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    Yoga For Pregnancy: Poses, Meditations, and Inspiration for Expectant and New Mothers
    Yoga For Pregnancy: Poses, Meditations, and Inspiration for Expectant and New Mothers
    Yoga For Pregnancy: Poses, Meditations, and Inspiration for Expectant and New Mothers
    Ebook434 pages2 hours

    Yoga For Pregnancy: Poses, Meditations, and Inspiration for Expectant and New Mothers

    By Leslie Lekos and Megan Westgate

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    About this ebook

    The physical, emotional, and spiritual benefits of yoga are invaluable during the profound journey of pregnancy. From increased strength and balance to a deeper feeling of connection with the life growing inside you, prenatal yoga will help you feel your best during this sacred time.

    Yoga for Pregnancy offers detailed, precise instruction for over a hundred yoga poses to support you during pregnancy, labor, and postpartum. Accompanying sequences focus on a range of applications, from quick daily practices to poses for common pregnancy ailments. Woven throughout the book, you'll find resources to help prepare you for an empowered labor. Filled with modifications, tips, and abundant illustrations, this is an indispensable text for both beginners and advanced practitioners alike.

    Going beyond physical posture practice, Yoga for Pregnancy also includes guidance on meditation, visualization, devotional chanting, nutrition, herbal remedies, and other tools to inspire and nourish you and your baby.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSkyhorse
    Release dateJan 27, 2015
    ISBN9781632201997
    Yoga For Pregnancy: Poses, Meditations, and Inspiration for Expectant and New Mothers

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      Book preview

      Yoga For Pregnancy - Leslie Lekos

      YOGA

      FOR PREGNANCY

      Poses, Meditations, and Inspiration

      for Expectant and New Mothers

      Leslie Lekos and Megan Westgate

      The information in this book is meant to supplement, not replace, proper yoga training. Any exercise during pregnancy poses some inherent risk. It is the responsibility of the reader to be mindful of her safety and to know her limits. Do not take risks beyond your level of experience, aptitude, training, and comfort. Neither the author nor the publisher takes any responsibility for any injury, pain, or other damage related to the use or misuse of this book.

      Copyright © 2014 by Leslie Lekos and Megan Westgate

      Photographs copyright © 2014 by Jules Frazier

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Helios Press, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018.

      Helios Press books may be purchased in bulk at special discounts for sales promotion, corporate gifts, fund-raising, or educational purposes. Special editions can also be created to specifications. For details, contact the Special Sales Department, Helios Press, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018 or info@skyhorsepublishing.com.

      Helios Press is an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing. Skyhorse® and Skyhorse Publishing® are registered trademarks of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.®, a Delaware corporation.

      Visit our website at www.skyhorsepublishing.com.

      10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

      Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.

      Cover photo by Jules Frazier

      Print ISBN: 978-1-62914-362-0

      Ebook ISBN: 978-1-63220-199-7

      Printed in China

      Contents

      INTRODUCTION

      A Note to Practitioners

      Contraindicated Poses During Pregnancy

      Visual Guide to Props

      Body Landmarks and Terms

      POSES AND PRACTICES FOR PREGNANCY

      Standing Poses

      Seated Poses

      Inversions

      Backbends

      Restoratives

      Pranayama

      Practicing Kegels

      INSPIRATION AND SEQUENCES

      Grounded: Muladhara Chakra

      Grounded Sequence

      Creative: Svadhistana Chakra

      Creative Sequence

      Radiant: Manipura Chakra

      Radiant Sequence

      Loving: Anahata Chakra

      Loving Sequence

      Expressive: Visuddha Chakra

      Expressive Sequence

      Focused: Ajna Chakra

      Focused Sequence

      Divine: Sahasrara Chakra

      Divine Sequence

      Full Chakra Meditation

      POSTURES FOR LABOR

      POSTPARTUM POSES AND PRACTICES

      Yoga for Baby

      Yoga with Baby

      Breastfeeding Poses

      Postpartum Poses

      Partner Meditations

      ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

      RESOURCES AND REFERENCES

      INDEX

      Introduction

      Growing a baby is an honor and a responsibility unlike any other. A woman's practices during pregnancy lay the foundation for her birth experience and her child's constitution and lifelong development. Yoga is an amazing gift for both you and your baby as you begin this journey together.

