Six Best Exercises to help Prepare for Child Birth

Six Best Exercises to help Prepare for Child Birth : Just like athletes cannot play sports without rigorous physical training, you can’t prepare your body for childbirth without a professional labor workout.

Exercise has enormous benefits. When you exercise, your blood flows, and it energizes both your body and your brain. You feel happier; your mind is sharper; you are more positive, healthy, and strong.

And when it comes to childbirth, a strong heart and sound musculoskeletal system make labor and delivery easy. If you have already crossed your 1^st and 2^nd trimester and reached the entire term, you should start working out to keep yourself strong.

And, if you’re looking for some physical exercises which can ease labor and delivery, we have you covered. To see which exercises are suitable for you for childbirth, let’s jump right in.

Deep Squats

As much as squats benefit everyone, it works best for pregnant women in their last trimester. Deep squats open up the hip and pelvis and help calm and strengthen the pelvic muscles.

If you are working 9-5 while expecting a baby, deep squats can be of great help as it lowers back pain and improves posture. It can quickly be done by standing with your legs open a little more than your hip width, then slowly sit down as far as you can comfortably go with your palms pressing together in the front.

Always be very careful and double-check with your doctor before you plan to exercise on your own. Without precautions, it can result in an injury. Constantly research well; you can also learn more about birth injuries on the internet on various health care and medical center websites.

Butterfly Stretch

Another brilliant exercise that makes the body more flexible and helps pregnant women relax during delivery is the butterfly stretch. This exercise focuses on extending the hip part, which flexes the groin muscles.

To do this one, sit straight, bend your knees out to the side, and put your feet sticking each other on the floor. Hold your feet with both hands to keep them from setting apart; let your knees fall out and feel the stretch. Keep straight and feel the stretch in your inner thighs for at least 20 seconds or as per your comfort.

Hip Abduction

Hip abduction is another exercise that many physiotherapists suggest for pregnant women reaching their 7th, 8th, and 9th month. What makes this exercise unique is the resistance band which you will need to stretch your muscles.

To perform hip abduction, place pillows on the bed underneath your upper back. Bend your knees, put your feet flat on the bed, slide the resistance band around your knees, and start driving your knees outward. Repeat at least eight times.

The Cat-Cow

The following exercise is a cat/cow pose. It primarily focuses on the blood flow in your spine and also releases back pain.

To perform the cat-cow, get on your hands and knees, just like how babies start to crawl. Then slowly curve your back upward as your chin reaches towards your chest. Inhale when you look up in the quadruped position and exhale as your round your back. Continue switching between the cat-cow position about eight times.

This will strengthen your core muscles, putting you at ease during labor.

The Pigeon Pose

Pigeon pose is a bit different and challenging than most but healthy for labor. It helps boost the larger muscles of your hip.

It gives a very calm stretch to the outer hip. To carry out the pigeon pose, keep pillows underneath your upper back on the bed and bend the knees with feet flat on the bed. From this position, move your left foot towards your right one and make the left one rest on your right foot. While in this position, pull your right shin towards your right chest.

Feel a stretch on your right hip muscles. Hold the stretch for 10 seconds and repeat with the other side or as you feel comfortable.

Bottom Squat Rocks

Bottom squat rock is just another effective exercise for ladies who are in their 3^rd trimester. As the name suggests, it includes squats in it, a bit tougher and more powerful than deep squats.

To do bottom squat rocks, all you need to do is get in a deep squat position with your feet wider than your hip width, rest your elbows inside your knees. From this position, you need to slightly open up your hip more by moving against your knees with the help of your elbows.

Rock on both sides, shifting your weight from one foot to another as often as you feel comfortable without pushing yourself. This exercise will help open up your pelvis even more. Most physiotherapists think that squats are an essential exercise, helps significantly in standard birth delivery.

Conclusion

All doctors and physiotherapists suggest that working out regularly during pregnancy is extremely important for a healthy baby and mom.

We all know that labor and childbirth are a critical and straining process that requires energy. To all the expecting mothers reading this, you need to work out well to make your bones and muscles strong and make pushing a little more manageable.