By Wini Linguvic

Photographed by Mark Madeo

Yoga is a wonderful resource when you’re expecting. It has many benefits, including relief from common aches and pains of pregnancy as well as stress reduction. Yoga also provides an increased connection between your body and your breath that will assist you throughout pregnancy, labor and delivery, and motherhood.

By practicing prenatal yoga, you can broaden your awareness of your changing body and your growing baby. Even a few minutes a day offers the opportunity to focus inward during this time of great transition.

Designed to relieve and relax, this prenatal yoga sequence of poses can be done in its entirety as a stress-busting routine. Or you can practice the individual poses one at a time to address specific concerns such as tight shoulders or achy hips.

All you need is a quiet space and some folded blankets. Try to set up near a wall and a chair so you can use them if needed. And always check with your doctor before starting this or any exercise program.

Belly Breathing
This exercise increases the connection between the mind and the body and deepens your focus—essential tools for labor and delivery.

• Sit on a stack of folded blankets in a comfortable cross-legged position. Support your back against the wall, if necessary.

• Feel your sit bones, the bones beneath the flesh that you literally sit on, grounded on the blankets.

• Place both hands on the belly with the arms relaxed.

• Inhale through the nose, feeling your belly expand. Keep the breath slow and even, elongating the body as you breathe in. Focus on sensing the breath in your throat, which should be soft and open.

• Exhale through the nose, observing your belly contract, gently hugging your baby. Relax your body.

• Continue for three slow, easy breaths.