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May 29, 2009
If you’ve heard horror stories about bladder control and sex after your baby, don’t worry there is
something you can do now to help with those things later. You can do Kegel Exercises! If you
don’t know what that is or if you’d like to know more, read on!
We have a muscle group that is uncommonly known about, but extremely important. This is the Kegel Muscle. This
is a hammock-like structure of muscles located in the pelvic floor region in
both men and women. In women this muscle group actually helps hold the pelvic organs, like
the bladder, in place. There are 3 openings to the muscle: the urethra, the vagina, and the anus.
Each of these openings is surrounded by a sphincter which is comprised of voluntary and
involuntary muscles. The voluntary muscles provide you with control over the release of urine
and feces. The involuntary muscles hold your organs in place.
Where is the Kegel Muscle?
The best way to find this muscle is to empty your bladder while you are going to the bathroom. After you’ve done
this, try to imagine stopping the flow of urine. The muscles that you contract to stop the flow are the Kegel Muscles.
*be sure to empty your bladder before doing Kegels, having urine in the bladder can potentially cause urine to back
up and cause a bladder or kidney infection.
How do you perform Kegels?
Kegels do not have to be done in the bathroom. Once you have found this muscle, you can do them anytime,
anywhere and nobody will know the difference! Just contract the muscles that cut off the flow of urine and hold.
Try doing 10 repetitions and holding each one for approximately 10 seconds. You can work up to 15 to 20
repetitions or do just the 10, but hold each for 20 to 30 seconds.
May 27, 2009
Even though these rippled stripes on your skin may seem very foreign to you, they really are quite common. In fact, half of moms-to-be can expect to get them.
The Cause: Although experts aren’t exactly sure, they think they are partly hormonal. Your genes seem to also play a part. Usually you won’t see these until 25 weeks, but some women see them as early as the first trimester.
Prevention: Although preventing these entirely may be close to impossible, many physicians still believe that proper hydration and keeping weight gain reasonable might help. Plenty of water to drink and over the counter creams can at least help moisturize the skin and reduce itchiness.
Treatment: These marks usually fade to a white color about two months after delivery. Dermatologists and plastic surgeons can help, but it’s best to treat these marks as soon as possible. But you can’t do anything until the baby is born, so just eat nutritiously, work out if your Health Care Provider says it is ok and enjoy your incredible changing body!
May 22, 2009
Trimester 2 Begins…what do you do now when it comes to exercise?
First, always be sure your Doctor approves of it for your pregnancy.
Secondly, the most important change from Trimester One to Trimester Two when it comes to exercising is NO SUPINE movements. This means you should do no exercises while lying on your back. Laying on your back could obstruct the venae cava (or, the two major veins of the body) which decreases cardiac output to you AND your baby!
Though exercise in the Second Trimester is generally safe, moms-to-be embarking on an exercise program should be aware of warning signs. If any of the following symptoms occur, stop exercising and contact your practitioner:
Sudden and severe abdominal pain
Regular uterine contractions lasting 30 minutes once exercising stops
Dizziness
Vaginal bleeding
Decreased fetal activity, visual disturbances, or numbness in the body
Remember that during pregnancy, your first and foremost goal is to keep both you and your baby healthy. To do this you must be aware of your body. Continue to use a heart monitor and keep your intensity moderate. If you feel fatigued, you need to stop and rest. And if you are in any doubt, ask your Health Care Provider!
May 20, 2009
Unfortunately we don’t live in a perfect world where you always get exactly
enough sleep, have plenty of time to exercise and are able to plan and cook
a healthy, balanced meal. Sometimes you will find yourself in a drive through
and wonder what to order. Well, worry no more. There really are some
healthy choices out there.
Pizza: Vegetable pizza with tomato sauce, with little or no cheese and a
garden salad with dressing on the side
Chinese: Hot and Sour soup, beef (or chicken) and broccoli, fortune cookie
for dessert.
