Prenatal yoga courses are designed to help you prepare your body and mind for the physical changes that you will encounter during pregnancy. While many prenatal yoga courses focus on stretching and loosening up the parts of your body most strained by pregnancy, there are other prenatal yoga courses that focus on breathing and meditation.
Yoga Breathing Course
Yoga breathing courses are designed to help relax your body while pregnant as well as steady you during the actual act of giving birth. Many yoga breathing courses specialize in teaching you how to harness your energy and channel it through your breathing. A basic yoga breathing course usually lasts four to six weeks and focuses on two basic breathing techniques, Kapalabhati and Anuloma Viloma. For the first two weeks of the course, you will work on Kapalabhati breathing, which requires you take two regular breaths followed by a deep inhale. This part of the course teaches you how to breathe from your diaphragm, expanding your lungs and releasing tension in your body. For the final two weeks, you will try and master the Anuloma Viloma breathing technique. This technique requires you to place the index and middle fingers of your right hand into both of your nostrils and breath in with your left nostril while holding your right nostril closed. Focusing on this exercise for two weeks teaches you how to properly breathe through your nose and how to differentiate between mouth breathing and nasal breathing.
Active Flow Course
While many prenatal yoga courses focus on passive movements, breathing techniques and stillness, some prenatal yoga courses specialize in stretching and are designed to help your child maintain a good position in your body while decreasing strain on your muscles and joints. Active flow courses require you to perform 30 minutes of active stretching before moving into more static positions for the final portion of the course. Several common stretches that are found in an active flow course are the cobbler or tailor's pose as well as the chest expansion pose. Active flow courses are designed for the first five months of pregnancy and should withdrawn from during the final months of your pregnancy.
Prenatal Balance Courses
Prenatal balance courses are designed to improve your coordination while pregnant. While many prenatal balance courses will be offered in conjunction with a basic breathing course, some are offered on their own as a four-week course. Techniques that are taught in these courses range from the cat and cow exercise, a simple yoga position that helps improve your balance, to the side-lying position. Each position taught in a prenatal balance course is designed to restore your basic sense of balance in a variety of different angles. While your basic balance is often thrown off during pregnancy, prenatal balance courses teach you how to position yourself to compensate for the added weight and new dimensions of your body.
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