Breaking Muscle article: Restoring strength for your sport after a baby

"During pregnancy, the shift in weight distribution and centre of gravity causes pressure to mount on the mother's lower back, hips, and pelvis. This tightens the hip flexors and weakens the gluteals and hamstrings considerably. The imbalance can cause lower back pressure and a lot of pain. The abdominal wall may also separate, creating what is called diastasis recti, and the hormone relaxin is released which loosens all the ligaments in the pelvis. To top it all off, the ligaments of the pelvis, adductors and glutes are all weakened further during the birthing process. It’s a hell of a lot to deal with, and the overall result can be painful – many women have trouble climbing stairs and walking at a brisk pace.

But all is far from lost. I am back to doing the sports I love at a high competitive level, and I want you to get back to what you enjoy, at the level that you desire. The journey back to your former athleticism starts here..."

Read on about my article I wrote for Breaking Muscle Magazine about  getting your core and hips strong again after having a baby. There are step by step videos. Enjoy. 

http://breakingmuscle.com.au/au/mommy/how-to-restore-strength-for-sport-post-pregnancy

Here is an exercise from the article. Put a tennis ball in between your legs and move your knees from side to  side.

The good fats and the bad fats, not exactly what you thought...

Avocados are a monounsaturated fat and are considered hormonally neutral in that they don't affect your inflammatory levels.

We are all raised to think fat is bad and that it makes us fat... what a lot of people don'tnt  know is that if we eliminate all fat from our diet then our body will manufacture fats for it's survival. Fat is critical for our hormones, cell structures and vitamin absorption amongst other things. In fact vitamin A, D E and K are all fat soluble vitamins. So don't shy away from fats. 

There are a few different kinds of fats. Saturated, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. Today we are going to talk about the UNsaturated fats.  There is much contention about polyunsaturated fats. People think that they are all good for you because they are UNsaturated, but it all depends of whether they are an Omega 3, 6 or 9 polyunsaturated fat and how they are processed. Omega 6 polyunsaturated fats are everywhere in our diet.They are found in cooking oils such as canola, sunflower and safflower oil (which I don't recommend using, but that is a whole other blog). Other Omega 6 polyunsaturated fats we consume regularly are peanut butter, mayonnaise and salad dressings. Omega 3 polyunsaturated fats are found in fatty  fish such as salmon, tuna or sardines.  These polyunsaturated fats affect our hormones and our inflammatory levels. Generally speaking Omega 6 polyunsaturated fats increase  inflammation and  Omega 3's decrease  inflammation. 

Most of us have diets that are way too high in Omega 6 fatty acids which is why we suffer from the myriad of inflammatory based disorders such as asthma, eczema, arthritis, high blood pressure, depression, and the list goes on. In order to lower our levels of inflammation we need to consume more Omega 3 fatty acids such as fish, sardines and salmon.  If you can't handle all the fish, then take fish oils - but high quality oils, in small jars, found in the refrigerator. 

Monounsaturated fats on the other hand (which are also a liquid at room temperature) are considered hormonally neutral in that they don't affect your inflammatory levels. Fats found in avocados, almonds  and olive oil are ideal. 

So next time you freak out about fats, remember that they aren't all bad, but also remember that the ones you thought were good may not be so good for you. Stay away from the canola oils, mayo and salad dressings even though they may be unsaturated and opt for fish, avocado and olive instead. Replace peanut butter for almond butter. Your joints, skin, heart and just about everything will thank you!

First female black belt to be featured by Choke lab!

Choke Lab featured my favourite technique in the whole world - my over the top sweet from x guard that is actually set up from single x with the foot in the sleeve. I feel this is a great setup because it breaks down your opponent's posture really well and prevents the leg drag.  

The best thing about this is that I was chosen as the first female black belt to demonstrate a technique on their page!.  Thank you Choke Lab for the opportunity. 

Give this a try! https://youtu.be/niOzXtGoo6k

Why body building training may no be such a good idea for BJJ athletes

Side plank hold. There are many challenging body weight exercises that strengthen your core and your stabilizers which are essential if you are a BJJ athlete

What a lot of people don't know is that weight training as we know it came about from the body building industry where dudes who would toss around big chunks of metal in the form of bars or dumbbells in an effort to get huge.  Going to the gym and doing our 8-12 reps with some rest and then doing it all again 3 times through before we move to the next station is considered normal for strength training but it is actually stock standard hypertrophy training and ideal for body builders, not necessarily for a performance athlete.

