Posts Tagged "mummy tummy"

Buggy Fitness for Cafe Bebe

Posted by cafebebemama on Oct 4, 2010 in Motherhood, Mummy Tummy Begone | 8 comments

Four weeks ago I began a new fitness regime. It’s called Buggy Fitness for Cafe Bebe! I attend a Buggy Fitness class once a week and get my ARSE kicked while Little Miss looks on and cheers. It’s rather fun and reminds me every time that I always feel so much better when I exercise. Then Wednesday rolls around and I forget. I find excuses to NOT exercise. Here are some of them:

• It’s raining.
• It’s too cold.
• I’m sore from Tuesday’s workout.
• I have to send some emails.
• Little Miss has to have a nap.
• My neurotic, separation-anxiety-ridden, 14 year old dog is neurotic, full of separation anxiety and is 14 years old.
• It’s raining.

Taking part in a Buggy Fitness class is brilliant. The personal trainer tells us what to do. I do it. The problem is that when I’m on my own, I don’t listen very well to MYSELF! I enjoy going out and about with Little Miss but (curse it) she’s getting old enough to NOT want to be in the pushchair as much (I’m crying inside about this). I’ve even considered running a Buggy Fitness class myself as I do have a Fitness Degree from the US of A, don’t you know?! Unfortunately without UK qualifications, I don’t think I’d get very far.

I desperately want to change my physical form. However, I am seriously lacking in ACTION. I suppose I have the motivation but I lack the action to make it happen. I had an interesting chat with hubby last night about this very thing. He wants to help me. He doesn’t like me getting upset or being irrational and throwing out 3/4 of my wardrobe because I don’t fit into it anymore. As with most men, he’s a problem solving kind of husband. If he can’t solve it, he gets cross. I don’t like it when he’s cross with me. I don’t like it when anyone is cross with me. I have OPD- Obsessive Pleasing Disorder…I’m about to commit myself, to be honest!

My ideal form of fitness is attending fitness classes at a gym. I adore Body Pump. I transformed myself about 10 years ago thanks to Body Pump. It’s the perfect combination of weight training exercises to kick butt/toe tapping/current and classic tunes for 60 minutes. It’s a great total body workout (minus the cardio tho). When I was in the year 2000, I attended Body Pump 3-4 times a week, attended a Boot Camp class once a week and Pilates once a week in addition to my job of teaching gymnastics to adorable (and not so adorable) preschoolers. The fitness centre was free as I was an employee and was in the same building. I had no excuse. I’m good at excuses (see above). I lost about 15 lbs and looked very good (if I do say so myself). This was at least 2 stone ago. (sob…weep)

So, here we are in 2010. I am a mostly happy mum to a gorgeous 2 year old and devoted wife to my weary hubby. We don’t have EXTRA money to shell out for a health club membership even though two MAJOR franchise health clubs are only about a 10 minute drive from our house. Bannatyne’s Health Club is the closest and has quite a few sessions of Body Pump on offer in addition to a slew of other great fitness classes and equipment. It’s also about £40 per month. We’d have to nearly stop eating to afford that. Well, maybe if I stopped eating?

Fitness First is a bit further down the road to me but also has Body Pump classes on offer as well as Pilates, Yoga, Spin and other fun offerings. My goal was to see if either club wanted to exchange a membership for an online diary, blog posts and advertising. I’m not sure that will happen even though I’m a delightful blogger and worthy recipient. I feel like if I had a fitness club to go to, had classes to attend (versus just going and “working out”) and had to account for my progress I would follow through and do what is necessary for me to succeed. I also have Wii with 2 fitness programmes which I really SHOULD just plug in, turn on and get down to it.

I would love some encouragement or clue as to why I sabbotage myself. Please feel free to share your tips, tricks and advice as I clearly need it. Just please don’t yell at me…I hate it when people yell. I’m a bit like a hedgehog in that respect. Watch me curl up into a little ball! In the meantime, until Duncan Bannatyne rings me up, I’ll keep attending Buggy Fitness and subjecting Little Miss to mummy’s huffing and puffing.

