o yoga

O Yoga, I wouldn't make it through my week with out you!

What a way to de-stress and be amongst other pregnant ladies. It makes me feel skinny :) Most of the ladies in my class are 5 or more months. Some are weeks from their dues dates. It is nice to swap stories and get a good laugh. One of the girls is getting crafty....literally. She's not knitting or sewing but she is making HILARIOUS t-shirts and onezies. One she was telling me about is a onezy, it has a baby skull and cross-bones on the front and along the butt it says: "Yarr, change me diaper!" She told me she gets her ideas from the Internet. O there are many of t-shirts that need to be purchased.

But enough about silly t-shirts, this is suppose to be about yoga. So naturally it is a modified yoga class: cobras and shoulder stands are not something you will see in this class. We do a lot on exercise balls, which brings a whole new level of balance to yoga. For the bigger ladies there is always a chair near by, so no one hits the ground. We stretch sore spots, yummy. We also do what our instructor so loving calls "contractions". They are endurance building exercises meant to build, well endurance for one, tolerance for wicked muscle cramps, and give simulation to length and intensity to the real thing. She also makes us think while doing "contraction" exercises, like patterned breathing and small movements. They burn so good. She says it is good to build muscle now....it will make things easier later. I hope so, I am starting to freak out! There are SO many things to think about! This is suppose to be relaxing yoga, not stress out yoga! :)
Yoga flow mixed with toning is my favorite. Yoga flow is, well what it sounds like. Instead of holding a certain pose for an extended amount of time, you flow from one pose to the next, much like Tai Chi. The toning portion includes leg lifts, planks, and core strengthening. It hurts enough the next day that I know I am building muscle and staying.

Another key to happy pregnancy, at least for me, is walking..... everyday. Otherwise I find myself in the dull-drums. Dull-drums.....a general state of Blah. I feel blah, I look blah, I don't want to do anything and mood is more volatile.

So walking + yoga = happy pregosaurus.