Active April Week 3: Yoga

It’s week 3 of Active April! Hopefully, by now, you know that whether you’re TTC, Pregnant, or Postpartum, we’ll be sharing workouts, fitness tips, and more with you all month so we can all focus on fitness together.

So far, we’ve shared advice from Baby2Body founder and CEO Melinda Nicci about how to exercise safely, workouts from the Baby2Body app, and answered your burning questions here in the blog and over on Instagram.

Active April recap...

So far:

4th - 10th April: Cardio Fitness

11th - 17th April: Quick Workouts

This week & coming up:

18th - 24th April: Yoga Week

25th - 1st May: Strength and Resistance Training

If you’ve missed anything, you can catch up here! This week, we want to share some relaxing and restorative yoga flows. Whilst cardio and HIIT style workouts are super important - it’s great to have quieter days and a variety of workout styles folded into your routine too. 

So let’s get into it…. 

What yoga is best for TTC and can the practice help with fertility? 

Keep scrolling for Is yoga safe to do during pregnancy? and Is yoga safe during postpartum?

The short answer is no, there isn't a flow out there that will guarantee conception no matter how often you do it. But what yoga can support is stress reduction, muscle tone development, increased strength, improved breathing, healthy weight maintenance, and better circulation overall. In fact, the noted physical and psychological benefits of yoga have led some infertility experts to recommend yoga as a supplemental stress relief to couples undergoing IVF or using assisted reproductive technologies (ART). 

We’ve got a great ‘fertility flow' which plays off the Vinyasa practice, where you focus on the power and rhythm of inhalation and exhalation and let your breathing guide you through yoga poses in one fluid, continuous motion. You can see the full flow here, so definitely check it out!

Is yoga safe to do during pregnancy? 

The short answer is yes! The longer answer is yes, as long as you take the right precautions and know which poses are best suited to your changing body. That’s where we can help; any workouts and yoga flows that you see in the Baby2Body app will be tailored to you and your stage of motherhood. 

Before we share our yoga flow with you, here’s what to keep in mind when starting a prenatal yoga practice:

1. It's always a good idea to chat with your doctor about your planned exercise routine at your first prenatal appointment - just so you can discuss any pre-existing conditions or complications that might impact your workouts.

2. If you go to any classes, make sure your instructor knows you are pregnant and is trained in prenatal yoga.

3. Remember relaxin! That lovely little hormone that makes your ligaments loosey-goosey so baby has room to grow also makes you more prone to over-stretching and potential injury. Keep any stretches to 90% capacity or less to avoid this.

4. Water, water, water. During any prenatal exercise, you'll want a bottle of water on hand to stay hydrated. This is just as true for your yoga practice.

5. Make sure you feel comfortable and well balanced through all of your flows and poses. If anything hurts or makes you feel dizzy or off-balance, stop right away.

Here’s a Baby2Body yoga flow that you can try if you are in the first or second trimester of pregnancy and have clearance to exercise – this is just a sneak peek, but if you head over to the app prenatal yoga expert Tammy Mittell will walk you through each move, plus we have a warm up and cool down there too!

Is yoga safe during postpartum?

Yes, but during that postpartum recovery period, you'll want to take some extra precautions while getting back into the practice, and remember not to do anything strenuous before you have the 6 week all-clear from your doctor. 

​​Before we share our yoga flow with you, here’s what to keep in mind when starting a postnatal yoga practice:

1. Your body has been through a lot, so take it slow - there's no need for speed! Go slowly and listen to what every stretch and each movement tells you. 

2. Don't ignore discomfort! While recovering from birth you're more prone to injury, and hurting yourself only prolongs the recovery period. If any movements cause pain, don't push through. Ease out of it and give yourself the time you need to heal.

3. Follow stretching guidelines! Remember those elevated relaxin levels during pregnancy? They loosened your ligaments to make room for baby and prepare your body for childbirth. But, just because you're no longer pregnant doesn't mean you're clear of it! Relaxin levels remain elevated for up to 5 months after birth, so during that time, keep your stretches to 90% capacity and be sure you're not bouncing into the stretch to extend it.

4. Go easy on the abs. Gentle stretches and certain poses may be safe in the first few weeks after birth, but one thing you'll definitely want to steer clear of is any ab work until you get full clearance from your doctor to resume exercise. It's standard to wait 6 weeks after vaginal birth and 8-12 weeks after a C-section.

Here’s a quick Baby2Body yoga flow that you can try if you are in postpartum and have clearance to exercise – this is just a sneak peek, but if you head over to the app postnatal yoga expert Ellie Gill will walk you through each move, plus we have a warm up and cool down there too!

Do you have any questions about yoga during TTC, Pregnancy, or Postpartum? Got a general question about working out? Let us know in the comments and we’ll be answering them all in Friday’s blog post!

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