3 more weeks (hopefully but it really could be 5 weeks) until I push this little monkey earth bound!
I am ready to not be pregnant anymore! I hear women say how much they LOVE/D being pregnant. Lol. I’m gonna be honest, that woman is not me. It’s been an amazing experience and I feel connected and in love with this little person instead of me that I haven’t even seen yet, but I really dis like the feeling of having a bowling ball in my belly.
I think what I have learned the most during the past 9+ months is how amazing and capable our bodies are (as women). I’ve learned that as long as I am healthy and give my body and baby’s body what it needs (proper nutrition, movement, and hydration) that I can trust my body without any fear to grow and birth a healthy baby.
I have unfortunately been dealing with some symphysis pubic dysfunction the past few months. I ran/sprinted pretty hard up until 8 months then the SPD really started to kick in and running became not-so-possible for me anymore. For those who don’t know SPD is one of those weird pregnancy conditions that basically means the ligaments that usually keep your pelvic bone aligned during pregnancy becomes quite relaxed- too relaxed and stretchy. This makes your pubic joint unstable and causes some discomfort. When I do side lunges, runner lunges (extended lunge) or ANY band work for hami’s/glutes it also causes discomfort to the point that it feels like I am on the verge of pulling a muscle down there. Once this discomfort got to a certain level, I just decided with help of my P/T and doctors that it would probably be a good idea to avoid running hard anymore for the risk of pulling a muscle. I can’t imagine trying to have a natural birth and having a pulled muscle in my vagina area- EEK. No thanks.
Instead of running, I’ve been walking. BORING. Ugh. However, this is exactly why my mindset in the beginning of pregnancy to go “as hard as possible” for “as long as possible” bc you never know when something is going to come up later in your pregnancy that is going to limit your fitness/movement. I’m still able to lift weights, and now I do that even more often now that I can’t run- about 5 days a week.
I am at 37 weeks and I’ve gained about 21 lbs right now through my pregnancy… although it goes up or down by a lbs or so depending on the day 🙂 To be honest this is more than I thought I would gain the whole pregnancy. I have heard of women gaining only like 17 lbs during their whole pregnancy and I just assumed that would be me too, but not so much. I have never dieted throughout the pregnancy and really just listened to my body- when I’m hungry, I eat, and 80% of the time I eat healthy options (although not monitoring carb intake- i don’t recommend doing this during preg anyway unless you have preeclampsia and/or your doctor has told you to) then the other 20% I cheat (clean) but still, I cheat 🙂
Overall the pregnancy has been pretty easy breezy and comfortable. My discomfort down under is annoying but manageable and the tiredness of the third trimester has kicked in. I take a nap when I can and get 8 hours of sleep at night. This helps a lot!
Here is a pic of the nursery… just about all done and ready for his arrival.
If you have a strong, engaged, activated core unit (I’m talking transverse abdominus, diaphram and pelvic floor) you most likely will NOT show easily or quickly (unless you have a special condition happening like a tilted uterus for example). Your core is strong enough to hold the baby in tight and your tummy will resist being pushed out by your uterus for longer into your pregnancy and you are much less likely to get “Big Belly Syndrome” later in your pregnancy. Which is huge!! I was hell-bent on making SURE my core was super strong to avoid Big Belly Syndrome and diastasis as well.
Check this excerpt from Fit For Birth (who I became pre and post natal certified with) about belly size during pregnancy.
Activated Core VS De-activated Core:
“Quite amazingly in Fit For Birth’s experience has been the witnessing of “big belly syndrome” literally disappearing once a pregnant woman learns how to belly pump effectively. Take a look at Figure 4 below. The left shows Gabriela during her second pregnancy at 6 months before she has been taught to use her belly pump. This was taken before training with Fit For Birth. The photo on the right shows Gabriela during her third pregnancy at nearly nine months, but with a smaller tummy! She spent her third pregnancy learning how to use her belly pump effectively.
Figure 4 shows the usual big belly at 6 months (left), but then a much more manageable belly at nearly full term when strengthening the core through belly training (right).”
Big Belly Syndrome is exactly what it sounds like. Your stomach gets big, really big and stretched, and the bigger it gets the more uncomfortable you are (hello back pain) and harder it is to bounce back post baby and the easier it becomes for your abs to split (diastasis). This is motivation for me to not be caught up with wanting my belly to pop out so soon into my pregnancy. I focused very specifically on strengthening my core for the past year or so before getting pregnant because through researching and learning more and more about pre natal training I realized just how insanely important this is and how much better off you will be if you go INTO your pregnancy with a strong and activated core.