      This book was conceived when Megan was pregnant with her first child and a student in Leslie’s prenatal yoga class. Both of us have been practicing yoga for fifteen years, and with Megan's passion for yoga philosophy and writing and Leslie’s experience as a yoga teacher, childbirth educator, herbalist, and doula, we felt we could offer something valuable and unique to support pregnant women.

      A primary inspiration is our mutual passion for alignment-based yoga. The first section of the book includes sixty-one poses (asanas) that are beneficial to practice while pregnant, and which will help you prepare for labor. Each one includes photographs as well as detailed instructions for how to practice the pose. Our guidance is focused on how each pose should feel, not just how it should look. Having appropriate engagement in the poses is especially important during pregnancy, when your body is producing extra relaxin hormone and your joints are looser.

      The next section of the book is organized around the seven chakras, or energy centers, of the body. The practices for bringing balance to the chakras include asana sequences as well as mantras, visualizations, Kundalini meditations, and tea recipes inspired by Leslie’s work as an herbalist.

      In the third section, we offer a variety of poses to use during labor. Most of these are not traditional yoga poses; they are postures that Leslie has learned through her extensive experience as a doula.

      Finally, we include practices for postpartum. Once you have your healthcare provider's approval to resume normal physical activity, the poses in this last section of the book can help you regain muscle tone and energy, and can support you in connecting with yourself and your baby.

      We have created this book as a love-filled offering to every woman who is inspired to nourish herself and her baby with the myriad benefits of yoga. We wish you good health and many blessings on your amazing journey!

      Namaste,

      Leslie Lekos & Megan Westgate

      July 2014

      A Note to Practitioners

      It is essential to listen deeply to your body throughout pregnancy and postpartum. A dedicated yoga practice is a wonderful tool for cultivating the kind of careful attention and listening that can help you stay safe and healthy throughout your pregnancy.

      You should not feel pain in any of these yoga poses. The Engaging actions and Details to be mindful of given for the poses are designed to keep your practice safe and comfortable. If you experience persistent pain in a given pose, please discontinue practicing it and focus on the poses that feel helpful and nourishing to you.

      In the first trimester, be extra gentle with yourself, particularly with back-bending actions. Deep backbends thin the belly and the uterine lining, which is not appropriate during pregnancy (the backbends section of this book contains only poses with very gentle back-bending action, which can be practiced safely).

      If you had a confident and comfortable inversion practice prior to becoming pregnant, you may continue the poses presented in this book—with your health care provider's blessing—but be more cautious when kicking up. If these poses do not come easily to you, discontinue them during pregnancy.

      Throughout pregnancy and particularly in the last trimester, as increased relaxin hormone levels loosen your muscles, tendons, and ligaments, be extra mindful not to overstretch in the poses. This also applies to the postpartum recovery period, when practice shifts to regaining strength and firmness throughout the body.

      Always consult your health care provider before doing any physical program, including yoga, during the childbearing years.

      Contraindicated Poses During Pregnancy

      Avoid all twisting poses where the belly is compressed, for example:

      • Marichyasana III (Seated Twist/Marichi’s Pose)

      • Parivritta Trikonasana (Revolved Triangle Pose)

      • Parivritta Parsvakonasana (Revolved Side Angle Pose)

      • Parivritta Ardha Chandrasana (Revolved Half Moon Pose)

      Avoid all poses that compress the abdomen, for example:

      • Urdhva Prasarita Padasana (Leg Lift)

      • Paripurna Navasana (Boat Pose)

      • Chaturanga Dandasana (Plank Pose/Four Limbed Staff Pose)

      • Sit-ups

      Avoid seated forward bends that put pressure on the belly, for example:

      • Pascimottanasana (Seated Forward Fold)

      • Janu Sirsasana (Head to Knee Forward Bend) (this can be safely modified, as shown on p. 85 )

