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As a mother of three I know how daunting pregnancy for first time mothers can be. The physical changes and strain that pregnancy places on the body can be rather stressful. I encourage my client’s to embrace the changes going on their body, because let’s face it, they will occur for 9 months and beyond. It’s important to realise getting uber fit whilst pregnant is not really a priority. Rather, it is a time to take good care of yourself and your beautiful baby growing inside. Once you embrace the pregnancy, rather than feeling like there is an “alien” developing within you, you can concentrate on preparing your body for the birth by engaging in regular exercise and eating a nutritious, balanced diet for you and baby.
I see hundreds of pregnant women a year, some of who are eager to commence a rigorous fitness regime despite the fact they haven’t been exercising at all before the pregnancy! My advice to all the expectant “Mammas” out there, is to continue what they have been doing. If they already have a set fitness routine and obviously when they reach the second and third trimester, take advice from a trainer who has pre and post natal expertise in exercise so as to engage in exercises which are safe to continue. For example engaging in HIIT style classes and lifting heavy in the second and third trimester would not be advisable.
Whilst pregnancy isn’t a time to ramp up your fitness routine, it also isn’t a time to let it all go. One thing we know for sure, is that exercise is beneficial for the expectant mother. We’d all love to lie around in our PJ’s scoffing foods we wouldn’t usually eat, but it’s not going to do us any favours whilst pregnant and when the baby arrives.
As I have taught and engaged in Pilates for 16 years, I am super biased when it comes to which type of exercises to engage in! For me it is Pilates all the way through my pregnancies. After training literally hundreds of pregnant women inclusive of myself, I can hands down say Pilates gets the best results. In the past 5 years I’ve combined Pilates with ballet barre movements, (PBBABY BARRE) and the results are a testament to the training method.
The main benefit of Pilates is that it targets the exact muscles and functions that can be a problematic during pregnancy and after birth in a safe way. They will improve your core strength, especially the muscles around your pelvis and spine which are so important to stabilise the pelvis and lower back. This helps manage any niggling pregnancy back pain and joint pain. They also help avoid sciatica which can be very common in pregnancy.
Pilates and barre greatly improves your posture. As the pregnancy evolves we tend to get rounded shoulders as the breasts grow heavier. There can also be excessive lower back arching as the baby size increases causing back pain.
Balance can be thrown off whilst pregnant. Barre and Pilates help you work on the deeper stabilising muscles that help improve balance.
Pelvic floor exercises are imperative for pregnant women which are constantly reinforced within a Pilates and Baby Barre class. They will also teach you how to relax the pelvic floor and how to use it during child birth.
Pilates/Barre will help prepare your body for the rigorous demands of labour. Your circulation will improve and keeping your body moving will avoid swollen ankles and other circulation issues of pregnancy.
-The Pilates breathing technique will not only ensure you are engaging core muscles, but also will have a calming effect on your mind and body and can be used whilst in labour. Engaging in classes will improve your mood and relive stress. And the bonus of pre-natal classes, you will meet other pregnant women that you can chat to and ‘compare notes.”
