As you get larger, it can become more difficult to stick to a prenatal workout program. You're probably not sleeping well, constantly running to the restroom, really sick of wearing what feels like the same three or four outfits,and feeling anything but lovely in workout gear. But, the Childbirth and Postpartum Professional Association recently cited a study out of Thailand indicating that the last trimester is one of the most important times to be practicing prenatal yoga.
While you may not feel graceful, or even able to see your "center" any longer, the study evidenced that regular yoga practice in the last 10-12 weeks of pregnancy improves maternal comfort in labor and may actually help to facilitate labor progress. (Amen to that!) The researchers theorized that mothers who learned breath awareness as a result of prenatal yoga practice were able to use the knowledge during labor, leading to muscle relaxation and a lessened focus on pain.The scientists also deduced that women who attended prenatal yoga classes or conducted a regular at home practice increased circulating endorphins and serotonin, “raising the threshold of mind-body relationship to pain”. There is also scientific evidence that practicing yoga postures over time regardless of the phase in life one begins yoga alters pain pathways through the parasympathetic nervous system, decreasing one’s need to actively notice and respond to pain.
While you may not feel graceful, or even able to see your "center" any longer, the study evidenced that regular yoga practice in the last 10-12 weeks of pregnancy improves maternal comfort in labor and may actually help to facilitate labor progress. (Amen to that!) The researchers theorized that mothers who learned breath awareness as a result of prenatal yoga practice were able to use the knowledge during labor, leading to muscle relaxation and a lessened focus on pain.The scientists also deduced that women who attended prenatal yoga classes or conducted a regular at home practice increased circulating endorphins and serotonin, “raising the threshold of mind-body relationship to pain”. There is also scientific evidence that practicing yoga postures over time regardless of the phase in life one begins yoga alters pain pathways through the parasympathetic nervous system, decreasing one’s need to actively notice and respond to pain.
