Work It In, Work It Out

The first month of my daughter’s life was so wonderful, and at the same time very challenging. My cesarean was very rough on my body. It was a solid week before I hobble around the house, but things like going to the bathroom and showering seemed to take five times longer than normal, and I still stayed in bed or out on the couch all of the time. I had NO idea the recovery was going to be this rough or the pain this bad. But after about 2 weeks I started moving a little easier, and taking short little walks around the house.

So I waited about 4 weeks to begin working out again. Mia was just a tiny little one still, and I was still pretty sore and suffering on a regular basis. But I had the itch and couldn’t help but scratch. I’d seen my OB for the 2 week check, and she’d given me the go-ahead for walks, and even told me I could lift the weight of my daughter, but nothing over 15lbs, and “no crunches!”. That was all I needed to hear.

(On vacation with my daughter, 3 months old, my girlfriend and our husbands)

Very carefully I started out slowly, using my 8lb hand weights doing recorded FitTV episodes to give myself some structure. I would do my 100/100/100 (leaving out the abs of course) and walked at least 45 min – 1 hr every day. I would put Mia into her stroller, put the dog on his leash, fill up a water bottle and walk as swiftly as my tender abdomen would allow. I was exhausted from lack of sleep, but as soon as I started this routine my energy levels came soaring back, and the superfoods went into high effect. It was hard to fit in, of course, but I was determined as you too will have to be. I would work in my 4 sets of 25 squats while I was soothing Mia before naps or bed, or even as I was interacting with her. I’d make goofy noises, drop down, smile, and then slowly rise. She just stared at me and occasionally smiled, but I worked it in, which is the point.
Work it in when you can, however you can. I would do the pushups (modified for ease, from the knees) while Mia was in her crib fussing, so that I could make sure she was okay by being in the room, and still getting something done. Either that or I would put a blanket on the floor, and do the pushups literally over her, smiling as I came close to her face, so she would start thinking it was a game. We still do this, at three months, and she is now so responsive she just laughs and smiles each time I say “woo!” as I lower myself towards her.
Now I am back to full-throttle working out. I’ve returned rejoicing to Bikram yoga, and the very last 5lbs of baby weight came flying off in just 3 weeks. I know it isn’t that way for everyone, but being in the hot sweaty room, cleansing, twisting, shedding all that water weight, built up toxins and hormones, just things your body needs to let go of, it felt amazing. Everything slowly has tightened back up, and it will for you too. If I can’t make it to yoga I am still doing my 100/100/100, and all of my FitTV recorded exercise shows, and every once in a while I actually make it outside or to the gym for a run. The point is, just like through the pregnancy, it is equally as important to continue to make sure you do SOMETHING every single day. Make the time, if it is important to you. You will feel better, healthier, be able to sleep at night or when the baby sleeps, you will feel more confident to take on the challenges that new motherhood is presenting. And even though you haven’t gotten much sleep and you have “no energy to work out right now!” do it anyway, because by exerting energy your body will take care of you and give you energy back.
It will balance out hormones; regulate your sleep/wake cycles get blood pumping so there will be fat flushing; give you a rush of serotonin and make you feel like you actually can make it through the day/night.
If you need resources for help losing the baby weight, there are great websites out there, tons in fact, such as http://www.pregnancywithoutpounds.com/
But the bottom line is it is just going to take you getting motivated enough to do something, anything, every single day. Load up your water bottle with lemon water, a few drops of liquid stevia, and hit the floor, pavement, or yoga mat. You can do this!!!

Caught Up in the Crazy

My precious little daughter is already 16 weeks old! I can’t believe it, time really does fly, its unbelievable. Some days I wonder how to get it all done, and I have to keep reminding myself that its okay to be superwoman only every other day.

Starting right at week 6 I went back to yoga. It was amazing to finally be back in my hot, humid sanctuary of sweat and release. I felt like a million bucks, even though it was hard, and I certainly had lost a bit of flexibility after six weeks of hobbling around with stitches. By the way, I’ve spoken with several mom’s who have had c-sections, and not all of them had as painful of an experience as I had. My experience seemed very painful, and upon watching the video of Mia being born, I can see why. There was quite a bit of pulling and stretching that my doctor did, which would account for the seeming obscene amount of bruising I felt for so many weeks. Anyway, where was I… oh yes. Well thank God for muscle memory! In 3 short classes I was back into my groove, and at 6 weeks every pound I’d gained during my pregnancy was gone… at 8 weeks, I was 2 pounds below my pre-pregnancy weight. A big “woo-hoo!” for superfoods, a big “woo-hoo!” for my 100/100/100 and an even bigger “woo-hoo!” for my Bikram yoga practice.
During the past 8 weeks things have changed constantly. Mia is just an amazing little soul, full of sugar and fire, with a personality three times her size and joy that seems everlasting. She keeps me busy, and as my husband as recently moved companies, I am not getting to yoga as often as I’d like. In fact, in the past 3 weeks since he started his new job, I’ve only made it to class about 6 times. Which has me feeling kind of horrible, honestly. I was in such a groove, really feeling strong and capable, and then WHAM, I’m suddenly stuck at home a LOT more than I was, and feeling a little bit blue as the summer weather started in (AZ summers are HOT!)

