For all my friends that know me well, they
will testify that I face exercise the same way I obsess over faddy diets (first
with furious determination and then a week later it is forgotten about), and I
can barely stretch to touch my toes.
That’s why it might come as a bit of a surprise that I have taken up
pregnancy yoga, and that I LOVE it.
Granted, I have only been a few weeks since I was given the go-ahead
following my first scan, but I am genuinely taken with the class and I have
every good intention of continuing right up until my baby’s birth.
The class is friendly, unpretentious and
you don’t need any previous yoga experience, just a bump that is 12 weeks old
or beyond. The focus is on breathing,
meditation and movement, and ultimately how all these things can help to give
you the best possible pregnancy (alleviating that troublesome back pain,
swollen feet, fingers and toes) and birth experience.
Having been through an uncomplicated, but
long and painful birth first time round with Coco, you would forgive me for
thinking that there is no way a few breathing techniques will help me get
through labour again. However, on the
contrary, the class is helping me believe that this time round I have the power
to stay calm and in control, and I genuinely believe that what I learn in the
class will help me achieve this. I did
do some yoga when pregnant with Coco, but in my usual fashion, I didn’t stick
it out until the end and I often found it difficult to concentrate and really
commit what was being recommended to memory. After
all, on most good days, I can barely remember my own address, let alone what
breathing exercises to use when whilst trying to push something the size of a
melon through a gap the size of a lemon.
I was therefore delighted to learn that the classes include ‘birthing
rehearsals’ which clearly explain what techniques should be used when during
labour to give as much relief as possible.
We will even be given a take-away sheet to read through at home, which
doesn’t sound groundbreaking, but could be very handy to read through and
practice during those last few anxious days at home.
The Air-Yoga Studio in South Woodford
Our lovely teacher Kat King does recommend
hypno-birthing and says that yoga works particularly well alongside this. However there is no need to go down this path
if it’s not for you (there is no way I could ever be capable of turning off my
mental to-do list!) and Kat clearly says that yoga will work for you throughout
your pregnancy and birth however you chose to birth your baby, whether it be
naturally or via caesarean.
At the end of the day, even if I end up
using absolutely nothing from the class during my next labour, I will still
love my yoga class. When you’re unable
to go to the loo without having a small person wrapped round your ankles trying
to unravel the toilet roll, having one blissful hour per week to yourself to
have a good old stretch and connect with your baby is a real treat and I’d
recommend it to everyone.
You can find details of Kat’s classes on
her website….
The class I attend is at Air-Yoga Studio in
South Woodford and runs on Tuesday evenings at 6.45. Individual classes are priced at £12 but
discounts are available when buying a group of five or ten classes in advance.
For more information please visit…
Hope to see you there!
Gemma x
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