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Pregnancy strong Navigate the ups and downs of pregnancy with yoga strength. Lynsey Riach says that a stronger class can work for experienced practitioners
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ast year, I wrote an article discussing strength in our bodies and minds through regular yoga, complete with matching beautiful black and white photos. The piece was titled ‘Yoga Strong’. I genuinely had never felt physically stronger than that time in my life. Six weeks later, I ran around our house in my nightie screaming to my husband that I was pregnant. After such joyous news, I found myself back on the same mat I had always stood on suddenly frozen, unsure of how to move my body. There was a tiny seed growing inside of me that was fragile and would require my energy and my love, but what about what I required? I wouldn’t stop my yoga would I? How could I when it had given me so much? I knew that so many others before me had continued with their own practice…I had even seen photos of women close to delivery in Sirsasana (Headstand). So a quick Google search would let me know the basics because surprisingly in my teacher training, we only really glossed over pregnancy during yoga and I had never
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actually taught a pregnant student before. The whole thing utterly consumed me. I was flooded with news, apps and websites that told me to definitely hit the mat.
Caution
Back to Google and as I should have known, it returned a tsunami of contradictions. Don’t twist, yes twist; don’t back bend, sure you can backbend! It was a mess. Pregnancy lasts 10 months not nine (think about those 40 weeks divided by four) and your body will constantly change so of course your activities and style of movement will too. The information was overwhelming so I figured there was nothing for it but to slow it down and go through some sun salutations. I was bored, frustrated and gave up. It just wasn’t my regular style and I couldn’t fully ‘get into’ the place I would normally be at. So, I attended some local prenatal classes. One was awesome and taught by an inspiring teacher with tremendous knowledge. She knew how to move through all stages of pregnancy and I loved her challenging classes that gave me the
confidence to know what I could and couldn’t do. Other classes were less inspiring and offered up, quite frankly, what I imagine most prenatal classes to be - a whole lot of breathing and not a lot of backbending. It was dull and nothing like my regular energetic flow. It troubled me to think that most pregnant ladies who are new to yoga probably feel this is what they have to do. You don’t. Although, caution is paramount.
Newcomers
And yet so many websites, books and doctors all dish out prenatal or pregnancy yoga as the ‘go-to’ exercise regime the minute you see that positive test result. But what if you’ve had no prior yoga experience – then it might not be just what the doctor ordered? Of course, not to scare anyone away from yoga (why would I?) but it is also more than just exercise…it’s a whole community, an industry where it often takes a little time to ‘get it’. So, showing up to a super slow class where there may be some ‘yoga talk’ in a