Mummy Fitness Questions

Posted by cafebebemama on Apr 13, 2010 in Mummy Tummy Begone | 1 comment

It’s been about 6 weeks since I began my Mummy Tummy Begone challenge and I’ve made some progress.  How about you?  I’ve managed to lose at least 4 pounds and have noticed somewhat of a difference in the diameter of my mummy tummy.  I’ve been far more active and even managed to run for 11 straight minutes one day last week.  I finally decided that the only thing making me stop and walk was my lack of chutzpah.

However, I have fallen down the last week or so.  Well, not literally fallen down…don’t worry!  I was stuck with a cold two weeks ago which for me means the inability to breathe and lots of green gunk coming out of my lungs so running was definitely out.  Last week a bit of laziness set in and while I did get out with Little Miss & the Xplory to walk a fair bit and was wearing my Reebok Easy Tone Trainers loads, I only managed to run once.  So, it’s back on the horse for me this week but I need some motivation.  Wendy Powell, our resident guru, has offered to answer some Mummy Fitness Questions and I’m hoping you’ll add your questions and concerns to the comments below.  Wendy will address them in a follow up post this week.

I’d like to point you to Wendy’s site, No More Excuses, and also direct you to the Reebok Easy Tone Trainers forum, Reetalk Training where you can learn more about the Reebok Easy Tone Trainers that I have been banging on about as well as find some inspiration for your spring fitness programme.  Now, it’s really over to you…in order for Wendy to share her immense knowledge and genius, we need your questions!  What’s causing you trouble in your fitness programme?  What’s holding you back?  How can Wendy guide you to “No More Mummy Tummy”?  Are you unsure of what exercises to do?  What is this diastasis recti and how can I get rid of it?

It’s your turn now…make use of this great opportunity to have your Mummy Fitness questions answered!  We’ll follow up this week with a post where Wendy answers your very important mummy fitness questions.  Thanks everyone…keep on keepin’ on to make that Mummy Tummy Begone!

No More Mummy Tummy

Posted by cafebebemama on Mar 24, 2010 in Guest Bloggers, Mummy Tummy Begone | 5 comments

For the 2nd in her Guest Blogging series, Mummy Tummy Begone guru Wendy Powell provides us with some mummy tummy solutions that will have all of us saying “No More Mummy Tummy!”  Thank you Wendy…we love you!

Good morning Mums! Are you ready for phase 2?? Of course you have all been zipping up your split abdominal muscles 30 times a day since we last spoke…

BTW if that sentence sounds utterly absurd, please check out last week’s guest post about diastasis recti – the vital first stage of diagnosing & dealing with your mummy tummy!

This week I’m going to introduce you to the deep muscles of your tummy. Yes. You have muscles in your tummy, & waist, & lower back…. There’s even a couple in your pelvic floor which you may have temporarily lost touch with They all just need to be woken up!

You’ve probably heard of your ‘core’. You may have dabbled in Pilates (or at least stood in a class wondering what everyone else was feeling – because you couldn’t feel anything at all…). Well THE most important exercises you can do are those that strengthen your CORE. Basically your core is your middle: front, sides, back & underneath. It is the group of deep muscles that provide stabilization for your spine. If they are not activated & strong, then your spine, pelvis & joints are placed under a lot of stress – leading to a saggy tummy & back problems or pain.

When your core is weak, then your ‘outer’ muscles (such as the large glute muscles on your backside), step in, trying to stabilize your pelvis & lower back. This causes tightness & instability. When your pelvic floor (the ‘underneath’ part of your core) is weak, the deeper muscles weaken & lengthen, & your lower back curve begins to increase (ie bad posture ie saggy tummy again).

