Your Prenatal Yoga Guide: What you need to know.

From early on in my pregnancy I was determined to maintain a regular yoga routine. Fortunately, an opportunity to become certified in Prenatal Yoga came up early on and I jumped at it. I knew I’d learn valuable insights- not just to support my students, but to deepen my own practice as my pregnancy progressed.

I believe many assumptions are made about prenatal yoga, and it’s often oversimplified as just an “easier” version of a regular yoga class. I’m here to assure you that there is much more to this practice than that. Although my certification covered a lot of important information, a few things really stuck out that I feel are important to elaborate on. 

Short on Time? Here’s the key points!

• No experience required: You don’t need to have a prior yoga routine to begin prenatal yoga. Pregnancy can be a great time to start one.
• Physical strength and endurance: It helps build muscle, improve mobility, and relieve common pregnancy discomforts—preparing you for labor and life as a parent.
• Props are powerful: Blocks, bolsters, and blankets aren’t signs of weakness—they enhance practice and help prevent injury.
• Hormonal watchout: The hormone relaxin makes joints unstable during and up to a year after pregnancy, so overstretching is a risk even postpartum.
• Meditation matters: Breathwork and relaxation tap into your parasympathetic nervous system to reduce anxiety, lower blood pressure, and promote emotional wellbeing.
• Beyond the birth: Prenatal yoga continues to benefit both body and mind long after the baby arrives.

No yoga experience is required to start a prenatal yoga routine. 

Before I became a certified pre and postnatal fitness specialist back in 2021, I had always been under the impression that exercise during pregnancy was okay as long as you had an already established routine. Pregnancy was not the time to try new things. And although maybe going for a 10-mile run when you’ve never even run a 5k before may not be ideal, I’ve since learned that pregnancy is a great time to establish an exercise routine! This includes yoga.

Regular yoga practice helps to build both strength and endurance that will be needed during labor and motherhood. Working through different planes of motion and stretching various muscles can also help to decrease common aches and pains experienced during pregnancy. 

Although yoga can be considered more of a therapeutic practice, there is definitely an element of physical activity to it. Evidence supports maintaining a prenatal yoga routine throughout pregnancy, whether you had a previous practice or not. You will be guided through many different ways to listen to your body and honor what it needs by making adjustments so that the benefits far outweigh the risks. 

Utilizing props during prenatal yoga won’t make your practice easier, rather it will make it more accessible.

I can admit that there was a point in my yoga journey when I viewed props as “cheating”.  Although at any phase this is not the case, it is especially untrue during pregnancy and recovery. It is important to understand that props will only enhance rather than replace your practice. 

For most pregnant people, there will be a point where certain postures are just not possible without the help of props. I highly encourage you to take advantage of them. Blocks, blankets, and bolsters are extremely versatile to help you fully immerse yourself in postures that may become more strenuous as pregnancy progresses. 

For example, I can truly let go and surrender into a standing forward fold when I place the blocks under my hands at the highest setting. Without them, I’m straining to reach for the floor and putting way too much pressure on my belly. This creates discomfort that isn’t productive for me or my practice. Another example is propping my elbows up on a bolster for puppy pose, opening up the chest more. This gives more of a lift for my upper body, so I’m not limited by my belly reaching the floor. 

In a prenatal class, your teacher will have plenty of options ready for you, but if you’d like to learn a few now, you can check out THIS article.

The use of props helps to prevent injury during practice while also making it feel better overall. I have truly felt that I’ve gotten the most out of my practice when I use multiple props. 

Relaxin is present in the body for up to 12 months after pregnancy. 

Relaxin is a reproductive hormone that is present in the female body during menstruation and pregnancy. It relaxes the ligaments in preparation for birth. It typically spikes during the second trimester, this is when a pregnant person may start to notice instability within the joints, specifically the hips.

This instability puts you at risk for overstretching, which can lead to injury. Think sharp pains, and potentially strains and sprains.  Even in postures where you could access a certain level of flexibility pre-pregnancy, you’ll want to exercise caution. And this risk doesn’t end with pregnancy. Although the levels of relaxin in your body will continue to drop after birth, studies show it can stay present for up to 12 months.

This doesn’t mean you should abandon your practice postpartum. Once you are cleared to exercise again, your yoga practice will be extremely beneficial. But, it may be a good idea to continue to attend prenatal yoga classes for a few weeks, or, if prenatal classes are not available, take the same approach you did while pregnant. This allows the body to readjust to your practice after some time off and maintain some caution to avoid overstretching or injury.

For more information on the hormone relaxin, you can check out this article by the Cleveland Clinic.

Finally, the meditative and relaxation element of yoga is just as important and beneficial, as the movement.

Our bodies experience a lot of additional stress during pregnancy. Between the hormones, your organs shifting, and the energy used to grow a whole human inside you, it should be no surprise that intentional rest is more important now than ever! 

By focusing on the breath and embracing meditation during our practice we are able to tap into the parasympathetic nervous system. This system stimulates digestion, lowers the heart rate, and lowers blood pressure. All help to lower stress and anxiety. If you’re interested in a restorative practice, I go into full detail about that specifically HERE. 

I know how easy it is for me to fall into the mindset of “movement equals benefits”, but we are truly missing out if we only maintain this mentality.  Speaking from personal experience, sometimes it’s not flowing through the postures that challenge us the most, but rather allowing ourselves to embrace the stillness and silence. This is where we can genuinely connect with our breath and find the space for our mind to rest to reap all of the benefits listed above. 

Ensure you are taking the breath and meditative work in your practice just as seriously as the postures. With a new addition joining your family soon, lots of changes can be expected, and with change often comes stress. Not all stress is bad, but having the tools and a strong routine already established to help you cope is best for you and your baby.

Benefits for pregnancy, birth, and beyond. 

Becoming a certified Prenatal Yoga teacher has given me a new appreciation for my practice and body in this phase of life. I will never stop singing its praises, and my motivation to share some of the things I’ve learned throughout this process is to give you information to feel confident moving forward. If you’ve been on the fence about prenatal yoga, I hope you feel ready to embrace it! Your body and mind will thank you- now and long after baby arrives.