So what do you do then when you really are a Mom “stuck” at home, possibly because you don’t have relatives nearby you feel comfortable leaving baby with, or because you have another tot running around in addition to baby? You make it work! IT IS POSSIBLE! Keep thinking that to yourself… if you don’t like what you see, CHANGE IT. You can do this. Make sure you have baby on a schedule. I don’t care what kind of a schedule it is, but make sure s/he is on a schedule. That way you can guarantee that you can get in some time for yourself during the day, to shave those legs in a shower, and do your at home version of kicking your own butt to keep your body going in the direction you want (in, not out!)

Schedule wise, I recommend what I fondly call the 3 hour block method (this can easily be moved to a 4+ hour block method when baby is older). This consists of baby eating, having anywhere from 45-90 or 120 minutes of awake time (where you interact with baby by reading, playing with toys, singing to them, going on a walk, etc.) followed by nap time.

Nap time is non-optional. During every 3-4 hour segment/block, there needs to be a nap time inserted. This is crucial for baby to start learning how to fall asleep on his/her own, in his/her own bed, and to gear up for sleeping through the nights (if they aren’t already). During baby’s nap time is when you are going to get your time, even if you do have another tot. You can schedule the two little ones together for optimum alone time, or if your tot is not taking those long naps anymore, you can incorporate him/her into your work out time. This is commonly referred to as “Mommy & Me” working out, or similar, but the way I look at is, is your tot gets to play around you while you are working out, and can join in if they want to.

Chances are, if they see Mommy on the floor doing crunches, push-ups, squats, they are going to try and mimic mommy, or will just sit there flipping through a book if uninterested. But since I do not currently have a tot, only my first baby, that isn’t my focus right now. Right now, as soon as I lay my daughter all swaddled up in her crib, I am down the hallway with my yoga mat, a towel two 8lb hand weights, an 8lb medicine ball, and my iPod.

I have a constant library of recorded fitness programs from FitTV recorded on my television, so that I can press play and get in some direction for hand weights, new ideas for quick routines, and some yoga, and then I do my 100/100/100 if I have time, and believe me, even if I hear my little pumpkin starting to fuss, ready to get up, I hold out and take the time I need to get in my minimum 30 minute workout EVERY SINGLE DAY. You HAVE to do this for yourself girls.

Pregnant or not, baby or not, DO IT. It is crucial to our mental -state, our hormone balance, and our positive thinking. You will not feel good about yourself if you don’t get your heart pounding at least once per day. Hey, maybe you make your house cleaning day a workout! Be vigorous! =)

So what do you do on days when you’re so busy, out and about, and you don’t have time to get in front of the television or on the living room floor to bust this out? Go for a walk! Put baby in her stroller, get your iPod going (always with volume low enough to clearly hear baby) and do lunges for every other block. When you get home, before you even get baby out of the stroller, bust out at least 25-50 push-ups. You can do this. If you don’t have time to even do that? Do squats while you’re brushing your teeth that night. Do push-ups when you are letting baby fuss herself to sleep (in her room, next to her crib, while you are letting her learn to fall asleep in her crib on her own, you can do your push-ups on the floor). There is ALWAYS a way to get SOMETHING in.

One of the other major things I’ve been forced to work on is letting go of my clean-freakedness. I am not sure if freakedness is a word, in fact I’m sure it’s not, but I’m using it anyway. I like to have everything SPOTLESS in my house. It gives me a feeling of being in control of my environment when I feeling like everything around me, everything in my life is out of control. And by out of control, I just mean life happening, nothing tragic (necessarily). Since having my daughter, this is obviously not possible. On any given day we have the choice… “Am I going to scrub toilets, Swiffer the floor one more time, or lay on the ground and coo with my child…” I like to refer back to a needlepoint hanging that was on my bedroom wall growing up, someone made it for my mother. It said simply:

“Cleaning and scrubbing can wait ‘til tomorrow, for babies grow up, we’ve learned to our sorrow. So quiet down cobwebs and dust go to sleep, I’m rocking by baby and babies don’t keep.”

