New Lily

Running, Barre Classes, and Strength Workouts Combine to Make a Great Workout Schedule in My Mid-Forties

In my mid-forties strength workouts are one of the keys to fitness

In my mid-forties strength workouts are one of the keys to fitness

I turned 46 last February.  Wow…I am now closer to 50 than to 40 (but I’m ok with this – really)!  As I look ahead, I realize that I have settled into a routine that is suitable for my stage in life. Running, barre classes, and an at-home strength routine (often including the Lifecycle) …these are the workouts I love.  Of course for a mother of nine the other key to continuing fitness as I get older is strengthening my pelvic floor. [Read more…]

A Must Read…Key Reasons We Can’t Ignore the Pelvic Floor

elizabethPelvic floor health is crucial.  As a mother of nine and an exercise enthusiast, I realize that probably one of the most important things that I can do is to strengthen my pelvic floor muscles. For women especially, the pelvic floor should always be thought of as key to the core muscles.  While  it is far too under-emphasized, it has gained attention since our mothers were giving birth.  For that we should be grateful!

I remember being told by my ob/gyn, Dr. Tommy Megremis, after the birth of my sixth child, that I should seek out the help of a physical therapist who specialized in pelvic floor therapy because I was having symptoms of a weak pelvic floor.   I actually had no idea what he was talking about!  I had figured that I would simply have to bide my time before a surgical procedure would become a necessary and “normal” part of the aging process.  I am grateful to Dr. Megremis for sending me in a better direction, and after working for about 4-5 months with the physical therapist, I really noticed a change.  I was so encouraged. [Read more…]

Exercises to Prevent Pelvic Organ Prolapse

 

We can’t ignore the pelvic floor!

As I approach the second half of my forties, I realize that in order to stay fit and to continue to do the exercises, workouts, and other physical activities I like to do, I need to be proactive about strengthening my pelvic floor muscles.  I have talked about this before at 9 Kid Fitness, and I will continue to look for up-to-date information about the pelvic floor because I know just how crucial it is for women to be well informed.  The following is an interesting article from 9 Kid Fitness follower, Elizabeth Carrollton, who talks about some of the preventative measures women can take before having to do more invasive procedures such as surgery, etc. Elizabeth also writes about defective medical devices and dangerous drugs for Drugwatch.com.

Pelvic Organ Prolapse (POP) often can be prevented with proper exercises. In fact, many of the exercises d to prevent the condition can also be used to treat mild to moderate cases of POP. Surgical intervention has become a common treatment for moderate to severe symptoms of POP. This is unfortunate because surgery is an invasive procedure that has inherent risks. In fact, one of the most common types of surgery used to treat pelvic organ prolapse uses a high-risk medical device called transvaginal mesh, which has been linked to severe health complications in as many as 10 percent of surgeries. [Read more…]

Do Not Ignore the Pelvic Floor (and Here’s a Website to Help)…

The pelvic floor is crucial to our core.

I recently came across a great resource I would like to share with my 9 Kid Fitness readers (at least the women in the group)! As you might know from reading my blog I am always seeking ways to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles and I believe those muscles are a crucial part of our core.  As I get older and continue to exercise, pelvic health has become even more important to my overall health and especially to my ability to stay functionally fit!  What do I mean by  functionally fit?  My fitness is so much more than simply my daily workouts … I need to be “fit for life” and that means for all of the different roles I have and for the many daily demands that I face (#9 is three and as the baby of the family…still loves to be held)!  Although the “demands” may change, they  will only continue to be varied as I get older. In other words I need to be fit for all of my life, not just for the hour or so a day that I workout. [Read more…]

No One is Going to Remind You, So Remind Yourself…Do Those Kegels!

It ocurred to me recently that I have been lackadaisical about pelvic floor exercises. I had been doing them regularly for some time, but I have gotten lazy. Wouldn’t it be nice if we had someone reminding us to do them? We can pretty much count on most group exercise classes ending with some sort of stretching routine. Don’t you wish they did that with pelvic-floor exercises? “Ok everyone, some quickie Kegels to end the class”… [Read more…]

How many Kegels Should We do Everyday?

I think there is a lot of confusion these days about how many Kegel exercises we should be doing.. I was told long ago that I should be doing at least 30 and as many as 60 Kegels everyday! In looking into this question, I recently came across an archive blog from physical therapist Tasha Mulligan’s Hab It blog. She describes a “quick flick” Kegel that is very efficient – you might be surprised at the number of exercises she suggests!

By Tasha Mulligan
I was asked a great question the other day regarding Kegel exercises and the confusion caused from some recommendations to complete 80+ repetitions per day vs. my recommendation to complete only 8-10 repetitions per day. [Read more…]

An Improved Kegel Exercise

One of my New Year’s resolutions is to do more Kegels. I have never liked to do these exercises and I figured it was because I couldn’t really see the results. But I came across an article by physical therapist Tasha Mulligan, who explained another reason many women don’t like to do Kegels. She also gives us a tip on how to do them better. Hopefully others can benefit from reading this article as well! You can also check out Tasha’s excellent “Hab It” Blog!

By Tasha Mulligan
So many women have been told to “do your Kegels.” They may do hundreds each day with no results. Talk about frustration! What they need to recognize is the importance and key role of their transversus abdominus (TA) muscle in relieving symptoms of pelvic floor dysfunction (including both prolapse and incontinence). This isn’t so much the fault of the women receiving the message but, rather, the fault of the health care provider giving this incomplete instruction. [Read more…]

Looking Back on 9 Kid Fitness in 2011

Finishing up our first year at 9 Kid Fitness, I want to thank all of you who have visited our site, contributed with comments, and just checked in with us via Facebook and Twitter. Launching last March, my hope was to engage with others who are trying to make fitness a priority in their very busy lives. Thank you for being a part of the 9 Kid Fitness community, and I hope that we will continue to find support and encouragement from each other in 2012! Today I would like to look back over the last year and highlight nine of the most visited posts at 9 Kid Fitness:

1. Me vs. Victoria’s Secret I take on the image of women that Vicoria’s Secret portrays in their holiday commercials (among other things).

2. When I Run I Feel His Pleasure Many of us Feel God’s presence when we run, and in this post I talk about how it felt for me. [Read more…]

Three Things Women Can do for Exercise Induced Incontinence

We are starting to hear more people talk about issues related to the pelvic floor, and this is a really good thing. Pregnancy, childbirth, episiotomy, fibroids, chronic coughing, menopause, weight gain or inactivity all can contribute to decreased tone, strength, and flexibility of the pelvic floor. When this happens we can experience symptoms of urinary or stool incontinence or other problems related to pelvic organs such as sagging or prolapse, low back pain, painful intercourse, etc. Since the most common is urinary incontinence, most women can relate to the experience of leaking urine, whether during pregnancy, postpartum, or as they get older. And for many, exercising is where it rears it’s ugly head.
[Read more…]

Why We Should Walk Like a Monster

I hate the Monster Walk…er, I love the Monster Walk. I hate it because it hurts. I love it because it hurts. Most of us know (from our days of listening to our parents and then becoming them) that what is good for us usually requires a little sacrifice from us, but is always worth the effort. That’s how I feel about the Monster Walk. It’s basically a walking squat. With a band (or rubber shackles) around your ankles, you spread your legs apart to create resistance, and then take a step and squat. Then with the other leg, you take a step, and squat again. In other words, after each step you squat. [Read more…]