Blog | Full Circle Yoga Studio in Kansas City

Prenatal Yoga In The Second Trimester

June 19, 2017 by Full Circle Yoga KC Leave a Comment

Prenatal Yoga In The Second Trimester has so many benefits for mama to be. Many mamas find the second trimester the most enjoyable, often energy level returns, morning sickness dissipates, and baby movement is felt providing reassurance.

Prenatal Yoga In The Second Trimester:

Second yoga trimester is a time to practice the power of pranayama, or your breath in preparation birth. So many mamas report back that practicing breathing was a life saver during labor. It’s also a time to keep discomforts at bay such as hip and lower back pain. So many mamas I’ve worked with report they sleep so much better after coming to their mat to practice. Getting good sleep is so important for mamas health and wellness.

Some of the favorite poses in second trimester are cat/cow (Bitilasana) to warm up the spine and help drop baby forward. Chest openers such as modified camel pose (Ustrasana) helps bring in more breath, and create space for the diaphragm. Hip openers such as bound angle pose (Baddhakona), relaxes the hips, supports the pelvic floor and can reduce pain during labor according to Dr. Grantly Dick Reed in Childbirth Without Fear. Shavasana can be such an enjoyable time to connect with baby and feel baby’s movement during this trimester, also a time to practice surrendering and letting go, another skill to prepare for birth.

Read Prenatal Yoga In The First Trimester

At Full Circle Yoga KC our prenatal yoga offers a class that mamas at all stages can practice and build their physical and emotional strength in preparation for their birthing journey.

Yoga Tip Of The Day

June 14, 2017 by Full Circle Yoga KC Leave a Comment

Yoga Tip of the Day…..practice self-care before your little one arrives!! Promoting your own wellness through self-care before baby arrives will help you maintain this important practice when life is busy. Prenatal Yoga or Pregnancy yoga is a perfect way to begin self care; giving you an opportunity to wind down, quiet the mind, care for your body physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Full Circle Yoga KC offers prenatal yoga classes that support a mother’s pregnancy journey. In our prenatal classes we practice mindfulness in breathing, bring awareness to our changing bodies, and offer movement for a full body workout.

Prenatal Yoga In The First Trimester

June 12, 2017 by Full Circle Yoga KC Leave a Comment

Prenatal Yoga in the first trimester can be incredibly helpful as long as one listens to their intuition. With the increased research that supports the health benefits of prenatal yoga, more and more healthcare practitioners are recommending prenatal yoga or pregnancy yoga.

Yoga can help center your mind to tune into the amazing work your body does in the first trimester. This is a time to notice the unbelievable changes that are happening, number one, you’re growing a new life, congratulations!!! Celebrate this moment and be gentle with yourself as you notice your body changing.

Whether you are an advanced yogi or just beginning, your body is going through tremendous changes. Your hormones are surging. Your producing more estrogen- which increases your pliability of connective tissue, produces more blood, and can produce mood swings. More progesterone is produced, slowing the digestive system, and increasing the basal body temperature. Relaxin hormones also increase, relaxing the muscles, tendons, and ligaments. Because of the major increase in these hormones it can play a role in your yoga practice.

Prenatal Yoga Tips For The First Trimester:

Listen to what your body needs!!! This is often a time of fatigue, although you can’t see it, your body is working so hard! First trimester may create nausea, be gentle to yourself.
Avoid closed twist poses, rather stick to upper torso open twists to open the shoulders, upper back, and chest.
Prone poses- proceed with caution, make sure you know how to do these poses correctly to keep and belly is not getting direct pressure. Direct pressure on the uterus should be avoided.
Deep backbends, again should proceed with caution, and possible avoid as it can place direct pressure on the uterus and overstretch abdominal muscles.
Some pranayamas- typically this is a good time to practice breath through the nose and out the mouth, which is the most beneficial way of breathing during labor.

This list is not comprehensive and one should talk to their yoga instructor and/or healthcare practitioner to ensure safety for mama and growing baby.

At Full Circle Yoga KC our prenatal yoga offers a class that mamas at all stages can practice and build their physical and emotional strength in preparation for their birthing journey.

Prenatal Yoga Helps You Connect With Your Baby

June 7, 2017 by Full Circle Yoga KC Leave a Comment

Prenatal Yoga or Pregnancy Yoga helps you connect with your baby and grow the partnership between the two of you. At Full Circle Yoga KC we begin our prenatal class by welcoming you and baby (or babies) to the mat for practice. This allows the two of you to begin connecting to each other.

Three poses we focus on baby and mommy connection

Easy Pose- Placing one hand on heart and one hand on beautiful belly and breathing for two. Inhaling life-force or your pranayama into your lungs and baby’s lungs. During this time we bring our attention to our bodies and surrender to the outside world for the next hour.
Seated Side Angle Pose- Elongating mom’s side to allow more room for baby to play, move and stretch.
Savasana- A time for connecting with your baby and your body without distraction. An opportunity to appreciate the scared time of pregnancy. Taking time to place your loving hands on your growing baby and offering your nourishing touch.

Full Circle Yoga in Overland Park was founded in 2017 by yoga teacher Jenny Hellman focusing on wellness in the early stages of family life from prenatal to early parenthood and the older adult years. Full Circle Yoga KC is an Overland Yoga Studio specializing in Prenatal Yoga, Baby Yoga and Chair Yoga for seniors.

5 Ways To Prepare For Labor

June 2, 2017 by Full Circle Yoga KC Leave a Comment

The “big day” is always on our minds when we are expecting. When will it be? Will I be late or early? Will it be painful? What can I do to prepare myself for the journey?

Labor and Delivery is tough, you must prepare mentally and physically. It hurts, however the hurt is different than a broken bone. A broken bone signals to your brain something is wrong in your body and you must fix it. Labor and Delivery birth hurts in a way that’s like running a marathon. You train mentally and physically for a marathon but the final stretch can be challenging, even painful, but there is a finish line you’ve worked so hard to get across!

There are many things you can do to prepare for the “big day”

Exercise- Your body needs to be in shape and ready for labor and delivery. One of the best forms of exercise during pregnancy is prenatal yoga or pregnancy yoga, helping you prepare mentally and physically for labor and delivery by practicing breath during intense poses. Learning prenatal yoga poses allows you to release tension during pregnancy and during labor. Prenatal Yoga also allows for mediation, an opportunity to practice surrendering and being present to the moment rather than push against it.
Educate Yourself- Whether your delivering at home, hospital, birthing center, it’s so important that you be your best advocate. I once heard “you are not a patient during your birthing journey,” so true!! The more you educate yourself the less fear and anxiety you will have going into that “big day.”
Call in your support team- invite those on your team that have the same philosophy as you do when it comes to your birthing journey. Create a space of peacefulness for your birthing journey. Do you want this to be a sacred time for just you and your partner? Do you want the whole family present? Who do you want as your practitioner- OBGYN, Midwife? Will you include a doula as part of your team?
Be Present- Trust in the processes. Women have been giving birth for thousands of years. Contractions are like waves, they build and crash, and you have time in between each wave to center again and ride the next wave.
Use Visualizations- visualize something that brings calmness to you. What is that something? What color is it? What does it smell like? What does it look like? Where is it? Practice this visualization prior to labor. Practicing visualization is powerful tool in pain management.