I have to remind myself of this constantly, especially when I get caught up in the crazy; and trust me, I’m an EXPERT at getting caught up in the crazy. It just not worth having perfectly spotless countertops to miss out on any moment of my daughter’s awake time; and that’s not to say that I haven’t nestled her into her Baby Bijorn front carrier and vacuumed the floors, because I have. And it can actually be quite soothing for a fussy baby… she loves it. But that is just not the norm. Try and make cleaning while baby is awake and happy an exception, not the rule. No woman on her death bed ever said, “I wish I’d cleaned more.” =)

But when you do need to get some things done, don’t feel guilty for putting baby down. S/he need their alone time too. Learning to play by themselves, and entertain themselves is crucial for their development. Go ahead and put them in their “Under the Sea” Baby Einstein toy, in a swing, bouncy chair, Pack ‘N Play, or Bumbo seat with a toy and let them be for a bit, and move them from station to station when they get bored. Because we all need to get things done… switch a load of laundry, make dinner, superfood snacks!!! So don’t feel guilty. It’s all for their good in the long run. And remember, don’t get too caught up in the crazy.

Testimony -this stuff really works!

I have to say that I am pretty excited here as I get closer to my due date. I am due in 5 days, and she could certainly come sooner. I feel great! This pregnancy has been such a journey and I’ve learned so much. I am most encouraged by my Doctor’s response to my pregnancy. At my appointment last week, she stared at me and my file, and flat out told me she couldn’t believe how great I looked, and how impressed she was at my “perfect pregnancy.” I am not telling you this to toot my own horn, but simply as a testimony to what I believe pregnancy should be for every woman. My Doctor jokingly asked if I’d be her “spokesperson for pregnancy” and go talk to the dozen or miserably pregnant women in the waiting room and at home who had gained tons of weight, were miserably bloated, lethargic, sleepless, achy with pinched nerves and worse. I laughed and just told her, “superfoods, alkaline smoothies/foods, and exercise, exercise, exercise.”

At this point, she said, “OK, tell me about these superfoods and smoothies, and will you write it down for me?” So as briefly as I could manage I dove into the top 10 superfoods discussed in depth in David Wolfe’s book, and then told her the ingredients of the basic alkaline smoothies I make. She couldn’t believe that 5 days before delivery I am still doing my 90 minute Bikram yoga sessions daily, and my 100/100/100, walking my dog and deep cleaning my house. I told her I simply couldn’t help it, I had so much energy!

She commented on how white and clear my eyes were, how radiant, clear and “perfect” my complexion was, and how she couldn’t believe that without eating all kinds of meat and dairy I had perfect blood work, and had only gained a “perfect” 24 pounds my entire pregnancy. I am not even slightly bloated, and honestly feel like I’ve never been in better shape in my life. My core is strong, especially my oblique’s, my legs are rock solid and my rear has never been so hard and small, even before pregnancy! My arms are strong, my triceps more defined than ever, and I have never been so flexible and stretched out in all my 9+ years of Bikram yoga (I am sure this has a LOT to do with all the relaxin hormone in my system!)

I wrote down for my Doctor the basic smoothie recipe, the top ten superfoods and the name of David Wolfe’s book, Superfoods. I didn’t really know how serious she was in her inquiry until two days later I was at Whole Foods with my sister purchasing ingredients to make a boat load of superfood together, and all of a sudden I hear a “Hey!” and there was my Doctor, with a shopping cart ½ full of the ingredients I’d written down for her, and holding the piece of paper I’d given her with all the information. I was thrilled that she was earnest, and saw the value and change this could mean not only for her own health but the health of countless other pregnant women she could directly affect and/or influence through her practice. She told me she’d ordered the book, and was really excited. I told her I was thrilled, and to let me know if she had any questions at all.

As much as I’ve loved having her as my Doctor, I love it even more now knowing that a medical professional like her is truly open and sincerely interested in the truth out there about food and diet, and how it directly affects every aspects of our lives and health, whether or not we choose to believe so.

So again ladies, I’m not sharing any of this to pat myself on the back, or blow my own horn, but to STRONGLY ENCOURAGE YOU to challenge yourself through your pregnancy and beyond to make changes that will positively affect your entire life. Pregnancy isn’t a time to sit back and apathetically let the days go by with junk food snacking, lethargy and all the other temptations that go along with being pregnant, like doing nothing. This is the time to take control of your own health, the way you feel and look at yourself, and most importantly the health of your unborn child.

Kick your butt into high gear, get moving, and get some good superfoods into your system… you will feel amazing immediately, I promise!!!

