OM

I started taking prenatal yoga classes this week and I love it! I have been going to yoga two days a week for the last 5 years and now I will be able to continue to go throughout my pregnancy. This morning's class was much larger than last Sunday's class and it is so great to see women in different stages of their pregnancy. You also get to hear what to look forward to as you grow (shortness of breath, wrist problems, lower back pain, etc.)...awesome! But the instructor gives helpful tips/poses to relieve the pain. The class is a gentler form of yoga than the vinyasa flow class I took on a regular basis. We did alot of supported floor poses using props, such as blankets and wood blocks to prop our hips up or rest our head on. There are many benefits to prenatal yoga especially for the birthing process:

*Relieves tension around the birth canal and cervix.
*Yoga can influence the position of the baby and turn it in advance if needed.
*It focuses on opening up the pelvis and to make labor easier and quicker (this better be true)!
*Relieves fluid retention and cramping (hopefully no more Charlie Horses for me).
*And it stimulates bowel movement (sorry for the TMI) and appetite.

Zac asked me the other day when he gets to start coming to these classes with me and I told him that these were just yoga classes not the birthing classes that we will have to take. It was pretty cute...he doesn't want to miss out on anything! I did tell him that he can always join me for a yoga class...he would be the only man there though.

We did sign up for our birthing classes at Hoag Hospital (where I will be delivering). We start on February 3rd and go one day a week for 3 weeks. We are also looking into taking a couple of other classes, such as a breastfeeding class and an infant care/safety class.

Namaste.