Pregnancy takes us on an amazing journey and, like all new experiences, this can sometimes be a little daunting – but yoga can help us to cope when we are out of our comfort zone. If we treat ourselves with care and respect, we can push our boundaries and build our strength and stamina. This will increase our self-confidence and help the body become more able to let go, in turn enabling the mind to release tension and negativity.
My body is strong, my mind is strong.
I remain positive and strong throughout my pregnancy and labour.
I gather strength from the support around and within me.
Whatever direction my labour takes, my breathing will help me to stay strong and focused.
I will recover quickly because l am fit and strong.
Developing and maintaining strength and stamina throughout pregnancy has many important benefits. The idea that pregnancy is a time when you become increasingly weak and tired does not have to be true. Many women discover a new relationship with themselves and feel strong throughout their pregnancy. Being pregnant focuses attention on ourselves and makes us consider lifestyle choices, such as our working, eating and exercise habits. If you are not feeling energetic or healthy, you may need to think about making some changes in these areas, in addition to your pregnancy yoga routine.
Energy is something that you need throughout your pregnancy. Feeling tired affects us deeply – the body becomes lethargic and our thoughts and aspirations may also become apathetic. Developing reserves of strength will help you during labour and birth and stand you in good stead when it comes to satisfying the demands of a new baby. Unlike other forms of exercise, yoga will not deplete your energy levels. There are no forceful or pounding movements to put pressure on your joints and tire your muscles. Your cells will be renewed at the deepest level so you feel revitalized after practice. During pregnancy, your body movements can become more restricted, so practising yoga can also bring a sense of flexibility and lightness.
As your baby becomes heavier, you will need to strengthen your muscles to support the extra weight. A strong lower back and core will help prevent back pain caused by the forward and downward pull of your baby. A strong body also increases self-confidence. Your attitude will be more positive and you will feel better equipped to handle whatever comes your way. You wouldn’t enter a marathon without any training so make time for exercise and yoga practice – that way, if you happen to have a long labour, you will be as mentally and physically prepared as possible. Also, if you are fit, your recovery from birth – whether natural or a C-section – is likely to be a lot quicker.
If you find yourself lacking in energy during pregnancy, this may be a sign that you need a rest or a change of diet. You should also ask your doctor to check that your iron levels are high enough. Light exercise, such as yoga, a walk or a swim, can revitalize you. If you feel tired while practising yoga, this may simply be due to its cleansing effects, flushing toxins from your body. Persist and you will find that your energy levels are very soon renewed.
Remember that life consists of ebb and flow and that it is important to maintain energetic balance – for example, activity and rest, action and contemplation, strength and softness. Energy can lie dormant, but if you tune in to your body you may find that you experience an increased flow of energy and creativity during your pregnancy.
Birth Story …
“I arrived at the birthing centre feeling very tense, but then all the lessons I had learned from Tara in my yoga classes started to flood into my mind. I knelt down on all fours and started rocking my body back and forth … It had been five and half hours since labour started and I was getting tired and, although my baby’s head was showing, when I stopped pushing he would go back inside. This went on for 30 minutes, so the midwife moved me onto a birthing stool. I pushed again, and this time at the end of the push I let out an enormous out-breath. I performed this amazing and powerful action three times and our beautiful baby boy was born.” Viva
This is a wonderful exercise for strengthening and toning the arms. It also increases flexibility and blood flow around the spine and in general is one of the most beneficial exercises you can do for your back. If you have backache, try practising Cat and Swooping Cat for just a few minutes every day and you’ll soon notice the difference.
1 Start on all fours in a neutral position. With your hands and knees on the floor, make sure that your shoulders are directly above your wrists. You can move your knees slightly farther apart than your hips.
2 Inhale, and then as you breathe out, tuck the pelvis under as if hugging your baby toward you. Allow your head to drop, bring your chin toward your chest and round up through your shoulders and upper back. Press down through all your fingers, keeping the knuckles down.
3 Inhaling, bring your spine to a neutral position, extending through the crown of your head. Keep your gaze directed down between your hands. You want to lengthen from the crown of the head to the tailbone without letting your lower back collapse.
4 Repeat Steps 1–3 (3–5 times) and then, if you find this sequence easy, you can enhance the movement with the Swooping Cat as follows.
5 Open your knees a bit wider, inhale through the nose, then exhale bending the elbows as you bring the hips back, keeping your chin tucked in and your spine rounded. As you sink farther back your arms will straighten.
6 Inhale, swooping the body forward with the chest low.
7 Press your hands into the floor as you lift back up.
8 Continue swooping back and forth fluidly in a wave-like movement, moving with the breath. Gradually build up your strength, repeating Steps 5–8, aiming for 5 rounds. Rest whenever you need to.
