Do you believe in miracles?

Hi Everyone,

It's arrived!! The miracle box that I've mentioned several times over the last couple of months is finally here! I'm really excited by it and I'm sure that many of you will be too. It's a great buy for mums and mums to be (and a great gift too), but don't take my word for it, click on the banner below and make up your own mind .

The Five on the Floor......From Fit to Deliver Part 2

This post follows on from the one before last, and looks at the last 3 exercises in the five on the floor series from Fit to Deliver.

To do these exercises correctly you'll need to learn how to fire and sustain your transverse abdominus muscles (TVA). Instructions on how to do this were in this blog in the post dated Tuesday 19th June 2007.

Before each exercise focus on the following:

• Contract the pelvic floor
• Contract the TVA
• Remember to breathe
  

Fire the core and sustain with march

• Find your TVA while lying on your back with knees bent
• March your feet up and down several inches to a 10 count
• Don't raise your knees past 90 degrees
• Repeat 10-12 times each leg

Fire the core and sustain with limb movement

• Find your TVA while lying on your back with knees bent
• Bring your opposite arm and knee to 90 degrees and lower to a 10 count (arm and leg don't need to touch)
  
• Repeat 10-12 times each side

Fire the core and sustain kneeling (box position)

• Get down on all fours, shoulders and hips over hands and knees
• Relax your tummy and don't arch your back
• Breathe in, and then exhale whilst pulling your belly button in towards your spine
• Hold for 10 seconds breathing normally
• Work up to 10-12 repetitions
  

Note: After the first trimester these exercises should be performed on a slight incline or in a chair.

Healthy Regards

Do you have a story to tell?

If there's anybody out there with an inspirational, uplifting, moving, touching, motivational or just downright funny story about pregnancy, birth, or dealing with a new baby, we'd really love to hear from you. The idea is to publish them (with your permission) on the website, and possibly later in a book, so all new mums to be can learn from your experiences.

So, if you have a story to tell please get writing and send it to mark@newbornfitness.co.uk.

Thanks, and healthy regards,

Mark

The Five on the Floor..........from Fit to Deliver.

This post looks at the first 2 of 5 very useful pregnancy and postnatal floor based exercises from the great book and professional training course Fit to Deliver. Put together by MD's, physiotherapists, physiologists and exercise coaches, Fit to Deliver is a comprehensive guide to staying in shape during pregnancy and the postnatal period.

To do these exercises correctly you'll need to learn how to fire and sustain your transverse abdominus muscles (TVA). Instructions on how to do this were in this blog in the post dated Tuesday 19th June 2007.

Before each exercise focus on the following:

• Contract the pelvic floor
• Contract the TVA
• Remember to breathe

1. Fire core and sustain with leg slide

• Begin by lying on your back with with knees bent and isolate your TVA with a normal breathing pattern
• Keeping the TVA contracted during the exercise, slowly straighten one leg while sliding it along the floor, then return to the start position to a count of ten
• Repeat with the other leg keeping TVA switched on and breathing normal
  
• repeat 10 times on each leg. To increase difficulty raise leg off the floor as you slide it out and back

2. Fire core and sustain with leg fall out

• Contract your TVA while lying on your back, knees bent
• Let one leg fall out to the side and raise it back up to a count of 10
• Don't let the opposite hip come up off the floor
• Repeat 10 times on each leg.

Note: In the later stages of pregnancy these exercises should be performed on a slight incline or in a chair.

I hope that's useful to some of you. Please email me at mark@newbornfitness if you need any more advice on exercise and fitness during pregnancy.

Healthy Regards

Coming Soon....................The Miracle Box

Hi Everyone,

It's been a while since my last post so sorry about that. It's because I've been working very hard on a new product that I'm really excited about. It's a joint venture between Newborn Fitness and Lifestyle Experts called The Miracle Box and it will be the ultimate wellness package for all women, but in particular for new mums and mums to be. We'll be launching at the Earls Court Baby Show in October so come along and see us. We'll be giving away a miracle box each and every hour for the 3 days of the show and one of them could be yours.

Healthy Regards

Errors in growth charts blamed for childhood obesity

Hi Everyone,

There was an article in several papers this morning stating that growth charts may bear a lot of responsibility for the rise in childhood obesity. As someone who is greatly concerned by this topic I found the article very interesting.