This doesn’t mean doing 1000 crunches a day either. It’s about strengthening your back, legs, core, abs, pelvic floor and diaphram. There are a few amazing ways to do this that don’t consist of laying on your back and crunching up (so little value comes out of this pregnant or not). Here are some of the BEST exercises to work on your core and getting your TVA working and engaged.
#1 LIFT LEGS!!
Lifting legs with medium to heavy weight is one of the BEST ways to work your core and get your transverse abdominis working and TVA strength is SOOOOOO important!! The TVA or transverse abdomminis is the deepest ab muscle that we have. The TVA is the innermost layer of all abdominal muscles located behind the quote, unquote ‘6 pack abs’. Think of this muscle as your body’s natural corset and support system. If your TVA is not engaged, not activated and not working on the regular basis you are at risk of injury, you are setting yourself up to potentially have big belly syndrome when pregnant and you will NEVER be able to achieve flat tight abs without having a frustrating pouch that sticks out under your belly button… so many women have come to me saying that their stomach is coming together but they just can’t get rid of the lower pouch, well this is exactly what is causing it.
This is where the legs come in! You are FORCED to engage your core and TVA while squatting and lunging for example. If you didn’t engage your core throughout these exercises you would properly fall over! Your core balances you and you MUST balance to properly perform these exercises. Building and strengthening your TVA is ESSENTIAL to do before, during and after pregnancy. This is the muscle that will prevent you from getting big belly syndrome and will help you be so much more comfortable for so much longer into your pregnancy, not to mention this muscle will help out BIG time during your labor and helping your core shrink back quickly after your deliver. This muscle is also to thank for keeping you from showing early in your pregnancy.
Your legs are the biggest and strongest muscles in your body, so don’t be afraid to pick up challenging dumbbells during your leg workout! If you are pregnant and usually use 8 pound dumbbells this doesn’t mean to go into the gym and grab 25 lbs dumbbells, but there is nothing wrong with bumping up to the next size dumbbells if you are still able to maintain proper form and feel comfortable. When I do a HIIT style leg workout, I use 25-35 LBS dumbbells. This equals half to a little more than half of my body weight, and for me that’s my normal and there is nothing wrong with maintaining your normal throughout pregnancy. Don’t be scared to pick up weights that continue to challenge you, don’t be scared to complete a workout that FEELS like a workout, not a warm up! Let’s take the FEAR out of working out during pregnancy. “Exercise does not cause miscarriages. Exercise does not cause pre-term labor.” That is a direct quote from my OBGYN doctor and of studies that are published on PUBMED. This is not my opinion, these are proven facts studied by researchers and doctors.
#2 BREATHING!
Ahhhhh seems so simple, yet most of the population, women and men, pregnant or not don’t know how to breath properly anymore. Let’s start by taking a big deep breath in. Lets do this now. Ok- take notice what just happened with your upper body when you took that breath. Did your chest expanded and your shoulder rise up? If this the case then you actually aren’t breathing correctly… and you’re not alone. Most people actually do not breathe correctly these days. The issue is that people aren’t using our diaphragms to breathe.
Lets put both hands on your belly now. While you read on about this very important muscle go ahead and practice taking big deep breaths in and out using that diaphragm to do so.When you inhale try to fill your belly into your hands as you expand your diaphragm with oxygen, we want to fill your belly, your sides and your lower back with air.When you exhale try to draw your belly button into your spine, thinking about hugging your baby with your belly as you do this… we want to rid all the stale air out of your body during your exhale.
The diaphragm is the primary respiratory muscle which attaches to the lungs and when used properly will pull the lungs open and increase the space in the chest cavity. Proper movement of the diaphragm will effect simulation of every function in the entire musculoskeletal system (which helps provide form, support, stability, and movement to the body), hormonal system, central nervous system and gastrointestinal system.
Unfortunately, any kind of mental, emotional or physical stress can inhibit the diaphragm from functioning in its fluid rhythmic ways. This is another reason to add exercise into your routine during pregnancy, to help reduce stress and increase those feel good hormones we get from working out, because remember, ANY emotion or hormone that we feel, the baby will also feel. Really!