Paola’s BodyBarre is a fitness studio specialising in dynamic Pilates, Dance and ballet- based routines that will challenge you to the core. Australian-Italian founder Paola Di Lanzo has 25 years experience in the fitness industry, working at many of the capital’s most exclusive health clubs and gyms. Paola has always had a passion for health and fitness, commencing her career in Australia after completing a Teaching Degree (Physical and Health Education). Paola moved to the UK in 1998 and worked as a personal trainer until she gave birth to her first child 12 years ago. Paola continued to do personal training but realised the “hard and fast” approach did not suit her body anymore. Her muscles were too tight and her core was not strong enough, and the pressure on her joints from constant high impact exercises was having detrimental effects. She discovered Pilates, her body thanked her for it and she never looked back. However, Paola wanted a method with all the benefits of traditional Pilates but also the results of a functional training/conditioning class. After extensive training at the Pilates Institute of London followed by ongoing accredited workshops, she devised her own dynamic routine combining the two. She “upped the ante” of a traditional mat class by adding higher repetitions and increased the load with the use of body weight and small equipment such as bands, blocks, weights and Pilates ball. This proved to be a successful formula with excellent results for her clients. In 2013 after the birth of her third child, Paola heard about the BARRE classes that were taking America by storm. Paola explored a number of BARRE methods and decided to develop her own system in order to create an intense workout with a lot of movement. Ensuring there is a good cardiovascular element. Broadening her routines in Dynamic Pilates and pre-Pilates fitness years, and combining this with ballet, dance & functional training, enabled her to produce a high intensity, low – impact routine set to a fun, high energy playlist. Paola encourages a mix of compound, isolated and isometric exercises, which ensures every layer of your muscles are targeted. After just a few sessions you will have improved muscle-tone, a strong core, increased flexibility and a booty lift like no other. Paola’s mantra focuses on being strong and “feeling the burn”. Don’t be fooled by the word ballet, Paola will make you work for it by delivering one of the toughest, meanest yet most exhilarating workouts you've ever experienced. Nestled between Sloane Square and Victoria Paola's BodyBarre is everything you could want in a boutique studio with a diverse range of classes from; Barre, Dynamic Pilates, TRX Core, Jivamukti Yoga, FitCamp Ballerina, TRX and Kettlebells. Its intimate setting makes you feel very comfortable from the minute you enter. You will feel a strong sense of community at PBB and don’t be surprised if Paola will remember you by your first name after just one visit. Paola makes each and every one of her clients feel welcome and her non intimidating non-competitive approach has earned her a big following.
As your kids get older there are certain conversations every parent dreads, partly because if you hear things such as a child drinking underage, becoming or even thinking of becoming, sexually active. . . Well as a friend of mine says, “Now you have drama”. The problem is bad news is not wine or cheese, it most certainly doesn’t get better with age. The only hope you have to effect the situation is to know about it, and likely the only way you will know about it is through honest communication.
So, I want to shift gears a bit this week and talk about a method of improving family communication, namely the family meeting. Family meetings are a great way to improve communication across all relationships inside the family dynamic, but they are subject to the same shortcomings as their corporate counterparts; namely lack of focus, and those “in charge” talking when they should be listening.
The following suggestions can be used around the kitchen table or in the boardroom with great effectiveness:
1. Mom and Dad should co-chair the meetings initially, but eventually you will transition to everyone sharing in this duty.
2. At the first meeting be sure to remind the family everyone is expected to contribute, to be considerate to the others and to actively listen. Be sure to be clear that no one will be punished, physically or emotionally, for saying what they feel in a meeting.
3. Go around the table, allowing each person to say something positive about how things are going in the family. Parents should offer encouragement and praise for good things mentioned.
4. Next ask the youngest family member to identify a challenge they are having or something that bothered them. This can be school, sports, or something inside the family dynamic. Work your way through the family to the oldest.
4a. An alternative is to have an Agenda sheet on the refrigerator where anyone can write issues to be discussed at the next meeting.
6. Parents should ask open ended questions such as, “What do you think the problem is?” or “How do you think we could fix this?”
7. Go around the table again, talking about where the family is on the goals the family established for itself when you completed your goal sheets.
9. Last, each family member should say something they appreciate about one of the other members. It can be thanks for help on homework, naming a kind thing they said/did or how the family member lifted their spirits during the week.
10. Close the evening with either an activity or dessert everyone enjoys (watching TV is most definitely NOT what I have in mind here). If the first few meetings don’t go as well as you might hope, don’t give up on them; evaluate what didn’t go as well as you would like and make adjustments. Over time you will find family meetings to be another valuable tool in your kit bag of keeping your family communicating and functioning well. Family meetings are a great chance to keep your finger on the pulse of your family, a chance to teach your children how to handle conflict resolution, and get everyone in the habit of communicating the good, the bad and the ugly.