga.
Marjariasana (Keeps the spine flexible)
Come on your fours. Form a table such that your back forms the table top and your hands and feet form the legs of the table.
Keep your arms perpendicular to the floor, with the hands directly under the shoulders and flat on the ground; your knees are hip-width apart.
Look straight ahead.
As you inhale, raise your chin and tilt your head back, push your navel downwards and raise your tailbone. Compress your buttocks. Do you feel a slight tingle here?
Hold the Cat pose and take long, deep breaths.
Follow this by a counter movement: As you exhale, drop your chin to your chest and arch your back up as much as you can; relax the buttocks.
Hold this pose for a few seconds before you return to the initial table-like stage.
Continue five or six rounds before you come out of this yoga posture.
Tip: When you do the movement slowly and gracefully, its effect is more powerful and meditative.
Konasana (Helps alleviate constipation)
Stand straight with feet about hip-width distance apart and arms alongside the body.
Breathe in and raise the left arm up so that the fingers point towards the ceiling.
Breathe out and bend to the right, first from the spine, and then move your pelvis to the left and bend a little more. Keep your left arm pointing up.
Turn your head to look up at the left palm. Straighten
the elbows.
Breathing in, straighten your body back up.
Breathing out, bring the left arm down.
Repeat with the right arm.
Veerabhadrasana (Improves balance and stamina)
Stand straight with your legs wide apart by a distance of at least 3-4 feet.
Turn your right foot out by 90 degrees and left foot in by about 15 degrees.
Checkpoint: Is the heel of the right foot aligned to the centre of the left foot?
Lift both arms sideways to shoulder height with your palms facing upwards.
Checkpoint: Are your arms parallel to the ground?
Breathing out, bend your right knee.
Checkpoint: Are your right knee and right ankle forming a straight line? Ensure that your knee does not overshoot the ankle.
Turn your head and look to your right.
As you settle down in the yoga posture stretch your arms further.
Make a gentle effort to push your pelvis down. Hold the yoga posture with the determination of a warrior. Smile like a happy smiling warrior. Keep breathing as you go down.
Breathing in, come up.
Breathing out, bring your hands down from the sides.
Repeat the yoga posture for the left side (turn your left foot out by 90 degrees and turn the right foot in by about 15 degrees).
There s nothing quite as comforting and calming as meditation when it comes to taking care of the mental afflictions one goes through during pregnancy. You can finish off your asanas with meditation or if you are feeling too tired or emotionally volatile, you can simply meditate after practising a few rounds of Pranayamas. This will bring immediate relief.
It is advisable to consult a doctor/ expert before attempting the Yoga Asanas. Learn and practice Asanas under the supervision of a trained prenatal specialized Yoga teacher.
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