Creating Space in Pregnancy and Parenthood: Blog 1 of 3
Why Movement, Breath, and Inner Wisdom Matter in Pregnancy
Daily Movements & Mindsets to Create Space in Pregnancy
Reclaim comfort, mobility, and emotional room to grow.
“There is no life without space.” — Dr. Vasant Lad
Why It Matters
Creating space isn't just about your body—it's also about your heart and mind. During pregnancy and postpartum, we make space for:
Baby's physical growth and movement
Deep breath and nervous system balance
Emotional change and mental expansion
Letting go of what's no longer needed
New identity, relationships, and rhythms
Pregnancy transforms us. It reorganizes our body, our identity, and our breath. But one of the most overlooked essentials of pregnancy—and birth preparation—is space. Not just metaphorical space to feel and grow, but literal space in the body for your baby to move, grow, and settle into an optimal position for birth.
In my prenatal yoga classes, we don’t just “stretch.” We create space—in your rib cage, pelvis, spine, and nervous system. This space isn’t just for comfort—it’s a requirement for healthy fetal development, easier breathing, and smoother labor.
🌬️ Space, Breath, and Your Growing Baby
Your baby doesn’t just grow down—they grow out, up, and in every direction they can. But our modern habits—slouching, sitting too long, restrictive clothing, or stress-induced shallow breathing—can limit that growth. The result? Less room for baby to move into a good birthing position, and more discomfort for you.
That’s why prenatal yoga emphasizes movements that:
Open the side body and expand the rib cage
Mobilize the spine and diaphragm
Create softness in the abdominal wall and release unnecessary tension in your core
Balance the pelvic floor for optimal function with breath-led awareness
These movements aren’t random—they're intentional, functional, and deeply connected to your body’s design for pregnancy and birth.
🤰🏽 Movement That Makes a Difference
Some of my favorite daily movements for pregnancy:
Some of my favorite daily movements for pregnancy:
Tadasana (Mountain Pose) 🗻
Polar Bear Pose 🐻
Tabletop Pelvic Tilts 🌀
Cat/Cow 🐄🐈
Hip Circles 🔄
Warrior I & Half Squats 🦵
Lateral Stretches ↔️
Seated Gentle Twists 🌪️
Reclined Goddess Pose 👑
These aren’t “just yoga.” These are daily rituals that create space for your baby and stability for your body. These are movements that lead to better birth outcomes—and a more empowered pregnancy.
👉 Download my FREE printable handout to keep these movements on your fridge or in your birth journal.
Need more guidance? Book your 1:1 Session with me today! We meet in the comfort of your own home, office, private outdoor space, or virtually Online.
Reclined Goddess Pose
In my prenatal (and postpartum) yoga classes, we don’t just “stretch.” We create space—in your rib cage, pelvis, spine, and nervous system. This space isn’t just for comfort—it’s a requirement for healthy fetal development, easier breathing, and smoother labor.
💡 Emotional and Mental Space
Creating space isn’t only physical.
We need space to pause, reflect, rest, and receive. Space to:
Let go of what no longer serves us
Embrace new roles and evolving identity
Feel our feelings, especially the big ones
Expand our heart and mind to welcome a new baby
Yoga teaches us that growth doesn’t happen in tension—it happens in space. It happens when we slow down, breathe, and allow change to unfold.
🫶 A Personal Story
When I was pregnant with my first in 2005, I had no idea what I was getting myself into—but I knew I was all in. I wanted to be a mother, and I wanted to do the best job I could being his mom. I read the books on pregnancy, I practiced prenatal yoga (what little was available at the time, as prenatal yoga has only officially existed since the late 90s). I was utterly shocked by the experience of birth. It went fine for the first 20 hours. I labored. But when it came time to push, my baby wouldn’t come out. I pushed and pushed in a daze as it was nearly 6 a.m. One of the midwives said we had to move to the surgical theatre (I was in Wales). I went from a serene, dim, quiet room to a brightly lit medical space that felt like a stage. The doctor helped manually reposition my baby, I pushed, and out he came.
