Fit Your Life

A full sit-up is a very practical and functional movement for moms. However, it can be challenging to achieve this full movement with optimal control and connection.  Working on the mid- and top-point of the sit-up, with focus on the eccentric contraction is a great tool that might help you progress to a full sit up. After you develop a strong foundation of core connection and are able to move with intention through breath, then we can begin to challenge our core unit in other ways.  If you have questions about how to ensure that we are using the best strategies for finding our deep core connection through various aspects of the range of motion, ask us in class or send us a note at info@fityourlifefitness.ca. Enjoy!

Each woman goes through unique changes with every birth and pregnancy she experiences. We decided to share our journeys with you to explore these changes and our recoveries from growing our Littles and welcoming them into the world. Follow along in the posts below, as we work with Jillian Palmer from Pine Integrated Health Centre, to regain our strength, alignment and function. Kellie Post One Post Two Post Three Jamie Post One Post Two Post Three Post Four Erin's Guest Post My Birth Story and Return to Exercise

One of the most common questions I receive from new moms (or those finishing their last Prenatal Fit class) is when they can return to class or regular exercise post-baby.It is important that you, as a new mom, take time to learn your new lifestyle. Whether this is your first or your fourth baby, your daily life will change and that itself is an important adjustment Allowing your body time to heal post-pregnancy and delivery is also important. No matter the length of one's labour and what kind of delivery they had, the body needs to recover. Starting slow and thinking about re-strengthening the core from the inside out is the perfect place to start. Newborn photos by Roughley Originals I know it can be difficult to "take it easy" physically when you're used to exercising regularly, but also so important after a major physical event, like childbirth! This is especially important if you have an assisted delivery (vacuum or forceps) or a caesarean birth. Your...

This has been a humbling journey for me. Not only seeing a physiotherapist for assessment and treatment, but also journaling about my journey through this blog series. Writing about my experience has allowed me to reflect and dig deeper into learning about my own body. My last blog post explained my initial assessment with Bounce Back Physical Therapy and diagnoses. If you didn’t read it yet you can find it here ! I want to now take you on my journey through my “homework”, three follow-up visits, and what being “discharged” means to me. Homework At each appointment – the initial and follow-ups – Jillian gave me a series of stretches, exercises, and tips to implement into my daily routine. As the list grew, I would often feel overwhelmed with how to sneak it all in. What made it feel more manageable was when I remembered our discussion about how it’s okay to be imperfect and really that our goal is to have perfect alignment and engagement available to us. I actually came t...

Hello! I am starting this post with a huge thank you!! Jamie and I are incredibly humbled by, and grateful for the beautiful messages we have received since opening up about our journeys through this pelvic health blog series. Amongst your notes, we have found joy in knowing that you are becoming more aware of the changes occurring within your body. Many of you have even sought assessment because of our journey and we could not be more proud of you for doing so. Truly! If you have not read our previous posts in the series, please check out Jamie’s first and second installments as we as my first that precedes this post! Also, I wanted to remind all of you that there are so many incredible women’s health physiotherapists in Edmonton and surrounding area. Jamie and I are both seeing Jillian Palmer, from Bounce Back Physical Therapy , because we had started to develop a professional relationship with her through referring clients. We appreciated her approach, and her proximity ...

The evening air is cooler, the sunrise is later, and it seems like we are all settling back into our routines. I love fall. I love the crisp breeze and wearing scarves. Even for those of us not in school or without little ones in school yet, the fall is still a great time to hit a reset button. Small changes in our daily routine can have huge impacts on our health and overall fitness goals. Wake up 15 minutes earlier each day to sneak in a quick sweat or stretch. Challenge yourself to test out one new healthy recipe weekly. Carry around a water bottle to make sure you are hydrated. Focus on your alignment throughout your work day or while playing with your little ones. Schedule a class or two to attend every week to make yourself accountable to others. These are just a few ideas, but the list is lengthy! How are you adding a little extra health to your daily life? A little does go a long way and remember, do not strive to be perfect. Strive to find a healthy balance ...

Yay! Your healthcare provider has cleared you for exercise. That’s great news! But now comes the big question…what exactly does that mean? Should you go out and run a marathon? That wouldn’t be advisable. How about an easy 5km? Probably not yet. Should you sign up for a high impact group fitness class and get in as many jump squats as possible? That’s probably not the wisest thing you could do for your body right now. Where does that leave you? What are some wise choices you should make now to get your body moving safely? We have a few simple things you can do, once you’ve gotten the go ahead to exercise from your health care provider, that will ensure you are moving safely during this important time in your life. 1) Perform a thorough postpartum self-check Read through the list of scenarios below and ask yourself if any apply to you. Do you:            • have scarring from C-section, tearing, or episiotomy?     ...

Yes! It is true! We welcomed our sweet baby girl to the world earlier this month and have been in awe of her ever since. I will post about our birth experience and more about her very soon.  In the meantime, I have been asked multiple times in the past few weeks about my transverse abdominis (TVA) or deep core activation techqniques; how I used these techniques throughout my pregnancy and how I am re-introducing them to my daily routine as my body heals from our cesarean birth. To begin, I did not know about these techniques when I was pregnant with Brooke, our oldest daughter, who was born in April 2014. I had a great recovery after her delivery (also cesarean), as I was cleared to begin upper body exercise with slow integration of lower body exercise at 4 weeks postpartum and cleared to begin core work and running at 6 weeks postpartum. I felt great! That being said, my core already feels so much stronger than it did at 2 weeks postpartum with Brooke. I already feel like mysel...