Start implementing diaphramtic breathing into your daily routine and throughout every single exercise in your workouts. The more you practice the more your body will get back into natural routine and your body will start doing this without you even having to think about it!
#3 PELVIC FLOOR ACTIVATION & STRENGTH
This is a super important and a lot of times forgotten muscle that acts as a sling, holding and supporting your bladder, uterus or womb, and bowel.Your Pelvic floor stretches from your pubic bone to the base of your spine.It is so important to know what this muscle is and to exercise it before, during, and after pregnancy.
Lets contract your Pelvic Floor now by imagining that you are trying to hold in urine.Some women will feel this contraction more in the front and some in the back, you just want to make sure you are not just contracting your glutes but actually under your glutes,where your lady parts are.I always say if when you contract these muscles and it starts to feel kinda good, than you are doing it correctly. You want to make sure that you are continuing to breathe as you contract these muscles and you don’t hold your breathe. So as I go over some Pelvic Floor basics I want you to continue to contract your pevlic floor, hold for a count of 5 then release and repeat.
Your pelic floor goes under a lot of stress during pregnancy which is one of the reasons we need to acknowledge and strengthen it along the way. You PF can become stretched out and start losing function just 12 weeks into your pregnancy, so doing these exercises from the start is super important.
So how often should we be doing these types of exercises? To be honest, if you have a weak pevlic floor such as you have trouble holding your urine when you workout, sneeze, cough ect would say implement them more until you see an improvement. Generally speaking I would recommend these every single day, if possible twice a day. Ugh i know so annoying. But if you can just implement the exercises we went over and you are doing right now maybe in the car on the way to work and on the way home from work, or on the way to the gym, or while you’re running errands this can seriously improve your pelvic floor strength which is going to help you during pregnancy, during delivery and post pregnancy. Pelvis floor exercises are SOOOO boring! Ugh, I hate doing it! So I started implemented these exercised into my workouts. I add them into my squats (when I get to the bottom of top of range of motion I squeeze and hold my PF). I also do this with plank variations or during my walking or jogging recoveries during my HIIT cardio training.
These three things will help you have a more comfortable pregnancy, will help make your delivery faster and easier and will help your body bounce back faster post labor. It sounds like a WIN WIN to me 🙂
For those who want to work core during pregnancy, but aren’t sure how, or what is safe, check out my new Pre-natal Core Workout that is safe to do through all trimesters! The full workout can be downloaded from the FREE Pear Sports Training App, which you can find in your App Store or Google Play Store. Enjoy!
I just love Halloween candy! It’s the start of fall and the beginning of all my favorite Holidays. It also seems to be the start of everyone putting on some extra winter weight as well. We not only start indulging in eating high fat high calorie high sugar foods make you pack on the pounds, we are also consuming a lot of foods filled with unhealthy ‘ish that is putting straight junk in our bodies. The FDA has declared that these ingredients are “safe” to eat in limited amounts but either way, but to me, that isn’t saying much considering the source.
Check out these below ingredients that can be found in our favorite Halloween treats 😦
1. Tertiary Butylhydroquinone (TBHQ) (found in lighter fluid)
2. Gelatin (Abstracted from animal bones or skin)
3. Castoreum (Beaver Urine) Yup. For reals.
4. Shellac (Bug secretions)
5. High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS)
6. Carnauba wax (Found in Car Polish, Nail Polish)
These ingredients can be found in Butterfingers, candy corn, gummy candys, m&m’s to name a few…
We ALL know are going to indulge a little bit during the holidays. It’s part of our culture and its ok to indulge (in moderation). But why not indulge in some cleaner alternatives that will still leave your sweet tooth satisfied without leaving you feeling guilty and bloated with a side of brain fog from these crap ingredients.
You can grab a bag of “UNREAL” chocolate candy bars (these in particular taste like snickers- nom nom) at your local Target. I LOVE these!!
At 100 Calories a bar, these are a WIN in my book.
Newman’s does a great job of making a product that tastes great without all the bad ingredients. Their peanut butter cups are one of my faves. Check the all natural ingredient list:
I’m liking what I am seeing! They also have the USDA Organic Seal, which assures us that at least 95% of the ingredients are organically certified.
Newman’s offers a lot of different delicious all natch products: Peppermint cups, cookies, mints, licorice, coffee and pretzels just to name a few. Check out more at their website: http://www.newmansownorganics.com/index.php
In order to tone and tighten your core to give you the sexy lean mid section you are looking for, there are 4 muscle groups you MUST hit. Often I see ‘core’ workouts that only hit the rectus abdominis muscle AKA the front of your abs.
