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!

March was a very exciting time around our household. My husband and I talked about having another baby and being 34, we decided to try for another baby relatively quickly after Arlo turned 1. So when I couldn’t quite catch my breath while climbing stairs and teaching Mom & Me Fit classes at Fit Your Life in March, I figured I might be pregnant. It took 4 pregnancy tests, but my suspicious were confirmed towards the end of March – we were expecting baby number 2. Photo Credit: Roughley Originals If you read my previous blog post , you’ll know that I sustained fourth degree tears during my vaginal birth with Arlo. Recovery was long, slow, and at times, really frustrating. But I did recover well with the help of several pelvic floor physiotherapists and some patience. Would I want to or be able to deliver vaginally with a second baby? Could my pelvic floor sustain trauma during pregnancy? What was the best way to preserve the function and strength of my pelvic floor dur...

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...

With the weather changing and the shackles of winter starting to loosen their grip…many women are itching to get outside and go for a jog! One of the hardest things to put a postpartum body through is running. Let me explain: Running is literally jumping off one foot and landing on the other potentially thousands of times in a relatively short period. This prolonged, repetitive, vertical impact on a hard surface challenges the postpartum body in several ways:    1.  It’s jarring for your pelvic organs- organs that have undergone a tremendous amount of anatomical shift during pregnancy and again in the postpartum period. Usually, there are ligaments that firmly tether your organs to their anchor spots inside your body. Under the influence of pregnancy hormones, these ligaments become lax so that your uterus can grow and everything else can get out of the way. Pregnancy hormones take months to be flushed from your body postpartum; and, breastfeeding horm...

If you have followed along with our Pelvic Health Series : Our journey to regaining strength, alignment, and function, you will recognize the name Jillian Palmer. Jill is the owner of Bounce Back Physical Therapy . She took the time to answer some of the most common questions we hear about pelvic health physiotherapy while sharing what she loves most about her chosen career! Grab a [hot] cup of coffee or tea and enjoy this fun guest post with Jillian! Who should be assessed by a pelvic health Physiotherapist? Pelvic Physiotherapy is a branch of Physiotherapy that describes the physical (neuro-musculo-skeletal) care of the “lumbo-pelvic-hip” complex and related structures. There are branches that address women’s pelvic health, men’s pelvic health, and children’s and adolescents’ pelvic health. I work specifically with women at this point in my career and so I can’t speak to everyone who should see a pelvic health Physiotherapist (although if you’re a man and you’ve h...

Wow! What a journey this has been! Seriously! The conversations that have been started, the support we have received and the knowledge we have gained has been amazing and more than we could have ever imagined.  We have been inspired by those of you who have sought assessment and began your own journey of increased alignment and function. If you’d like to catch up on how our journeys began, check out our previous posts here .   In Kellie’s last post she discussed “graduating” from physiotherapy.  While I am not at the stage of graduation yet, (I am still working on healing my abdominal separation) I have had some very powerful moments.  Over the course of four months, I have learned so much about myself and my body, through working with Jillian Palmer at Bounce Back Physical Therapy.   This journey to regain strength, function and alignment has been eye opening, powerful, motivating, shocking, humbling, educational and above all empowering. My body awarene...

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...