Youth & Family Health And Fitness Biography
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Few moms are happy with their abs after having a baby. In fact, most of us are surprised to see that we still look pregnant. When we became moms, not only did our lives change, but our bodies did, too. To get our abs back, we may need to change how we exercise.
Studies show that if you diet without exercising you will lose some fat, but you will also lose lean body mass—you will lose muscle. To maintain muscle, you need exercise. To reshape a mom’s body, you need specifically designed exercises that target the changes that occurred during pregnancy.
The forces of pregnancy and the weight of the baby pulls the body in different directions, like strings on a puppet, and changes the alignment of the body. To get your body back, you need to know which strings to pull.
When I looked at how pregnancy AND motherhood pulls on a woman’s body, I discovered that a woman is literally being pulled forward—abs, shoulders, even her head. This isn’t just from pregnancy. After giving birth, your daily activities as a mom continue to pull you forward. You’re still holding your child in front of you. You’re leaning forward while pushing the stroller. Everything about motherhood pulls you forward. It’s the reason why the changes from pregnancy stay with us for years, and can actually get worse.
We need to do fewer exercises that pull us forward, and introduce new movements that pull us back.
During the ‘forces of pregnancy,” there were three major changes that occurred around the midsection:
Stretched the abs
Tilted the hips
Weakened the pelvic floor
Conventional exercise dogma tells us to lose weight and do crunches, but many women complain that they still have that lower-tummy pooch. That’s because when your pelvis tilts forward, this results in a swayed back and protruding tummy—a condition that often stays with a woman even after giving birth. With some moms, the misalignment is so extreme that if she can just get her body into proper alignment, her stomach looks flatter even before she’s lost any weight.
Most programs tell women to do crunches. The problem with just doing crunches is they can pull one of the strings—your hip flexors—in the wrong direction. These muscles became short and tight during pregnancy and it’s the hip flexors that are actually pulling the pelvis forward in the front. We need to stretch the hip flexors, while at the same time strengthen the abs (with movements other than crunches.) This draws the hips back into alignment, gets rid of the protruding lower tummy and flattens the abs.
While we are talking about the core, there’s a sensitive subject that only moms know about, and we discover it after pregnancy. The pelvic floor is now very weak. If you’ve had some embarrassing moments with bladder control, don’t be ashamed! It’s part of what pregnancy does to a woman’s body. But we need to fix it, because the risk of incontinence later in life is greatly increased the longer a woman experiences post-partum incontinence.
Here’s just one part of the secret to flat abs. Whenever you do abdominal movements that involve a crunching motion, pull your abs inward by drawing your navel in toward your spine. Imagine you’re sucking your tummy in without holding your breath. This engages both the inner core and the pelvic floor, so you’re getting a two for one workout, giving you a much better total-core workout. You don’t need to do separate exercises to strengthen different muscles—you simply need to work smarter. It’s just like multitasking, which is something most moms are very familiar with!
Do your best to engage your core during all exercises, not just the ones focusing exclusively on the abdominals. Even though you may be focusing on your upper or lower body, you should be doing movements that engage your abs. Creating a strong core will help give you the strength you need for motherhood.
We all start out with a vision or dream of what it will be like to be a parent. Maybe you envisioned rocking your baby, quietly strolling through the park, and eventually coaching a t-ball team. What we fail to envision is the bit of chaos that comes with being a parent. Frazzled, tired, overwhelmed—do any of those words fit into your dream of parenthood? Probably not. But they are a new parent’s reality.
I think everyone benefits from some alone and quiet time, but this is especially true for parents. We are usually running at full speed from the time the sun comes up until we crash on the pillow late at night. One of my favorite books, The Janitor by Todd Hopkins and Ray Hilbert, explains that a burned-out brain won’t start. We’re in a state of constant reacting—to cries, phone calls, emails, dirty diapers, carpools and a blur of children’s TV. We seem to define success as filling every moment with tasks and information. It’s no wonder so many parents feel overwhelmed. We feel guilty for taking time to renew our own spirit. But if we did, we would likely have renewed energy to take on the world.
One of the best parts of my day is what I call a “Take 10.” No matter how hectic my day may be, I schedule quiet time for myself. I literally put on a timer and carve out 10 minutes. It’s during my moments of quiet that everything comes into place. Solutions seem to rise to the surface, peace comes over my body, and my energy is renewed to keep up with the rest of my day.
When your day is already packed, how do you find the time for this?
Wake up earlier. Wake up before your family and sit with no technology—TV, radio, computer or phone. Do nothing but have a cup of tea and meditate on what you want to get out of your day. (To make up for the lost sleep time—after all, I know that you’re already sleep deprived—try to go to bed a few minutes earlier.)
Take a bath. Nothing offers me instant relaxation like a bath. About once a week, after my kids go to bed, I light some candles and dip into the tub. During this time I do nothing but reflect, which helps me feel better immediately.
Go for a walk or run. My mind fills with thoughts and ideas as I move peacefully through nature. A quiet walk or run can help shed stress and tension even on the toughest day.
Enjoy your drive. When going for a drive without the kids in the car, turn everything off (that means no phone or radio!). You’ll find that these moments of solitude can also bring great regeneration.
Meditate. Make a small corner of your home your personal sanctuary for decluttering your mind. Include in this space a special pillow, blanket or candle, and find a few moments throughout the week to clear your mind, breathe and let your stresses float away. When you meditate, your thinking mind becomes quiet.
The bottom line is that you need to find a way to bring peace into your life and your family. It’s when you feel like you don’t have any time that you need a break the most. You’ll be astounded at the progress you’ll make with a little bit of time for “me.”
Youth & Family Health And Fitness Quotes Inspiration Picture Clipart Logo Magazine Images Tumblr Motivation Tips
Youth & Family Health And Fitness Quotes Inspiration Picture Clipart Logo Magazine Images Tumblr Motivation Tips
Youth & Family Health And Fitness Quotes Inspiration Picture Clipart Logo Magazine Images Tumblr Motivation Tips
Youth & Family Health And Fitness Quotes Inspiration Picture Clipart Logo Magazine Images Tumblr Motivation Tips
Youth & Family Health And Fitness Quotes Inspiration Picture Clipart Logo Magazine Images Tumblr Motivation Tips
Youth & Family Health And Fitness Quotes Inspiration Picture Clipart Logo Magazine Images Tumblr Motivation Tips
Youth & Family Health And Fitness Quotes Inspiration Picture Clipart Logo Magazine Images Tumblr Motivation Tips
Youth & Family Health And Fitness Quotes Inspiration Picture Clipart Logo Magazine Images Tumblr Motivation Tips
Youth & Family Health And Fitness Quotes Inspiration Picture Clipart Logo Magazine Images Tumblr Motivation Tips
Youth & Family Health And Fitness Quotes Inspiration Picture Clipart Logo Magazine Images Tumblr Motivation Tips
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