Safe Exercises to do While Pregnant

Walking- Walking is a wonderful exercise that you can do virtually everywhere. Be sure you get comfortable walking shoes and that you use good posture to keep your back straight. Begin with a 5-10 minute warm-up and then stretch and continue with your walk. Remember to stretch afterwards to reduce soreness. Try to walk for at least 30 min. a day, 3 to 5 days per week.

Swimming- Swimming can be one of the most relaxing exercises for pregnant women. Your risk of injury is very low as well. Swimming takes pressure off your joints with that weightless feeling of being in the pool. You get a good cardio workout while swimming that uses your large muscles. There's also a reduced chance of injury while swimming, still, be careful when walking around the pool to avoid slipping. Some things you can do while in the water are water aerobics, deep-water running and swimming. You can join a water aerobics class or simply swim twenty minutes a day for 3 to 6 days a week. Don't forget to avoid hot tubs and saunas since they can raise your body temperature to high levels that may injure your baby.

Running and jogging- If you have been running or jogging before becoming pregnant, you can safely continue to do so. You will want to use common sense. If you begin to feel tired, slow down. Don't overexert yourself. As you get farther along in your pregnancy, you ought to cut back a little. If you have complications, chances are your caregiver will ask you to stop jogging for the remainder of your pregnancy. Always consult your practitioner first.

Low impact aerobics- Low impact aerobics is okay to remain doing while pregnant. You do not want to do jumps or high kicks. Alter the exercises if you feel like you need to. You can do this by going at half speed. Join a low impact aerobics class at your local gym or you can obtain a workout video and exercise at home. Many women are more motivated to exercise if they have joined a class.

Bicycling and spinning- Be careful when bicycling or spinning. You're more susceptible to falls now that your center of gravity is shifting. Steer clear of uneven terrain when you go biking. As your abdomen grows larger, you'll probably have a difficult time reaching the handlebars. You may also find the bicycle seat to become very uncomfortable in your third trimester. Don't overwork yourself. Take breaks as needed. If you participate in a spinning class, turn down the tension and slow it down if you feel tired.

Pilates- Pilates toughens your entire body(particularly your abdominals, pelvic muscles and back which may aid you in labor), teaches you body awareness and helps increase your flexibility. Pilates is safe to do when pregnant. There are some gyms that have prenatal Pilates classes or you can just obtain prenatal Pilates videos to exercise at home. You can take Pilates classes, just remember to stay away from movements that compress your neck.

Yoga- The focus of Yoga is techniques to help you relax and breath. These techniques could help you breath correctly as you experience through labor pains. You can participate in Yoga classes throughout your whole pregnancy. However, you will want to avoid poses that involve lying flat on your back or inverted poses. Just like Pilates, your local gym may have prenatal yoga classes or you can find prenatal yoga workout videos to workout at home. Most gyms will have regular yoga classes, which are safe for you to attend.

Chris Dunn, father of 8, enjoys writing articles for his pregancy information website.

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Meditation and the Monkey Mind?

Some find the term, monkey mind, upsetting, derogatory, and insulting. This is a shame, as the point is lost, the ego is involved, and a natural human defense goes up. After all, we are supposed to be the king of the primates, arent we?

The first time I heard the expression, monkey mind, in regard to meditation, I thought of Swayambhunath Stupa, in Kathmandu, Nepal. Sometimes, this is named, the monkey temple, and it made me laugh inside, as monkeys need supervision in human settings. The picture of unsupervised monkeys got into my head, and I was suppressing laughter during a serious conversation.

Monkeys can be nuisances, when allowed to roam without some guidance, and it is the same with the untrained mind that runs from topic to topic, without getting much accomplished. So please dont waste time being offended by the term, and try to look at the comical side.

When you allow yourself to enjoy life, and try not to take anything too seriously, you can see that monkeys dont have it so bad after all. Very often, the human mind spends too much time defending, worrying, posturing, influencing, fearing, and feeling embarrassed, to enjoy life to its fullest potential.

In fact, you are not your mind. You are responsible for your actions, but many things happen in the thought process before you do take action. For example: when you think, images and options are created. As a result of those images, you get a physical feeling somewhere around your heart.

Whether the feeling is, good or bad, you process it into action, or treat it as a fleeting thought that passes and may be forgotten. So if you have a fleeting evil thought and it passes - should you waste time feeling guilty about it? The natural safeguard for ethical behavior is your heart or gut feeling. This is the best indicator of wrong or right.

Mankind has the ability to influence the universe, and create different realities, but separating what is sacred, from what is evil, has been a dilemma for thousands of years. The disconnection from your inner self, nature, and God, has led to excessive confusion.

Thank God for meditation; it allows you to harness the power of the mind, settle down, and focus, on one subject at a time. If you take the time for a daily meditation practice, your decision-making process will be much more controlled and clear. The end result will be to look at the monkey with much more respect, appreciation, and a bit of humor.

Paul Jerard is a co-owner and the director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center, in North Providence, RI. He has been a certified Master Yoga teacher since 1995. He is a master instructor of martial arts, with multiple Black Belts, four martial arts teaching credentials, and was recently inducted into the USA Martial Arts Hall of Fame. He teaches Yoga, martial arts, and fitness to children, adults, and seniors in the greater Providence area. Recently he wrote: Is Running a Yoga Business Right for You? For Yoga students, who may be considering a new career as a Yoga teacher. http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org/index.html

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