Tag: priya tew

Squats – I’m a fan. How to perfect your technique.

Priya Tew

Squats are back people and they rock. I’ve always been a fan of the squat, now that I’ve learnt even more about the body I’m an even bigger fan…. and it’s not just me, squats are everywhere I look. Why?

1. They work your pelvic floor without you having to think about switching it on… this happens when you push up to standing from your squat.

2.  They’re simple and safe to perform throughout pregnancy, post-natally and beyond. 

3.  They work your thighs and glutes, perfect for toning those areas and for helping with weak gluts which is a frequent issues I see in people.

4. They are functional, so they train you for everyday activities. I squat when picking things up, and putting the washing in the machine for example.

Pilates with Priya: how to perfect your squat
Priya squats whilst pregnant.

 

Start in neutral with your feet hip distance apart, in parallel. Check your pelvis is in neutral, your shoulders blades are down in your back and your core is engaged.

Now sink your weight back, letting your hips go back and feeling the weight go right into your heels so your gluts engage. You may feel you are about to topple over so try it out near a chair or windowsill to start with, preferably with a mirror nearby.

 

Now in that squatting position check in a mirror that:

  • your back is not arched
  • you are not leaning too far forward through your upper body
  • your knees should not be further forward than your toes, if you can keep them over your ankles
  • your heels are down
  • you have bent from your hips and not your back
  • your core is still engaged

If you are pregnant the added bonus is… They prepare your body for labour (particularly useful if you’re wanting an active birth where you’re encouraged to stay active and move around during labour).

Now get squatting!

 

My Pilates admission… springs, furry handles, straps and beds.

Priya Tew

Here comes a bit of an admission…. until recently I had never been on any type of Pilates equipment. Those scary looking frames, beds and chairs with straps, furry handles and springs looked rather intimidating to me… but also intriguing and I had been dying to give them a go. I completed my level 3 training when heavily pregnant and since then have been in a cycle of being pregnant, breastfeeding, pregnant again and breastfeeding again. So it has taken me some time to feel strong enough and ready enough to attempt a new challenge.

I am currently having some one to one sessions on the Pilates equipment with Marie-Claire Prettyman, who took me through my training and has taught me regularly since. Having someone who knows my body and capabilities well is helpful and reassuring.

Pilates with Priya: Teaser on the Cadillac

So after my first session – I was already in love. Working on the equipment adds another dimension to Pilates. The added resistance makes you think harder and work harder. For me it has been good to have an extra challenge, a fresh approach and another pair of eyes correcting my technique. With a slightly wonky body from carrying and chasing small children we’ve been focusing on my shoulders and upper back. The most frequently uttered words being “right shoulder down”. I always leave feeling alot better than when I started.

I will be completing my reformer training in April, so if you fancy giving it a go let me know!

Strengthen your gluts (bum toners)

Priya Tew

 The gluts have become something of a hobby horse of mine lately. Why? Because I’ve noticed so many of my clients need to strengthen them, or cannot work them in certain exercises.

The gluteals are made up of 3 parts: gluteus maximus, minimus and medius. In general terms these are the bum muscles 😉 Weak gluts can lead to lower back pain, poor posture and a saggy bum!

Gluteus maximus is the heaviest muscle in the body and makes up the bulk of the bottom. It attaches in the hip, goes round to the sacrum and coccyx, then inserts into the femur and IT band. A big muscle. It is used in movements that extend the hip such as getting up from sitting and running, walking up stairs and jumping. I certainly notice these muscles are weak in a lot of my postnatal clients, usually as a result of poor posture in pregnancy and post-birth but also as a result of SPD/pelvic girdle pain.

Gluteus medius and minimus are a deeper muscles that helps support the pelvis. They are used for movements that require moving the hip to the side, such as a side step. A tight muscle can lead to lower back, hip and knee pain.

Glut strengtheners:

Shoulder bridge.

One of my fav exercises. However you really need to make sure you are squeezing and using your bum muscles when doing this so you don’t compensate and use the lower back muscles.

Pilates with Priya: Glut strengtheners, shoulder bridge

Glut Extension prone.

Try lying on your tummy and lifting one leg by squeezing in the bum. Again not using the lower back but use the glut to do the work here. If it isn’t working, try turning you heels in and your toes out (think ballet first position).

Pilates with Priya: Glut strengtheners, glut extension

Oyster or clam.

More for gluteus medius and minimus. Make sure you don’t roll back through the hips as you do this one.

Pilates with Priya: Glut strengtheners, oyster

Side lying leg lift.

Another for the glut medius and minimus. Focus on leg length and staying stretched out thought the waist (no squidging!). You should find you are not able to life the leg too high if you are stretched out.

Pilates with Priya: Glut strengtheners, side leg lift

Other good exercises include squats, plies and walking up hills or stairs squeezing your bum. My postnatal DVD “Beyond your Bump” has some good glut exercises on it that are suitable for all types of people, not just post-birth.

