And this is progress right here that I'm proud of and grateful for. I can do a deep squat to put air in my tires. My posture is spot on because my core muscles are very strong. I can twist my neck and back with a full range of motion when I look behind me to check the tire pressure reading on the machine. I am functionally strong, stronger than I've been in my whole life. And even though my gap from Diastasis Recti isn't completely closed, my core is functioning optimally so that I can do everyday tasks and movements with ease, without discomfort. I still have a ... Continue Reading...
Review: MamaWay Post-natal Recovery & Support Belly Band
{I was given this product for the purposes of usage and review. All opinions expressed are mine alone :-)} Let me just say this: I did not just have a baby. Nope, in fact, I birthed my last of the Dean tribe over 15 years ago. So why would I be trying out a post-natal belly band? Great question, and I hope that my answer will help many of you. I have been working through a diastasis recti {read my story here} since the birth of our first child back in 1996. I WISH that I had had a band like this, AND I have learned that I can still benefit from "splinting" ... Continue Reading...
The Tummy Rehab Chronicles part 3
I was having a moment, feeling a little glum about my tummy rehab. I have been working on this tummy situation for more than 15 years, off and on, and I wasn't seeing the results that I thought I should be seeing by now. {Read: closure of my DR, and a nice tight tummy area. If you are coming in on the middle of my journey, feel free to read a little of my story here.} So, I have had to allow my thinking to be shifted to what is realistic ...and also to what is really going RIGHT with my body! [Thank God for prayer :-)] I was missing the power of my ... Continue Reading...
Core Integrations: holding my head up
{ I was given this program for the purposes of use and review, and this post contains affiliate links. All opinion expressed are my own ;-)} I am learning just how important it is to hold my head up. I'm not talking about being proud of who I am and proud of my body, although that certain is a part of my tummy rehab process. No, I'm talking about the physical act of holding my at the proper angle when I sit, work on the computer, walk, and run. Core Integrations from the Tummy Team is giving me the extra information and techniques that I need to integrate core ... Continue Reading...
Continuing #TummyRehab: The Tummy Team’s Core Integrations
As many of you who follow me on this blog know, I just finished some much needed tummy rehab in January of this year. This was due to dealing with a diastasis recti which occurred after the birth of my first child, over 19 years ago. It was such a blessing to be able to do the Tummy Team's Core Foundations online program for some dedicated rehabilitation on my core muscles and functionality. {You can read a review of that program from Kelly Dean here.} So I was excited a few weeks ago when I was given the opportunity to do the follow-up program that Kelly just began ... Continue Reading...
Fitness journey update #1: #MyMarchMarathon !
We are off to a good start! If you have been following me (and for those just tuning in), I start my own fitness challenge for March. In honor of the Disney Princess Half festivities that happened in February (and since I could not be down in Orlando in all that warm weather) I decided to run my own marathon. Now, I am not at the point where I can run all 26.2 miles at once, so the challenge is to do it in the month of March, breaking down the mileage into weekly chunks. And hence, the #MyMarchMarathon was born! You can read more about it here. First, let me say that ... Continue Reading...
#TummyRehab and planks: are they mutually exclusive?
For those who have been following me through the past few months, you have read about my journey to restore my core from a diastasis recti (DR). My tummy rehab journey has been and continues to be a WORK in progress, insightful and rewarding. To catch up on my progress, click here, and for a review of the PT program I just completed, click here. So, a couple of days ago I was pointed (by a mentor and friend Beth Learn) to a post that opened my eyes a bit more and gave me even more hope. This article was authored by Julie Wiebe, an accomplished PT and an expert in her ... Continue Reading...
Refreshing review: The Tummy Team’s Core Foundations online rehab program
{I was given the Tummy Team online rehab program for the purposes of use and review. Affiliate links may be included in this post, and all opinions expressed are my own.} Here I am at the end of my tummy rehab...what a difference 8 weeks makes! These past 2 months have be informative, enlightening, challenging and transformative. I am proud of my efforts, and I am amazed at the changes that I see in my body. There is much to say about the Tummy Team's Core Foundations program, so let me address them in sections. Firstly, this program is ... Continue Reading...
Refreshing recovery: #TummyRehab week 6
{I was given the Tummy Team online rehab program, and the Skype call, for the purposes of use and review. All opinions expressed are my own.} Oh, this is about so much more than a flat tummy. Here I am a few days into week six of The Tummy Team's Core Foundations online program. Over these past 6 weeks, I have received consistent and top-notched (and MUCH needed) PT for my core. Kelly Dean has explained to me the science of how my body functions without being over-technical or talking over my head. She has shown me one rehab step, one tweak, at a time to keep me ... Continue Reading...