Whether you want a drug-free delivery or desire painkillers at the first sign of a contraction, childbirth exercises can prepare your body for the experience. Exercises designed to improve pelvic flexibility and strengthen your abdominal and pelvic floor muscles can make your birth and recovery easier. In addition, they can ease many of the aches and pains associated with pregnancy, including urinary incontinence and back and pelvic pain.
Kegel Exercises
Kegel exercises strengthen the muscles around your uro-genital tract. Strengthening these muscles can improve circulation to your vaginal and rectal area, which can help you avoid hemorrhoids during delivery and speed healing after an episiotomy or tear. AskDrSears.com, a website created by pediatrician Bill Sears from the University of California, Irvine, indicates that knowing how to relax these muscles can make labor easier and help you prevent tears when your baby's head moves through your vagina. To do Kegel exercises, contract the muscles you use to stop your urine flow. Hold for a count of four, then release. Repeat 10 times. Work up to doing three or four sets, three times a day.
Tailor Stretches
Tailor stretches can ease childbirth by strengthening and stretching the muscles in your thighs, back and pelvis and improving your pelvic flexibility. Sit on the floor, with the bottoms of your feet together and your knees dropped comfortably to the floor. Keep your back straight, and use your elbows to press your knees gently down towards the floor. Hold the position for 10 to 15 seconds, then repeat it five to 10 times. If this exercise is uncomfortable or painful for you, AskDrSears.com suggests you can reap many of the same benefits by sitting cross-legged on the floor for 10 minutes, two or three times a day.
Squats
Squatting helps strengthen your thighs and opens your pelvis in preparation for birth. The website from "Parents" magazine recommends practicing the move prior to birth to make it easier to maintain the squat for an extended period of time. Since squatting can be tiring, start your practice with wall slides. Stand with your back straight against the wall and slowly slide down to a squatting position. Hold the position for five to 10 seconds, then stand up and repeat it five to 10 times.
Belly Breathing
This type of breathing strengthens your abdominals, which can help you push out your baby more effectively. As an added bonus, it can relax and soothe you during active labor. Sit with your legs crossed and your hands on top of your belly. Inhale through your nose and expand your belly. Exhale through your mouth, pulling your abdominals in and bringing your belly button toward your spine. Repeat frequently throughout the day, especially when you need a few moments of rest and relaxation.
