Category: AnteNatal

Top tips for your nervous system.

Priya Tew

With 2020 having been the most stressful year for most of us, it feels like the start of 2021 is a good time to think about how to stay in a calmer place. It isn’t always possible to lower your stress levels (especially when that stress is a global pandemic) but there are ways we can help our bodies and brains deal with it.

The sympathetic nervous system is our “fight or flight” side, fuelling by adrenaline, it helps us be on alert and run away or to stand and fight. We totally need this system but we don’t want it switched on overdrive all the time. If you have been living life on the edge for some time then your body will be functioning on high alert which will be exhausting and after a while it takes its toll. You may notice digestive issues, constant fatigue, headaches, anxiety and mood disorders. If that is where you are right now then read on.

The parasympathetic nervous system is our rest and digest side, its the side that kicks in when we sit down and kick back on the sofa. It also keeps our basic body functions working as they should, including digestion, heart rate, the bladder and sexual function.

So how do we stimulate the rest and digest side more?

  • If there are any stressors you can reduce look at doing this. Our body is designed to cope with stress but not all the time.
  • Use mindfulness, meditation, deep breathing or- you guessed it- pilates to help bring down your reactions to stress. Ever noticed how you leave your pilates class feeling calmer, clearer in your head and better in your body? It is a great coping tool.
  • Massage can help you move from that place of stress to relaxation too. Regular massage could help you with the stress response. If you can’t get a regular massage in person then try seem self massage using a massage ball, or a partner.
  • Moderate exercise of any sort can help you stress bust. Can you build activity into your everyday. Gardening, walking, cycling, running whatever works for you.
  • Take 10 minutes to sit and reflect. A gratitude journal can be a great way to do this. Focusing on the positives helps you to see life is not all bad.
  • Make sure you have enough relaxation and chill out time in your day/week.

How does Pilates help?

Well it helps you slow down, breath deeply, concentrate on your body movements and move mindfully. Plus it is exercise and time for you.

If you want to take up Pilates to help with this then our online classes run 6 days a week, plus pregnancy and postnatal classes too. Sign up by emailing [email protected]

How your core keeps you strong in pregnancy.

Priya Tew

Pregnancy is a time of real excitement but also anxiety and change in your body. Things that aren’t usually a problem can suddenly become one. One way to ensure you keep your body strong and functional is to include regular exercise with a specially trained teacher advising you. Why? As the body changes your normal exercise routine will almost definitely need to be adapted. It is also a good idea to add in movements that will build movement patterns for motherhood. The ideal time to prepare for postural changes, lifting, feeding and moving about with a baby is in pregnancy. It may not feel like it, but you have more time and head space when pregnant than after baby comes!

Top areas to focus on:

  1. Your core. This includes your pelvic floor, lower back, lower abdominals, waist muscles. Now you don’t need to be doing hard-core ab workouts (stay away from those) but you do want to strengthen these muscles in a kinder way. They need to be strong enough to support the growing bump, your posture changes and to support your pelvis. They also need to be able to relax for labour.
  2. Shoulders are the number 1 complaint I see in classes. Whether it is from desk working or carrying another child, now is the time to tackle it. Get some release work or massage in to complement the strengthening work. Start to work out where normal should be for your shoulders so you can listen to your body. Move within it’s range to prevent further issues. The moves we use in pilates are all about working within your normal range but also strengthening and improving it.
  3. Supporting your pelvis. Yes working on your core will help with this, but there is more to it. Your gluts and inner thighs are also key. So make sure you have some exercises to target these areas.
  4. Getting up and down to the floor. This is something you will need to do a lot with a baby so it is time to get practicing. Bending over is going to hurt your back. So instead lunging, hinging and squatting are your friends.
  5. Breathing. It destresses you, it helps your pelvic floor heal, it strengthens you. There are so many benefits, getting someone to watch you breath and correct you, could be the best thing you do!

Here are some simple core strengthening and shoulder focused moves you can do on a stability ball, chair or stood.

 

Why fixing diastasis recti is not all about movement.