I even took a photo of him while they were stitching me up. Yeah, when a baby doesn’t exit smoothly, the tearing tends to be severe. In the U.S., we grade tears—first, second, third, fourth degree. In the UK, they never mentioned any system. What I do know is that a full week later I could barely move and felt like my crotch was on fire. My home-visiting nurse assured me I was healing just fine.
To make it harder, my then-husband left for a trip immediately after birth—something I’ve never forgiven him for. (Take note, any partner reading this: DO NOT leave after your baby is born!) I slowly recovered and enjoyed my baby. We walked daily around the village, popped into shops, joined a mom group. But I was isolated. We moved back to the U.S. when my son was one. I was still alone. It wasn’t until he was in elementary school that I felt like I had friends.
So, when I found out I was pregnant again ten years later, I knew I wanted a different experience. That’s why I started my local mom group. I knew how important it was to build community for mothers. It’s also why I poured myself into learning everything I could about prenatal and postpartum yoga. Thousands of hours of self-study, training, and research. As Brené Brown says in Dare to Lead, “Write what you want to read.” And so I did. My work began as a way to help myself—and became a way to help others.
Yoga creates space in your body and your life. It’s not just about a pose. It’s about creating room for your breath, your thoughts, your needs, your baby, and your healing. Space to pause. Space to grow. Space to be—as a parent, as a human, as your evolving self. That’s what sets yoga apart from other movement: it invites us into deeper relationship with ourselves. That is how I teach yoga—from the eight limbs, through lineage, and through lived experience.
This is why I do what I do.
💡 Why My Prenatal Yoga Is Different
My prenatal yoga is:
Rooted in the ancient Eight Limbs of Yoga
Trauma-informed welcoming environment
Centered in functional movement science
Grounded in breath-led nervous system support
Informed by thousands of hours of study & real-life experience
Designed for pregnant people, not just adapted
And so I did. I created the kind of yoga I wish I’d had—yoga that creates space in your body, your life, your breath, and your becoming.
🌿 Breath & Body
Breath is the bridge between structure and softness. When you inhale, your rib cage and diaphragm expand, affecting the fascia around your core, uterus, and pelvic floor. When you exhale, your pelvic floor lifts and your abdominal wall gently contracts.
Breathing well means moving well. And moving well means your nervous system feels safe—calm enough to let go and dynamic enough to adapt.
🌿 Nervous System and Fascia: The Deeper Science
Breath is more than oxygen—it’s communication with your nervous system. When we breathe deeply and fully, we affect the fascia around our uterus, core, and pelvic floor. The diaphragm moves down, the rib cage expands, and the pelvic floor softens and lifts in rhythm.
A regulated nervous system means your body can adapt and respond—not react with fear or tension. And fascia? It thrives on hydration, movement, and breath.
This is why movement with breath is medicine.
Breath and Movement IS Yoga.
Yoga with me isn’t about being bendy or performing poses—it’s about supporting who you are and what your evolving body needs. I’ve been through these seasons myself. I’ve helped hundreds of others through them, too.
Creating Space in Motherhood: Postpartum and Beyond
As we transition from pregnancy into new motherhood—whether for the first time or the fifth—we continue to need space. Space to feel our emotions. Space to grieve what we’ve let go. Space to grow into the parent we are becoming.
Just as our body expands in pregnancy, our heart and mind expand in motherhood. That emotional space is just as sacred as the physical space we create in practice.
We need pauses—real pauses—in our conversations, our schedules, and our yoga classes. As Brené Brown shares in Dare to Lead, white noise and constant chatter prevent true listening. We create connection by slowing down.
If you’re looking for someone to hold space for you—not rush you, not flood you with questions, but to truly welcome you as you are—you’ve found the right class. Whether you show up at the start of pregnancy, months into postpartum, or in the messy in-between space of identity shifts, you’re welcome here.
My class is a space where you can:
Take time to arrive
Tend to your baby if they’re with you
Settle in before being expected to speak
Share when you are ready, not when someone pulls it from you
This is your time. Your sacred space.
