The Mom Crowd

I really am enjoying all of our guest bloggers this week! Our next guest blogger is Kristi Davis. Kristi has two beautiful children and is a certified personal trainer. She has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to fitness and nutrition! It is refreshing to hear some great advice from someone who is so down to earth and practical. I am very glad she agreed to share some of her knowledge with some of us who desperately need some help in this area.

Women are often many things to many people. You play the role of mother, daughter, student, wife, sister, employee, housekeeper, etc. It is so important that you take care of your mind, body, and spirit through good nutrition and exercise so that you can be there to take care of the people you love. Sometimes women feel guilty about putting
themselves first. They have a tendency to feel selfish. There is no need to feel guilty or selfish about spending time in the gym. After you get that workout in you will have so much more energy for the rest of the day. You will most likely be more productive and in a better mood than you would be if you skipped your workout. Another reason women put off exercise is because they don’t think they have the time it takes to workout. In reality we don’t need to take much time out from our day to get in an effective workout.

I recommend one hour of exercise 4-5 days a week. There are 24 hours in one day
and all you need is one of them. You are worth one hour! You might be wondering how you can get a total body workout in one hour. The answer is a combination of cardio and total body exercises using the weights and stability ball. Here is the plan below.

1) Warm up 3 minutes on the elliptical, bike, stair climber, treadmill, or whichever type of cardio equipment you choose.

2) Continue to do your cardio. Alternate 2 minutes fast pace, 1 minute of recovery. Then minutes incline or resistance, with 1-minute recovery. If you are on the treadmill you can vary this further with 2 minutes jogging, one minute walking, or 2 minutes sprinting 1-minute recovery. This is a cardio interval type of workout and burns more
calories than going one set pace on the equipment. Go for 27-28 minutes. Cool down 2-3 minutes.

3) Next you want to get the best bang for your buck when it comes to strength training. You need to do exercises that target large groups of muscles. Squats and lunges with a body bar (optional) are two of the best moves you can do for your legs. You can do 3 sets of 12. Rest in between sets. After you complete your sets try 3 sets of 12 push-ups. You can do them on your knees or on the stability ball. The push-ups target your core, chest, and triceps. Do you have a bosu ball at your gym? It looks like half a stability ball with a base. Try doing your bicep curls on the bosu. This will tone your biceps and your core. You can also work your triceps on the bosu. If your gym doesn’t have one or you are working from home try balancing on one leg while you lift the weights. Remember to keep your knees soft, core tight (suck in your stomach), shoulders back, back straight, and breathe while you are lifting weights.

4) The final exercises will be for your abs. The bicycle is the most effective abdominal exercise. To do this exercise start by laying on your back. You will then take your shoulders off the ground; chin faces up towards the sky, place your hands behind your head for support (don’t lace your fingers together) take your right shoulder up and across your body to meet your left leg. At the same time bring that left leg in towards your chest. Return to start and do the exact thing on the other side. Do 3 sets of 30 seconds. Finish your abs with some basic crunches on the stability ball (more effective than on the floor).

5) Stretch! This is the most important step and most people forget it. Stretching prevents injury, increases flexibility, and helps prevent sore muscles. Stretch out every muscle you worked with basic stretches. Breathe deeply as you stretch. Relax and don’t tense your muscles or allow them to bounce. Hold the stretches for 20 seconds.

You are done! You now have the energy to take your kids to the park or fold that mountain of laundry you have been avoiding all week.

Also, if you don’t have a gym membership you can do most of these exercises from your home. All you need are some good sidewalks, a park, or if you’re lucky enough home exercise equipment, a pair of light weights, and a stability ball. You can buy the stability balls at Wal-Mart and Target for around $20.00.

Lastly, if you only have 30 minutes to exercise choose with the cardio interval program. If you plan on working out again in the next 24 hours don’t work the same muscle groups. You need to give them a rest (abs excluded). You can do your cardio but you need to avoid doing the cardio intervals on back-to-back days. You can also opt to work different muscle groups like the shoulders, back, inner-thigh, and outer-thigh.

Kristi Davis
Certified Personal Trainer

Do you have any time saving exercising tips of your own?

I recently went to a baby shower and they asked everyone to write a piece of advice for the soon-to-be-mom. I wrote, “Trust your instincts.”

This was the best piece of advice that I received. Two weeks after I brought Ace home I tried Baby Wise for two days and I was in tears at the end of the second night. Daniel and I were discussing our next steps and he told me to trust my instincts, because he said that deep down I knew what Ace needed. That advice lifted all the guilt I had from not being able to live up to certain standards. I was now able to set my own standards, it was freeing. So now every time I am asked to give advice to new moms I was always say, “Trust your instincts!”

What is the best piece of advice that you have received?

Ace is six months old. I am still learning how to balance taking care of her and the house during the day. I could get things done while she naps, but then I end up either napping myself or justify taking a break. I sometimes think I will fold that basket of laundry after I lay her to bed, but then I usually get distracted.

Maybe getting the house in order is low on my priority list. I am home now and I don’t feel like I am living up to that part of the job. Is managing the house part of the job?

At the end of the day, Ace is great. She is fed and taken care of. Does staying home and managing the household get easier when they get older?

Does balancing the house and taking care of a baby depend on your cleaning and organization style? If I liked to clean, would I be more motivated to get it done? If my husband was more worried about the house would I be more motivated to get laundry/organized/dishes done?

I don’t expect all of these to be answered. Do you have any thoughts? If you stay home, what was it like when you first started?

P.S. I have written about this before. I guess I am still struggling with it. This is what came to mind when I thought about writing.

Often times the amazing things that we do as moms don’t make national
headlines. Sometimes our small accomplishments make the headlines at
our dinner tables and sometimes they go unnoticed. So here is your
chance to toot your own horn. Go on toot it! Let’s celebrate our
small victories together.

What did you do today that made you an amazing mom?

I’ll start:

I vacuumed the living room today. Now when my daughter rolls around
on the floor she doesn’t get cat hair and fuzz all over her drool
covered face. I have been wanting to do this forever. I am so glad it
is done!

Your turn…

291 days after giving birth to her daughter Paula Radcliffe wins the New York City Marathon. Check out the full story here.