Model Ashley Graham has made it a point to stay active during her pregnancies. She regularly posted videos and photos on Instagram of herself working out while she was pregnant with her first son, Isaac. Now, she's giving a look into what she's been doing to stay active during her current pregnancy with twin boys.
Graham, 34, dropped a sped-up video on Instagram of herself working through various yoga poses—including cat pose, cow pose, and downward dog—under the guidance of yoga teacher Sophie Ella Green. "Preggo yoga sesh," Graham wrote in the caption of the November 30 video.
People cheered Graham on in the comments. "HOW are you managing this?! Superwoman. Hope it's making you feel amazing ❤️," one person wrote. "👏👏 You're super woman 😍 I'm 32 weeks with twins and finding it hard to get out of bed some days," another said.
During her last pregnancy, Graham shared videos of herself lifting weights and going through HIIT workouts. She also did yoga during her first pregnancy, sharing a picture of one of her sessions back then. It seems like she's sticking with the gentler exercise this time around, and that's exactly what the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) advises when a person is expecting multiples.
"Staying active during multiple pregnancy is important for your health, but you may need to avoid strenuous exercise," ACOG says online. "Try low-impact exercise, such as swimming, prenatal yoga, and walking. You should aim for 30 minutes of exercise a day. If problems arise during your pregnancy, your ob-gyn may recommend that you avoid exercise."
Yoga in particular "reduces stress, improves flexibility, and encourages stretching and focused breathing," ACOG says, noting that prenatal yoga classes "often teach modified poses that accommodate a pregnant woman's shifting balance."
"As long as you avoid any poses that could be dangerous, there are many benefits to doing yoga during pregnancy," Christine Greves, MD, ob-gyn at the Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women and Babies in Orlando, Florida, tells Health. So that means avoiding poses that could put pressure on your abdomen, as well as ones that would have you lying on your back for longer periods of time, she says.
"Prental yoga can improve your mood, help you sleep better, reduce your stress levels, and increase muscle strength," Dr. Greves explains. "It's definitely a good thing." Muscles can also get tight during pregnancy, and the stretching you do during prenatal yoga can help loosen them, she says.
While it's unclear exactly how far along Graham is with her pregnancy, Dr. Greves says you can do prenatal yoga "throughout your pregnancy," including right up until you deliver. Overall, she says, "this is a really good exercise to do when you're expecting."
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