Tag: postnatal recovery

How to combat p

Priya Tew
It’s what you do daily that counts. This is true in so much of life.
Posture is important.  There are things that you have to do on a day-to-day basis that will affect your posture. For example carrying a child, carrying a bag, how you sit, driving a car, the shoes you wear and the chair you sit in. Studies show that sitting at a desk for long periods can lead to a forward head/neck posture which then can result in back pain.
The key is it’s what you do on a daily basis even hourly basis that makes a difference. So if you can make small adjustments to your day over a long term period this will add up. You cannot think about your posture all the time but you can adjust how you move, lift and sit to make small improvements.
It’s the same with eating. As a dietician and I know that deep changing small things in your diet will add up over the long term. So adding in one extra portion of fruit a day will make a long-term difference to your health.
So the challenge is to find those things that are causing you to have pain or tension in your body. A good way to do this is to go and see someone who specialises in looking at bodies. For example a Pilates teacher or a sports massage therapist such as myself. A postural assessment and a chat about your daily life can highlight some of the things that are going on that are causing the problems. It isn’t always obvious, so the position of your foot can impact your hip for example and what is happening at your hip can affect your shoulders.
Whilst you may not be able to change all of your daily activities that are leading to push your balances. But you can do is be aware of this and use some daily exercises to help release the tension and reverse the impact on your body.
For me carrying a heavy toddler is not great for my body. I know that I have tightness in my hips and my glutes and in my thoracic  spine pain in my thoracica spine from this. I can’t not carry my child but I can use regular exercises to help mobilise, stretch and release those areas as well as keeping strong.
So the challenge is to realise which areas of your body need strengthening, which need mobilising and to have a daily self care programme to help. It may only need 15 minutes of your day to keep your body in tip top form. If you don’t have a plan like this then find someone to work with you and to help you create one. Then regular massage, and exercise sessions will help you stay motivated and moving pain free!
Get in touch to book a session: [email protected]

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Do I have Diastasis Recti?

Priya Tew

Diastasis Recti is also known as abdominal separation. Sounds pretty scary but it is actually very common and some research suggests it happens in all pregnancies, but for some ladies it may heal up before it is noticed.

Why does it happen?

The rectus abdominals are the tummy muscles that run down the front of the tummy, from ribs to pelvis. I like to think of these are being like a zip. There are 2 bands of muscles that run down with connective tissue called the linea alba in between. When you are pregnant this area has to expand to accomodate the growing baby. This means the tissues and muscles are stretched, hence this separation can occur. For some it may occur sooner in pregnancy than others which can be due to a whole host of factors. Your pre-pregnancy muscle tone, your collagen type, if you are hypermobile or not, your nutrition and your current exercise routine can all be factors.

What can I do to help in pregnancy?

During pregnancy itself there are things you can do to minimise this seperation.

  1. Keep your core strong. Pilates is an obvious option! Do make sure that any exercise classes you attend or DVD’s that you do at home are suitable for pregnancy and taught by someone who knows what they are doing. A weekend pre/postnatal course is not enough and yet that is often the level of qualification fitness instructors have. So it is worth having a chat to check their knowledge base out and question any moves you are not sure about.
  2. Breathing is a great way to activate your core and practice the skills you will need postpartum to help with the healing. Breathing into your ribcage, your back, your tummy and pelvis. Letting the breath expand you and your muscles relax. Then exhale from the pelvic floor upwards and your core should engage.
  3. Don’t overload yourself. Loaded moves like lifting or anything that makes you strain should be reduced. This can lead to pressure on that abdominal area. Always exhale on exertion.
  4. Log roll like a pro. When you get up from lying always log roll onto your side rather than sitting up. In fact any sit ups, planks, or intense core work should be stopped.

What can I do to help after baby?