Priya Tew
So often I hear the phrase movement heals. Whilst I agree with that there is also a point where movement is not the first point of call. There are so many programs out there now and so much advice on what to do if you have a pelvic floor concern or abdominal separation. The over flow of information is confusing and can just add to the noise in peoples head. How do you know who to listen to? How do you know which advice is correct? As someone who has spent a number of years doing advanced study in this area I’d like to share my top tips. I certainly know that a new mum I did not get it right first or second time around… but third time lucky.
If you can you always want to get somebody who can put their hands on you and give you a thorough assessment. That might not mean that they do an internal assessment but you do you want somebody who can physically I do your body, what you move, and placed their hands on you whilst you breathe and use their hands to correct you and to release you. Now that might not always be possible, and I’m not knocking The online program set out there. However I do think if you can get a one-to-one hands on assessment with the women’s have physio or a very experienced fixed price that you want to do that before moving on to any other form of program.
When looking at a program always look at how rounded it is. If it just focuses on the movement then I would say it’s not a full program. There is so much work to be done before you get to the movement, for example:
I want to woman to be able to breathe properly In a full 360° breath.
I want them to be able to connect the pelvic floor, lower abdominals and feel their back expand as they breathe.
In order to correct your posture work is going to need to be done.
This is going to involve some release moves, possibly some soft tissue work.
It needs to be a daily approach. What you do in a class needs to spill out into your daily life.
It’s also really important to focus on you. Self-care cannot be underestimated. Finding ways to make yourself out of that highly stressed fight/flight state into the calm zen like parasympathetic nervous system is absolutely 100% important. This could involve meditation, mindfulness, breathing exercises, along path, or otherwise of chilling out. However you do it it’s important. If you are living in stress and tension you’re not going to be able to heal your body.
It’s only when all of this has been accomplished movement can be layered on top. That’s why I love doing what I do. I get to work with people either 1-1 or in  class and bring them back to that chilled out relaxed state.
If you want to get involved and get some help that focuses not just on the issues in your body but also on healing all of you, then get in touch.
What is best for you? Hard to say as I work on a person by person basis, we are all different.
If you have a significant diatasis recti or significant pelvic floor issues you are likely to need some 1-1 sessions.
If you have some concerns with leaking, a small separation or feel like your whole system needs a tune up then our Holistic Core Restore EVERYWOMAN 6 week course is for you.
If you want ongoing classes then our pilates classes are the best bet.

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Prepare to Plank

Priya Tew

Let’s talk planks.

An amazing exercise for building core strength, for working the whole of your body and there is so much you can layer and add into a plank.

Also one of the exercises that therefore needs great technique or a lot can go wrong. All too often people are encouraged to dive head on into a full plank without knowing the hows, why’s and why nots. I love a challenge, but I don’t like the planking challenges. Personally I do not see the benefit to being able to hold a static plank. I have a body that rarely stays that still and so far more useful is a moving plank with levers and motion.

Many people are just not strong enough to launch into planks. These are not beginner exercises. Done incorrectly the intra-abdominal pressure will build up and it has to go somewhere, so if you have weak abdominals these may sag and bulge or the same with your pelvic floor. I remember attending a mums and babies fitness class with mums there 6 weeks after having baby – all being told to plank for 1 minute. If your core is not ready, do not do a full plank, if you have recently had a baby and you are rebuilding your strength, do not plank, if you have a weak pelvic floor, do not plank. Now that may sound harsh and rather black and white… so here is the softer version. There is a version of a plank that everyone can do, it is just finding your level and knowing which muscles to use plus ensuring you breath.

So what about if you really want to plank or if you are in a class with planks and you need a variation? Here are some plank progressions for you, including a standing version that I use with my pregnant and postnatal ladies.

 

I’d love to hear how you find these. For more videos and tips do follow me on Instagram and Youtube.

 

 

 

Why being flexible isn’t always the aim.

Priya Tew

Some people come to us thinking that Pilates is all about the stretch and that they need to be super flexible to be any good at it. Confession, ahem…. whilst we have super flexible people who teach for us and I envy their ability to do the splits I’m not a bendy ballerina.