The first core muscle you’re going to meet is the Transverse Abdominus (I’m going to call it TVA from now on) – the deepest, innermost layer of all abdominal muscles. It stretches around your mid section like a corset. If the TVA muscle does not engage properly, acting as a girdle around your waist to stabilize your spine & pelvis, you are at much higher risk of back pain or injury. (Oh, & a saggy mummy tummy… )

When you bend down to pick up your child or a basket of washing, if you’re not using your TVA, then the segments of your spine tighten, but the stabilizer (TVA) does not, leaving the spine to work on its own. The muscles of the spine cannot provide enough muscular strength… & your back ‘goes’.

Core muscle No. 2 is multifidus – lying deep in your spine & spanning three joints to provide essential stabilization. You’ll make that work by using TVA properly.

Last & by no means least, is an old friend that may need a nudge to get re-acquainted… your pelvic floor muscles...

Incidentally, this is all linked to the gap in the outermost layer at the front (the diastasis recti we covered last week), because all these muscles are connected to one another.

So as well as all the above reasons to strengthen your core, anything that brings TVA IN, will bring rectus abdominus (the one with the gap) TOGETHER.

FINDING & ENGAGING TRANSVERSE ABDOMINUS

To start identifying & ‘engaging’ TVA, you need to ‘belly breathe‘(also known as ‘abdominal breathing’ if you do yoga or can remember any of those antenatal classes). Sit on a chair or cross-legged on the floor & place your hands on your belly. Breathe in, fill your lungs & let your belly expand. Then exhale, emptying your lungs, whilst drawing your belly button right back towards your spine. Keep your shoulders down & your neck relaxed.

Remember to exhale as you draw your abdomen inwards, & inhale as you allow your tummy to expand & your lungs to fill. Don’t raise & lower your chest (it’s all in the belly), don’t hunch your shoulders, & don’t hold your breath.

The muscle moving your abdomen in & out, the wall of muscle you can feel (even if there’s fat on top – it’s muscle underneath!) is your TVA.

We’re now going to invite your pelvic floor (PF) to join the party. Your pelvic floor muscles act as a muscular ’sling’ which supports your internal organs (it literally holds them in preventing prolapse), provides bladder & sphincter control & gives you better orgasms. So it’s pretty important . Many, many mums are all too familiar with ’stress incontinence’: a slight leak (or worse) when coughing, sneezing, jumping, trying to run for a bus or laughing.

Kegels are often described as stopping yourself from urinating, but are actually more effective if you imagine trying not to fart. I’m serious… if you pull in your sphincter muscles (but don’t squeeze your buttocks), your vaginal muscles will also tighten. Then imagine you’re trying to stop yourself from urinating – try to differentiate & identify front, middle & back. Squeeze & release them from front to back, then back to front. Are we having fun yet? J

Try quick squeezes, as you contract & release the muscles for just a second at a time. Do this 10 times, rest for a couple of seconds, & then do another 10.

Do longer ones. Starting with 5 seconds, repeat 5 times. Take a minute break then do the set again. You can build up to 10 second holds with 10 repetitions.

Do both types & aim to do the whole set 3 times a day (30 a day). These exercises are the differences between post-baby bladder control & wetting yourself. They’re worth it…

Important to remember when doing pelvic floor exercises / kegels:

• Don’t hold your breath. Try counting out loud to make sure you breathe
• When you release, don’t push out or down, just let go
• Make sure other, bigger muscles aren’t doing the work instead – there should be NO contraction in your backside, stomach or inner thigh muscles
• Your pelvis, tummy, shoulders or anything else shouldn’t move – make sure you isolate the important pelvic floor muscles

Time for some multi-tasking now (this I know you can do). These exercises require that you contract TVA IN (belly button to spine, shoulders down) at the same time as drawing UP your pelvic floor… at the same time as breathing OUT, whilst keeping every other muscle in your body relaxed. Got that? You might want to come back to that checklist a few times! Oh, & BREATHE. All muscles are much happier whilst breathing…