      • Triang Mukaipada Pascimottanasana (Three Limbed One Foot Intense Stretch of the West) (this can be safely modified, as shown on p. 89 )

      Avoid backbends, except for the ones presented in this book. Most backbends have a thinning quality in the belly, for example:

      • Urdhva Danurasana (Upward Bow Pose/Wheel Pose)

      • Ustrasana (Camel Pose)

      Avoid poses that require you to lie on your belly, for example:

      • Danurasana (Bow Pose)

      • Salabasana (Locust Pose)

      Avoid poses that require a rigorous kicking action, for example:

      • Adho Mukha Vrksasana (Hand Stand)

      • Pinchamayarasana (Elbow Balance)

      Practitioners that have practiced Sirsasana and Sarvangasana proficiently and without difficulty prior to getting pregnant can continue them. When practiced with ease they are beneficial in supporting a healthy pregnancy. If these poses were not easy prior to pregnancy, discontinue them until after the postpartum period.

      Visual Guide to Props

      Using props in your practice can aid in better alignment, creating more space and freedom in the poses. This is especially helpful during pregnancy when props accommodate and support your changing body and make room for your growing baby.

      Body Landmarks & Terms

      Because of the emphasis on precise alignment and action, it is important to have a clear understanding of the terms used throughout the book to describe various parts of the body. Please use the chart below for reference.

      NOTE

      For ease of understanding, we have often opted to use common terms rather than anatomically correct ones (for example, thigh bone instead of femur).

      Poses and

      Practices for

      Pregnancy

      Mindful asana practice brings a full spectrum of physical, mental, and emotional benefits during pregnancy. The instructions in this part of the book are based on three principles:

      1. Alignment. The guidance for each Getting into the pose section informs you how to stack the bones for optimal anatomical alignment.

      2. Action. Once your alignment is set, the Engaging actions section explains the movement and countermovement for each pose. You will notice that the emphasis is first on stability and then on stretching; these dual actions bring powerful, safe engagement in every pose.

      3. Breath. Keeping attention on the breath is essential in order to fully experience the benefits of each pose. Breath instructions are included in the Engaging actions, and each pose finishes with the important reminder to soften your eyes, relax your face, and let the breath flow freely.

      The pose begins after all the actions have been performed. See how much quietness you can find in each pose; experience the pose fully and discover what it has to offer you.

      STANDING POSES

      Tadasana

      Mountain Pose

      This is a foundational pose. Although it appears simple, the actions in Tadasana help inform proper engagement and alignment in all the other poses.

      GETTING INTO THE POSE

      1. Stand with your feet hip width apart.

      2. The outer edges of your feet should be parallel and the midline of the feet pointing forward.

      ENGAGING ACTIONS

      1. Balance your weight equally between the feet and spread the toes.

      2. Draw the tailbone in and the sitting bones down toward the backs of the knees.

      3. Press the inner thighs back.

      4. Draw the shoulders back and down.

      5. Exhale; press your feet firmly down.

      6. Inhale; lift the pubic bone toward the navel; lift your chest up; lift the side chest up.

      7. Lift your kneecaps and firm the quadriceps.

      8. Have your arms straight by your sides; extend the fingertips toward the floor.

      9. Soften your eyes, relax your face, and let the breath flow freely.

      Stay for 5–10 breaths.

      Urdhva Hastasana

      Upward Hand Pose

      This pose energizes the mind and body and teaches proper extension of the arms.

      GETTING INTO THE POSE

      1. Stand in Tadasana.

      2. Extend your arms up over the head with the wrists shoulder width apart and palms facing each other; the arms should be parallel to each other and in line with the ears.

      ENGAGING ACTIONS

      1. Rotate the upper arms in.

      2. Draw the inner shoulder blades down.

      3. Draw the tailbone in and the sitting bones down toward the backs of the knees.

      4. Exhale; press the feet firmly into the floor.

      5. Inhale; lift and broaden the chest; lift the quadriceps up; lift the kneecaps up.

      6. Extend strongly through the fingertips, straighten your arms up fully, and firm the muscles of the arms.

      7. Soften your eyes, relax your face, and let the breath flow freely.

      Stay

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