Practising Lion Breath after Cat and Swooping Cat can feel empowering as it symbolizes courage and strength as well as helping to cleanse the lungs. It relieves facial tension and allows the jaw to release. Being on all fours helps to position your baby for the birth and gives you stability during contractions.
As you strongly exhale through your mouth, stick out your tongue, expel all the air from your lungs and allow your eyes to gaze upward. Then, with mouth closed, inhale through your nose and relax your gaze. You can repeat this 3–5 times.
To locate your pelvic floor, imagine the muscle you would use to stop the flow of urine. During pregnancy, your pelvic floor can become weakened by the hormone relaxin and the weight of the baby. It is essential to strengthen this area, as weakness here can lead to stress incontinence. A strong pelvic floor can help to shorten the second stage of labour, and you will also need to know how to release these muscles for the birth. Try to do this exercise every day during pregnancy and especially after the birth, even if you have had a caesarean.
1 Kneel on all fours and move your hands slightly forward from your shoulders, resting your forehead on your hands with your hips high. (If this position is uncomfortable you can sit cross-legged.) Inhale and squeeze and lift your pelvic floor, then release on the exhale. Repeat this a few more times.
2 Keep your jaw relaxed. This time reverse the breathing. Try to squeeze as you exhale and release as you inhale. Repeat 10 times.
3 Now squeeze, lift and hold for 5 counts. Breathe normally, then release. One more time, squeeze, lift and hold for 5 slow counts, then release. Repeat 3 more times and notice whether you are able to keep lifting your pelvic floor muscle for 5 slow counts. Practise until you are able to do this.
4 Now imagine that you are going in a lift up to the first floor as you squeeze a little. Move up to the second floor as you squeeze a little higher. Go all the way to the top floor still holding and squeezing as high as you can. Release a little, down to the second floor; release a little more to the first floor; and then release completely back down to the ground floor. Repeat at your own pace and make sure you are connecting to your deep, internal muscles. Keep the jaw as relaxed as possible. On the last round imagine you are coming all the way down to the basement, completely letting go. If you are unable to control the lowering in stages – if it all comes crashing down in one go! – it’s particularly important to practise regularly.
5 Now relax your pelvic floor and either come back up or rest in Child’s Pose (see pages 80–81).
This is an intense stretch for the toes and bottoms of the feet. As pregnancy progresses it becomes more and more important to look after all aspects of your being. The feet are often neglected – and yet they have to carry us and our growing babies for every step of our journey. This exercise develops a feeling of groundedness on both a physical and an emotional plane. It stretches out the balls of the feet and the toes, which in reflexology and Traditional Chinese Medicine correspond to the lungs, so enjoy the opening of the whole of your body. Notice how focusing on your breathing lessens discomfort – a useful tool for labour.
1 Sit back on your heels, tucking your toes underneath you. Bring your palms together in front of your chest in prayer pose. Your knees shouldn’t hurt but there may be an intense feeling in your toes. Have faith – they won’t break!
2 Try to keep your spine straight – don’t collapse your middle back. Breathe deeply through the discomfort in your feet and focus your mind to send your breath into that area.
3 Keep breathing, directing the breath into the area of discomfort and stay there for 5–10 breaths.
This pose is great for building strength in the legs to carry the weight of your baby. It is also a very grounding posture, rooting you to the earth. It strengthens the lower body while opening the shoulders and chest, and can be helpful for flat feet. You can use a wall for support if you prefer.
1 Stand in Tadasana (see page 55) with your feet hip-width apart or wider for stability. Feel the grounding through your feet, sending energy down through your legs.
2 As you inhale reach your arms up above your head, keeping your shoulders down. Exhale and bend your knees, keeping your thighs parallel. Sink low (don’t let your hips go lower than your knees) and imagine you are sitting in a chair, but slightly tuck the tailbone under to keep the lower back long. Aim for 5 slow breaths, feeling the strength building in your legs.
3 To come out of this position, inhale and straighten your legs, then exhale, releasing the arms down to your sides.
It is especially important to pay attention to good posture during pregnancy, when the weight of your baby may cause your pelvis to tilt, overarching your lower back and leading to back pain.
CORRECT
Stand with your feet parallel, hip-width apart or a little wider, and weight even through both feet. The back of your neck should be long, your chin level to the ground. Do not tilt your pelvis. Tuck your tailbone slightly under or send it down toward the floor to lengthen your lower back. Your shoulder blades should gently move down and back. Draw up through your pelvic floor and draw your tummy muscles in slightly to stand taller.
INCORRECT
Because you are carrying more weight at the front of your body – from your growing breasts and belly – your centre of gravity is farther forward, making your lower back overarch as your pelvis tips forward. Your upper back and shoulders round and your hips and chest tighten.