Whilst I totally can work on my flexibility and improve it, I’m also aware that being super bendy is not always a good thing and you can overstretch for your particular body. Yup, I’m saying it doesn’t always pay to s–t–r–e–t–c–h.

 

Let’s think about that over-stretching:

  1. If you are hypermobile or have Ehler-Danos Syndrome then pushing your body past it’s normal range of movement into the hypermobile zone is possible for you but not a good idea. Over time moving out of the normal range can increase your risk of injury, sprains, dislocation, joint pain and can lead to the joints popping out. Pilates is one of the best forms of exercise for these conditions as a good teacher will watch your range of movement and help you work out exactly what you need to strengthen. By strengthening the areas around the hypermobile joint it can help you stay strong.
  2. The effect of hormones. When you are pregnant and postnatal you definitely do not want to be overstretching. At this point of life your ligaments are laxer and you may have a greater range of movement. But moving too far and stretching too much can lead to your muscles becoming overstretched. This leads to pain/injury for you which can then be an ongoing weakness in your body. Relaxin can take up to 4 months to leave the body after you stop breastfeeding. This can also mean your body is not as strong as you expect it to be. I remember after baby 2 really struggling with some of the harder pilates moves until I stopped breastfeeding (I fed baby until he was 16 month) and then a couple of months later my body was at it’s peak once again. So don’t rush things and risk a lasting weakness.
  3. If your body is causing a muscle to be tight for a reason. Sometimes the body is protecting itself. Much like we do not work muscles in isolation, it can be detrimental to stretch a muscle in isolation too. Instead we need a whole body approach and to think through why an area is tight. Is it due to a certain posture you adapt most of the time – in which case work on the posture. If it is due to pain elsewhere in your body and you are compensating, then the area of pain needs to be dealt with too.

Anyone can overstretch their bodies. Our collagen make up is genetic and we just aren’t all born with stretchy joints, ligaments and bodies. So whilst stretching is of course good for us, listen to your body.

The 3 top benefits of postnatal pilates.

Priya Tew

It strengthens your core and fixes your body. This is HUGE NEWS. Mums are lifting, bending, rotating, reaching, rocking, pushing and feeding babies. A whole lot of work and strain on the body. The core is made up of the abdominal muscles, the back muscles and the pelvic floor. This cylinder provides the support for the rest of the body to move. After carrying a baby in your womb for 9 months there has been quite a strain on the core. Your abdominals have been stretched and may have stretched apart slightly (diastasis recti). Your pelvic floor muscles have been supporting a heavy load and then may have helped push a baby out. Your lower back muscles will need supporting and strengthening as your baby grows and gets heavier. This is where Pilates has been invaluable for me and it fixes me weekly. Yes there are plenty of other fitness classes you can do postnatally, but a specialised postnatal Pilates is the one you want to do FIRST. It provides you with the foundation that you need to rehabilitate your body after pregnancy and labour. If you do not strengthen your core and get your posture sorted then later along the line you could suffer set backs and problems such as leaking and abdominal separation that doesn’t heal up. If you have this issue come see me for a 1-2-1 session.

If you have pelvic floor issues then you need to be on my pelvic floor workshop.

There are a couple of ways we work on core strength in classes.

Firstly BREATHING. It is something we all do all of the time but breathing using the diaphragm will help the core work in synergy. The Diaphragm, abdominals, back muscles and pelvic floor are all involved in breathing. Try this out:

1. Place your hands around your ribcage. Inhale feeling the breath come into your ribcage. So your ribs move out to the side, your back expands, your chest expands.

2. As you exhale, breath out with pursed lips, feel the tummy come in, the lower back tense and try to get right to the end of your breath to feel an tension in your lower abdominals and a lift in your pelvic floor.

3. Practise this for 5-10 minutes and it really can help, plus it relaxes you 🙂

All the Pilates moves are layered on top of the breathing. It can take a while to get the breathing at the right time and in the right way but suddenly it will click.

It reconnects you with your body. As a mum your primary focus is on your gorgeous baby. There is less time for you to look after your own body and this can get pushed down the list of importance. However your postnatal period is an important time of recovery for you.

