Hear my teleconference....

Happy New Year! This is my first post of 2009 and I will be posting on a regular basis from now on....in any case, I hope everybody's holiday season was fantastic and restful. Last Sunday (Jan 11th), I was invited to share my thoughts regarding prenatal exercise on a teleconference. The moderator was one of my Twitter fitness friends (Angie Jones @FitBizWoman). It lasted about 45 minutes, but it is extrememly good content. Download it to an MP3 or iPod and get some great advice:) Enjoy.....

http://fbwinterviews.s3.amazonaws.com/Brent%20Parkhill.mp3

I Guess I'll Have to Change My Plan--Frank Sinatra

As a personal trainer, I am constantly fielding quesions about fitness and nutrition. One question that I have probably heard the most is "What is more important...exercise or what I am eating?" My answer is the same each and every time. No matter what your goal is, nutrition is the key. If your goal is fat loss, your nutritional intake needs to be consistent with losing fat. If your goal is to be as strong as a horse, you need to eat like a horse. Same reasoning would apply to exercising...if an individual is training to become a better athlete, their training plan should be athletically based (not bodybuilding based).

Why do I bring this up? Just because you are pregnant now does not mean that you have to eliminate training. Goals and end results are now changed. Therefore, training and nutritional plans need to be changed. Exercises that are going to support your growth now need to be utilized and typically an increase in calories needs to be adopted.

In my previous posts, I have provided basic exercises that are excellent choices to help keep your pregancy fit...stay tuned for more!

Disbelief!!!

I am writing this post as a rebuttal to the most insanely asinine article that I have seen in a long time!! By a well respected newspaper notheless. The article is titled..."The good news: No more sit-ups". Here is the link http://tinyurl.com/5z63xj. The article is presented to women and the author and so-called trainer that presented it are completely off base on the vast majority of the information. As a certified personal trainer and a well studied individual on women and training, I am completely offended by the information presented! Three of the five exercises that are mentioned as ones to stay away from have been documented and researched as the best exercises for any type of training goal. I am open to any research that has been done that proves otherwise.

Sorry for the rant...I just wanted to make sure that women who are looking to begin a resistance training program are not fooled by some of the so-called experts. Do your research and seek the most qualified pro to educate you so you can reach your fitness goals!!

Exercise of the week

Hello all mom's-2-be...how are y'all feeling? Hopefully fantastic! In my previous post, I described an exercise that creates strength and stability thru the hips, hamstrings, and the all important butt:) As your pregnancy progresses, this is going to be of upmost importance. When your frontside continues to grow, you want to ensure that you are doing exercises to create balance. Hips will begin to shift forward (anterior pelvic rotation) and this could lead to low back pain. This exercise can be used in any stage of pregnancy. The Firehydrant (it is an oldie but goodie)....

Make sure when you do this exercise that your core is tight and you are not leaning to one side. Keep knee bent at 90-degrees and slowly raise it to the side (caution-get your leg up to YOUR maximal height...do not try to get it further than YOUR range of motion). Lower the leg and repeat. Generally speaking, do 3 sets of 10-12 reps with each leg. This is an excellent corrective movement to do in order to have a fit pregnancy!

Until next time.....

This is unbelievable!!

Looks like moms-to-be are on the rise (American's are experiencing a baby boom of sorts...and with more people staying home to save some money in these rocky times...statistics will continue to climb. The scary part of these stats is that, according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), 33% of these women were outside the weight guidelines for healthy pregnancies. 13% of expectant moms were underweight (gain of 16 lbs or less) whuch is associated with the risk of underweight babies and preterm labor. A staggering 21% are overweight (gain of 40 lbs or more) which is associated with problems like gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, increased risk of cesarean sections and episiotomies, and weight retention after birth. Also, according to the CDC, more moms-to-be are seeking prenatal care (an increase of over 70% since 1990).

This paints a picture where fitness is obviously taking a back seat. It describes a situation in which moms-to-be are not getting the education and information they need to have a healthy pregnancy. Just as an athlete fine tunes his/her body for an athletic event, a mom-to-be needs to do the same. Fitness should be an integral part of a healthy pregnancy and enable the new mom to "keep up" with their new addition!!

Until next time....

I've said it before...I'll say it again

Hi again...If I had a nickel for everyone that asked me what is the best exercise to do to reach my goal, I would be a very rich man:) My answer to them is quite simple...look at what you are putting in your mouth first! The best exercise to do is to track your nutritional intake and then change your habits to reflect your goal. From preganancy to fat loss...this is critical to reaching your goal. I have been fortunate enough to be around some very knowledgable fitness professionals and I have a quote to leave you with this evening...."Change your goals or change your habits." Until next time...keep growin'!



Keep

Exercise of the Week

Wow...what a week!! I wanted to get on and post this exercise earlier this week, but sick kids and lack of sleep tend to weigh on your psyche:) This will be a weekly blog that I post to describe tons of exercises that will help as your pregnancy progresses. All right...here I go....

This exercise is excellent for strengthening the glutes, hamstrings and low back. During pregnancy, growth of the baby causes a shift in the positioning of the pelvis. The pelvis rotates forward (this is a natural compensation pattern as the belly gets larger). In doing so, the glutes, hamstrings, and low back can weaken (and the hip flexors become shortened and tight). The best defense for this is to get glutes firing!! This exercise has many different names...I happen to call it the "Butt Raise".

Start in a comfortable position on your back with your heels placed roughly 12 inches from your butt. Your feet should be about 3-6 inches apart. At this point, start pushing thru your heels (if you lift your big toes, it makes it easier). Make sure that your knees do not buckle in (this is key!!!). As you press thru your butt will raise off the floor. You should feel this in your butt and hamstrings alot!! Keep your body straight (from your heels to your shoulders). Hold the top position and squeeze your butt. Bring the your butt back down and skim the floor. Repeat for 10-12 reps. Rest about 90 seconds and do another set. You can do 3-4 sets.

Stay tuned for more exercises!! Until next time...keep growin'!!