Jennifer Nwankwo
6525 Decarie Blvd, Suite 217 H3W 3E3

Okay Mamas ! Just going to lay it out there...straight up . Though first, let me relate to you mom to mom and say that I totally get and know what it is to be a mama to a new baby or small child that requires so much attention , especially if you don't have the support system to help you out. Being a new mom can certainly be exhausting and where does the time go ?!?! On the other hand, as a perinatal physiotherapist, it is justified for me to say that no result tha...t you seek as a pregnant or postpartum mama comes without work. So this means, if you want to get stronger, fitter and recover in the best possible way, you have to routinely expose the structures of your body in question to forces and loads that go beyond your mundane tasks - WITHOUT EXCEPTION! Now, there is an ideal time and load to expose your body to and this varies from one woman to another. Nevertheless, the point I'm trying to make is if you are expecting results, you have to work for it and no one can turn your body into something that you desire but you. This means that you have to prioritize yourself too, invest the time and energy to make yourself better. If you're too tired and "don't have the time", that's okay mama ! Then maybe now is not the right time for you to put in that kind of extra. If you can at least care for your body in ways that will sustain it until you can give more, then that's what you do . Mama, don't expect more than what you are ready to give, but give the most you can for the state you are in, which also goes a long way . #postnatalhealth #postpartumbody #pregnancyjourney

For pregnant mamas who participate in resistance training , particularly if you are new to it, it is safe to perform heavy loaded exercises that produce an intra abdominal pressure (IAP) if done under 80% of one repetition maximum (1RM) to avoid circulatory complications for mama and fetus. In healthy nonpregnant adults, the IAP is 57 mm Hg whereas the resting IAP in healthy pregnant women increases with gestational age as follows: **Gestational age --> Mean IAP**:... <20 weeks --> IAP 57 mm Hg 2026 weeks --> IAP 810 mm Hg 2632 weeks --> IAP 1112 mm Hg >32 weeks --> IAP 1314 mm Hg Postpartum --> IAP 810 mm Hg During resistance exercises, holding one's breath to assist with the heavy force exerted (aka. valsalva maneuver ) is pretty inevitable when working with heavy loads >80% of 1RM. So what does this mean practically? Well, in order to ensure that the exercise load being lifted remains under 80% of 1RM, a load that elicits muscular fatigue when at least 9 or 10 reps have been completed is deemed safe (see suggested values below) for the pregnant woman and fetus, not to mention it does the body a whole lot of good . **# of reps --> %1RM **: 1 rep --> 100 2 reps --> 95 3 reps --> 93 4 reps --> 90 5 reps --> 87 6 reps --> 85 7 reps --> 83 8 reps --> 80 9 reps --> 77 10 reps --> 75 11 reps --> 70 12 reps --> 67 15 reps --> 65 Reference: Lozada MJ, Varun G, Levin D, Walden RL, Osmundson SS, Pacheco LD, Malbrain MLNG. Management of peripartum intraabdominal hypertension and abdominal compartment syndrome. Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica. 2019; Volume 98, Issue 11 p. 1386-1397. #prenatalfitness #prenatalexercise #pregnancyexercise #pregnancyhealth

The abdomen obviously gets stretched during pregnancy as the belly protrudes more and more forward over time. Although the abdomen serves to keep the organs behind it protected and supported, the abdomen is the easiest direction for a growing fetus in the womb to push against as it gets bigger cause the abdominal system is made of physical material (connective tissue) that can stretch for days...literally and duh ! So here's a rundown of the layers of tissue that make up t...his abdominal wall from the skin down to the deepest layer, before the gestational uterus and its visceral counterparts appear back there. 1) The skin = The protective barrier between the external and internal environments of the body. 2) Camper's fascia (fatty layer) 3) Scarpa's fascia 4) The investing fascia (3) = Superficial, intermediate and deep layers. These are the layers of thin tissue that will cover or be sandwiched in between the layers of abdominal muscles located on the front left and right sides of the abdomen (EO, IO, TA). 5) External obliques (EO) = muscle 6) Internal obliques (IO) = muscle 7) Transversus abdominal (TA) = muscle 8) Transversalis fascia 9) Peritoneum = multilayer between the abdominal wall and abdominal organs Now what about those "6-pack" ab muscles technically called the rectus abdominis in all of this ? Well, unlike the muscles listed above, the RA is centered at the front of the abdominal system and is anchored in place by layer #4 (the investing fascia). As a matter of fact the linea alba is formed by the layers (3) of layer #4 ...confused yet Oh wait a minute ! These are all the layers of abdominal tissue a surgeon has to get through in a c-section to get to the uterus. Yup! Not to mention, the tissue layers of the womb itself to get to the baby . #knowyourbody #pregnantbelly #postnatalrecovery #postpartumbelly #diastasisrecti

As an evidence-based practitioner in women's health physiotherapy, it is important for me to consider the research when working with my patients. I am so thankful for the time, energy and dedication that all researchers invest for clinicians like myself to help ppl who seek our care. Now I looooove this podcast "The Pelvic Health Podcast" hosted by pelvic floor physiotherapist and researcher Lori Forner, where she does these amazing interviews related directly or indirectl...y to pelvic floor health. I've learned so much, especially since I'm not one to randomly go about reading research articles , but after listening to the different topics and stories in her podcast, I've never wanted to look at research studies more! So thank you Lori for sparking that interest:) Now here's a podcast I was listening to entitled "Pelvic floor, running and continence" with researcher Dr. Monika Leitner. Here are some of her findings: Before heel strike (namely 30 millisecs before heel strike in this study), there is reflexive activity (i.e. muscle contraction - whether ms is lengthening or shortening has yet to be deciphered ) as per EMG detection. After heel strike (up to 150 millisecs after heel strike in this study), there is also a lot of reflexive activity of the pf. These pre and post heel strike results are found in both continent and incontinent women with no significant difference between the two groups. Though note that the group of about 50 women involved in this research project just happen to all have strong pf muscles (so a grade of 4-5/5 according to the Oxford Scale - a standardized scale used when manually assessing pf strength clinically) For more, listen to the podcast . Great stuff!