Yoga Teacher Training Forum

Safety Precautions for Prenatal Yoga Classes

Yoga is an excellent way for pregnant mothers to stretch out and relieve some of the stress that is associated with carrying around a developing child within their stomach. Of course, it is not possible to do the same basic forms of yoga that someone who is not pregnant does, which is why it is so necessary for anyone who is looking to either put on a class or join up with a class needs to know a few different safety precautions before starting up. This is going to keep both child and mother healthy and ensure they are able to enjoy the entire process.

Before starting up, for anyone who is pregnant and signing up for the prenatal yoga classes, there are a few don'ts on the list that need to be avoided. For starters, it is necessary to avoid over-stretching. The body produces a hormone known as relaxin, which is going to soften the inflexible parts, such as bones and ligaments, in order to make room for the baby and make child birthing a bit easier (without the ability to soften the bones and muscles around the birthing canal, pregnancy would be much more painful and difficult).

If you try to further stretch the area out you can end up damaging your body or even dislocate and pull out of place some of the ligaments. The knees are often a problem area, which is why it is necessary to watch this at all cost. Twists are another area that is going to compress the internal organs, such as the uterus. For any prenatal yoga classes, avoiding the twists is a must. Also, jumps should not be performed and fast breathing should not occur either. A few other basic movies that should be avoided include back bending, abdominal work, lying on the belling, lying on the back starting in the second trimester and any sort of hot yoga, as sweating to that extent and the increased temperature is not a good idea at all.

If you are just starting off and want to get into yoga as a way to exercise somewhat and to still get some movement in, it is important to look for yoga classes marked prenatal. If you don't, there are going to be classes that require you to perform a large number of moves that are undesirable in your condition. Once your pregnancy is over with though, you can continue on and perform all of the yoga moves you would have before pregnancy.