Pregnancy yoga DVD recommendations please!

[mslittlebump]

I'd like to order one soon - ideally one that will challenge me enough now (I'm 7 weeks) and that can be adapted for later on when movement is more difficult.

Found a Tara Lee one on Play for £9.99 that looks pretty good, anyone tried this one?

Thanks

Yes, I have Tara Lee's DVD. It is a very gentle and calming session. I would definitely recommend this for someone in advaced stages of pregnancy or someone new to yoga... I am quite early in my pregnancy and have been a regular yoga practicioner for years, and I find this DVD a bit "as if one is one's deathbed" for now... I think I will definitely start using towards the end of the 2nd and in the 3rd trimester. For now, I am just carrying on with a regular (slightly modified) practice... I think Tara teaches at the Life Center in Notting Hill on Wednesdays if you want to meet her in person... I spoke with a few pregnant women there and they all seem to love her classes.

Hi mslittlebump and lilly13,

I might suggest Shia Rea's video if you've already been practising before getting pregnant- I'm in the US and Shiva is prety big in New York and around the North East of the US.

Whatever you choose. Enjoy!

www.amazon.com/dp/B0000BYNMH?tag=lifed-20&camp=213381&creative=390973&linkCode=as4&creativeASIN=B0000BYNMH&adid=0AD58VFXPSGPVQ0ABT4P&

Also for Lilly13 - Hi! - I just finished the introduction of my teacher training - 7 days straight of feeling wonderful - got lots of modifications e.t.c from my teachers (1 of them just had her first baby 18 months ago so lots of fresh knowledge) and have a bunch of info but no book recommendations on prenatal yoga. I'll see if I can scan them and get them on here for us! How has the swimming been going? I'm week 18 now (no lower backbends, twists, lying on tummy) but still comfortable with inversions and lying on back. If you're into vinyasa flow - one modification I got from another trainee who practised whilst pregnant was to put a bolster or blanket under my hips for going down in chattaranga dandasana (high to low push up) and doing a sphinx pose (elbows on ground) for the back bend before going into downwards dog. It has allowed me to continue vinyasa-ing with my just emerging bump.
Really finding that yoga has become my rock during this pregnancy, so good for balancing the emotions and getting in touch with how I really feel body and mind.

Hi Gingercoconut! It is so good to hear from you. Congratulations on finishing your teacher training! You are a star! I have not been swimming (my doctor recommended to avoid potential bacteria from the pool during the 1st trimester), instead I carried on with my regular practice 5 days per week and added a pregnancy yoga 1 day per week (I hear from my US trained teachers that UK pregnancy yoga is like for dying people) - I certainly can't appreciate its benefits yet, but have learned some modified postures... I am only 11.5 weeks. I totally agree with you -- yoga has done a lot of amazing things for me both physically and emotionally during pregnancy, and I have been feeling strong and energized (morning sickness never came). Thank you very much for the tips on asanas modification and for the video suggestion! Will get it off Amazon. Good luck on your yoga practice and the rest of pregnancy!

I have found Buddha Bellies by Nicole Croft excellent, she is accredited with the Active Birth Centre. Very calming, with 3 routines - beginner/late pregnancy, intermediate and advanced/early pregnancy. Can be done after 14 weeks and is hypnotically addictive - I feel WONDERFUL afterwards, like I have had a sleep, even when I have slept badly.

It's much better than the local pregnancy yoga classes I've attended, which are a tenner a go!

By the way, the Buddha bellies one does have an easy intro 30 min class, but the advanced one is really quite challenging - and takes an hour. So if you are already a yoga practitioner, you should enjoy it - a lot of pregnancy yoga classes seem to be mostly flumping about and breathing serenely, which is all very lovely but I don't feel like I have worked my body at all afterwards!

oooh, great thread - am adding all these to my Amazon wish list in readiness for my birthday next month!

A quick question for you - do you know if it's ok to do Shoulder stand when pg? I'm thinking it would be good for my varicous veins, but it's not mentioned in any pg yoga books or websites I have seen and of course I forgot to ask my teacher at class this week (baby brain already?)

George26, if you have been doing yoga for a while before pregnancy, then you could probably carry on with inversions IF these feel right for you. It really depends on one's body type. My yoga teacher, for instance, throughout her pregnancies just did not feel that her body was meant to do inversions. I am ok with shoulder stand (though I am not crazed about it), however, not the headstand or handstand (i know pregnant women who love doing these -- these just do not feel right for me)... You have to listen to your heart.

If you are not advanced in your practice, the general rule of thumb is that one must use a wall as support, eg place your legs it on while in the shoulder stand (you have to spread out and bend legs slightly and press your feet against the wall for stability).

i tried tara lee and found the music annoying. i tried buddha bellies and found the lady (can't remember her name)'s voice annoying. maybe it was just pregnancy hormones!!

i did a class in the end through 'birth light' they run classes all over the UK, it was the best thing i did. and i found the positions helped postnatally too.

I have the Shiva Rea prenatal yoga DVD which I bought for very little on eBay and I love it. I don't know if it is enough of a challenge if you are very advanced, but it does give me a workout while leaving me very energised.

Thank you all very much for the suggestions. I think I'm going to try the Buddha Bellies one - it sounds like it has a good range of levels. I am no advanced yogi, but I do like to be challenged and break out a sweat, and especially for as long as I can before bump grows.

