Where are you on your to do list?
I was talking to another provider here at Nurture recently and it made me think how moms really do put themselves at the BOTTOM of their to-do list.
I have seen moms have a difficult time making a commitment to their movement practice.
If something comes up THEIR self-care, their me time, whatever it is that was scheduled for them is what falls to the wayside.
The reason I bring this up is that I want you to know that you don’t have to set aside an hour a day to move more and feel better in your body.
I teach Restorative Exercise, which is a set of movements that you can practice regularly to have a strong fully functioning body. It is a way of unwinding the tensions caused by modern living. I want to encourage you to take more frequent and shorter movement breaks instead of being in the mindset that you NEED a full-hour workout which the thought of may stop you before you even get started.
If you have 10 minutes before you have to pick the kids up from school, go for a 10-minute walk.
If you are exhausted at the end of the day and you just put the kids to bed, take just a few minutes to stretch and wind down before bed. Your body will thank you and you will sleep better.
If you sit at a desk all day it is easy to sit in the same exact position for long periods of time. Our cushy office chairs make that easy to do. Try to create some sort of routine maybe every time you get up to refill your water glass.
Every time you get up, take a #movementbreak. Do a calf stretch, figure four, or a quad stretch. Then sit back down to work feeling a little more energized and it doesn’t take more than 2 or 3 minutes.
I use domes to do calf stretches. If you placed one in your bathroom, every time you go in there you are reminded to do a calf stretch. It’s easy. It’s right there.
You could also set a timer, a mindful reminder every 20-30 minutes encouraging you to get up and MOVE.
This way you are moving more when it is convenient for you. Making it happen in shorter bouts more often will be more beneficial than one hour every once in a while.
Make sense?
I offer weekly classes at Nurture, the movements may look like something you have done before, but they have a little different spin to them. No, you won’t be soaking wet and sweaty but you will feel great. After class, my students say they feel refreshed, relaxed, and ... a little sore. Because really if your body is under moved you will be a little sore when you move more of it.
I am also available for private 1 on 1 sessions here at Nurture. If you have a specific pain pattern that you'd like some special attention to I’m here to help. After these sessions, you will receive a written description of all the new movements you learned as a reminder of what you can do during your movement breaks.
If you keep it up and continue working with me you will learn all the corrective exercises that I teach and then when you have 5 minutes of downtime and your feet hurt you will think ohhh I should do the top of the foot stretch Heather taught me. Or if your low back hurts you think hmmm I bet a quad stretch would feel really good right now.
I love helping women resolve their foot pain, neck and shoulder pain, low back, hip, and knee pain also helping them to see how their sedentary habits are exacerbating their pelvic floor dysfunction.
If you have any questions about my classes or private sessions you can email me at heather@abundantbalance.com. And if you’re ready to commit to moving more you can sign up for a drop class here.
I look forward to seeing you soon!
Heather Josten
Founder, Abundant Balance