What To Expect In A Prenatal Yoga Class

For starters, a lot of growing bellies!

At all different stages of pregnancy too. If you’re looking to find more pregnant women in your area this is a great place to start. You may see them every so often but it’s easy to forget just how many others are pregnant at the same time as you. I recently went to a class at Semperviva Yoga that was “smaller” than usual because there was a festival going on outside, and still there were at least 30 of us!

A very sweet & calming instructor (who may very well be a doula too).

The Semperviva instructor (who is in fact a doula) was extremely welcoming. She put us at ease, made us feel pretty darn special, and offered to answer any pregnancy questions after class. She also mentioned that when we give birth, some 250,000 other women around the world will be giving birth on that very same day (and Unicef estimates it’s more like 350,000). Pretty cool.

It’s comforting.

It’s cool to see people in the same boat as you, some more mobile, some far less. It’ll help give you a gauge of where you are in your pregnancy, and just how much you can do. It’ll also help you see that it’s safe (and good for you!) to move and bend while pregnant.

It’s pretty chilled.

They don’t typically work you too crazy hard, so if you’re worried about over exerting yourself, don’t be. They also give a lot of options, so you can do whatever you like throughout the class. There’s no pressure to look the exact same. The use of plenty of props is encouraged. And you can honestly sleep the whole class if you really want to.

Pee breaks are welcome.

If you need to go to the washroom at any point, you’re always welcome. In the class I recently took at least 6 people got up to take a pee break (I may have been one of those 6). Don’t feel bad, when you gotta go, you gotta go (which is often when pregnant). It’s not like a normal yoga class where you might feel like you’re interrupting the “zen” of the class by getting up. It’s standard in a prenatal class.

You go at your own pace.

You’ll quickly see what still feels good and what you might need to back off of. The instructor will guide you, but also pay attention to how you’re feeling. You know your body better than anyone else.

You will not do the standard shavasana.

That’s probably pretty obvious, since we’re not supposed to lie on our backs during pregnancy. Instead, you’ll be resting on your side, with ample cushioning should you choose it. Good luck trying not to fall asleep 😉

Namaste mamas!