Pregnancy Yoga for Month 7

You have finally made it to the last and final lap of your pregnancy. This trimester will end in labor and childbirth. There is no denying the fact that you must be very excited now and finding hard to contain it. However, you might also be facing issues like severe back pain and leg cramps due to the ever increasing weight of your baby bump. Well, hang on there as this discomfort will soon be over.

In the mean time, what you can do is take your mind of all this and try to reduce your issues by practicing yoga. Here are some yogasanas that you can safely practice during the third trimester.

Utkatasana – Chair pose

• Stand in Tadasana with your feet firmly grounded, crown of the head to the sky and your baby at the very centre of your body.
• Inhale as you let the arms rise to the sky, palms facing, fingers alive, shoulders relaxed.
• Exhale as you bend your knees and sit back into your seat as if you were sitting onto a chair.
• Anchor your tailbone down towards your heels and hug your baby to your spine so you don’t overarch your lower back.
• Keep the sides of your body long and feel space through your spine to the tips of your fingers.
• Enjoy a spacious body, rising from the strong foundation of your legs.
  Stay for 3–6 breaths.
• On an inhale, slowly straighten the legs and, as you exhale, lower the arms and return to Tadasana.

If there is tension in the shoulders, keep your hands on your hips or rest them on your thighs.

Virabhadrasana

• Standing at the top of your yoga mat, step your left foot back and turn it out at a slight angle.
• Check that both of your hips are facing forward.
• Place your hands around you and feel your expanding belly.
• Take a breath, inhaling, and then exhale, bend your right knee, ensuring that it is stacked directly above your right ankle and aligned with your second and third toes.
• Grounding down through your right foot and through the outside edge of your left foot, find your stability. Raise your arms above your head.
• Look up towards your hands.
• Staying for five breaths, repeat the pose to your other side.

Before Yoga

It is very important to eat healthy food at regular intervals during pregnancy. However, you should always space your meals at least two hours from your yoga sessions. While practicing the asanas, sip on water rather than gulping down mouthfuls.

After Yoga

You need to cool down your body after the yoga session. For this practice the side lying savasana. You can use pillows and cushions to support your head, belly and legs.

Meditation

Though your mood wrecking hormones might be at rest at the time, chances are rife that you might be facing anxiety and fear of the impending child birth. The best way to get over this is by meditation. Find a clean and quite place and sit down with your legs crossed. Try to concentrate on a single thought. In case this seems hard, just chant one of the mantras.

Pregnancy is a fulfilling and exciting journey. However, you need to be extremely careful of your activities. So, stay safe and practice yoga and meditation to enhance your well being.