Tadasana means “mountain” in Sanskrit, symbolizing strength and expressing the duality of being rooted to the earth while reaching to great heights. If you practise this posture whenever you can, your body will remember it and it will become “second nature” to you.
Standing tall, feet hip-width apart and toes facing forward, extend up through your spine to the crown of your head. Reach your arms down by your sides and send energy through your fingers. Lift up through your thighs, engaging the muscles without locking your knees, feeling strong through your legs. Lengthen your tailbone and try not to collapse into your lower back. Bring your awareness through your feet, spread out your toes and feel strongly connected to the earth. Lift up through your spine and through the whole front of your body. PAUSE 
Imagine a string through the crown of your head lifting you taller, but at the same time keep the sense of grounding through your feet and legs.
• You can also practise this pose by placing your hands in prayer pose, feeling the chest expand against them.
This exercise is great for strengthening the legs and releasing tension in the shoulders. It calms the mind and can ease backache as it stretches the spine.
1 Stand with your legs wide (about one leg length apart unless you have groin pain) and fold from your hips, bringing your hands to the floor and releasing your head. Feel the stretch down the backs of the legs, but bend the knees if you need to. Avoid bouncing and use your breath to deepen the stretch.
• If you feel too much pressure in your head, just come halfway down, resting your elbows on bent knees, keeping your head facing forward.
• If you feel uncomfortable folding forward, you can practise this stretch standing tall with your hands still clasped behind you. This will also help to open your chest.
2 Interlace your fingers, draw your shoulder blades together and extend your arms over your head. With each exhalation release your arms a little bit farther away from your back.
3 Inhale and as you exhale release your hands farther away.
4 Round up slowly through your back, keeping your chin tucked in toward your chest and your knees bent.
If you are feeling indecisive or “all over the place”, this posture can bring focus, balance and clarity to your mind. It also strengthens your legs and ankles and can help with sciatica and flat feet. Avoid if you have groin pain.
1 Find a wall or chair for support if you need it (and turn to one side using your left hand on the support). Shift your weight into your left foot with the foot pointing straight ahead. Press through all the toes and don’t let your foot roll.
2 Lift your right leg, placing your foot on your inner thigh (but not against the knee), opening your knee out to the side. Keep your hips facing forward.
3 If you have your balance, place your palms together and raise them high, opening your arms as they extend up into a “V” shape and keeping your shoulders down, away from your ears.
• If you have high blood pressure, you can practise this movement keeping your arms down by your sides or in prayer pose. If balance is a problem, place your foot on your inner calf.
4 Soften your gaze, focus on a point in the distance and keep your breath fluid. PAUSE Hold for as long as you feel comfortable and steady. Aim for 5 slow, relaxed breaths.
5 Gently lower your foot, then repeat Steps 1–4 on the other leg. PAUSE Notice if you feel more balanced on one side. Try to feel an equal stretch on each side of the body.
6 Release your left foot and stand in Tadasana (see page 55), feeling the effects of the pose.
This pose challenges the entire body and helps to open up the chest and lungs while strengthening the arms, back and legs. On an emotional level, it can act as an outward expression of determination and resolve in preparation for labour. Avoid if you have any groin pain.
1 From Tadasana (see page 55) step your left leg back 3ft (about 1m), keeping the ball of your foot pressing down and lifting your heel.
2 Reach your arms up toward the ceiling, keeping your shoulders down. Square your hips and lengthen your tailbone toward the floor.
3 Inhaling, lower your left knee to hover just above the floor. At the same time, keep both arms high. Gaze forward and lift through your torso. Aim to stay in this position for 5 breaths.
4 Exhaling, lift your left knee, pressing your arms down with your palms downward. Straighten both legs. Repeat the sequence 3 times, stepping forward with your left leg, then repeat the pose with the other leg forward.
This is a great pose for opening up the hips and strengthening the legs and inner thigh muscles in preparation for labour. If you would like to have an active birth, it helps to have strong legs so that you can move around and hold a squat position, which can facilitate the second stage of labour by creating more space in the pelvis, harnessing the effects of gravity. Furthermore, developing strength and stamina in your legs throughout pregnancy will help you to feel grounded – not only rooted physically to the earth but, because yoga can give you a deeper sense of yourself, grounded in your life.
The lotus flower mudra (hand gesture) that forms part of this pose symbolizes purity and the heart. The fact that a beautiful lotus flower can emerge from the murky depths of a pond is a metaphor for the flowering of new beginnings. Avoid Horse if you have groin pain, or practise the modified version against a wall.
1 Stand with your legs wide, turn your feet out and bend into a squat, keeping your back straight. Let your knees move out toward your toes. As you bend, bring the heels of your hands together and open out your fingers to make the shape of a lotus flower.
