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5 Benefits of Practicing Yoga While Pregnant

Autumn Adams

prenatal yoga in bend oregon

I have been fortunate to work with many pregnant mamas through my prenatal yoga class in Bend, Oregon at Midtown Juniper Yoga. It is always a blessing and joy to watch these strong, beautiful women share their vulnerability, while nurturing themselves and their babies throughout their pregnancies. Often times the women that come to my class already have a yoga practice, but occasionally prenatal yoga is their introduction to yoga and what a wonderful loving way to be introduced to the practice and to experience all of the benefits of prenatal yoga.

Here I would like to share the benefits of prenatal yoga with you. If you’re reading this you’re likely already pregnant or know someone that is. Congrats! What an exciting time. As you seek out prenatal yoga classes in your area I encourage you to talk with the instructor before class. Find out their training. Do you like their energy? Do they also teach birth prep? Do they have a network of providers that they can recommend? Can they offer you modifications for both prenatal yoga classes and regular group classes?

Here are 5 Benefits of Prenatal Yoga:

  1. Reduced stress and anxiety.
  2. Improved sleep.
  3. Relief from common pregnancy related aches and pains.
  4. Connection with a community of women and your baby.
  5. Improved muscle tone, strength and flexibility.

Contraindicated Yoga Postures During Pregnancy:

  1. Deep twists.
  2. Prone postures (lying on your belly).
  3. Deep backbends.
  4. Inversions.
  5. Lying on your back for a long period of time (savasana).
  6. Standing with legs wide for an extended period of time.

Don’t let this list of contraindicated postures scare you. They can all be modified into a beautiful and fulfilling yoga practice… a practice where you can enjoy all the benefits of prenatal yoga.

I could easily make this list twice as long, but I’d like to keep it short and simple.

Need pregnancy yoga resources or live somewhere where you cannot find a prenatal yoga class? Here are some highly recommendable resources:

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DIY Yoga Mat Cleaner

Autumn Adams

Hey yogis,

Kiss that skunky gym mat goodbye! Toss this nice smelling DIY yoga mat cleaner into your gym bag or yoga bag and you’ll never have to smell a stinky yoga mat again… unless it’s REALLY bad. A clean mat will not only last longer, but it will also keep you from getting sick or getting a fungal, bacterial or viral skin infection. I like the DIY version because I can play with the scents and have one for my morning practice and one for my evening practice… think citrus (energizing) vs. lavender (calming). Creating your own yoga mat cleaner from natural ingredients makes it that much easier to maintain a sattvic (pure) lifestyle, beginning to incorporate the principles of sattva into our daily routines (diet, behavior, products we use).

Here is my DIY yoga mat cleaner recipe. Happy cleaning!

body-spray-mat-spray

Ingredients for DIY yoga mat cleaner:

  • Spray bottle
  • Tea tree essential oil
  • Lavender essential oil
  • Witch Hazel or distilled white vinegar
  • Water

Instructions for DIY yoga mat cleaner:

  1. This recipe will be in proportions, since your spray bottle will likely be a different size than the ones that I use.
  2. Fill your spray bottle about 3/4 way with water. Remaining 1/4 with witch hazel or distilled white vinegar.
  3. Add 15 or so drops of tea tree essential oil and 10 or so of your second oil. Feel free to adjust the amounts and remember a little goes along way, so if you’re working with a smaller spray bottle start with fewer drops.
  4. Seal it, shake it up, and toss it in your mat bag with an old wash cloth and you’re good to go.

Why tea tree essential oil? Tea tree oil (melaleuca) is an intense anti-fungal and antimicrobial.

Why lavender essential oil? Lavender is a natural antiseptic and antimicrobial. Lavender is also calming and great for those with sensitive skin.

Don’t like lavender? Try lemongrass, clove bud, eucalyptus, lemon, myrhh, geranium, peppermint/spearmint or patchouli.