Mexican: Salsa, fish Veracruz (with tomatoes) and a side of black beans
Thai: Green papaya salad (or garden salad), barbecue beef and sautéed
mixed veggies.
Japanese: Edamame, seaweed salad, barbecue beef, and mixed veggies.
McDonald’s: Bacon ranch salad with grilled chicken (not crispy chicken)
Use half apacket of low fat balsamic vinaigrette or Italian salad dressing.
You could even have apple dippers for dessert!
Burger King: Original Whooper Jr. with no mayonnaise and a garden salad
with no dressing and applesauce for dessert.
Wendy’s: Broccoli and Cheese Hot Stuffed Potato. Mandarin orange cup
for dessert.
Taco Bell: Grilled Steak Soft Taco, “fresco style” and (2%) chocolate milk
for dessert.
KFC: Tender Roast Sandwich with no sauce.
May 17, 2009
Working out and proper nutrition habits will help you avoid excessive or unnecessary accumulation of fatty deposits often associated with pregnancy. However, weight gain is distributed unevenly throughout pregnancy anyway. Don’t worry about this, it is normal. Most women of normal pre-pregnancy weight will experience a weight gain of 25to 35 pounds during pregnancy. the following is the averageweight gain distribution throughout the approximate 40 week gestational period. -approx. 3.5 pounds in the 1st trimester and approx. 1 pound per week in the 2nd and 3rd trimesters. If you were underweight to begin with, a larger weight gain may be necessary. Your doctor can help you determine the appropriate amount of weight for you to gain. If you were overweight to begin with, it is not expected that you will gain less than 20 pounds during pregnancy. Lowered weight gains in overweight women have been shown to produce smaller, sicklier babies who are often born premature. Dieting during pregnancy is never appropriate.
May 15, 2009
#1 Clarify exactly what you want.
Sit down and decide what you want and why. Be reasonable, don’t make goals you know you can’t reach. Then write it down and post somewhere you can read often to remind you.
#2 Make a road map for how you will achieve it.
Be specific about how you will reach the goals. How many times a week will you do resistance training? How often will you exercise? Again, make these reasonable for your pregnancy.
#3 Believe!!!
You’ve probably also heard that a long journey starts with a single step! All you need to do is focus on “baby steps.” During pregnancy our goals should be related to gaining strength, improving body stability and balance, building a better, stronger core. And these can and will generally improve and, in turn, build confidence! You CAN do it!
#4 Persistence!!
Persistence seems easy when the going is easy, but it gets tough when you have setbacks. Pregnancy can be full of setbacks, so you need to be sure to reward yourself for your progress and forgive yourself for your mistakes! Be sure to ask your family and friends for their support and help with your goals or look into finding someone else who wants to train with you, or maybe take your walks or bike rides with you. That way you can support each other!
#5 Journal, journal, journal.
Recording progress towards your goals is also proven to help us get to them. It can show the peaks and valley and what we can learn from them. And keeping a journal is especially valuable for those who are pregnant because it helps you adjust to the many changes you are experiencing, and to manage the excitement and anxiety.
Good Luck!
May 11, 2009
First let us explore the“Core.” The dictionary defines a core as the “central, basic, or most important part” of something. And our bodies have a “core” as well.
The core includes:
The abdominal muscles from your chest down to your pelvis,
Your obliques (the abs on the side of your body),
Your glute (or butt) muscles,
And the lower and middle part of your back.
