Antenatal yoga is a type of yoga that is done that takes precautions for women who are pregnant.  Otherwise known as prenatal yoga, it is a great way for pregnant women to be able to stretch their backs to alleviate some of the back pain they may feel from carrying the baby.  It is also a great way to help them to relax and breath properly which can help them in labor, and also a great way for them to be able open their hips which can help them during labor.  I am going to talk about some of the benefits, and so if you are pregnant, you may consider doing prenatal yoga after this.

Back pain is a common problem among pregnant women, because of the additional weight they are carrying, and the way that the weight is distributed. It can sometimes be unbearable for women who are pregnant, but antenatal yoga is great for stretching out your back.  There are a few different exercises that are great for this.  The relaxation pose where you gently lay yourself back onto a yoga pillow and stretch out your back is a great post to help your back out.  Another popular one for pregnant women with back pain is the cat-cow pow.  This one is done on your hands and knees, by tucking your butt in, and then making your back rounded.  Breathing is a large part of yoga, so while you are arching your back you’ll want to breath in, and then when you relax to the starting position you’ll want to exhale slowly.

You can also do various yoga squatting exercises that can help to strengthen your lower body, as well as open up your hips which is great for labor.  You’ll need core muscles and to know what positions open up your hips while you are in labor, to make it a little bit easier on yourself.  this is why doing yoga while you are pregnant is very, very important.  If you have a Nintendo Wii Fit, I would recommend getting a Wii Fit yoga mat and doing the yoga exercises on Wii Fit Plus so that you can get real time feedback on your balance and stretches.