About Prenatal Yoga

Many people think of prenatal yoga as “gentle yoga.”  While in our classes you will be taken step by step through breathing and alignment that will feel delicious, prenatal yoga is actually about finding your strength – both inner and outer – so you can experience more sweetness on your journey to motherhood and beyond.

Anusara Yoga- founded by John Friend in 1997 – is our inspiration at Ma Yoga. Anusara® is an uplifting, life-affirming yoga based in principles of alignment that help us move into our highest potential.  These principles are both therapeutic- helping us eliminate back, wrist, neck and knee pain, and also energetic, or “heart principles” - helping us step into our most empowered, connected and playful Self.

When applied to pregnancy, Anusara yoga helps us handle all the ups and downs, the worries and excitement, and even the discomforts in a more grounded, calm way.  It’s an amazing time to learn yoga as when we become new moms, as these practices will help us stay connected to our kula – heart-filled community – and feel supported even when we can’t make it to class. In this yoga, we learn how to find the feeling of support in our own bodies so we can enjoy offering a wide open heart to our babies, our loved ones, and our community.

An important principle of Anusara Yoga is balanced action.  Thanks to pregnancy hormones, the body – especially the joints – is expanding and becoming less stable.  We create stability first, and then enjoy freedom, making more space for baby and breath.  In doing so, we find our aches and pains dissolving and a feeling of steadiness manifesting.

In prenatal yoga, we take time out to connect to our bodies and our growing baby by using our breath, so that we can have moments of realizing the hugeness of what is happening our lives.  Yoga helps us make the most of our 9 months, so that we are fully prepared to be the mother we want to be.

The word “Ma” in Sanskrit, the ancient language of yoga, refers to the Great Mother that we all have within us – our greatest possibility as a human being, the most expansive love, and deepest strength there is.  It is all there within you, waiting to be experienced and enjoyed! 

Come play on the mat with moms-to-be, and continue as a mom to continue to enjoy the wonderful support, resources, and teachings of Ma Yoga for Pregnancy, Motherhood & Beyond.

 

What is prenatal yoga good for?

Prenatal yoga is one of the only exercises that it’s ok to start when pregnant (another is walking).  Prenatal yoga has been shown to increase health and wellness in numerous ways:

1. Helps reduce high blood pressure

2. Helps reduce stress, one of the major risk factors for preterm birth and other negative birth outcomes

3. Helps reduce common pregnancy-related aches and pains, such as shoulder, wrist, and back

4. Offers a support network that can continue into motherhood

5. Teaches meditation, breathing, and alignment practices that can help make the transition into motherhood easier

6.  Offers access to a greater birth support community so you can get help with issues as they arise

7. Gives you an opportunity to practice making decisions from your authentic Self