Mommy and Baby Yoga
The feels of being a new mom… How do we even explain these, “feels”? The “feels” are definitely felt within our body, our minds, and our spirit. Our bodies are so amazing in everything that they are meant to do. Our mind is supposed to move our body, but in reality our body moving is what makes our mind happy and our spirits filled. This relationship between our mind and body is extremely important when we are adding another human to the world. Our bodies work so hard to create a baby, build a home for it, in- and out side of the womb, and to nourish it. Carrying our little ones for 40ish weeks and going through labor and birth takes a toll on our bodies. And after the birth we nurse our babies in the worst possible positions for our body. We may not notice the pain and aches of nursing our babies, but our bodies feel it in every aspect: Back hunched over, neck tilted because its almost impossible not to gaze into our beautiful babies' eyes, arms wrapped around and most likely in an uncomfortable position but we won't dare adjust or move a muscle incase we may disturb our little eaters.
Postpartum is a time that our bodies must adjust to the new quirky positions most of us find ourselves in. With all of the new adjustments of being a mommy, our minds become tired, boggled, happy, emotional, confused, forgetful, tired.. Oh wait I already said tired... We become so busy that we forget to take care of ourselves.
I heard that baby and mommy yoga is a very beneficial activity that can help us, mothers, become more grounded within our body, mind, and spirit. I am new to baby and mommy yoga, well really to yoga in general. I am busy with two kids, school, work, sports, and am trying to fit in some sanity somewhere in the middle of all that. The first time I tried baby and mommy yoga was at home when baby was seven months old. I did the basics; downward facing dog, mountain pose, legs up on the wall, and my favorite: corpse pose. I also did child's pose and made it into a peek-a-boo game, which my daughter absolutely loved. I felt so good after just ten minutes of stretching. The next day she crawled over to the yoga mat all excited as if to ask to do baby and mommy yoga again. I dropped everything I was doing and took fifteen minutes to do a few stretches with her and try a few more poses I learned from Pinterest. I was really inspired by my daughter to be more active and do yoga daily or a couple times a day. I feel my body becoming more centered and aligned and I am reminded to hold a better posture throughout the day. I feel uplifted, especially when my baby is laughing hysterically during child's play pose.
The benefits of baby and mommy yoga are great for recovering from labor and delivery. There are many stretches and poses that can get your body moving and help you to be more centered. Easy yoga poses can be done with your baby and you will be able to strengthen your body and ease your mind with a bit of meditation and breathing. Baby and mommy yoga can be done with other moms and babies or from home.
Yoga Benefits
Body:
Relieves aches and pains from breastfeeding, lugging that clunky car seat around, carrying baby, and what feels like half of your house everytime you leave.
Release tension.
Helps with fatigue
Replenishes vitality
Enhances balance and flexibility
Mind:
Anxiety relief
Increases all the good chemicals that go along with all the lovely new mother hormones flowing through the body
Helps with mild postpartum depression
Gives you an overall pleasant mood
Helps a new mom get back to her normal self
Soul:
Provides you with lots of baby laughs
Build a village and make friends
Feel supported
Feel nourished and refreshed
At BEST Birth Hawaii, at New Baby New Mommy group we occasionally practice baby and mommy yoga and learn different poses we can do with our babies and friends. Join us on Wednesdays from 10-12. Also try a class at Purple Yoga Hawaii on Tuesdays at 11am to try out Baby and Mommy Yoga. It is a great way to start getting your body moving, your mind happy, and your spirit whole.