A postnatal class can teach you how your body feels when you do certain movements. I know I can be busy rushing around all day and then suddenly in a class I realise my shoulder is out of alignment or my hips ache. It makes you focus on your tummy and pelvic floor, an area many mums don’t want to connect with post-birth. Let’s  face it things are changed in or bodies but it is something to embrace and work to strengthen rather than to avoid. A class also means someone else also has a look at how your body is functioning, which can give you valuable insights and reassurance.

I myself go to classes so that someone who knows my body can give me feedback and push me further. We all need someone who knows us well to watch out for us.

It is you time. Our postnatal classes are run with a creche. I love babies, but having taught with one crawling around the studio, going under and over me… I know how distracting it is to doing the moves correctly. You tense up in order to ensure baby is safe which then means you do not get the full benefit from the class and exercises. You listen to their noises and not your body.

We’ve found over the years that having a creche away from the studio works best. Then the mums are not listening out to their babies, they aren’t all in the studio freezing each time a  baby makes a noise, working out if it is theirs, if so do they need to go to baby. It takes trust on the part of the mum, but James has been running our creche for 7 years now and has seen an awful lot of babies in that time. If he can’t cope and needs a mummy, he knows when to ask.

So if you are thinking about trying a postnatal class I would highly recommend you try Pilates. Yes I am completely biased, but I am also proof that it works. Having had 3 babies, I have rehabilitated each time with Pilates. It works.

When should I stop my normal pre-pregnancy exercise routine?

Priya Tew

We get a lot of emails from pregnant ladies who are worried about losing their fitness whilst pregnant. They have been working out and love their current exercise routine but obviously want to look after the baby too. Well the best way to look after baby and yourself is to keep exercising but modify as you progress through pregnancy.

Years ago, the advice was for pregnancy ladies to stop all exercise and to pretty much go on bed rest. Then this changed to a focus on only low impact exercise. However now we know from the recent research that exercise in pregnancy is a good thing, but that pregnant ladies tend to reduce their exercise. In the first trimester the advice is that you shouldn’t take up a NEW form of exercise, but this seems to sometime get misconstrued into “I must not exercise”. What this advice actually means is “Keep doing your normal exercise routine as much as you can/feel ok to do so”. Of course the nausea, tiredness and  pregnancy hormones may mean you find exercising harder than normal, but some ladies do find doing exercise can help them through this trimester. 

A study on over 1,000 pregnant ladies showed the rate pf physical activity was lower in pregnancy (20.1%) and that less than half received exercise advice in pregnancy (47.4%). Yes, when you are pregnant it is absolutely important to look after the baby, but part of that is looking after your own body so it is strong, fit and able to cope with not just the demands of pregnancy but of being a mum. Carrying, lifting, feeding, rocking and crawling after a small person is pretty tough on the body.

So can you continue your normal exercise routine? Yes to an extent. You will need to seek advice and modify some things. I was teaching spin until 7 months pregnant with my first baby and I taught Step Aerobics until 2 days before baby 1 and 1 week before baby 2. Through my 3rd pregnancy daily Pilates and functional work kept me strong and sane. Maybe surprisingly (or not) doing more Pilates and functional work lead to the pregnancy with the least aches and complications and a simple homebirth. So I’m not saying that you need to be running or cross-fitting your way through pregnancy, but that many forms of exercise can be adapted for you to continue whilst pregnant.

I have ladies who have run through pregnancy, who have continued to lift weights and to do modified cross fit. For all these ladies they have naturally tapered their levels of impact and exertion down as needed. Running may become a slow job with some walking, weights can be lighter and the range of movement smaller, cross fit moves can have some of the impact taken out.

All exercise needs to have a strong core as a foundation, this is even more important in pregnancy and postally. So for me, Pilates is essential as part of an exercise routine, but it doesn’t have to be the only thing you do. Having said that, it could be! Our pregnancy classes include whole body functional movements such as lunges, squats, wall press ups and wall planks that ensure our mums are working those global muscles as well as the core. It isn’t all breathing!