To get a tight, sculpted, balance core we need to make sure working each of these muscles during your AB workout:
1. Rectus Abdominis (front of your core)
2. Interior and Exterior Oblique’s (sides of your core)
3. Transverse Abdominis (innermost of the flat muscles of the abdomen)
4. Lower Back
It is important to have a well balanced core workout implemented in your training program. Out of all the core muscles the transverse abdominis muscle probably the most forgotten muscle during AB workouts, but really is the most important. This muscle is critical to exercise to strengthen the core and minimize back injury.
Here is a AB circuit that includes exercises that will hit all of these 4 key muscles in your CORE:
1. Toe Touches or Bicycle Crunch (Rectus Abdominis) 45 Seconds/15 Seconds off
2. Side Plank Dips (Internal and External Oblique’s) 45 Seconds/15 Seconds to switch sides
3. Low Plank Hold (Transverse Abdominis) 1 Minute Hold
4. Back Extensions (TA and Low Back) 45 Seconds/15 Seconds off
Repeat 3-4 Rounds.
During this workout, think about the muscles you are working for each exercise. Make the ‘mind/muscle’ connection. Visualize the muscles working, squeeze the muscle through the movement and through your set. Draw your belly button into your spine during each rep. Think of your Abs as a wet towel. With each rep you are trying to ‘wring out’ the towel.
Ok People, Major League Baseball Spring Training is under way. It’s staying light past 5pm and the smell of Spring is creeping its way into our noses. Yup, it’s official, Summertime is fast approaching and most of us need to start turning up our workout intensity to get slimmed down and feeling right to put that bikini on in a few months!
Here is a great workout that will burn a ton of calories that is LOW impact. For those of you who can’t run or jump or just hate to do it, this workout is for you! This working focuses on hitting all the problem areas us women have (core, glutes, and hami strings) along with focusing on shaping and toning your shoulders. Shaping your shoulders is a MUST for getting your arms to look toned and shaped. Most women think it’s biceps and triceps. Wrong. The ‘shoulder cap’ is what is going to shape the arm and give you the sexy Kelly Ripa arms we all love!
DIRECTIONS: Complete all of the circuits below. Allow yourself 1 minute (or more if needed) to recover in between circuits. This workout, including recovery between circuits, should take just 30 minutes. Since it is a short workout, keep your butt moving!
CIRCUIT 1: 4 Minutes (Get as many rounds as possible in 4 minutes) Goal: 6-8 Rounds completed.
EQUIPMENT: MEDIUM SIZED DUMBBELLS (Women 10-15 lb dbs, MEN 15-25 lb dbs)
1. DB Burpee x 4 reps
2. DB Squat and Press x 4 reps
CIRCUIT 2: 7 Minutes (Get as many rounds as possible in 6 minutes) Goal: 2-4 Rounds Completed.
1. DB RDL x 8 Reps
2. DB PLank Row x 8 Reps
3. DB Lateral Raise x 8 Reps
CIRCUIT 3: 7 Minutes (Get as many rounds in 6 Minutes as possible) Goal 2-4 Rounds Completed.
1. DB Pullover x 8 Reps
2. DB Sumo Squat to Upright Row x 8 Reps
3. 1 Db Front Raise & Twist 8 Reps
Circuit 4: 7 Minutes (Get as many rounds in 7 Minutes as possible) Goal 2-3 Rounds
1. DB Oblique Twist to Press x 8 Reps
2. DB Back Lunge to RDL x 8 (Each Side)
3. Plank Kickbacks (side to side) x 8
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT ANY OF THE EXERCISES, YOU CAN WATCH ME DEMO THIS WORKOUT IN THIS VIDEO:
Whatever YOUR jog pace, the rest of the speeds of this workout will go off of your jog pace. So if it says “+2 mph” and your jog pace is 6.0mph, then you will increase your speed to 8.0 mph. Make sense? OK- get after this workout, then get back here and let me know how you did!
Ok you guys! I love all of my clients, but I love this one the most! Let me explain! Maxwell is the love of my life. The most amazing person I have ever met and my bestest friend. I have Under Armour to thank for bringing Max and I together. I trained Max in my morning class for over a year before magic happened at our company Christmas Party last year. The rest has been history. I have never been happier! Just another amazing perk that fitness has contributed to my life!