HEEL SLIDE: Lie on your back with feet flat on the floor & knees bent. Breathe in, then as you exhale, engage TVA & PF & slide one heel away from you, keeping the heel in contact with the floor. On the next out-breath draw the heel gently back to you. Keep your pelvis perfectly still & stable throughout. Repeat 5 times each leg (alternating legs)

Heel Slide

MINI SUPERMUM

From all fours with your hands directly underneath your shoulders with your elbow slightly bent. Raise your left hand & right knee an inch off the ground Hold this position for 10 seconds & repeat with the right hand & left knee. Again, alternate & keep going for 2 minutes. It’s hard to tell in the pic, but my right knee is off the floor! Make sure to not allow the hamstring to flex the lower legs toward the ceiling & that the pelvis does not load (shift) into the hip that is in contact with the ground.

Mini Super Mum

SUPERMUM

As above, but this time take the opposite arm & leg right up so they are reaching straight out in front & behind you. Hold for 5 seconds, lower & do the other side. Repeat 10 times each side.

Super Mum

These 3 exercises both help you to identify & engage your core, as well as strengthen it. The next one is the ‘Mummy’ of tummy exercises. Do a Plank for a minute & it’s worth a hundred sit-ups. In fact it’s even better than that. Because sit-ups strain your lower back & don’t actually work your core at all. Forget them, never do them again & plank every morning & night instead!

Note: You will not be able to hold this position for more than few seconds at first. Drop to your knees, keeping everything pulled in – if you can feel your tummy working, then its working. Don’t risk back injury by trying to stay there if everything is shaking & your back sags – it can be just as effective from your knees!

THE PLANK

A great core exercise that really works the lower back as well (don’t try a full plank until you have mastered your TVA activation exercises & belly breathing). Lie on your front with your elbows bent to your sides. Tuck your toes under & push up onto your forearms, holding your body in a straight line. Keep TVA & PF activated & don’t forget to breathe! NOTE: breathe steadily but keep TVA activated (belly button to spine) the WHOLE TIME. The reason this exercise is so effective is that your tummy is doing all the work – if you ‘let go’ your back will sag, taking your full body weight & giving you back pain.

Do all these exercises daily & you will start to see a difference in 6 weeks.

Think about the ‘bellybutton to spine’ contraction with everything you do – not just when you’re specifically exercising your abs. When you sneeze, cough, pick up your baby, do any type of exercise, stand up from a crouching position, or turn around.

For a while it will be a very conscious effort, but brain & muscle will get to know each other quite quickly, & it will be a more natural, unconscious contraction after a few weeks.

Tell me how you get on – I am used to demonstrating, correcting & guiding in person, & so if anything is not clear, then please tell me! Any problems let me know. In fact just so I know you’re doing it – let me know!

Next week: We’ve done the muscles underneath. Now for the fat that lies on top…

Diagnosis Mummy Tummy

Posted by cafebebemama on Mar 17, 2010 in Featured Posts, Guest Bloggers, Mummy Tummy Begone | 8 comments

What's happened here?

Guest Blogger, Wendy Powell of No More Excuses, helps us to diagnose our Mummy Tummies.

Diastasis Recti (or Split Abdominal Muscles)

Now I know you may not be entirely familiar with them right now , but there are quite a few layers of muscle in your abdomen. We’re starting here with the outermost one, & the first of 2 muscular causes of your mummy tummy. It’s called Rectus Abdominus, it runs vertically from your sternum to your pubic bone, it’s the one that on certain supremely honed beings forms a six-pack and it’s the one that ‘splits’ during many pregnancies.

Diastasis Recti is a very common, perfectly normal & painless parting of these muscles. Up to two thirds of women will have developed it during their pregnancies.

The function of this muscle is to support your back & your organs. So when the muscles separate, this support system is weakened causing low back pain & a Mummy Tummy. Your organs actually protrude as they are being supported only by a thin piece of connective tissue.