Being a leader, and a teacher in this space, means being willing to hold that space without overfilling it with my own stories or expectations. My goal is not to perform or impress, but to honor the deep transformation you are experiencing.
And when we model this kind of space—emotional, physical, and mental—for our children, we teach them to value rest. We teach them that they don’t need to rush. We model the kind of self-regulation and presence that leads to lifelong resilience.
Even as adults, we grow in rest. That’s when our brain processes new information. That’s when our heart repairs from emotional wounds. That’s when we make sense of our experiences.
You are not a passive vessel. You are an active participant in your pregnancy.
🤲🏽 Reclaiming Wisdom
Your body is wise. Your baby is wise. You are not broken.
Modern medicine often dismisses women’s experiences. But yoga reminds us that wisdom is already within us.
From ancient Ayurvedic principles to today’s research on fascia, breath, and pelvic health, my teachings reconnect you to your body’s power.
This is your body, your baby, your birth.
And you deserve support that honors all three.
Let’s make space for it—together.
We have to practice this ourselves if we want our children to learn it.
Daily Movement Practices
Tadasana (Mountain Pose) 🗻
Polar Bear Pose 🐻
Tabletop Pelvic Tilts 🌀
Hip Circles 🔄
Half Squats & Warrior I 🦵
Lateral Side Stretches ↔️
Seated Gentle Twists 🌪️
Reclined Goddess Pose 👑
Emotional and Mental Practices
Build in intentional pauses to listen and reflect
Practice vulnerability and empathy—especially with yourself
Create welcoming rituals before class or rest time
Let yourself unlearn what no longer serves you
Model rest and boundaries for your children
Bonus Add-ons
Conscious Rib Cage Breathing
Restorative Poses for Low Back
Inspiration:
“There is no life without space.” – Dr. Vasant Lad
“As parents, we model the pace of life we expect our children to follow.” – Dare to Lead, Brené Brown
If you're ready to explore this kind of practice, I’d be honored to guide you.
✨ Download my FREE Handout:
Daily Movement & Mindset Practices for Pregnancy
Use it as your daily reminder to breathe, soften, and expand.
📩 Want more support?
Join one of my prenatal yoga classes, or book a 1:1 private session in-person or online.
Download my FREE Printable Handout - Creating Space, Daily Movements for Pregnancy
Ready to learn more? Check out the next blog in this three part series “Easing Round Ligament Pain & Healing Your After Birth” COMING SOON!
📚 References
Lad, Vasant. Ayurveda: The Science of Self-Healing. Lotus Press, 1984.
Brown, Brené. Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts. Random House, 2018.
Janssens, C. A. et al. “Biomechanics of Pregnancy and Labor.” Clinical Biomechanics, vol. 10, no. 6, 1995, pp. 293–304.
Beilock, Sian. How the Body Knows Its Mind: The Surprising Power of the Physical Environment to Influence How You Think and Feel. Atria Books, 2015.
Calais-Germain, Blandine. The Female Pelvis: Anatomy & Exercises. Eastland Press, 2003.
Gokal, R., & Shillito, L. “Yoga in Pregnancy: A Preliminary Study.” Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, vol. 23, 2016, pp. 38–45.
Field, Tiffany. “Yoga Clinical Research Review.” Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, vol. 17, no. 1, 2011, pp. 1–8.
Kinser, P. A., & Elswick, R. K. “Effects of Yoga on Stress and Inflammatory Factors in Pregnant Women: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.” Complementary Therapies in Medicine, vol. 38, 2018, pp. 37–45.
Kendall-Tackett, Kathleen. Depression in New Mothers: Causes, Consequences, and Treatment Alternatives. Routledge, 2016.
Spinning Babies®. “Daily Activities for Comfort and Fetal Positioning.” https://www.spinningbabies.com
Simkin, Penny, et al. The Labor Progress Handbook: Early Interventions to Prevent and Treat Dystocia. Wiley-Blackwell, 2017.
Upledger, John E. Your Inner Physician and You: Craniosacral Therapy and SomatoEmotional Release. North Atlantic Books, 1997.