Ok back to business! I am so proud of Max. He was coming from the WVU football team of heavy weights, sprints, and a totally different mentality of eating and nutrition. My classes are nothing like what he did in college, so this was a huge transition for him. It took some time, but finally, he gave in to my programs, and gave it a real shot. Boy, did it pay off! Here is what he had to say:
“Before I started working out with Nancy I was your stereotypical former college athlete. I participated at a sport in a very high level, therefore I knew everything there was to know about eating right and working out. I thought structure was the only thing I needed to get the same results. Needless to say I got a little more than I bargained for and the results, knowledge, and inspiration will motivate me for a lifetime.
At the end of 2010 with just six months of the “real world” under my belt, I was an all-time high 258 pounds. All the alcohol, food, and lack of exercise finally caught up to me. Upon seeing a few errant pictures of myself at a party with my shirt off, I knew it was time for a change. I enrolled in Nancy’s boot camp on January 3rd 2011 to see if I could shed a few pounds before our annual spring time mancation.
At first I struggled more mentally than physically with the format. Mentally, I came from an environment where rest and recovery were commonplace and you were measured by the amount of weight you could move not the number of repetitions. If you had an hour and a half workout you were probably only actually working out for 45 min. Nancy’s class was 45 minutes of straight high intensity work. If you asked me to do 10 reps of a weight I could do it, but if you asked me to do reps of the same weight for 45 seconds I would struggle to get 8.
Throughout the Spring and Summer of 2011, I attended her class an average of 3 times a week and tried to stick to a low carb, high protein diet. Once I got my weight down to around 230 I worked out mostly as a means to maintaining my current life style and not an attempt at making any gains. As the Summer ended and the Fall set in I fell off the bandwagon again. I went to around 2 classes and week and started eating poorly again. I decided that Thanksgiving meal was going to be my last hurrah and this time I was going to try to get serious about dieting and working out. Little did I know that a trip to the grocery store would change my life.
When I got back from Thanksgiving at around 240 pounds, I asked Nancy to put me on her diet plan and we decided to meet at the local grocery store. It turns out that I was mostly ill-informed or too stubborn about my old eating habits and that I do not know everything there is to know about eating healthy (imagine that!). The combination of working out in her class and participating in her diet plan has taken my body and mind to shapes and places that I never thought they would go.
I believe dieting and working out are directly correlated. If you are discipline in your diet, you’ll be discipline in working out, and vice versa. I had dieted numerous times in the past for many different reasons, but Nancy’s food plan never once and still hasn’t felt like a diet. I was still eating a lot of the things I normally eat except more often and in smaller portions. I am confident to say that I will never be overweight again and I have developed enough knowledge and discipline through the whole experience to last me the rest of my life. The best part is, I get to keep the girl too. ” -Max
Meet Erin! Erin has been loyal and dedicated to my training for a few years. She motivates everyone around her, including myself, to push harder, and perform better. She is one of the strongest, fastest, toughest women I have ever trained. I feel lucky to have had Erin train with me for so long. She is beautiful inside and out. Here is what Erin had to say about her journey:
“I have been working out with Nancy for almost 2 years now and it is hard to explain with words how she has affected my life.
Nancy is my role model. She motivates me, inspires me, encourages me and most importantly makes me want to be a better person.
I have played sports my entire life, including soccer in college. After I graduated I was looking for a routine / regimen I could follow that was completely different than my soccer training. I am so grateful that I found Nancy. I work out with Nancy four times a week in her am boot camp. Nancy mentally and physically challenges me every morning and I absolutely love it. I am not only physically stronger , I am mentally stronger while I work out as well. I now understand the saying “it’s all in your head”. Nancy has taught me to get out of my head not only during workouts but also in my everyday life.
Nancy has a gift. Even after 2 years, she has the ability to make me sore after each workout while making me want more. It is a sick yet awesome thing. Nancy’s workouts are all different and unique which leads to my muscle confusion. Nancy is not only an amazing trainer she is also extremely knowledgeable and educated in nutrition. She has created a healthy diet that encourages clean eating, makes you feel amazing and most importantly WORKS.
I can’t thank Nancy enough for what she has done for me. She is a game changer and hands down one of the best in the industry. She is the influence. ” -Erin L.
The Fit Life...Knocked up! 