A week has past since our beautiful baby girl was born. On one hand, I can’t believe it’s already
been a week since she was born, and yet, on the other hand, I cannot believe I’m
holding a little human being who is 7 days old….absolutely amazing! For her birth, I was able to have my second
fully natural, drug-free delivery; something that was extremely important to
me. And although I know that all women
can do this, I truly believe that my training in the martial arts
(bringing me mental and emotional focus
and control) along with my continued exercise throughout my pregnancy (which
kept my body fit and strong), allowed me to have the natural childbirth with
more ease. In fact, this time around, my
husband, midwife, doula, and I told jokes and stories until the last critical moments;
it was truly a joyous experience.
Okay, so
where are we at for the first week?
Total
pregnancy weight gain: 35 lbs.
Weight loss
after first week: 15 lbs.
Being that
new moms really aren’t supposed to do much of anything for at least the first 2
weeks postpartum (our internal bodies need time to heal), I do not have any
type of exercise routine started yet. In
fact, I probably won’t have one started for until after week 6 (once my fabulous
midwife gives me the a-okay). However,
as my body heals, I will be able to walk, play with my son, and move more and
more…slowly strengthening my body back up.
What I’m
going to be looking for in myself during the months ahead is getting back the
full-body muscle tone I had before the pregnancy. I also will be counting down the pant sizes
as my hips and body return to their pre-pregnancy state. I know many people are all about counting the
pounds, but to me, there is so much change that my body will continue to go
through over the next week (hello milk!), that I think muscle tone and clothing
size will be a more accurate judge of getting back to where I want to be physically
(back to pre-pregnancy shape). For those
of you out there wanting to lose weight, I would encourage you to try this
method as well. Checking your weight
daily can be discouraging…instead, look for a looser waist in your pants or increased
definition in your arms or core; then weight in every few weeks to see where
you’re at.
Until next
week…
There are multiple
ways to add these jumping jacks into your routine. I like using them in the beginning and in
between exercises (as a “cool down”).
Here are a few options.
Begin with feet wide for a squat position with weights in
your relaxed arms. Pull your belly in to
support your lower back, open your chest up, and relax your shoulders. As always, maintain this position throughout
the exercise. Now it’s time to work our muscles! Remember, as you squat down to keep your toes
over your ankles to support your knees (do not let your knees come forward past
your toes or buckle in). As you squat
down, curl your weights up under your chin; at the bottom of your squat, press
the weights up over head. Return to your
starting position. That’s it! Do 3-5 rounds of 10-20 reps.
Begin on the floor, legs together and arms to sides. Pull your belly in to your spine, press down
with your palms, and extend your legs out through your heels; activate your
entire body – maintain this throughout the exercise. Keeping both legs flexed and straight, lift
your right leg up and across your body to the left, then return your leg back
down to the starting position. Now lift
your right leg up to the center and back down.
Lastly, lift your right leg up and to the right and then back down. Simply put, write a “W” with your leg: left,
center, right, center (this is 1 round).
Go fast and yet controlled; do not just drop your leg down using
gravity! No, you must use your core
muscles to return that leg to the ground!
Begin with your feet wide apart. The lower you are going to go, the wider
apart your legs need to be. Turn your
left foot to the left and kick out your right heel (so your right toes are pointing
slightly to the left). Pull your belly
in to support your lower back, lift up your chest, and roll your shoulders down
and back. To get the arms involved, lift
them up to your sides at shoulder level, keeping them straight and extending out. Maintain this throughout the exercise.
To activate your right leg, pull your quad and hamstring
muscles in toward the bone, extending through the inner thigh, down your calf,
and out your right heel. In addition,
think of pressing your right hip/groin down into the ground and toward your
left foot.