Watch out for glut stretches on a blog post very soon.

 

Take a look at your feet.

Priya Tew

Your feet are complex things. There are 26 bones, 20 muscles and 33 joints in each foot. Yet we often neglect them and I’m not talking about painting your nails 😉 Our weight is carried through our feet, so really we need to turn our thinking upside down and put out feet first. For optimal all over body health our feet need to be loved and looked after. You guessed it, the walk you walk and stand can be connected to your back, so that back pain could be due to your feet.

Ideally our feet are designed to move like our hands and fingers. They are capable of similar movements. However from  a young age we put our feet in socks and then in shoes. Imagine putting your hands in mittens all day, over time your body would adapt. Your fingers would not be exercised and would lose their dexterity, your forearms would adapt and compensate. The same happens to our feet, muscles in the feet become weak and underdeveloped, muscles such as the calf compensate and are overworked.

Stand up barefoot and take a look at your feet… aren’t they beautiful 😉

1. Do your feet match? We do lots of things that are one sided – car driving for example and this can lead to the muscles developing differently on one side.

2. Toes – are they scrunched up, pulled to one side or do you have bunions? All signs you need to correct the way you stand and walk.

2. Where do you feet point? Turned in, turned out or straight? One may be facing a different way to another. You want them to be facing forward, to move you forward with the leg muscles working in the correct manner. Walking from heel to toe is only possible to do correctly if your feet face forward.

3. Toes and Foot Alignment. Stand up with your foot against a straight edge such as a pilates mat. See whether is is sits flush with the edge, if it doesn’t move it until it does. That is how is should be!

Simple Exercises:

Start walking barefoot where possible – this means no shoes OR socks. This will allow your toes to spread and your feet to feel the floor.

Shake hands with your feet. To encourage your toes to stretch out and “breathe” slide your fingers between your toes. Gradually you can work your fingers further down. I know, I NEED a pedicure.

photo 1-1

Pilates with Priya: Stretch your toes

Use a tennis ball or spikey ball and roll it under your feet to massage them and stimulate them.

Try out toe socks… I’m loving these beauties for my Pilates right now:

photo 3

More exercises and top tips coming up in the next blog post, a little foot series is on it’s way. So get bare footing!!

 

Abdominal Separation #ppnchat from 9/9/14

Priya Tew

Myself and the fabulous Claire Mockridge hosted the second twitter #ppnchat on 9/9/14, the topic was abdominal separation. Personally I’ve found these chats not only a chance to meet new people who work in the same field as me….but a chance to share knowledge, ask questions, be stimulated, be made to think about my practise and to learn. All of that in an hour, whilst sat at home. Pretty amazing networking and learning huh.

So if you work in the pre/postnatal field make sure you come along to our next #ppnchat on 7th October at 2.30pm.

If you missed the chat or want to catch up on some of the tweets and links (I know I do) then you can find a transcript of our chat here.

Lift without lower back pain

Priya Tew

Lower back pain, it’s the most common issue I see on our Pilates medical forms. Heavy lifting without engaging your core is often a cause of it. It’s common sense that if you lift badly or lift too heavy a weight it will hurt your back… but it is all too easy to do, especially when it is a child! For more on lifting babies see my video.

Think of the core as being the central point from which the power comes from or like a fulcrum that you pivot from. Every seen someone lift something far too heavy? You can see the force going into their back, not a good thing as it can damage the discs in the back. When I was pregnant and post birth I could instantly feel the effects when lifting my toddler, my core was far weaker and I couldn’t support my lower back.

Lifting safely involves engaging the core, bending the knees and thinking about your alignment. Here are my top tips:

 

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  1. Keep the load close to your waist – easy to do when it’s cuddling a child, less so if it is a tantruming one 😉
  2. Get a good grip.
  3. Engage your core.
  4. Maintain a stable base with your feet hip width apart.
  5. Bend the knees and hips NOT the back. Keep a neutral spine.
  6. Know your lifting limits, we aren’t all training for Ironman.
  7. Think about using your legs rather than your back to lift.
  8. Lower down safely, bending your knees.

It’s all about building community: the first pre/postnatal #ppnchat.

Priya Tew

Yesterday myself and Claire Mockridge hosted the first Pre/Postnatal Chat on twitter. There is a real need for education in this area and those who work in the field can find themselves a little isolated. So this chat was all about connecting people, sharing tips and information, learning from each other and thinking about how we can build community for our pre/postnatal clients and how we can work in our local community.

Here is a transcript of our first chat

 

Pilates with Priya: Almost 37 Weeks Pregnant.
My second baby bump at 37 weeks after a Step Aerobics class 😉

We had a great response, THANKYOU to all who tweeted along with us, the hour went fast! I loved meeting some new faces and am already looking forward to the next one.

Save the date:

Tuesday 9th September at 2.30pm

Use the hash tag #ppnchat

More details on the topic and questions to come!