The 4 keys:

1. Listen to your body. When you feel hot, tired or just not right then stop.
2. Seek the advice of a trained exercise professional who knows their stuff. Someone who knows about pregnancy and if they don’t knows where to get help.
3. Expect to make modifications.
4. Keep your core strong. This is your foundation, with your abdominals being stretched and your pelvic floor taking a heavy load you need to have more focus on this. A specific Pilates class will do this for you or check out our DVD.

Posture, Breathing and Pelvic Floor Problems

Priya Tew

Your posture plays a huge role in helping your body work effectively and functionally. Many of those aches and pains can all be related to poor posture, which can seem obvious. What can seem less obvious is the relationship between your posture and a weak pelvic floor. Posture can affect your bladder control, prolapse issues and weak pelvic floor problems. So it’s vital to work on getting it right.

Try this out…Sit in a slumped position, with your shoulders rounded and your chest compressed. A fairly typical posture for those who sit alot, and often how we relax on the sofa! Now try to breathe deeply, you should find it is difficult to fill your lungs. In this slumped posture your abdominal contents become compressed and your diaphragm can’t move downwards, so instead of using your diaphragm effectively you use your upper chest muscles to help you breathe.

Slumped forward position and breathing with the upper chest muscles increase pressure on the pelvic floor. Not good.  In this position your core muscles (including deep abdominal and pelvic floor) can’t effectively counter the increased pressure.

Guess what, sort out your posture and breathing and suddenly the core muscles start to work in the right way. Our bodies are built in an amazing way.

So start focusing on your posture, with a tall spine, shoulders down in the back, ribcage soft and not pushed out, tall neck and allow there to be space for your abdominals to work.

the-core2

Next focus on the breath. You want to breath using the diaphragm. That may sound obvious as it is how our bodies are built to work, but so many of us do not breath correctly. It is called Diaphragmatic breathing or thoracic breathing.  Some people breath with just their tummies, some people breath with just their ribcage. You want to use BOTH.

breathe_titled

Try out this exercise:

Place 1 hand on the bottom of your ribcage and 1 hand on the side of your ribcage. Breathe in slowly and deeply so that you feel your tummy rise and your ribcage expand out to the side. You want to focus on breathing into the tummy and ribcage whilst keeping the upper chest muscles relaxed. Think of your lungs like balloons expanding out to the side of the body.

Breathe out by letting the rib cage fall back to resting and the tummy fall back down.

It takes practise and you may find it quite forced at first. Try practicing when you are relaxing or use it as a way to relax throughout the day and it will become habit.

Exercise 2: breath with a band:

Tie a band or a scarf round your body just below the ribcage. Sit with good posture, your ribcage over your pelvis. As you breath in feel your ribcage expanding into the band. As you breath out the ribcage decreases in size. The band can be a nice way to practice your breathing.

Pilates in Pregnancy, it’s a must.

Priya Tew

I’ve been lucky enough to teach antenatal pilates for 4 years now and in that time I must have worked with over 250 ladies. I’ve also used pilates myself through 3 pregnancies and it has helped keep me strong, shown me which parts of my body needed working on and enables me to keep working and being a hands on mum throughout. The comments we get from some of our ladies are:

“If I miss a class I really notice the difference”

“My hips and pelvis ache less and I can feel the difference Pilates is making”

“Classes help to keep me strong and relaxed during pregnancy”

“I always leave feeling better than when I arrived and with exercises to use in the week”

 

Pilates with Priya: Antenatal Pilates class

 

Antenatal Pilates offers multiple benefits including, developing your natural corset to support your back and baby, helping with the changes to your posture, pelvic floor education, breathing technique, toning the muscles and, thus, helping in weight management. Practising Pilates on a regular basis can improve posture, alleviate backaches, and, ultimately, help with labour and delivery. It can even help the baby rotate in the optimal position. I tend to have a format where I use a mixture of functional exercises that help in daily living, for example moves you will need to bend, lift, rotate, get to the floor, release stretches for the areas I know get tight as pregnancy progresses, core strengthening exercises and some move to help in labour and for baby positioning.

