You'll Have Lots of Feelings About These Pregnant Bellies "Disappearing"
Buckle up, y'all, because "suck it in" is about to take on a whole new meaning.
The Bloom Method fitness program based in Boulder, CO, specializes in pre and postnatal exercise, and its "belly pumping" videos are about to give you an abundance of feelings. In the videos (above and below), pregnant mamas can be seen engaging in deep core breathing exercises, which are said to help moms' bodies in a number of different ways. Really though, it just looks like their pregnant bellies disappear — pregnant one second, totally normal-looking the next.
Bloom Method's founder, Brooke Cates, went into the details of the benefits of this program in a post to Instagram.
Belly pumping aka diaphragmatic breathing with deep core engagement! Why do we think EVERY expecting mother should be adding this to her daily regimen?
- Helps to maintain a connection to the deep core muscles throughout pregnancy (pelvic floor, transverse abdominis, and multifidus).
- Decreases low back and pelvic pain due to the deep core's ability to stabilize the spine and pelvis.
- Decreases your chance of abdominal separation by creating a balancing effect of the inhale, creating space for the baby, and the exhale, maintaining strength in the muscles of the deep core.
- Helps teach women how to effectively PUSH during labor. Knowing how to use your deep core during the pushing phase of birth speeds up pushing time by over 70 percent.
- Provides more stability postpartum while speeding up healing times during this rehabilitative stage.
- Keeps the expecting woman in parasympathetic nervous system, providing de-stressing signals to her and baby.
Add belly pumps to workouts or do throughout your day to create more balance and strength to your pregnancy. Try while driving, sitting at your desk, brushing your teeth, cooking, etc.
We're still so floored at these videos we're not even sure if we'd try this out ourselves, but apparently it's completely safe — the baby slips into mom's rib cage on the deep exhale. Let us know if this is something you've tried/would consider trying!