Yoga before embryo transfer – A senior instructor’s dos & don’ts
Prepping for an IVF embryo transfer? First off, you’ve got this.
Secondly, yep – you’ve got questions too. Some of us on team TRB get it, from very personal experience. Knowing how much to move your body and when can start to feel more crucial, and also more confusing than usual.
This is where fertility-specific, expert reassurance is really helpful. And for this, we’re fortunate enough to be able to tap into the team Thrive Journey, our go-to library of nourishing online content designed for women across all life and health stages, including those preparing for fertility treatment.
Your guide to yoga before embryo transfer
For this yoga before embryo transfer Q&A, we picked up with the brilliant and vibrant Senior Yoga Instructor, Sarah Manning.
She brings over 30 years of international teaching experience to the Thrive team.
Let’s start off strong, with an important question:
Can you exercise before an embryo transfer?
Yes, you can exercise before an embryo transfer. In fact, looking after your overall health during this time is really key, Sarah explains.
“The time you take to prepare is part of this story – your diet, your avoidance of toxic load, your stress management and the exercise program you have managed to squeeze into your life, all matter.”
The aim here should be to support a state where your nervous system is calmer, the hormonal and neurological signals in the body are also more likely to support success, she says.
“But let’s be really honest here, most of my fertility students have been full steam ahead with a crazy career and travel schedule and then the month before embryo transfer they wake up and seek my help. So if that’s you, you are not alone.”
What’s the best yoga to prepare for frozen embryo transfer?
Whether that’s fresh or frozen, there are a few specific styles of yoga that are recommended during the embryo transfer stage of IVF.
Sarah says, “Our practice for IVF and embryo transfer is focused on increasing the feminine, open, receptive, accepting state of being. It is a universal truth that the more grounded and safe we feel, the more open we can become.”
The styles of practice she’d most encourage are:
- Restorative Yoga – This is best if you’re dealing with stress overload, and need to totally rest. It incorporates diaphragmatic breathing as well as blankets, bolsters and blocks that cradle you, and it’s a deep deep rest, both physically and emotionally, often bringing emotions to surface and release.
- Yin Yoga – This is for you if you need rest, but cannot sit still long enough for restorative yoga. This is a ground based practice, where your muscles are invited to totally relax and we stimulate the deeper connective tissue. These poses are held for up to 5 minutes giving us time to explore breathing, mindful and meditative practices to down regulate your neurological and hormonal state.
- Yoga Flow – This is for you if you need to move, for example if you’ve been desk bound yet buzzing. These Hatha poses are nurturing and releasing – a combination of standing, kneeling, seated, inversions and floor based poses that target the best flow of blood and lymph to your womb, pelvis and supporting abdominal organs.
- Meditation practices and Yoga Nidra – This is an exercise for your mind and focus. Your body is invited to totally relax and rest while your mind goes on a journey of awareness, sense withdrawal, concentration and visualisation.
- Qigong – This is recommended for everyone preparing for embryo transfer. It’s a breathing practice and meditation that down-regulates your neurological and hormonal messengers for a deep release, focusing on cooling descending breath and soft flowing almost hypnotic movements.
Bookmark our collab piece with Sarah on Qigong for fertility, to learn more and dive deeper here.
Does yoga help implantation?
In a word, yes. The benefits of yoga practice for implantation are wide-reaching.
Sarah explains, “It calms the nervous system, helping to switch on the vagus nerve and activate the parasympathetic state, so more blood and energy can be directed to your digestive, immune and reproductive systems. It also helps to switch off the body’s stress response, while stimulating organs and meridians to increase energy and blood flow to the heart and pelvic region.
There’s also what’s often referred to as the ‘progesterone steal’. She says, “While we don’t fully understand the exact mechanism, we do know that when the body is under stress, progesterone production can drop, and the lining of the womb may be affected.
IVF can also create a state of heightened anxiety, often alongside poor sleep, both of which can impact how you feel during treatment.
There can be so many pressures for treatment to succeed – from parents, grandparents, society, and even financial stress – so it becomes important to come back to the present moment, rather than getting caught in the past or future. Coming to the mat is about returning to that moment. It helps to calm the mind, the subconscious, and the body, while building life force within you.
It can also support the flow of apana (downward, calming energy) and samana (digestive, absorptive energy), helping to restore balance between the yin and yang, the masculine and feminine aspects of our being.”
This is a real flavour of the kind of holistic, detailed support the Thrive team will bring to your journey.
Yoga poses before embryo transfer
Dos…
Including restorative versions of the following:
- Child’s pose
- Reclined goddess pose
- Bubbling brook pose
- Straddle pose
- Legs raised
…and don’ts
- Avoid all arm balances
- Avoid all heated and heating postures, especially vigorous repeated Sun Salutations
- Avoid chaturanga
- Avoid core strengthening work
And remember, it’s always best to approach these poses with guidance from an expert, like Sarah.
Now, let’s wrap up with a mini-blitz of some of the most-Googled questions.
Yoga before embryo transfer FAQs answered
1. Can I do hot yoga before frozen embryo transfer?
Hot yoga and heated classes are best avoided before frozen embryo transfer, explains Sarah.
“This is a Yang, masculine practice and classes are typically more intense and performance-focused. Heat raises the heart rate and blood pressure and can place extra stress on the body.”
2. Do legs up the wall help implantation?
Legs up the wall (or legs on a chair) can work well during this stage, for even deeper relaxation and letting go.
Sarah says, “It’s not just about relaxation of muscles – there’s a physiological response that happens in an inversion that immediately eases anxiety, stress or pain.
You can use your fitbit to measure this. Check your heart rate, do five minutes of legs up the wall or on a chair, and then measure it again. You’ll see your heart rate and blood pressure dramatically reduce, which then triggers signals all around the body that you are relaxed and in an open receptive state.”
3. What’s an ideal schedule for yoga before embryo transfer?
- Around one month before: Focus on building a consistent wellness practice. This might include Hatha yoga, qigong, walking in nature, meditation, and creating space for a regular quiet mind practice.
- In the lead-up to embryo transfer: Aim for a daily rhythm if you can. For example, qigong in the morning, with floor-based restorative yoga, yin, or yoga nidra in the evening.
- For transfer day, the two-week wait, and into the first trimester: Keep things gentle and supportive, focusing on restorative yoga and yoga nidra, so you feel nurtured, calm, and well supported.
Head into your transfer with support from Sarah and the team
Sarah says, “Thrive Journey is steeped in Asian wisdom adjusted for the modern age. We bring the old wise wisdom from yoga and TCM traditions – which intuitively understood the control systems of the body – neurological/hormonal systems and needs of the body, mind and emotions and tie it to modern research.
The permission to take deep rest, to focus on self, physically, mentally and emotionally is key to this time of frozen embryo transfer and the journey into motherhood.”
Find more from Sarah and Thrive’s full fertility-aligned programs, classes, recipes and community at thrivejourney.com. Explore:
Starting on day one of your last menstrual cycle, this is a safe combination of rest in Restorative yoga, nurse’s advice and calming Yoga Nidra to help create the optimal hormonal environment for your transfer.
Also jump to:
- Hormone Rebalance for IVF program
- Yoga and Ayurveda for Fertility
- Live prenatal yoga classes
- Live Qigong group classes for hormonal balance
Next on your reading list: Fertility yoga – expert pointers and poses for when you’re TTC
