When it comes to inducing labor naturally and safely, simple exercises like butterfly poses prove to be effective. Many times, when the due date passes, women try to induce labor by engaging in physical activity. They do workouts like butterfly exercises to induce labor when there’s no sign of labor approaching. But is it safe?
Well, butterfly exercises are safe during pregnancy, but it’s always better to consult your doctor before engaging in any physical activity. In this article, we’ll give you deep insights into butterfly exercises and how they can help with labor.
In This Article
- How Does Butterfly Exercise Help To Induce Labor?
- Benefits of Butterfly Exercise in Pregnancy
- Steps to Do Butterfly Exercise
- Various Butterfly Poses Variations
- FAQ’s
How Does Butterfly Exercise Help to Induce Labor?
The butterfly exercise stretches, lengthens, and strengthens your muscles to prepare for labor. It develops flexibility and power, especially in your pelvic floor, thigh, and back, for a smooth delivery. Plus, it improves joint mobility in the lower limbs. This helps with easy childbirth and may lower the chances of a cesarean delivery (1).
Benefits of Butterfly Exercise in Pregnancy
You may include butterfly stretches in your pregnancy workout routine. This can help in many ways, such as:
1. Reliving Pain And Tension
Besides inducing labor, butterfly exercises aid in promoting relaxation in the muscles. They relieve pressure and tightness in the lower body muscles to reduce pain and discomfort. Further, stretching helps reduce low back pain (2). Plus, it assists in managing post-delivery symptoms like urinary incontinence, weakness, etc. (3)
2. Improving Posture
A growing baby bump may affect your posture, which could cause instability and muscle weakness. Butterfly exercises can assist in improving your posture and helping with lordosis while building muscle strength (4). Further, this ensures better control of your body.
3. Enhancing Mental Health
Mood swings, anxiety, stress, and depression are common in pregnancy. However, yoga poses like butterfly exercises help maintain emotional balance in the body by inducing stress-repressors (hormones). And thus, this keeps you in a happy mood and stress-free (5).
Steps to Do Butterfly Exercise
Butterfly poses are one of the great workout exercises to give your body a quick stretch. Here’s how a typical butterfly stretch is performed:
- Sit on the floor and keep your back straight.
- Keep your feet together while bending your knees, forming a butterfly wings-like shape.
- Press your knees towards the floor. During this, you’ll feel a stretch in your inner thighs.
- Hold the position for 10 to 15 seconds and release.
- Repeat the process 5 to 10 times.
Various Butterfly Poses Variations
There are multiple variations of butterfly poses. You can combine two or more variations or perform any based on your preferences. These variations are:
1. Reclined Butterfly Pose
This pose is one of the easiest and least-rigorous butterfly poses. You can use a cushion and place it below your back and shoulders while doing this stretch. The steps are:
- Make the butterfly position.
- Lie on the cushion, using your hands as support.
- Hold the position for one to two minutes and release.
2. Forward Bending Butterfly Pose
As the name suggests, this exercise requires forward bending. You can place a pillow or cushion in front to support your forehead. The steps include:
- Sit in the butterfly position.
- Lean forward slowly.
- Outstretch your arms while leaning.
- Stay in the position for 5 to 10 seconds and release.
The butterfly exercise to induce labor can be helpful when expecting a risk-free delivery. It can be a great way to stretch your body while easing the pain of childbirth. However, it’s a good idea to consult your healthcare provider before adding butterfly stretches to your exercise routine.
FAQs
1. Who Should Not Do Butterfly Exercises to Induce Labor?
Women with risky pregnancies may avoid the butterfly exercise. Further, it might not be a perfect exercise for those with respiratory or cardiovascular diseases.
2. When Should I Start Butterfly Exercise During Pregnancy?
Butterfly stretches can be most beneficial during the third trimester. They may help with inducing labor and facilitating easy delivery.
3. Does Practicing the Butterfly Pose Benefit a Healthy Delivery?
Yes, butterfly stretches promote a healthy delivery. They strengthen the pelvic floor muscles and support easy labor and delivery.
References
- Physical activities (exercises or chores) during pregnancy and mode of delivery in nulliparous women: A prospective cohort study – [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1028455917302978]
- Standardized Stretching Postural postures to treat low-back pain in pregnancy: the GEMALODO randomized clinical trial – [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S258993332300229X]
- Pelvic floor muscle exercise and training for coping with urinary incontinence -[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8743604/]
- The effect of a childbirth preparation program including posture correction and stretching movements on lordosis and lumbar pain – [https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ijn.13113]
- The Effect of Yoga on Stress, Anxiety, and Depression in Women – [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5843960/]