It's generally known that bottle fed babies usually gain weight faster than breast fed babies, and many breastfeeding mums I speak to are concerned that baby is not eating enough and may be underweight. If baby is not at the expected weight for their age it can be worrying and may lead to some mums switching from breast to bottle. That's a shame as we know that in most cases breastfeeding is the best option for the child (and it's free). Well it now seems that the predicted weight charts are based on the expected weight gain for bottle fed babies, and that with the current big push towards breastfeeding, these charts are outdated and leading to overfeeding. This can be carried over into childhood and later life as overweight babies have a much greater risk of becoming overweight adults.

Daily Telegraph 14/08/2007

Parents have been overfeeding their babies for a generation because of inaccurate growth charts, according to experts. Charts used by health visitors and GPs are based on bottle-fed babies and encourage the rapid weight gain that has fuelled the childhood obesity epidemic, as overweight babies are more likely to be overweight later in life. New charts, which were issued by the World Health Organisation 18 months ago, reflect the slower growth pattern of breast-fed babies, and about 20 per cent of babies will be classed as overweight under the new system.

I hope this stops a lot of mums worrying about their babies weight. Unless there are specified problems, baby will eat when they are hungry and stop when they are finished. We could all learn from that!

Healthy Regards

Weight change between births can harm you and your baby

Hi Everyone,

There was an article in several newspapers today about the problems associated with gaining weight between pregnancies. This is not the first time this has been brought to our attention, and only last year an article based on similar research was also published. Around 15 years ago another study produced the same results, so I guess that unlike a lot of studies, this one shouldn't be sneezed at.

It seems that even a small increase in body mass index can double the risk of high blood pressure and preeclampsia, with larger increases resulting in even more problems.

So what do we do?

Well try and maintain a healthy and consistent weight would be the best thing.

How do we do that?

Not by dieting that's for sure! I understand the pressure sometimes with our celebrity culture, to try the latest fad diets. The Atkins diet, The California diet, etc etc are all an unhealthy and unnecessary way to go about losing weight. All these restricted calorie or no carb diets result in a loss of lean body weight (muscle). It's not muscle you want to be losing it's fat. Muscle is what gives your body it's shape. Losing muscle weight will slow your metabolism meaning that when you stop dieting you need even less calories to maintain your bodyweight than you did before the diet. Add to this the fact that when you starve yourself your body becomes super efficient at storing fat, and you can see why so many peoples weight goes up and down like a yo-yo.

A sensible diet with good nutritious whole foods is the best way to go. It's not a diet but a healthy eating plan, and one you can stick with for life. Don't go for instant gratification but aim for a slow weight loss over a long period. One pound a week is 52lbs a year, and that's nearly 4 stone!! Add exercise to the equation and you're laughing. You'll end up looking great and feeling even better with loads of energy, and who wouldn't want that?

To read the article in full click here.

Healthy Regards

Watch Those Windows!!

Hi Everyone,

Well summer is here (not) and most of England seems to be underwater. I had to cancel a meeting in Cheltenham last weekend because I couldn't get in or out of the town. If anyone still doubts that climate change is happening it's time to wake up.............IT'S JULY FOR GODS SAKE!!!!

Anyway, I received this from some colleagues the other day, and although at present we aren't really enjoying the weather necessary to throw open all the windows, it is a good point, a good product, and a good price. (And who knows when the weather will change).

Window Watch

As the humidity and temperature rises during the summer months, keeping an eye on adventurous young children is very important as they can easily climb out of open windows. Therefore, parents, grandparents and nannies should consider some extra safety measures when caring for their little ones this season.

The windows in your home can prove a real hazard when they’re left open to allow the fresh air to circulate. Your children could be in danger of falling if a window is open too far, and if they’re a bit curious, they may push a slightly ajar window open even further.

Particular attention needs to be paid if you live in a flat or apartment as an accident could be fatal if your child were to fall from a great height.

Clippasafe’s child safety expert, Roger Cheetham commented: “Even though we’re only promised the odd spot of sunshine this summer, it’s far better to be prepared and not throw caution to the wind, just in case we’re due any warm days or sudden heat waves!”

A window lock or blocker can be easily fitted to restrict the opening and prevent children from opening the window further. Clippasafe’s Window Lock is priced at £1.99 and the Sliding Window & Door Blocker is priced at £2.49.

Call 0115 921 1899 or visit www.clippasafe.co.uk for more advice and information.

Next week there will be more postnatal exercise info.

That's a promise!

Healthy Regards