I wanted to try this first before committing to a pregnancy yoga course. The nearest one is at a Buddhist centre which is lovely but the vibe is not quite me (I'm not spiritual at all, I just like yoga.)

I have Tara Lee and I really like it - I like the way you can do different options - full version, restoration version, labour prep, visualization. I did go to one yoga class, but it was quite a drive away - so I much preferred being able to just stick the DVD on when DS was in preschool and have ended up doing it about 3 times a week.

Hi George26!

I agree with lilly13 on the inversion thing. I'm at week 18 and still going for them but i kept a fairly strong inversion practice before this - i love pinchamayurasana - my advice from teachers and in teacher training has been to continue if and only if it feels comfortable.
I know one teacher who didn't do inversions through her first 2 pregnancies but then did them through her third, my current teacher (for my training) did them till her due date! (she's a little special though with a really strong practice).

One thing though I might add though is - if you do shoulder stand - make sure you don't go over into plough and keep breathing into the lower,slightly arched back so you don't compress the belly.

If you're still unsure, maybe try feet up the wall first to see how that goes and then move on from there if you're feeling strong?

Have fun whatever!

Hi ladies, I just tried Shiva Rea's pregnancy yoga DVD. I found it much better than Tara Lee's DVD. It is a more encompassing practice and is geared for different levels of practicioners / different trimesters with helpful modifications for each one. Tara Lee's DVD is suitable for someone new to yoga or someone in the 3rd trimester, while Shiva Rea's one could be used by everyone (unless one is very inflexible/ not used to excercise in which case, pregnancy is definitely not the time to try something new anyway).... I also note that a more advanced practitioner would know how to modify some of Shiva Rea's postures to get a stronger yet gentle practice, if so desired...

Gingercoconut - thank you for your recommendation!

Maybe I am the only dissenter - I got the Tara Lee one and hate it! I am 33 weeks and new to yoga, so I tried the 'easiest' routine,and found it really awkward and uncomfortable. I couldn't do many of the positions due to bump size and lower back pain. Also I found they went far too quickly: "put your leg here and your foot there and twist your back then raise your left arm" and I was like, Wait, my leg goes where exactly...
I ended up really frustrated and angry - the opposite of the calming relaxation I'd paid for!

I find with Tara Lee it's annoying as she;s wearing a black outfit and sitting on a black mat with a white background so it's hard to see exactly what she's doing with her body sometimes as it's all just a black mass. That might be me though. It's a nice relaxing routine though, even if the background music is a bit gah.

StephA, I wouldn't recommend trying yoga at 33 weeks if you have not practiced it before (unless I misunderstood you). You do not want to hurt yourself. Try doing very gentle stretches, leg strengthening and hip opening excercises instead. More importantly keep mobile and breathe as much as possible.

If you do want to get a good DVD, I found that the US version of Amazon has a much more extensive selection with detailed reviews. I ordered a few DVDs from there for experienced practicioners, however, I saw quite a few there for people new to yoga (the downside is that it takes about 2 weeks for these to reach London). I will report if I find any good ones. For now, I still like Shiva Rea.

I am 29 weeks pregnant and interested in a yoga DVD but from reading the above I am now thinking that i may be too pregnant to start practising if I have not done it before?

What does anyone think?

Thanks

Minor hijack
Can anyone tell me
a) difference between yoga and pilates
b) which is "better" for a pregnant woman who has done neither?!

I used to do karate to a fairly high level (so was pretty fit and supple) but obviously can't do it now, so am now thinking of getting a yoga or pilates dvd....

I think yoga is easier to follow if you've done neither. It takes a long time to figure out which muscles to use in pilates and if you are not doing the excercise properly, it is a waste of time... I'd start with either Shiva Reah or Jennifer Wolf pregnancy viniyasa dvd...

Thanks

Yoga is more of a holistic thing - there is a lot more about relaxation and concentration on breathing in a typical yoga class, as well as getting the asanas (poses).
Pilates is principally about core control - getting the breathing right is important but is part of the exercise rather than an exercise in itself.
I have done more Pilates than yoga and prefer it in general, but I do think that yoga is probably better in pregnancy if you've done neither; there are also more trained yoga practitioners who have pregnancy experience in the UK vs. Pilates trainers.

I haven't tried any others but I have the Buddha bellies DVD and like the 3 levels - did the easy one the other eve when I was feeling tired!

I've been doing usual practice (no inversions, just feels wrong) and also a pregnancy yoga class. I just find the 2 very different. The pregnancy class is much more about preparing your body for labour, relieving pregnancy discomfort and calming relaxation - so quite different.

I've been wondering the same actually, I started yoga during my pregnancy on a bit of a whim, just searching on youtube and the net for free stuff.
I really like the stuff on this site www.fittamamma.com/section.php/20/1/yoga_for_pregnancy

I think it's really good for beginners, plus the poses to help with heartburn and back ache and stuff are good to know!

I just bought one called Prenatal Pilates: Strengthen & Sculpt by Caroline Sandry www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00BS8HKU6/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_2?pf_rd_p=103612307&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B001CC7DLO&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_r=1TPAG2FDFKCZ0JBVNZV0

Really informative and a great workout. She tells you things like no more sit ups after the first trimester and then she tells you why. I also like that she is pregnant and doing the moves.