Body building training is fine... if you want to be a body builder, or if you want to have great pecs for the beach (for the dudes) or if you want a perky butt in a tight pair of jeans (for the ladies). However this type of training may not help improve you in your sport. The body only knows the movement patterns and the amount of force exerted during that movement. It doesn't know numbers, weights or reps. The body only adjusts to the stimuli it is exposed to, so if you expose it to just a certain movement at a certain weight, with a certain range of motion at a certain speed for a certain amount of time, your body will respond to that specific stimuli only. Basically, what I am trying to say is that if you do slow steady hamstring curls in the gym but your sport requires you to do explosive take downs, then maybe the slow steady hamstring curls may not be that beneficial for your sport - even if you do end up with nice looking hamstrings.  What would be a better option would be plyometric box jumps or sled sprints to build on that explosive power.

Since the body only adapts to the specific stimuli it is presented with, it makes much more sense to do movement patterns that are the same or as close to as those of your sport. A jiu jitsu match can last anywhere between 5 - 10 minutes depending on your age and belt rank. Jiu Jitsu requires muscular endurance as well as bursts of intense power based movements so it would make more sense to do strength training in a circuit format with little rest. Body weight exercises are always best and adding explosive moments such as squat jumps and clap push ups will help you to build speed as well as cardiovascular fitness.

Sign up to receive my newsletters where I will be demonstrating some exercises that are ideal for developing strength for jiu jitsu.

I am hosting a women's Pan Am training camp

I am excited to be teaching a women's only training camp for the Pan Ams. This is a great opportunity to train and roll with other women since we compete with women. The sessions starting on March 5 untilMarch 12 will include techniques, drilling, timed rounds, conditioning and nutrition- eating for optimum performance and eating to make weight. This is open to any lady who wants to get her groove on in Las Vegas no matter what belt, team, patch, age or rank.
It should be fun!!! Please email me for details. Spots are limited.

A great chance to connect and to train with other talented ladies!

The Compound Effect- How your daily choices have a profound effect over time

The compound effect. Do your daily choices lead you little by little towards your goals or the life you want to lead? Are you where you are at in life because of the decisions you made or  because of the decisions you should have made but didn't?

We look at people who have 'made it' who are millionaires or multiple time world champions or totally zen and at peace, or have the perfect body or whatever it may be.... and it is easy to misconstrue that it happened overnight or that they just 'got lucky.' I am telling you that (with the exception of the Kardashians and Paris Hilton, lol) almost everyone spends years working hard to achieve these levels of awesomeness. Each day these hard working, driven people get up an hour earlier to go to the gym, or each day they spend an extra 20 minutes drilling, or each day they make the time for some mindful meditation- and that is why they have succeeded. 

A lot of us start the year with our goals and we are very diligently working towards them for the first week or so....until life gets in the way. In my most recent newsletter I discussed in detail some strategies that can help keep you focused, however here are a few main ones to consider: 
-  Work backwards and set out your long term goals. Where do you want to be in 5 years time, 1 year's time, one month, time and one week time. 

- Break down your goals day by day. This way you can set realistic and achievable goals.
This is actually where it all happens. This is how the COMPOUND EFFECT comes into play by actively making daily choices and decisions. If your goal is to lose the 20 pounds then are you going to opt for mac and cheese tonight or chicken and veggies?  

- Grab a diary and put reminder and motivational  notes around the house or the workplace where you can see them all the time.  

The COMPOUND EFFECT is so simple yet such an amazing formula to attain the life that you want. I believe that all your dreams can come true if you actively make it happen by making conscious choices that bring you closer to your goal at every moment.

Exercises to tighten and strengthen the glutes, core and hips after childbirth.

Here is a sneak peak of an article I wrote for Breaking Muscle Magazine about rehabilitating the hips, core and glutes after having a baby. These exercises are essential for every mother to do after giving birth to ensure the muscles are correctly tightened and strengthened to ensure a proper functioning body and balanced muscles. 

Many mothers experience back pain and pelvic pain and have a gap in between their abs known as Diastasis Recti. These exercises will help heal the pelvis, strengthen the glutes, stretch out the lower back that has been compressed for so long due to the forward pelvic tilt and tighten the abs. 

Twisting from side to side with a ball in the knees works the adductors and core and is a good stretch for the the lower back.

Arm and leg extensions work the core for balancing as well as the hamstrings, glutes, upper back and rear delts.

Whole Life Challenge, Sweet potato mash recipe

Check out my recipe that was published in Whole Life Challenge Magazine! The article talks about the best times to eat carbs so that there is less likelihood of them ending up on your hips and thighs. Sweet potato one of my preferred complex carbs since it is a vegetable with loads of antioxidants and other goodies. 

https://www.wholelifechallenge.com/sweet-potato-bacon-mash/

Sweet potato mash with a little bacon. - A healthy treat after a hard training session