Prenatal and Postnatal Yoga
YOU ARE HAVING A BABY! (PRENATAL YOGA)
Prenatal yoga… an opportunity to connect with your body, your self, and your baby. The prenatal time is a period of much growth and change on every level for the expectant person. Yoga is the perfect vehicle for embracing all of these changes by encouraging the body, mind, and soul to integrate the growth of the prenatal time with greater ease. Continuing a physical practice develops strength and endurance and prepares the body for birth and parenting.
Classes will offer mindfulness, yoga asana (postures) and breath work (pranayama). Mindfulness in pregnancy develops the breath and body connection, creates opportunities for reflection on the expectant person's changing needs, and supports connection with the growing little person. Yoga postures can offer strength, relief from common pregnancy discomforts, and build endurance and balance. Following the breath in pregnancy develops lung capacity, calms the nervous system, and awakens the intuition of the body and mind. Prenatal yoga classes support expectant people to embrace all that the perinatal year holds throughout pregnancy, the birthing process and the postnatal time.
YOU HAD A BABY! (POSTNATAL YOGA - MOMMY & BABY CLASSES)
This practice is a wonderful way to get back on your mat or try yoga for the first time with your baby right alongside you. In this comforting and open environment you will be guided through postures that will help you regain strength, alleviate common physical conditions that go along with being a new mom and relaxation techniques. There will be a focus on pelvic floor health, abdominal healing, and posture. Connecting with your amazing body and beautiful baby at the same time. Babies 6 weeks to crawling welcome.
POSTNATAL FAQ
When can I start attending postnatal baby yoga?
Sometimes we can feel ready to step back on our mat soon after we have had our babies, but you want to take it slow. It also depends on the type of birth you had and how your recovery has been going.
Ensure that you have had your final six-week checkup with your care provider and you are cleared for exercise. If you had an uncomplicated vaginal delivery, you may be cleared at 6 weeks postpartum. If you had a cesarean delivery, please allow for at least 12 weeks of recovery before attending your first yoga class.
It is highly recommended that you also see a Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist post-birth to also ensure that your core and pelvic floor are healing. The 4th trimester is a very real thing and our bodies need time to heal before we move back onto the mat. We only have one chance to heal properly after birth, we don't want to rush our bodies.
I have never done yoga before, would it be ok to start in a postnatal class?
Absolutely! It is a wonderful time to start. You are reconnecting with your postnatal body and wanting to honour how it is feeling. Yoga allows you to integrate mindful movement, meditation, and breathwork.
What should I bring to class?
You will want to bring your yoga mat, a water bottle, a diaper bag, a blanket for your baby to lie on, and anything else that would give you or your baby comfort.
What should I wear?
Wear clothing that is breathable, easy to move in and you are comfortable wearing. Always good to dress in layers in case you become warm or cold. The room is non-heated. Of course, if you are nursing, a top that allows you to comfortably feed your baby.
What can I expect from the practice?
You may have discovered already as a new parent or a seasoned parent if this is not your first baby, that babies are unpredictable. You may come to class and be able to do the whole practice from opening check-in right through to savasana while your baby sleeps or contently rests. Or you may come to lay down on your mat, get in a few down dogs, and then your baby needs you. The postnatal yoga practice with your baby will look different and that is ok.
When you are holding your baby you may be able to get in some poses. If you are unable to fully practice, take that time to focus on your breath in a calm space surrounded by other parents in the very same season as you.