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As well as taking your classes, you’ll feel and see the best results from your yoga practice if you manage to get a daily practice in. 5 – 10 minutes is fine, particularly focusing on your breathing and relaxation skills but the lesson plan below should help you consider too your pelvis and your posture and how you can work with your body and your practice in these areas.
The practice below won’t take more than 10 minutes but make sure that you print it out, use it and give yourself, your body and your baby those few precious moments together when nothing else and nobody else matters!
Start by greeting your baby! Take a moment to communicate with your baby, close your eyes, connect to your breathing and focus on them for 10 – 12 deep breaths.
Sitting
Think about Closed Angles and Wide Angles.
When sitting (on the floor or on/in a chair) think about sitting with your legs apart to open the hips and pelvis. Although it might not be the most dignified position to sit with the legs wide open, angles smaller than 90 degrees should be avoided in pregnancy as they close of the pelvis and tighten the pelvic floor muscles.
When sitting on a chair, sit facing the back with the legs apart to increase the flow of nutrients into the pelvis, to encourage babies head into an optimal foetal position and to encourage the release of the pelvic floor.
When sitting on the floor, make sure you are on cushions so that your pelvis is higher than your knees as this helps to open further into the pelvis and again, encourages baby to drop in the later stages.
Create Space
Imagine a Rectangle from your hips to your shoulders.
This is the space that your baby has and you need to expand, create and adapt this space. There is a link through your pelvis and your back so that everything moves together, like belt and braces with the abdominal muscles supporting from the sides and the pelvic brim supporting from underneath. However you are sitting, take a gentle twist to one side and feel how that turn affects the muscles of the spine. Concentrate on the rectangle of your body and on making space. Think about linking the pelvis, the chest and back – everything moves together. Feel how you can make space with the breath as well and how the rotation of muscles doesn’t affect the breathing. Take a minute or so of deep breaths to either side of the twist and notice the affect on your back and on your spine.
Gentle Stretching
Neck rolls – drop your right ear to your right shoulder and take a few breaths here. Feel the skin on your face soften and release and relax completely while your shoulders drop down away from your ears and take 5 deep breaths. As you inhale bring your head to the centre and then on an exhalation take the same movement to the left side and allow your face to be soft. Breathe deeply here for the count of 5 and then again draw your head back to the centre.
Shoulder rolls – As you breathe in, draw your shoulders up towards your ears and as you breathe out let your shoulders release down your back. Take that same movement 10 times rolling your shoulders back and then take the same movement forwards 10 times as well.
Opening the Chest – As you breathe in allow the arms to move out to the sides and then up and over your head with the palms joining and as your breathe out let them release all the way down the sides and relax. Slowly and serenely continue this movement 10 times, inhaling as the arms float above the head and exhaling as the arms release down by the sides. This helps prevent heartburn and stiffness or achy shoulders.
Take a few deep breaths, connecting once more with your baby and the space in your body and in your life that you are creating for them and then enjoy your day!
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