Your expanding abdomen, swelling breasts, and increased blood volume causes lordosis (excessive arching) of the lumbar (lower)spine, and kyphosis (rounding) of the thoracic (upper) spine. Each of these changes has a major impact on low back pain, mid-back pain, and headaches. Unfortunately this doesn’t necessarily go away after you give birth. Often post natal women deal with these problems and don’t even know it, except for their back hurts most of the time. However, the good news is this doesn’t have to happen!! These CAN be lessened or completely avoided by strengthening your core, practicing good posture, and corrective stretching! By pulling in and working the core you will ensure that the excessive arching of the lumbar spine won’t happen, and the rounding of your thoracic spine can be eliminated too. Remember, doing the core exercises in my workouts is good and adding a little awareness and practice during the day won’t hurt either. If your lower back starts to ache, sit up straight and pull in your lower abdominals. It should help with the pain, if not eliminate if completely. While your walking, keep your posture up and lower abdominals pulled in slightly. You’ll be working your core and ensuring your body holds up to the pressures of pregnancy much better!
May 9, 2009
You will need more calories now that you are pregnant, but probably not as
many as you may think! It’s an “old wives tale” that pregnant women are
“eating for two!”
It is suggested that you eat approximately 300 calories more than you were
eating pre pregnancy, especially in the second and third trimesters.
That may sound like a lot of food, but check out the following list of 300 calorie items:
Starbucks Vanilla Latte (Venti) 290
Cinnamon Raisin Bagel (no cream cheese) 320
Ben & Jerry’s Chubby Hubby (1/2 cup) 330
Subway 6 inch turkey (no cheese or mayo) 280
Red Vine Licorice (4 vines) 280
Snickers Bar (regular size) 280
Surprised? Most people are!! It really doesn’t take as much as we used to think to make up the extra calories you need for the baby! It is ok to indulge once in a while, but most of the time you should try to fill your daily calories with nutritious foods, like fruit, vegetables, whole grains and lean protein. Want another great reason to eat these nutrient dense foods? They are lower in calories so you can actually eat more!
May 7, 2009
According to the ACOG (American College of
Obstetricians and Gynecologists) there is not data to
indicate that pregnant women should limit exercise
intensity and lower target heart rate because of potential
adverse effects.
The following recommendations can be made for
those women who do NOT have any additional risk
factors for adverse maternal or perinatal outcome:
During pregnancy, women can exercise and will gain
health benefits from mild to moderate physical activity.
Regular exercise (at least three times per week) is better
than intermittent activity.
Pre Natal women should be aware that they will have
a decrease in oxygen available for exercise during
pregnancy. Women also should modify the intensity of
their exercise according to maternal symptoms and how
they are feeling.
Pregnant women should stop exercising when they are fatigued and not exercise to exhaustion. Weightbearing exercises are also good as long as they are at relatively low intensities. Loss of balance during pregnancy can be detrimental to maternal or fetal well being through a fall, especially in the third trimester. Any type of exercise involving the potential for even mild abdominal trauma should be avoided. Pregnancy requires an additional 300 calories in order to maintain metabolic homeostasis. Women who exercise should be particularly careful to ensure an adequate diet. Pregnant women who exercise during pregnancy should be careful of heat and dissipate it by ensuring adequate hydration, appropriate clothing, and optimal environmental surroundings during exercise.
Many of the physiologic and morphologic changes of pregnancy persist 4 to 6 weeks postpartum so pre-pregnancy exercise routines should be resumed gradually based on a woman’s physical capability. ACOG suggests that pregnant women avoid any activity that could lead to contact or falling. Remember that pregnancy alters your center of gravity and makes you less coordinated and more likely to fall even when you are doing things you are used to doing.
May 3, 2009
You’ve probably noticed by now that pregnancy is not only physically demanding, but mentally demanding as well! Your body is going through so many drastic changes and along with that your hormones are crazy too! If you’ve been strength training for a while now, you probably feel much stronger and hopefully more confident as well. If you are just beginning your strength training that is what you can look forward to! The weights I have you lifting probably won’t give you a “muscled” look, but they will make you feel stronger and tougher and provide a mental edge that will be reassuring as you inch your way to “labor day”! Remember strong arms and legs will make lifting easier, especially as your abs get weaker and your belly becomes cumbersome. A strong back will help take pressure off your shoulders and hold your spine in alignment by off setting gravities pull of your belly and breasts.
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