Yoga for Moms: Regain Strength and Calm After Pregnancy

Yoga helps tone the abdominal muscles and gives you back your earlier shape by strengthening the muscles of the back, legs and hips. Apart from this, your pelvic floor becomes weak after delivery, and often there is pain in the neck and shoulders as well. There is no doubt that yoga is the most effective way to get rid of all these problems. If you have been doing yoga before, then you can start yoga asanas again slowly. But if you have never done yoga before, please start yoga under the guidance of a trained yoga guru.

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Your body should be completely healthy and have enough strength to start yoga. You can start yoga practice after six weeks of normal delivery. If you have had a cesarean delivery, you may need more time before starting yoga.

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In the beginning, pay special attention to the limits of your body. If your strength has not fully returned, do not put too much stress on the body. Initially, the aim of yoga practice after delivery is to get more rest and relaxation. Gradually your body will gain strength and you will be able to do more asanas. With regular practice, you will get back to your previous shape.

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Initially, practice rhythmic deep breathing or Anulom Vilom Pranayama. This will provide the much needed rest and relaxation to you and also prepare your body for full yoga practice.

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Try to take deep breaths during the day. After a few days your breath will become long and deep. Practice rhythmic breathing whenever you have some free time during the day. If you can breathe deeply, most of your problems will disappear.

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Take out 5 minutes anytime during the day and lie down in Shavasana. Breathe rhythmically while doing Shavasana. This will give you very important relaxation which is very important in the initial days of delivery. 

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After practicing Pranayama and Shavasana for a few days, you can start doing the simple yoga asanas given below in the days after pregnancy. These will give you many benefits such as the muscles of the stomach, back, legs and hips will become stronger, the pain of the neck and shoulders will decrease.

SetuBandhasana or Bridge Pose: Setu Bandhasana is capable of reducing anxiety. It calms the mind, also helps in reducing headaches, and reduces stress and mild depression. All these are very important for a new mother. Bhujangasana or Cobra Pose: Bhujangasana provides relief from back pain. Every new mother should do this.

Gomukhasana or Cow Face Pose: Whether you are breastfeeding or using a bottle, many new mothers experience neck and shoulder pain – the result of many hours of bending forward to feed the baby. This can result in neck and shoulder pain due to the crouching position. To get relief from this, do Gomukhasana.

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Viparita Karani or Legs-Up-the-Wall Pose: You have to get up every now and then at night to take care of the baby. Due to this, you rarely get enough sleep. You cannot reduce your insomnia-heavy nights, but you can definitely reduce the fatigue caused by it during the day. Viparita Karani Mudrasana helps in this. Initially, do it with the support of the wall. Do it for 2-5 minutes, as long as you feel appropriate.

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Virabhadrasana 2 or Warrior 2 Pose: After your baby is born, you may find that climbing stairs is not as easy as it was a year ago. Apart from this, you may get tired faster in other normal tasks as well. And this is also very natural because your body has gone through a lot in the last one year. To overcome this, Viparita Karani Virabhadrasana 2 helps.

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Adho Mukha Svanasana or Downward-Facing Dog: This asana provides stretch to your entire body. It removes mild stiffness in the shoulders and chest.

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Practicing yoga after delivery is extremely beneficial for the new mother, both physically and mentally. It helps the body to gradually become strong and flexible again. Yoga Asanas strengthen the abdominal and back muscles, which become weak after delivery. Also, yoga provides mental peace by reducing stress and depression, helping the new mother to deal with postpartum depression. Regular yoga improves blood circulation, which speeds up the body's recovery process and improves the mother's overall health.