If you’d rather just buy a yoga mat cleaner here are a couple natural ones that I recommend:

Nama-Sudz Organic Mat Spray

Manduka Mat Wash

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Adi Mudra

Autumn Adams

Hey yogis, your mudra for the week is Adi Mudra. Adi Mudra received it’s name, adi= first and mudra= seal, because it is the first position the hands are capable of inside the womb. Adi Mudra is most commonly practiced during pranayama, but may also be practiced in asana.

yoga-mudra-adi-mudra

To Practice Adi Mudra

To practice Adi Mudra tuck the thumb into the palm, so the tip of the thumb touches the little finger, then close the fingers over the top of the thumb to make a gentle fist. In meditation or pranayama turn the palms down and rest the hands on the thighs. Adi Mudra is calming to the nervous system and is nice to practice at the end of an asana practice. I’ve also found that it can help with balance in some of the balancing postures like tree pose.

Benefits of Adi Mudra:

  • Calms the nervous system
  • Stimulates udana vayu (the governing vayu for the upper chest, throat, and head)
  • It is thought to aid in pranayama because it increases breathing and lung capacity, thus increasing oxygen flow throughout the body. Source: yogapedia.com
  • The adi mudra is also thought to stimulate the brain, which is closely related to the crown (sahasrara) chakra that governs an individual’s sense of peace, higher awareness and oneness with the universe. Source: yogapedia.com
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Organic Blackberry Sorbet

Steve Craig

As the dog days of summer drag on, nothing beats the heat quite like a tasty frozen treat. Fortunately, fresh fruit sorbets are incredibly easy to make and much better on your waistline than ice cream.

organic blackberry sorbet

So delicious and so easy to make!

Since all fruit sorbet recipes follow the same basic pattern (1. make simple syrup, 2. add fruit, 3. blend and chill), you can get creative with whatever fruit is in season in your area. For this recipe, I used a a pint of delicious organic blackberries fresh from the Bend Farmer’s Market — the hardest part of this recipe was not eating all the juicy berries before the syrup was ready!

blackberry sorbet ingredientsOrganic Blackberry Sorbet Recipe

Ingredients (4 servings)

  • 1 cup water
  • 2/3 cup organic sugar
  • 1/2 organic lemon
  • 1 pint (16oz) organic blackberries
blackberry sorbet recipe mixedblackberry-sorbet-blendedblackberry-sorbet-cuisinart

Instructions

  1. Make a simple syrup by bringing the sugar and water to a boil, stirring constantly until sugar is dissolved. Remove the simple syrup from the heat and pour in a large mixing bowl.
  2. Rinse the blackberries and add to the mixing bowl. Let the blackberries steep in the hot simple syrup for about 10 minutes.
  3. Using a hand mixer, blend the berries and simple syrup into a puree. Squeeze the juice of the half lemon and stir into the mix. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the mixture for at least one hour.
  4. Start up your ice cream maker (I used a Conair Cuisinart 1.5-quart ice cream maker, which is the perfect size for this recipe). Pour the blended mixture into the ice cream maker. After 10-15 minutes of churning, the sorbet should be ready to go; check the consistency as the sorbet solidifies to get the perfect texture.
  5. Scoop out the sorbet and serve, or store in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 weeks.

A Poem for Savasana

Autumn Adams

blissful-afternoon-tea

Just For Now

Just for now, without asking how, let yourself sink into stillness.

Just for now, lay down the
weight you so patiently
bear upon your shoulders.
Feel the earth receive
you, and the infinite
expanse of sky grow even
wider as your awareness
reaches up to meet it.

 Just for now, allow a wave of breath to enliven your experience.

Breathe out
whatever blocks you from
the truth. Just for now, be
boundless, free, awakened
energy tingling in your
hands and feet. Drink in
the possibility of being
who and what you really are
so fully alive that when you
open your eyes the world
looks different, newly born
and vibrant, just for now.

By Danna Faulds