100/100/100 –if you do nothing else

(At the top of Camelback Mountain, Phoenix, Arizona; 8 1/2 months pregnant... You can do it!)

This simple idea has gotten me through many a day of feeling like I just didn’t have any “me” time or time to keep up my exercise or burn any extra calories. I have to thank Bob Karmel my Muay Thai trainer who used to make us do this (amongst other things) at the end of our 90 minutes of intense training sessions 4 times per week.

Yes, prior to finding out I was pregnant I was actively training in Muay Thai fighting, having earned my shorts, I was hoping to have my first fight within the next few months, but obviously my plans changed when I found out I was two months pregnant!
Muay Thai was the first thing to be set aside in my world, obviously since it is a high impact physical activity. I do miss it, but am sure it will be one of the methods I use to get back into shape after I give birth… eventually that is. I can’t imagine training while breastfeeding, initially.

But not to get side tracked… at the end of our training sessions we would “cool down” with various calisthenics, including Bob shouting, “Give me a 100/100/100!” That means one hundred push-ups, one hundred sit-ups and one hundred squats. Not a lot of fun, but let me tell you, it works all of your major muscle groups, you need no equipment, and it takes only about 10 minutes (more or less, depending on how tired you are, and how used to it you are).

Before you freak out, let me tell you to choose your own number. Maybe you start at 20/20/20, or 50/50/50, and maybe you break this up in two or more sessions whenever you get a chance throughout your day. I do sets of 25, so I’ll do 25 push-ups, 25 sit-ups and 25 squats, rest, then keep on going. If I have a lot going on, like for example I’m in the middle of cooking dinner (oh yes, I have no problem busting these sets out right in the middle of the kitchen floor in between sautéing vegetables and stirring the brown rice), then I just do 25 of something in between whatever I have going on, and eventually throughout the morning, the day, or all at once, I get it in.

So on the days when you don’t have time to hit the pavement around your neighborhood, get into your yoga studio or step on the elliptical at your gym, you can at least be sure to get in your 100/100/100.

On the days when I’m feeling fat, when I’m feeling a total lack of energy, overwhelmed, underwhelmed, uninspired, exhausted or stressed, if I make myself do at least the 100/100/100 I feel like I got a tiny little circuit training session, and burned a few more calories than I would have at the end of the week if I’d just given in and done nothing. And there have been weeks where I’ve gotten in little else than my 100/100/100, especially with the class load I had this past year. And even on the days in my first trimester when I was struggling with such severe nausea, ladies let me tell you, if you just force yourself to do it, even if it is only 30/30/30 broken up into sets of ten done three separate times through the day, it WILL make you feel better… get your blood pumping and temporarily take your mind off your misery.

Do what you can. You’ll be glad you did, and you will love the way your arms abs and rear end start looking after a couple of weeks, and the way your little underoo’s continue to fit throughout your pregnancy. I’ve not changed a single size, and believe me, the bigger your belly gets, the more you’ll appreciate a tight little rear.

So play around with it, and give yourself the gift of the 100/100/100. Work up to it if you have to, that is totally fine. If you hate squats, do lunges instead, if you hate sit-ups, do another abdominal exercise that is equally effective, like side-plank crunches or similar. I mix it up some days too. Set your goal, choose your poison, and get busy. Remember if you do nothing else, you can always get in your 100/100/100.

Pregnant Bikram -you will not "cook" your baby

No, I am not one of those crazy Bikram followers who advocate’s that everyone should do only Bikram yoga and that it will keep you bending backwards until you are 90 years old (although I believe it will, and that Bikram is the BEST yoga in the world), and all other styles of yoga are inadequate. But I have been doing Bikram for nearly 10 years now and for myself, I swear by it. I had no intention of giving up my practice when I found out I was pregnant. In fact I was so excited to continue my practice through my pregnancy to see the effect it had on my experience. Of course my number one priority was getting my doctor’s permission to continue my practice, and having a doctor who was supportive of my workout regimen and yoga practice was a key factor when I was choosing a doctor.

