A Guide to Kegel Exercises
What Are Kegel Exercises? Let’s talk about Kegels: kee-gels or is it kay-gels? Either is correct, so it doesn’t matter how you say it! This term means a shortening contraction of the pelvic floor muscles, just like a biceps curl is a shortening contraction of the biceps muscle. The name for this exercise comes from […]
Caring for Yourself as a New Mom
Becoming a mom for the first time was something I did later than most. I celebrated my 39th birthday just 12 days before my daughter was born. The advantage of being an older first-time mom, as I saw it, was that I’d already checked a lot of boxes in my life. I’d traveled around the […]
4 Tips for Exercise While Breastfeeding & Pumping
Returning to exercise postpartum can be challenging, and doing so while breastfeeding or pumping only adds further complexity to the process. The ACOG suggests postpartum women stay active for 20-30 minutes a day and focus on “exercises that help strengthen major muscle groups, including abdominal and back muscles.” But will working out impact milk production? Is it […]
What is the Pelvic Floor? Definition, Anatomy and More
It’s impossible to be on the journey of motherhood without hearing about the pelvic floor. Weak pelvic floor, overactive pelvic floor, pelvic floor exercises, pelvic floor physical therapy; these terms get tossed around with little explanation. Which can often lead to endless Google searches that leave you more confused than when you started. So let’s start from […]
A Working Parent’s Case for Meditation
When I was in my late 20s and my grandmother was around 80, I tagged along with her to hit a few tennis balls. She still played doubles and had always hoped I would learn to play tennis. A lifelong sport, she called it, and by that age was proving it on a weekly basis. […]
Self-Care Without Candles: Redefining Wellness for Parents
Self-care is everywhere. Bubble baths, massages, Instagram encouraging you to “take time for yourself.” Get up early to have coffee and meditate, or take a forest walk. It can get to the point where self-care itself is yet another thing to check off the to-do list. Send emails. Make lunches. Clean Cheerios off floor. Take […]