Yoga on the plane: asanas for pregnant women

Yoga workout during a flight

Can pregnant women travel? It is possible and probably even necessary! Pleasant emotions and new impressions are extremely important for the expectant mother. But the question of whether it is acceptable to travel by air should always be decided with your doctor, since pregnancy proceeds differently for all women. As a rule, in the second trimester, if pregnancy proceeds normally, gynecologists allow their patients without fear to travel requiring flights. And, by the way, they do not consider a flight by plane as a reason to change the usualtraining schedule, you just need to choose special exercises for yoga classes during the flight. So, what do you need to know about the rules of flying and how to make up for the lack of a full daily practice?

Safe flight rules for pregnant women

– Do not forget that you should buy special stockings or socks to prevent the formation of blood clots in the vessels of the legs.

– Stresses future mothers do not need: in order not to waste nerves in a rush and hurry, it is important to properly plan the gathering and leave for the airport in advance.

– You should not be nervous about the radiation from the scanner (many are afraid of harming the baby in this way). Contact method of inspection has not been canceled, and pregnant women have the inalienable right to choose it.

– And in general, do not hesitate to ask for help. For example, when receiving luggage it is logical to ask the men standing nearby to remove the suitcase from the conveyor belt. Practice shows that most people are very polite to pregnant women, and gladly respond to requests.

– Directly on the plane is better to have a place in the aisle, so as to have the opportunity to freely pass to the toilet, and just once stand up and move around.

– If you follow the previous point, it won’t be a problem and the recommendation to drink more water to avoid dehydration.

Flight – no reason to skip a workout: a list of exercises for yoga on the plane

Experts recommend a small list of hatha yoga exercises during the flight, which do not require much space:

– head rotations;

– one of the modifications of the “cat-cow” bunch (marjariasana – goasana);

– Ankle-knee pose in a sitting position;

– Rotation of ankles;

– exercises for the pelvic floor muscles.

The first exercise serves to relieve tension in the neck and tightness in the shoulder muscles. When doing it, the spine should be straightened, shoulders straightened and lowered, and the hands placed on the hips. From this position, close your eyes and relaxed, slowly make several rotations of the head: first to the right, then to the left. It is important to move very smoothly and be attentive to the sensations: discomfort in any point is an excuse to stay in the position and breathe a little. Of course, we are not talking about overcoming painful sensations.

To perform the second asana, sit on the edge of the seat and take a pose similar to the starting position of the previous exercise. The spine should be straightened, the shoulders straightened and the hands placed on the hips. After a deep inhale on the exhale the spine is rounded. As you inhale you should return to the starting position, and on the next exhale round your back again. It is necessary to breathe slowly, the exercise can be repeated for 10-15 breaths.

The third exercise is necessary to stretch the hip joint and looks like this. Sitting on the edge of the seat, bend the right knee and put the ankle on top of the knee of the left leg. In this position, hold five breathing cycles, and then repeat in the other direction. It is important to watch your breathing: it should be calm and even. A typical mistake of the exercise is slouching: it is important to keep the back straight.

The last but one exercise, which will improve blood circulation, involves spreading the legs shoulder width apart and turning the ankles five times in one direction and five times in the other. You can also rise up on your toes several times, then slowly lower yourself onto your heels.

Finally, an exercise for the pelvic floor muscles that helps with incontinence problems and teaches you how to work the muscles correctly during childbirth. You can feel the pelvic floor muscles by coughing a little. The exercise itself consists in tightening and relaxing them alternately. It is important to make sure that in the process of performance the abdomen is not strained. In the first stage, the muscles are tensed on inhalation, released on exhalation. On the second stage, the movements are accelerated without reference to the breath. In the third stage, on the contrary, the process slows down: each part is performed for five to seven counts. In the final stage, the exercise becomes a bit more complicated: the muscles tighten as you inhale, hold on as you exhale, tighten even more as you exhale, relax as you exhale. When doing it slowly, you need to watch the process of relaxation: do not drop sharply, let the muscles go very slowly.

Yoga classes on the plane are recommended and very useful with the right approach.