Bikram (hatha) yoga has been a life changing experience for me from the first day I tried it back in early 2000. And through the past 8+ months it has been an absolute life saver. I go into a hot, humid room nearly daily, for 90 minutes and sweat out loads of bloat and unwanted toxic fluid build-up that can accompany pregnancy, and stretch out my poor aching morphing body until everything feels lose, comfortable, relaxed and flexible again. It is the only thing that has made me feel like “myself” as my body has slowly taken on its new pregnant shape.
I work on strengthening my core, so that I can push this little girl out, I strengthen my arms so that they look good and that I have strength to hold my baby girl for hours on end nursing her and cuddling her close. I strengthen my legs so that they stay tone, trimmed and strong, and man, it does wonders for your rear!
I’ve been able to maintain my balance and center of gravity for the most part, and it is the only thing that relieves the achy-achy back that we have to deal with through the later few months and weeks of pregnancy.
As the relaxin hormone has been released into my body, I’ve been able to utilize it to stretch out my muscles and ligaments in preparation for delivery. The truth is, I’ve become more flexible than I’ve ever been the past few weeks, going deeper into every pose than I thought possible for myself at this point.
Bikram does have an entire pregnancy series which is a modification of the original series developed by his wife who also continued her practice through her pregnancy.
The studio I’ve been attending since I’ve lived back in Arizona has been outstanding in its support of my practicing through pregnancy, and I’ve had great encouragement and guidance from one of the instructors who also continued her practice through her pregnancy, and beyond, and had dramatic results.

This is what I hope to accomplish through maintaining my practice as well… after all, who doesn’t want to bounce back quickly?
I’ve been met with a lot of praise and encouragement for my decision and commitment to carry on my practice through pregnancy, and of course I’ve been met with a lot of glances, raised eyebrows, and flat-out disgust by others. I’ve been accused of “cooking” my baby, of restricting blood flow to her developing little self, and putting myself at risk for falling, over-heating, raising my blood pressure and more.

Let me say a few things to clear the air for you. First of all, if you have never before practiced Bikram or any other hatha (hot) yoga, I am not suggesting that you begin a practice when you find out you are pregnant. As I mentioned I’ve been practicing for 9 years, and my doctor felt very comfortable with me continuing on as I had been, knowing that my body was adapted to the conditions in the hot, humid room, and exercising comfortably at such humidity and temperatures (in fact, she has been practicing yoga through her recent pregnancy as well!). If you are interested in doing Bikram or another hot/hatha yoga through your pregnancy and are not yet pregnant, your doctor and the Bikram studio (for one) wants you to have been practicing that style of yoga for at least six months prior to becoming pregnant if you wish to continue throughout your pregnancy. There are other styles of yoga that are very beneficial and are safe to start after you’ve learned you are pregnant, and you can discuss those options with your doctor and the studio you are interested in attending.
Secondly, our bodies are amazing! They are adaptable to many environments, like the one I live in here in Arizona. Our summers are brutal as you might have heard, so when I have to live in 115˚ summer weather, taking 90 minutes out of my day to practice yoga in a 105˚ room doesn’t seem so awful.

Our bodies are able to maintain homeostasis in such a variety of environments. It will work hard for you to maintain your internal temperature of 98.6˚ through thick and thin. Even when we do get a temperature, it is our body’s defense mechanism going into high gear to burn up bacteria and foreign invaders to keep us alive and kicking. Being in a hot room, performing slow, steady, precisely executed movements is not going to cause you to overheat or “cook” your baby. During my practice is one of the times when my little one moves the most… in between every posture. And I feel so good about all the freshly oxygenated blood that I am sending straight down to her as I deeply breathe and circulate new nutrient rich blood through my body. I believe that the breathing techniques I’ve learned will be an amazing asset through my labor and delivery, as well as the ability to maintain my deep, purposeful breathing throughout a variety of postures that raise my blood pressure. I’ve learned how to control my blood pressure and breathing through the stress of the postures, bringing it back to normal in between each posture. This will come in very handy as I am going through contractions and pushing through delivery.
The ways I’ve been able to stretch out my hips, strengthen my core and focus on one spot in the mirror for a minute or more will also be invaluable during my labor and delivery. And one of the best benefits of my Bikram yoga practice is that I have had not even a full day of that terrible bloat, or kankles, or similar. I’m 34 weeks pregnant and still wearing my wedding rings and don’t have that “puffy” look to my face. This is through no good luck, but through the daily sweat of my yoga practice.

Only you and your doctor can decide if a hatha yoga practice through your pregnancy is right for you, I’m just letting you know what it’s been like for me. A lifesaver!
Lastly, if you do the appropriate modifications provided, you will not harm your baby by practicing yoga through your pregnancy. They modify poses so that you do not do any inverted or compression postures, and keep your chin up so that you do not risk restricting blood flow from your carotid artery to the placenta and baby. They modify the appropriate standing postures so that falling out of postures is unlikely, and they keep you laying on your side for any savasana poses so that you are not on your back at length. Most importantly, listen to your body. Our bodies are amazing, as I mentioned above, and will tell us when to back off, when to stop, when to take it easy and when to push ourselves. Trust your body and yourself. You’ll love the results!