Initially you need your rest, so don’t feel the pressure of bouncing that body back or jumping into exercise. Exercise is the last thing on the list for healing, read here for why. Instead here are 3 things to do:

  1. Deep breathing. Use that core breathing to help your core fire and relax (the video below has breathing tips), your pelvic floor engage and relax and to chill our your nervous system, read more on that here.
  2. Nutrition. Eating a diet with plenty of fibre to help your bowels work without strain, fluid to keep things moving nicely, protein for the connective tissue and muscle healing and fruit and veggies for those micronutrients and antioxidants. It all makes a difference.
  3. Posture. Keep on top of where your ribs, pelvis, shoulders and neck are. It is key. When breastfeeding, nappy changing and sleep deprived your body will start to round forward. Yet these rounded shoulders and slumped postures mean those tissues are saggy and it is harder for them to heal up. So take time in your day to correct your posture. Ribs over pelvis, shoulders down, neck tall, pelvis in neutral.
  4. Abdominal massage can be helpful. It is good to know how your abdominals feel and to give them some love! Check out my video on this here:

If you need some help then I offer a postnatal package of massage, assessment, breath work and nutrition tips, possibly movement if it is appropriate. You can contact me: [email protected] or book a slot in my diary here.

A session may include:

  • Some yummy massage to release those tight areas in maybe your neck and shoulders.
  • Some abdominal massage too to allow those muscles to let go and heal.
  • A diastasis recti assessement.
  • Teaching you about core breathing.
  • Nutrition tips if wanted.
  • Movement advice.
  • Home care tips for what to do to help you heal.

 

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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Hypopressives are coming to Southampton

Priya Tew

The Hypopressive exercise, is a relatively new technique developed to help with pelvic floor rehabilitation and postnatal recovery of the abdominals. It is a form of breathing and intense posture work that involves creating a vacuum with your breath. This activate the involuntary fibres of the pelvic floor and abdominals, you don’t have to find the right muscles and squeeze them, instead you work with the bodies natural reflexes.

Where did the Hypopressive Exercise originate?

In the late 70’s, Dr. Marcel Caufriez realized that ‘traditional’ abdominal exercises were damaging women’s pelvic floors. So he looked into alternatives, moving away from high intra-adominal exercises such as creates and planks, the hypopressives were born. These exercises have been used for 30 years in Spain and are now used postnatally in hospitals in Europe with ladies with know pelvic floor and diastasis issues. However this is all brand new to the UK, we are pleased to be on the cutting edge, bringing you this technique.

Priya has trained with UK Hypopressives and has started doing hypopressives herself. With just 10 minutes a day she is feeling the effect on her core. These exercises are fabulous as they don’t take a lot of time and do not need any equipment. If you can breath, you can do them! However you do need hands on help to learn the technique.

This is a technique that can be incorporated in with other pelvic floor safe rehabilitation work, or used on it’s own for 30 days. It really depends on what level you enter this at. For example, someone with a prolapse it would be sensible to use the hypopressives only, then build on other pelvic floor work later.

 

Additional benefits can include:

1. Decreasing back pain

2. Reducing the waistline

3. Preventing disc and abdominal hernias

4. Improving sexual function

5. Treating and preventing urinary incontinence

6. Treats and prevents Pelvic Organ Prolapse

7. Improving respiratory function

8. Improving posture and balance

If you would like to learn more and experience hypopressives for yourself then please book onto our workshops. These are kept to small numbers so that you can have plenty of hands on help to learn the technique.

Dates:

Monday 29th January 10-12pm

Book Here

Thurs 22nd March 1-3pm

Booking to come

3 Moves to think about with Diastasis

Priya Tew
 If you have abdominal separation, or are pregnant, here are 3 moves to stay clear of…
1. Sitting up from Lying
It’s such a simple everyday move but sitting up in bed is something to modify. Why? It puts pressure on your rectus abdominus or “six-pack” muscles. These muscles you want to look after. They have to stretch and make room for your growing bump and can separate. This can be a normal part of pregnancy but also something you can help lessen the risk of. Avoid any exercises like sit ups or curl ups or sitting up from lying on your back will help with this.
2. Lifting heavy weights which puts strain on your back, core and can affect your posture.
This can be hard to avoid if you have another young child. Try training them to walk or use a scooter more. Bring in the idea of sitting down for a cuddle rather than walking around holding them. I still have to carry my toddler but he now goes in a sling on my back which helps my posture and distributes the weight more evenly.
Lifting also puts extra pressure on your pelvic floor which is already working harder than normal.
3. Sitting in a bucket seat in the later stages of pregnancy.
Sitting on a sofa or almost any comfy chair can lead to your pelvis being tilted so you are not seated in the best position for either your lower back or to allow your baby to descend into your pelvis. Sitting on an exercise ball or a high backed chair will help you sit up tall so that baby can get into position easier.
Diastasis Recti