Problem: Article: Making sure your body is in top physical condition before labor begins can reduce the likelihood of a prolonged labor. Preparing your body for what's to come can make labor easier and quicker when your baby arrives. Walk or swim regularly, and incorporate a few specialized exercises. Kegels, small internal contractions of the pelvic muscles, can help your body with the pushing stage of labor and also reduce the risk of hemorrhoids in the weeks after childbirth. You can do kegels virtually anywhere. Simply contract the muscles around your vagina, as you would when holding in urine, then hold for four seconds and release. Repeat this 10 times. Three or four sets, done about three times a day, is ideal. The pelvic tilt, also known as the angry cat, can strengthen abdominal muscles and reduce back pain during pregnancy. Get on your hands and knees, keeping your arms straight without locking your elbows. Tighten your abdominal muscles when breathing in and move your buttocks below your back. Relax your back when you breathe out and repeat at your own pace. Move in time to the rhythm of your breath. Squatting helps open your pelvis, important for labor. Stand with a chair facing your back and, using the chair for support, contract abdominal muscles, lift your chest, and relax your shoulders. Lower your tailbone to the floor, as if you were going to sit down on the chair, and then rise again to the standing position. Making sure your body is healthy before delivery is vital to a smooth labor. Nutrition is just as important as exercise. Each woman's body is different, so there's no one-size-fits-all guideline to how much weight you should gain. The adage that you're eating for two is false as your caloric intake does not double. However, you should increase the amount of calories you're eating as your pregnancy progresses. In general, a woman with a BMI between 18.5 and 25.9 should gain between 25 to 35 pounds during pregnancy. A woman with a BMI higher than this should only gain 15 to 25 pounds. Discuss how much weight you should gain with your doctor and know how much you should increase your caloric intake to achieve this goal. If you are pregnant with twins or multiples, you will probably need to gain more weight; discuss this with your doctor. Be sure you get plenty of fresh fruits and veggies. Focus on whole grains, such as oatmeal, whole wheat breads and pastas, brown rice, and barley. Incorporating dairy will give you plenty of potassium and calcium for you and your baby. Be careful with fats. Stick to heart-healthy fats found in avocados, nuts, and olive oil. Fruits and veggies high in vitamin C, vitamin A, iron, and folate are especially good for pregnant women. Try apples, oranges, green beans, spinach, sweet potatoes, pineapple, mangoes, and squash. Zinc is particularly important during pregnancy as its vital in cell development. Chicken, turkey, ham, shrimp, dairy products, beans, and peanut butter are all great sources of zinc. Eating fish can also be a great source of protein, but you should avoid fish that may have high mercury levels, such as swordfish, king mackerel, tilefish, and shark. When your contractions begin, stay calm so you're able to relax in between. This saves up energy for the later and more trying stages of labor. There will be continual breaks between contractions throughout labor. Take advantage of such respites, especially during early labor when contractions themselves are gentler. If possible, sleep between contractions. Practice deep breathing and other relaxation techniques. Have reading and viewing material on-hand so there's something present to distract you and help you relax during the process.
Summary: Stay fit during pregnancy. Monitor your weight during your pregnancy. Follow the food pyramid during pregnancy. Rest between your contractions.

Problem: Article: Body language is an important factor in how your principal looks at you. Make sure to straighten your clothing, sit up straight, and shake your principal's hand when you meet them. When you talk to the principal, don't mumble and speak as clearly as possible so that you give them a good impression. This may make the entire conversation smoother. Sometimes people get so scared of getting into trouble that they may lie or make things up to get out of it. This can backfire and get you into more trouble than if you just told the truth. When you start talking to the principal, don't make things up and remain honest. Lying here or there will make the principal question other things in your story. Lying can cause more stress later on because you'll have to stick to your false story and it can be hard to remember made-up details. Tell the principal in detail what happened and don't leave anything out. Explain why you did what you did, and what led to the situation that you're getting in trouble for. Try to include as many details as you can so that the principal gets an accurate picture of the situation. For instance, you can say, "Joe put his foot out and tripped Mary, but she turned around and thought it was me. Mr Collins didn't see exactly what happened, so he assumed that Mary was right." Or you could say, "Raul started screaming in my face, so I screamed back. He got mad because I called him out for how he treats other students and that's when he started punching me. I was just trying to get him off of me, I didn't really want to fight." Talking over or interrupting the principal is rude. If the principal is annoyed with you, it may mean a harsher punishment. Instead, let the principal talk and answer their questions as they ask them. Talking over someone may also cause them to mirror your behavior, and it could prevent you from telling your side of the story. If you know that you did something wrong, it's best to take responsibility for your actions early on. This will actually make your principal respect you more. Think about what you did, what caused you to do it, and acknowledge the fact that you made a mistake. You can say something like "I shouldn't have pushed John back, I can admit that. I was just angry that he shoved me, and it was an automatic response. It's not how I usually am, but I was wrong." Or something like, "Honestly, I did skip school that day. I don't really have a good explanation, but now I know it's wrong and I take full responsibility for what I did. I just hope that it doesn't lessen all of the good stuff I've done over the school year."
Summary: Sit up straight and speak clearly. Be truthful. Tell your side of the story. Don't interrupt or talk over the principal. Take personal responsibility for your actions.

Problem: Article: Carefully pour the paint from the can into your paint tray well. Do not overfill the paint tray or the paint could overflow on the sides. Overfilling the well will also make it harder to load your roller.
Summary:
Pour paint into the well until it's halfway filled.