Pregnancy Hormones – Avoid Over Stretching

Pregnancy Hormones – Relaxin for today’s topic can greatly effect your body both during pregnancy and  for those first weeks postpartum too!

Relaxin is a pregnancy hormone – It allows for  your ligaments to become for lax, specifically for your pelvis, to open up so your baby can birth out of your birth canal. However, it doesn’t only affect ligaments around your pelvis and hips.

It affects the your ligaments throughout your entire body, so you have to be cautious when it comes to stretching when you’re pregnant.

• Avoid exercises that also require you to change direction quickly.
• Active stretching that connects your muscles if far more effective {and safe!} then just holding a stretch.
• While yoga can be very beneficial during pregnancy, we need to be cautious of going too deep into a poses.
• Foam rolling is a great way to achieve balance, connectivity and healthy stretching {access to several foam rolling release videos in my Knocked-Up Fitness Membership}
• Give yourself time to heal after delivery, mama. Your body has been through so much, now is not the time to risk injury. Relaxin stays in your body for 10-12 weeks+ after delivery. Try these exercises after baby once your doctor has approved you for exercise.
• Core strength is central to all of my pregnancy and postpartum exercises – you will feel stronger, more fluid in your movements, and more flexible when you have an activated core.

My top tip to help avoid over-stretching:

‘work through a range of motion that feels good for your body’

With flexibility,  we can always push our limits to where everyone has that threshold to where, “Oh, I feel tight.” When you’re pregnant, I recommend sto stay away from that, “Oh, that feels really tight” feeling.

It’s important to never  force a stretch, this goes for whether you’re pregnant or not, it doesn’t matter. I’m a big believer in active stretching – really feeling your muscles connect.

Again, this can apply to any form of working out, but if you follow any of my workouts, You’ll notice I talk a lot about the connections and the lengthening while moving very fluidly through your body.  Connecting those fascial lines.

The more connection we can have, the more support we have around our joints and our ligaments, instead of stressing them.

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Relaxin can stay in your body for a good 10 weeks postpartum and most women don’t realize that. I made that mistake after my first was born and I knew about relaxin but almost 10 years ago didn’t know the depths of it. If you’re a Pilates guru like me, don’t get back on that reformer and do legs in the straps until everything is completely healed and you are well into 12+ weeks postpartum. Avoid any sort of exercises that resemble a split-type position.

Be cautious when you’re getting back into your workouts, because that relaxin is still there!

For my recommended exercises and stretches during pregnancy start your Knocked-Up Fitness Membership Today!