Obvious indicators that you have a diastasis, are a bulging, or ‘doming’ above or below your belly button when you contract your abdominals (especially if you attempt a crunch or sit-up type movement). An ‘outie’ belly button may also a sign of a diastasis (also associated with umbilical hernia).

You can test for the gap yourself:

Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Relax your head and shoulders and place your fingers (palm facing you) just above your belly button. Press down with your fingertips. They may go in quite far – don’t be squeamish! Then lift your head & neck slightly off the floor & continue to press down. You will feel the muscles close in around your fingers as you lift your head & neck. Don’t lift your shoulders up too high. The gap in the middle is the diastasis.

Found the gap? Try it a few times to be sure. OK, so if you can visualise this gap, hopefully it is clearer why a crunch or sit-up movement would serve only to gape this separation further… Which is why you should not, under any circumstances, do crunches or sit-ups post-baby and certainly not if you know you have abdominal separation.

For more detailed description of this test and other movements to avoid please see this post.

Instead you are going to do core exercises which work the muscles in a linear direction – I’ll show you how in the next post.

But you can start closing the gap right now visualising the gap and closing it. Sit there now and pull your belly button towards your spine. Breathe OUT slowly as you do this and don’t hunch your shoulders. Now imagine ‘zipping up’ the gap. Just let your mind close the gap from bottom to top. Another way is to imagine folding your pubic bone up towards your sternum. Pull in and together. Do this whenever you can think of it during the day – 30 times if you can!

Next week – the core muscles and how they connect to this one and help bring it all IN. But I’ll leave you with a demonstration of how effective the mind is, when engaging muscles in the correct way. A client had been taught this ‘zipping up’ visualisation by a Pilates instructor. When she came to me she still had a significant gap above her belly button, but not below. When I explained it, she said, ‘Well she told me to zip up my jeans. My jeans don’t come up to THERE!’

Hipster jeans – more to answer for than we thought.

Thank you so much to Wendy for helping to diagnose our Diastasis Recti!  I for one can guarantee that this is me.  In addition to an umbilical hernia I most definitely have serious diastasis recti.  When I did my own diagnosis diastasis recti, I believe that I have a 3 FINGER separation!  Ack…ick!  I feel as though my stomach (the actual organ) is FALLING OUT of my core.  If you listen close, after drinking a glass of any liquid, you can hear the liquid sloshing around!  It’s like listening to the ocean through a shell!  I’m working on my zipping up visualisation technique as I type…oh, my abdominal muscles are feeling it.  Phew!  I’m looking forward to Wendy’s post next week!

If you have any questions or comments for me or for Wendy, please leave them in the comment box below.  If you’d like to keep your questions/comments confidential and NOT have them appear on the post, please use the Contact Us page at the very top of the homepage.  I’ll pass on any questions for Wendy.  How are you doing with your Mummy Tummy Begone challenge?  Have you made some goals for this week?  I’m finding that KNOWING that I have you all here watching is a lot of motivation for me.  I didn’t WANT to go out and do my run/walk last night (Tuesday).  I wanted to sit on the couch and veg but I knew my body would rebel even more if I didn’t go out, not having run since Saturday night.  I also knew that I couldn’t get away with it…you’re counting on me to lead by example right?

Another thought…I was Twittering today (as you do) and another lovely Mummy Tummy Begone blogger mentioned that she was going to take photos of herself BEFORE and AFTER.  I need to do this!  I was shocked, when I was filming my Disney Princess Dancing vlog, at how BIG my belly is.  When you see yourself in pictures or video, it’s a bit shocking.  And maybe its the shock that we all need.  I’ll do my best to take BEFORE pictures this week and will decide if I’m brave enough to share them with you.  Please let me know your thoughts.  Good luck with your workouts and remember…mummy tummy…begone!

