A Tale of Three Trimesters - EditPro-Services

“Squat and Rise”
Stand straight with your feet shoulder-width apart, and your toes
turned out. Interlock your fingers and let them hang loosely in front of
your body. Slowly bend your knees and lower your body into a squat
position. Don’t squat too deeply if this is uncomfortable. Then
straighten your knees and return to an upright position. This exercise
will strengthen the muscles of your middle back, uterus, thighs and
ankles. It also relaxes your hamstring muscles, your inner thighs and
abdominal muscles, and stretches the muscles all along the sides of
your body, keeping them strong and flexible.
If you’re still not convinced yoga can help you get through pregnancy
and beyond, consider the following:
• Yoga can help relieve the fluid retention that usually goes with
the last months of pregnancy.
• Some health care professionals believe that yoga helps the baby
get into the right position for childbirth. “Breech” babies – those
turned around with their feet first instead of head first, often
have to be delivered by Cesarean section.
• Yoga can help your metabolism by improving your respiratory
and circulatory function. This can have an effect on your
digestion, helping prevent excess weight gain, constipation,
bloating and hemorrhoids.
• Yoga can help your reproductive organs function correctly
during childbirth. It can help your cervix and birth canal relax,
and open the pelvis making labor easier and quicker.
Are you a believer yet? Practice your yoga stretches consistently for a
few days and you will be!
Abdominal Separation
As you move into the last half of your pregnancy, you should check
your abdominal muscles regularly to make sure they are not
separating. Pregnancy hormones like relaxin can cause the muscles at
the center seam of your abdomen to soften and stretch. This is
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