Dance Your Way to A Healthier Pregnancy with ‘Fit Bump’!

Those who have been pregnant will let you know that not everyone has a picture-perfect pregnancy experience. Moms who have been pregnant multiple times will also tell you, no one pregnancy is the same as the next. With each comes new concerns, restrictions, and physical adaptations as the body adjusts to each pregnancy. There is also the doctor’s advice, which is as varied as are pregnancies in the world. But for the most part, the most generic tried and true advice for pregnancy is to eat healthily, remain active, stay hydrated, and go for all your checkups.

The remaining active bit is however vague for most as it means anything from walking across the room to lifting weights and running a few miles a day. So what happens when you feel up to doing more than looking for the TV remote in your living room but not quite up to pumping iron at the gym? Dance might be a good alternative. Mom of three and Zumba enthusiast Alessia Chizzoniti would know a thing or two about dancing your way to a healthier pregnancy as she, along with other Beijing moms, gets ready to host Fit Bumps – From One Mom to Another. Beijingkids spoke to her on dancing and pregnancy, what to expect, and what the benefits you should get might be.

Alessia Chizzoniti

How safe is dancing for women who are in different trimesters of pregnancy?

Dancing is very safe and is actually recommended for pregnant ladies, no matter the trimester. Dancing is a fun and gentle exercise that everyone can enjoy. This is the perfect time to connect with your body and your baby through movement and awareness. You have primal and powerful birth instincts within you, awaiting activation. You’ll be surprised at the numerous benefits for your pregnancy, your birth, your baby, and your postpartum recovery. I always remind moms to listen to their bodies and inform me of any little change or discomfort they may have experienced, as to adjust the program according to each one’s needs.

What are some of the direct benefits of dancing through pregnancy as a way to remain fit and active?

Through dancing, you become progressively more centered, grounded, agile, strong, and self-assured. Dancing is beneficial in pregnancy to reduce your stress and tension by activating your “feeling brain” instead of your “thinking brain”, anchoring you so pleasurably in the current moment that neither the past nor the future can interfere with the perfection of right now. You’ll find yourself fully experiencing your birth. Another benefit of dancing through pregnancy is that it increases the flow of the “love hormone” oxytocin which helps you bond with your baby and during birth positively affects the length, strength, and duration of your uterine contractions.

Yet another benefit of dancing is that it correspondingly lowers the “fight or flight hormone” adrenaline. Another wonderful benefit of dancing is that it gives you confidence in your body and movement, which lowers your stress and allows for increased levels of oxytocin to shorten labor. Oxytocin triggers your primal birth instincts. Dancing reduces the risk of interventions like forceps, vacuum, and cesarean by correcting fetal mal-position and opening your pelvic outlet wider. It also has been scientifically proven to diminish labor pain and increase birth satisfaction. Last but not least, through dancing gravity will be your alley for a smooth, physiological birth. Furthermore, after labor, the same hormones that helped during labor will also help shrink your uterus back to size in the immediate postpartum period. Dancing throughout your pregnancy gives you and your baby repetitive motions that will be familiar and comforting for your baby, encouraging bonding, and aiding in soothing – a huge benefit for you and your baby.

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How often would this sort of exercise be encouraged for pregnant women?

Dancing for birth classes are usually held once or twice a week, as they incorporate also labor coaching and prenatal education. Dancing in general is encouraged any time any day!

Let’s get to the meat and potatoes of it! What would this class consist of?

Class lasts one hour. We start with a gentle warm-up, to get ready to literally shake our hips! We use organic movements and physiological positions to build up the fun and easy choreographies, and most important we build circuits moms can easily use during labor by themselves or with their partner’s support. We incorporate Dancing for Birth evidence-based Birth Method and signature moves like the “Dilation Gyration” in every routine to make the class effective regarding labor preparation and make moms experience the moves, train the body and build a “body memory” for the big day. The class is filled with techniques and tips, like how to use gravity for a more effective birth. Did you know there is an optimal fetal position and you can help assure it? We end the class with gentle stretching and some workout for the pelvic floor. We follow up in the group chat, as I usually send info after class about what we just did so that mom can practice by themselves if they wish and build awareness and confidence. The aim is to learn techniques that support your own physiological birth instincts, and increase your confidence for an empowered, enjoyable birth (yes, natural birth can be enjoyable)!

What are some of the safety precautions during the class?

The studio is regularly disinfected, so are the equipment (yoga mats and blocks, seats, etc). Spots are limited to make sure we can keep the safety distance at all times.

What words of encouragement do you have for pregnant moms who are afraid to get into something as physically involved as dancing during pregnancy?

As a DFB™ instructor and doula, I am here to support you literally step by step! Birth can be active, ecstatic, transformative, empowering. With this fun fusion of fitness and education, you’ll be ready! Come along!