People are drawn to yoga for its physical benefits, its ability to induce calm and presence, and its offering of spiritual depth. In their new book, Whole Mama Yoga, authors Alexandra DeSiato and Lauren Sacks covers all phases and stages of becoming and being a mother or birth parent — offering a way to extend yoga’s gifts and tools for all who parent.
On their inspiration for the book, Sacks says, “We are both fierce advocates for increased empowerment during pregnancy, in labor, and throughout parenthood. Yoga offers a deeply intuitive way to connect to the wisdom inherent in our own body and experience. That powerful connection is what we hope to share through the sequences, philosophy, and stories in Whole Mama Yoga.”
Accessible to those new to yoga, experienced practitioners, and yoga teachers alike, Whole Mama Yoga offers tools for the entire journey of parenthood. It is for those just thinking about beginning a family, those in the early stages of pregnancy, those getting close to labor and delivery, and moms and birth parents, navigating an entirely different world. This is a book to reference as children grow, change and become little (and big) people.
With yoga poses at the core of the text, yogi moms and instructors DeSiato and Sacks offer helpful information in movement offerings that meet all moms and birth parents where they are. Each chapter shares the wisdom of yoga through sections including:
MOVE: poses and sequences for each part of the parenting journey
REFLECT: grounding meditations and mantras
BREATHE: helpful breathing techniques and pranayama practices
WISDOM: yoga philosophy and lessons from perinatal and maternal wellness, mental health, Ayurveda, physical therapy, and sleep experts as they apply to motherhood and parenthood
RELATE: a chance to hear from other moms and parents who have also used yoga poses and philosophy along their journeys
Yoga for When You’re Angry
About the Authors
Alexandra DeSiato and Lauren Sacks cofounded the Whole Mama Yoga collective, offering yoga classes to support fertility, pregnancy, and the postpartum and motherhood experiences. DeSiato, an expert in prenatal and postpartum yoga, coauthored Lifelong Yoga and Teaching Yoga Beyond the Poses and lives in Chapel Hill, NC, with her husband and daughter. Sacks is a perinatal and hatha yoga instructor with over 20 years of teaching experience and lives in Carrboro, NC, with her husband and two children.
For more information, visit their website at wholemamayoga.com.
Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Whole-Mama-Yoga-Preconception-Pregnancy/dp/0757324665
Whole Mama Yoga: Meditation, Mantra, and Movement for Pregnancy and Beyond
Publisher: HCI Books
Release Date: August 29, 2023
ISBN-10: 0757324665
ISBN-13: 9780757324666
Trade Paperback, 240 pages
Available for pre-order
