Fitness Blog

Is Yoga Good For New Moms?

Is Yoga Good For New Moms?

I hear new moms in Alexandria, VA, bemoan the fact they can’t get their shape back overnight. Having been a new mom, I understand the frustration. However, pushing your body too hard or expecting immediate results can set you back. Your body needs healing time. It also took nine months for the change, so you won’t see it change back overnight. How do you protect your body, waiting at least six weeks or longer for health reasons, and still start the process of getting back into shape? You can start with walking or pelvic floor exercises, and then move to gentle exercises like yoga.

Yoga can help reduce the potential for postpartum depression.

Yoga can be strenuous or gentle, but either way, you’re getting exercise, and exercise can help prevent depression. It helps quiet the mind, allowing it to clear and provide deep relaxation. When the session ends, people find they’re calmer and have more clarity. Yoga provides the mother with time for herself to nurture her body back to fitness. If it’s group yoga, it provides the new mother with social interaction and time to share with other mothers. The deep breathing and meditative state of yoga brings calm at a time when many new moms feel out of control.

Yoga gets the body back to normal more quickly.

Yoga builds muscles. It doesn’t build the type of muscles on a bodybuilder, but strong, lean muscle tissue that builds the strength to get through all the tasks of a new Mother’s Day. It improves energy levels so moms get more done in less time. That’s a real blessing with all that new mothers have to do. It also helps posture to improve.

Not all poses are beneficial initially.

Right after childbirth, the body is subject to diastasis recti—abdominal muscle separation. It leaves women with a Buddha belly or mummy tummy that makes them look like they’re still pregnant. To avoid that, postpone doing exercises like crunches that put pressure on the abs or stretch them, like twisting exercises. Exercises with the belly facing down can also cause a gravitational tug on the loose muscles and stretch the midsection. Save yoga poses like the plank, cat, or cow exercises for later.

  • A child pose is an excellent yoga pose to reduce chest, neck, or head pain. It also strengthens the pelvic floor. Combine it with Kegel exercises to strengthen the pelvic floor.
  • Is back pain a problem/ Try the bridge pose. It’s the same in yoga as it is in traditional workouts. Lay on your back, knees bent and arms to the sides. Lift your buttocks off the floor until the body forms a straight line.
  • Another yoga pose that can be done as soon as exercising is allowed is the cow face pose. The cow face pose stretches the neck, shoulders, and upper back muscles. It also stretches the hips and reduces tension all over your body.
  • No matter what type of postpartum exercise program you do, take it easy at first and always follow the recommendations of your health care professional.

For more information, contact us today at Team Worx Fitness



How to Strengthen Your Will-Power

Wilting Will-power? Strengthen That Muscle!

Has your will-power muscle been getting a worXout? Had this conversation with a client and thought I’d share…

Have you been neglecting your will-power muscle without realizing it? What do I mean by that? Well, your will-power is just like a muscle. You have to put it to work in order to strengthen it but not too often because it does need to recover.

If you’ve been letting your will-power take a rest too often lately, saying yes to ice cream more nights than you should or yes to that extra drink, too many chips or bread before dinner…

If you don’t have that uncomfortable feeling of saying “No Thank You” on a regular basis and training yourself to get comfortable being uncomfortable (and you aren’t where you want to be physically yet!) then think about this…

• Every time you say no thank you when you really want to indulge in eating or drinking something you are strengthening your will-power muscle.

• Every time you show up for your worXout even when you are tired and don’t feel like it you are strengthening your will-power muscle.

• Realize you may have had to use your will-power muscle throughout your day and by the end of the day your will power muscle is sapped. Which makes sense why you are more likely to blow off your workout at the end of the day and indulge in something you hadn’t planned.

The key to building up your will-power muscle is to do it gradually just like any other muscle. You wouldn’t just start with lifting 300lbs. You start with 5-10lbs, then 20lbs, etc. progressing slowly over time.

As you go through your day today think about what kind of worXout your will- power muscle is getting and then exercise it at some point to say no thank you to something you normally would have said yes to…have one less drink or only 2 cookies or go for a walk or do something active when you least feel like it. You can do it!

When your friends say- “Stay for one more drink!” and you say “No Thank you not tonight” or you sit at dinner with the bread basket or chip basket in front of you untouched you can rest assured knowing I’m giving my will-power a worXout!

Gradually as you start to exercise your will-power muscle you’ll find that it’ll get stronger and easier to use more often rather than having to grit your way through the day. You got this!

If you’re serious about giving your will-power a good workout and really strengthen it and you are ready to build long term habits, join us at The WorX By Maia for a FREE week!

If you’ve been stuck in a rut, let us help you break out of it!  Questions? Give us a call at 540-421-8527 or email info@theworxbymaia.com