Postnatal Yoga
Postnatal Yoga takes place at The Wight Wellbeing Collective studio in Cowes
Why yoga?
Supporting your recovery
Postnatal yoga is designed to support your recovery after giving birth and the transition into motherhood. My postnatal yoga classes offer a holistic approach to recovery and well-being through supporting both physical and emotional health needs.
Research shows that postnatal yoga offers several benefits, including:
Improved Mental Health
Yoga is known for its stress-relieving properties, and this also includes postnatal yoga. It can help manage and reduce symptoms of postpartum depression and anxiety by promoting relaxation, mindfulness and a sense of calm. The practice of yoga encourages deep breathing and meditation, which can significantly aid in emotional regulation and mental clarity during the demanding postnatal period.
Improved Posture
Postnatal yoga can help improve posture, flexibility and overall strength. When caring for a new baby, repetitive forward and flexed postures for feeding, carrying and rocking can lead to rounded shoulders, back and neck pain as well as altered balance. The practice of yoga postnatally will work on movements and positions to open the chest and shoulders to allow for deeper breathing and core strength leading to improved posture.
Improved Core & Pelvic Floor Muscle Strength
Postnatal yoga can help improve posture, flexibility, and overall strength, particularly in the core and pelvic floor muscles, which can be weakened during pregnancy and birth. Practising asanas (yoga poses) and pranayamas (breath) that engage the core and pelvic floor muscles will enhance recovery and connection leading to reduced chance of pelvic floor dysfunction and improved core strength.
Enhanced Mood
Practising yoga helps to stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system, reducing the fight and flight response, allowing endorphins and oxytocin to be released giving a sense of feeling uplifted, calm and connected to the body.
The Classes
During the classes, we will practice breath work to help find calm in your mind, movement and postures specific to strengthening your postnatal body, including pelvic floor and diastasis recti and stretches to help ease aches and pains, to improve your overall postnatal recovery.
With my knowledge as a specialist women’s health physiotherapist, I will ensure that you are doing the exercises correctly, offering modifications and props where needed, reducing the risk of injury.
The class will finish with a relaxation and tea and an educational chat, with each week covering a different theme.
FAQs
Classes are limited to a maximum of 8 mamas, so I can offer any guidance needed, as every mama’s postnatal journey will be different.
I suggest starting the classes from 6-8 weeks postnatal ensuring that any scars have healed and you are not experiencing any signs of pelvic floor dysfunction. There is no limit to how far postnatal you can start the class.
No. As I am a specialist pelvic floor physiotherapist, you do not need to wait to be “signed off” by your GP before starting the class. If you have any specific issues please contact me to discuss these further.