A question I am often asked by my prenatal Yoga students is if Yoga helps prevent stretch marks from developing during pregnancy. My answer to this question from experience is yes!

I am proud to say that I gave birth to a healthy 7lb 13oz baby boy only 14 months ago. He was a bog boy and during my pregnancy I gained 26 lbs in weight and I can honestly say that I have not one stretch mark to tell the tale. I believe that along with a healthy diet of fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains, washed down with plenty of water, Yoga played a key role in keeping my skin in tip-top healthy condition during the pregnancy.

Stretch marks are known to be caused when the skin is stretched to its limit, usually through excessive weight gain over a short period of time, such as pregnancy. If you want to have an idea of what stretch marks are like, consider elastic being stretched to its maximum and losing its' elasticity and becoming loose, that would be a close comparison. When the skin loses collagen and elastin due to over-stretching it causes stretch marks and a loss of tone, resulting in visible red or even purple marks on the skin.  Eventually they may fade over time, but there will still be grayish, silvery lines visible on the surface of the skin left behind where the stretch mark had been.

There are a few factors involved when it comes to Yoga and stretch mark prevention, the first and the most obvious being that when you practice Yoga on a regular basis your skin becomes so accustomed to being stretched, sometimes in extreme ways, that it develops elasticity that a person who practices little or no Yoga would have. Of course this helps improve the flexibility and tone of the skin, making it more resilient when it comes to stretch mark development. 

Secondly, it is said that regular Yoga practice helps to improve collagen production. Of course with greater collagen production in the body, the skin will benefit by having increased elasticity and a better tone, which again, helps in the prevention of stretch mark development. Collagen is an important factor when it comes to the condition of your skin. When a reduction in collagen levels occurs, it will in turn affect the structure of the skin, possibly leading to the development of stretch marks.

Another important role that Yoga plays in the prevention of stretch marks is that it helps the body maintain a gradual and healthy weight gain throughout pregnancy. This can be achieved in several ways, firstly by exercising the body and toning the muscles in a gradual, non-strenuous and gentle way. Gentle muscle toning will not produce large, heavy and bulky muscles that contribute to weight gain and are likely to stretch the skin more than necessary.

Secondly, the body will become able to achieve and maintain a natural and healthy weight because Yoga helps to condition the function of the body’s systems so they are able to work more efficiently and at their proper capacity. For example, Yoga helps improve the function of the digestive system and the body’s ability to eliminate waste. It also helps improve the blood circulation which also helps aid in the elimination of unwanted, residual toxins and waste in the body.

Lastly weight gain can be easily managed through Yoga because Yoga teaches us to live moderately, taking only that which we really need as we go about our daily living. Living moderately in this sense means that you don’t eat or drink unless you are really hungry or thirsty, and that you stop eating when you are beginning to feel full, it’s as simple as that!

If you follow these guidelines when it comes to your diet you should not gain weight excessively. Applying moderation when it comes to your diet works wonders as it really teaches you to become more mindful of your body’s signals and to respect feelings of thirst and hunger as your body’s way of telling you that you need to be nourished. Common sense tells you that your body will ask for only that which it needs, it will use the food you consume as energy and when it requires more it will ask. Any excessive eating or drinking outside of those body signals means you are consuming energy that your body does not need. Excess energy is stored in the body until it needs it, and this excess energy is stored as fat which pf course adds to your weight and means that your skin has more area to cover, resulting in it being stretched. A moderate diet and gradual weight gain during pregnancy will help decrease your chances of developing stretch marks.  

So with all of the above in mind, and taking from my word of experience, I can honestly say that there is hope and that pregnancy does not have to equal stretch marks. If your physical appearance and is something you happen to care about then it is important that you keep up with a regular Yoga practice throughout your pregnancy, being mindful of the fact you are doing your skin a favor by boosting it’s chances of staying stretch mark free.

On the other hand, if you already have them, or if you end up with stretch marks after pregnancy, hopefully your Yoga practice will help you to cultivate the ability to accept your stretch marks by honoring them as a token of the amazing job your body did in creating, growing and giving birth to your beautiful baby. So instead of criticizing yourself and your body for its so called ‘flaws’ and ‘imperfections’, just love and respect it for its ability to create the perfect little miracle that is your child, because ultimately there is nothing else quite like that!

Namaste