Great pregnancy exercise: Prenatal yoga

Yoga tips for the second trimester

Your joints are beginning to loosen up now, so sink into yoga positions slowly and carefully.
Hold poses only for as long as you're comfortable.
Use a wedge or pillows to raise your upper body when you're lying down.
Be aware that your slowly expanding girth will affect your sense of balance.
Take your time and don't push yourself to the point of pain or exhaustion.

Yoga tips for the third trimester

You're probably feeling less graceful now that your belly is bigger, so keep these tips in mind as you continue your yoga practice:

Do all standing poses with your heel to the wall, or use a chair for support to avoid losing your balance and risking injury to yourself or your baby.
Use props such as blocks and straps to help you move through different poses with greater stability.
Don't hold poses for a long time: It's important to keep moving because standing still for too long slows the rate of blood flow back to the heart in some pregnant women.

Yoga safety precautions during pregnancy

As with any exercise, you need to take certain general precautions when you're pregnant.

Avoid lying on your back, especially after the first trimester. Lying on your back can put pressure on your inferior vena cava (the vein that returns blood from the legs to the heart) and reduce blood flow to your uterus. It can also make you feel dizzy and cause shortness of breath and nausea.

Use a wedge or pillows to raise your upper body when you're lying down. Or limit the time you're flat on your back to one minute, and roll over onto your side for 30 seconds between each exercise on your back.

Skip headstands and shoulder stands. "Pregnancy is not the time to start an inversion practice," says Denise. The risk of falling or feeling faint from having your head below your heart makes these poses unsafe for most pregnant women.
Skip positions that require extreme stretching of the abdominal muscles. Deep forward and back bends as well as deep twists can lead to injury. Avoid stretching moves that feel uncomfortable or cause muscle soreness.

Avoid doing yoga in hot, humid conditions. Don't take Bikram or hot yoga classes (in which the room is heated to 90 degrees or higher) because this could cause dangerous overheating, cautions Tracey Mallett, a certified personal trainer and fitness instructor in Los Angeles, California, and creator of the 3-in-1 Pregnancy Workout DVD.

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