Mummy Tummy Guru Wendy Powell

Posted by cafebebemama on Mar 16, 2010 in Featured Posts, Guest Bloggers, Mummy Tummy Begone | 13 comments

When I began my Mummy Tummy Begone Challenge a week ago (has it only been a week?) I was amazed to find so many Mums in the same position!  All 1-2 years post delivery (some a few more even) and struggling with “what lies beneath”.  In addition to the voices of Mums everywhere, another voice spoke up in aid of the cause.  Wendy Powell, founder of No More Excuses, has come to the rescue.  She’s going to be guest blogging for the next four weeks to help the Mums of the world to find what used to be in that midsection area.  I, for one, can’t wait!  I bring you Wendy Powell with an introductory post and every Wednesday, for the next four weeks, Wendy will bring us a solution to these Mummy Tummy issues that plague us!  What fun!  And how lucky are we to have Wendy offering us her services?  Take advantage of this brilliant information and start your quest to rediscover your tummy.  Without further ado, Wendy Powell…Cafe Bebe’s resident Mummy Tummy Guru:

Thank you so much for having me Karin!  When I saw your first ‘Mummy Tummy Begone’ post I was dying to start commenting and get involved and am delighted to be asked to run a short series of guest posts on Café Bebe. I hope I have some useful stuff for you!

Wendy Powell- Mummy Tummy Guru

My Mummy Tummy Masterclass© solution came about because women are simply not getting satisfactory answers about their post-baby tummies.   I founded No More Excuses 8 years ago, offering specialist personal training to pregnant & postnatal women. But I get calls every week asking ’Do I still count as postnatal?  Um, my youngest is 4 years old’

So this is for ALL mums – regardless of how long ago you had your babies! A mother’s body absolutely can return to its pre-pregnancy glory (or better) but it needs a little help and understanding to do so. Whilst crash diets or boot-camp might solve part of the problem, they will leave you disappointed and frustrated with the shape of your tummy in the long run. Standard exercise regimes that do not specifically tackle the physiology of a post-baby body, including split abdominal muscles, cannot flatten it effectively. Certain exercises – even very commonly prescribed abdominal exercises – (like crunches or sit-ups) will make the problem worse, resulting in back ache and a ‘domed’ shape to your tummy.

Having helped put many, many post-baby tummies (including my own!) comfortably back into their jeans, I want to show you how to re-connect with, and understand, exactly what is going on behind your wobbly mid-section. Only then will your nutritional and exercise efforts to lose fat and tone up, actually work.

This is where I get brutal, so forgive me, but the de-mystifying bit has to come first… You see, once extra maternal and breastfeeding fat stores are no longer needed, I’m afraid there is no such thing as ‘baby fat’, there is only ‘fat fat’. Fat is just fat, and it sits on top of muscle. Fat and muscle are completely different types of tissue, and one cannot turn into the other. There. You all hate me now, don’t you?

But there ARE vital physiological and muscular differences between a tummy that is just flabby, and a tummy that is flabby and has also carried at least one baby.

This distinction is very important to getting the tone and shape you want, as well as just getting slimmer. A mummy tummy is partly caused by certain, very important, core and abdominal muscles being compromised by pregnancy and birth. We can repair and restore, by ‘reconnecting’ with these muscles, and by learning how to engage and strengthen them correctly & to close any gap that has developed. And if you want to actually see the results, you need to lose the fat sitting on top as well.

So, over the next 4 weeks, & starting tomorrow, I’ll take you through the 4 factors that cause your mummy tummy. And tell you what to do about them.

Please ask questions along the way & then we’ll hopefully also run a post to answer ‘everything else you always wanted to know about your tummy but were too afraid to ask’. I hope it helps, because I’m pitching a book to publishers & I need to know if you really want this stuff – so please give me some ammunition to convince them!

Thanks again for having me, Wendy X

Please visit Wendy’s brilliant site, No More Excuses for more information about how to reclaim your midsection.  Come on ladies!  We can do this!