• If you have groin pain, keep your feet parallel, using a wall to lean your back against as you come into the squat.
2 Straighten your legs and lift your arms up above your head.
3 Bring the tips of your fingers to touch each other, separating the heels of your hands and pointing your fingers down toward the floor as you bend your knees. Keep the movement as fluid as possible.
This leg exercise is useful for toning and strengthening your legs and outer thighs, encouraging blood circulation and mobilizing your hip joints. Low-impact activities such as swimming, therapies such as massage, and yoga postures such as the one shown here as well as Pigeon (see page 106), Cow-faced Pose (see page 103), Eagle (see pages 101–102) and various hip-circling exercises (see pages 117, 121 and 122–3) are all helpful for stretching and releasing tension from the hip area. Practise the stretches to prevent tightness building in the hips, which can lead to lower back pain. Avoid this exercise if you are suffering from groin pain. Alternatively, you could modify it by keeping the circles very small.
1 Start on all fours with your weight evenly distributed on each side, your shoulders directly above your wrists and your neck straight so that your head faces down.
2 Lift your left knee off the floor and start to circle your left leg, keeping the knee bent. Extend through the foot so that your leg feels enlivened and energized. Try not to lean to one side – keep the weight evenly spread through both hands. Start with 5 circles and gradually build up the repetitions.
3 Change direction, circling on the same leg. Imagine drawing a circle with your knee and feel the full range of the movement. Keep breathing! If it feels uncomfortable, make the circles smaller.
4 Now change legs, circling one way and then the other as before. Take a rest whenever you need to.
5 Rest in Child’s Pose (see pages 80–81) when you have finished.
The Salute to the Sun is probably one of the best-known yoga vinyasas (series of postures linking breath and movement). Traditionally, the sun salutation was practised in the morning, taking the sun’s energy into the body, mind and spirit in preparation for the day ahead. It exercises different muscle groups, improves cardiovascular strength and can help to cleanse, tone and revitalize you on every level. It is a good sequence to practise on days when you feel a little lethargic and in need of an energy boost. Over time you will build up your strength, but don’t overdo it if you are new to yoga.
As you practise the Salute to the Sun you may like to imagine that you are dancing with your baby through the movements. The rocking back and forth in a lunge can be used during the second stage of labour to help the pelvis present different angles for the baby to emerge into the world.
1 Stand at the front of your mat, feet hip-width apart, palms in prayer pose.
2 As you inhale, raise your arms above your head, keeping them shoulder-width apart.
3 As you exhale, bend your knees and bring your palms down via your heart centre.
4 Continue down until your palms reach the floor in front of your feet and straighten your legs if you can.
5 Inhale and as you exhale step your left foot back into a lunge, keeping your hips low, with your left knee on the floor. Make sure your right knee is above your right ankle.
6 Rest your left knee on the floor and bend your right knee, making sure it doesn’t come too far forward. Rest your hands on your front thigh. Lift up through your spine.
7 Inhale, bringing your weight forward toward the front toes.
8 Exhale, shifting the weight back so that your back leg forms a right-angle. Repeat the forward and backward motion 3 times.
9 On an inhale, lift your back knee off the floor, feeling strong through your legs, and keeping your front knee above your ankle.
10 Bring your back knee down to the floor and move your hands to the floor, too. Inhale and tuck the toes of your back foot under.
11 Move your front leg back so you are now kneeling on all fours.
12 As you exhale, lift up through the hips into Downward Dog (avoid this during the last weeks of pregnancy). Press down through your hands and fingers and feel the stretch in your hamstrings as you shift weight back through your hips into your heels. Try not to hunch your shoulders up to your ears.
13 Breathe deeply. As you inhale lift your heels, coming onto the balls of your feet. As you exhale, lower them back down, inhaling as you lift, exhaling as you release. Repeat a few times, feeling a stretch through all the toes.
14 Lower the knees down so that you are back on all fours.
15 As you inhale step your right foot forward into a lunge. If you are finding it difficult to get your foot all the way forward to your hands, you can use one hand to help shuffle it forward. Bring your hands onto your front thigh and rock back and forth, inhaling forward and exhaling back. Feel a stretch through the front thigh and hip. (Do not do this if have groin pain.) Lower your hands back to the floor.
16 Inhaling, step your left foot forward like a frog so that you are now in a standing forward bend. Release your neck, keeping a bend in your knees.
17 Inhale and start to unravel your spine slowly back up, vertebra by vertebra, keeping your chin toward your chest, bringing your head back to the centre.
18 Finally, raise your arms back up, palms touching at your heart centre.
19 Repeat on the other side, this time taking your right leg back. Repeat 3–4 times if you want to challenge yourself and build up your strength and stamina, but make sure that you listen to your body and don’t force or over-exert yourself.