CAT

Lets look at some of the changes that happen in pregnancy:

1. Breathlessness:

There is around 15-20% increase in oxygen consumption during pregnancy. The breathing rate will stay the same, but an expecting mum will breathe more deeply each time. The changes in the blood vessels caused by the hormonal changes together with the changed position of the ribcage and diaphragm may make a mum-to-be feel breathless at times.

The breathing we use in Pilates helps make an expecting mum’s breathing more efficient. Focusing on breathing in an antenatal class also has a relaxing and calming effect which can then be used in labour.

2. Muscle, ligament, joint and postural adaptations: 

Hormonal changes during pregnancy have an effect on muscles, ligaments and joints. There can be more movement, stretching and instability. A safe pregnancy pilates class will help you exercise within a safe range of movement and strengthen the supporting muscles. It can really help with conditions such as SPD/pelvic girdle pain.

3. Core Strength:

Pilates exercises focus on core stability, and pelvic stability. This obviously helps keep the abdominals strengthened  but it also can help keep your pelvis in good alignment and reduce pelvic girdle pain.

4.Posture:

Pregnancy affects posture as the centre of gravity shifts. Some women adopt a posterior pelvic tilt (tucked under) with a flat lower back, whilst others adopt an anterior tilt (bum stuck out) with an increased curve in the lower back. Either way it is not helpful for the body. Knowing about neutral posture will help you correct this in day to day life and pilates will provide you will a range of exercises to strengthen the right muscles.

So if you are pregnant, antenatal Pilates with a specialist teacher is a MUST. If you can’t get to a class or want something to use in between sessions check out my specialst Bump to Birth DVD.

Raspberry leaf tea – a natural labour aid?

Priya Tew

Raspberry leaf tea is one of those buzzwords that sometimes gets floated around in the last trimester of pregnancy. Until pregnancy 3 I had never given it much thought but then it was suggested to me by a midwife. Being the kind of person I am I decided to look at the evidence for it.

Pilates with Priya: Raspberry Leaf Tea: a natural labour aid?

An observational study in 1999 (1) looked at over 100 women retrospectively. Those who had taken the tea did have a shorter labour. Sounds quite promising so far

Then moving to a review by Holst in 2009 (2) who found 6 studies to compare and contrast. One of these was 50 years old and all of these were relatively small in terms of numbers of people in the studies. Sadly there just isn’t much research on this topic. The findings were that the tea can help to facilitate more rhythmic contractions of the uterus but there were some conflicting results. Some studies did show a shorter first or second stage of labour but only by a few minutes.

A  better study in 2001 (3) (a randomised controlled trial) was conducted looking at the safety of the tea. It was found to be safe to take in pregnancy. When you look at the effects it had, these were it shortened the second stage of labour by a mean of 9.59 minutes and there was a lower likelihood of needing forceps.

So all in all there seem to be no safety concerns with taking sensible, moderate amounts of raspberry leaf tea (2-3 cups a day) or the capsules in pregnancy. It is advised you start this around 32 weeks of pregnancy. The benefits can be for some that it helps the uterus prepare for contractions and for some there may be a slightly shorter second stage of labour. The research shows us these benefits are by no means sizeable but hey, I quite like the taste of it and it can help pregnant mums feel like they are doing something to help labour be easier using a natural aid.

My top tip: don’t expect to find it in a local supermarket. You may need to order it online or go to a health food shop for it.

References:

(1) Aust Coll Midwives Inc J. 1999 Sep;12(3):20-5. Raspberry leaf and its effect on labour: safety and efficacy. Parsons M1, Simpson M, Ponton T. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10754818

(2) Holst, L., S. Haavik, et al. (2009). “Raspberry leaf – Should it be recommended to pregnant women?” Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice 15(4): 204-208.   http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19880082

(3) J Midwifery Womens Health. 2001 Mar-Apr;46(2):51-9. Raspberry leaf in pregnancy: its safety and efficacy in labor. Simpson M1, Parsons M, Greenwood J, Wade K. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11370690