Mind & Body

I am so grateful for both the book Bounitful, Beautiful, Blissful, by Gurmukh and prenatal yoga DVD by Jillian Moriarty that I came across during this pregnancy. Here's my review of them below...I highly, highly recommend them!

If I were to type up all of the quotes I highlighted in this book, this post would go on for days...so, here's just a few of my favorite lines from the forward, written by model Cindy Crawford.

"Allow your birth to be your birth."

"Enjoy it all, because every moment is part of the experience."

"Because of this book, I felt the tremendous power we as women have to bring new life to the world. It's awe-inspiring."

I repeat these positive thoughts to myself quite often and even though I've done this all before, I love how this book has such a healthy approach to a variety of emotional, physical, and spiritual experiences that pregnant women go through. After reading MANY, MANY pregnancy/birth books I rate this one #1. I know so much of what/how we experience something is all in our approach, which is why I HIGHLY recommend reading this book before any others. If after reading it you're still interested to know more in-depth details about a developing fetus, stages of labor, or medical terminology, then keep on with your research, but at least this book sets up your mind & body in a bountiful, beautiful, and blissful way for you to appreciate the gift of life and natural ways we can be in touch with our bodies. 

I can't seem to find a pic of the actual yoga DVD that I bought, but I know I found it at Target. It has an image of the instructor, a pregnant woman, Jillian (shown above) in a blue tank-top and is entitled "Prenatal Fitness pre/postnatal yoga & pilates workouts" by Parents. I really like the instructor (those of you who do yoga or Pilates know what a difference the teacher can make!) and love that it comes with 3 different sections. I also just learned that Jillian is not only a certified yoga and pilates instructor, but owner and founder of Happily Ever Active. I hope classes get started in Utah sometime soon!


Now, back to the DVD. One section combines both yoga & Pilates (a little long for me, but I split it in half and do the rest on another day), another section is designed to do when you're feeling queasy/morning sickness, and another when you need just a good boost of energy. She does a good job of warning you about how to not over-extend yourself and to simply follow the 3rd trimester pregnant woman for easier moves, but the first time I still thought I could handle whatever she (Jillian) was doing, only to find myself a bit sore afterwards...so be careful! Nothing she teaches is harmful, just based on your flexibility/comfort. Since I have this on DVD, twice a week I tell my son and husband: "Going to yoga class" go upstairs to our room, shut the door, set up my yoga mat, and away I go for some nice reflective stretch time for baby and me!