About Moms - Prenatal and Maternity Leave

The baby's bones continue to increase in length and width. This thing doesn't have to be done in the account of your skeleton and teeth. You should have milk and cheese daily, in order to ensure the necessary calcium level for your child, so do not neglect:
- your weight: continue to measure it regularly
- the urine checkup

You are only a few weeks away from your birth term. You will soon start your maternity leave.

The maternity leave is not a luxury. You feel a lot heavier because of your increased uterus, very tired because of the blood circulation and breathe, due to the fact that your organs are more crowded then usually. Take advantage of this leave to rest a lot and continue to prepare yourself financially and mentally for your baby's birth.

picture source: abc.net.au

Soon, you will have to say goodbye to your work colleagues, because you will not see them for quite a while. When they will see you again in a couple of months, you will be a different person, hard to recognize: from a very tired, fat-looking person, you will become a young mother, happy and feeling in shape.

During the maternity leave:

• you should rest as much as possible; try to avoid any activity that can lead to a premature birth; if nature decided that the gestation period is 9 months long, it means that 9 months are enough for the baby's organs to become completely mature;

• continue with the relaxation and breath exercises, prepare the baby's room; it is better for him to sleep in a different room than yours; a baby should have his own room; if you are concerned at the thought that maybe you will not hear him, you may place his bed closer to your room, and leave the door open.

• think in advance about the baby's place to sleep and eat; his coming into your home is not an easy thing to happen, so it is best to organize in advance as efficiently as you can

• organize the life of your other children during the period that you will spend in the hospital

• think about how you can be helped in the days that follow after coming home from the maternity; if you do not have a mother or other relatives who can help, you should look for other solutions, because immediately after coming home you will have to rest and continue with the gymnastics and exercise; for this you will need to have somebody to help you taking care of your baby from time to time.

picture source: flickr.com

Tummy Exercise Myths

Our bodies are genetically conditioned on how we lose or gain weight. Interestingly enough, the first place where we gain weight is the last place where we lose it. We cannot reduce only the part we do not like. Once we lose fat from our body, we lose inches everywhere even where we do not want to lose.

The problem with tummy muscles is that we do not generally exercise this muscle in daily life. It is not greatly challenged from climbing stairs, bending, stretching or walking. We, therefore, have to make a special effort to encourage it to come back into line. The movements have to be small and controlled and depend on the effort put in by the exerciser to get really good results. Secondly during pregnancy, as the baby grows inside the muscle (transverse) is pushed forward. A huge amount of stretching is going on and tends to leave the muscle loose and hanging forward after the birth. It is essentially the lack of strength left in this muscle which allows the tummy to sit in that rather round forward position Mothers would recognise from after birth.

In all cases it is the lack of exercise for this muscle which causes it to become loose and give the 'pot bellied' appearance.

• Myth No. 1: By doing some midsection exercises one can reduce 'love handles'.

Fact: You cannot reduce fat from a certain targeted area of your body just by using exercise alone. And the abdominal area is no exception. So if you want to get a flat stomach and to reveal your abs, losing the fat covering them is the way to go. And the only way to do this is to lose fat proportionately from your entire body by burning more calories than you consume.

• Myth No. 2: You have to do tons of crunches.

Fact: Overuse of crunches will only shorten your abs, pull your head forward and gives you a bad posture. To reduce fat in your bodies, you need to do cardio exercise and eat nutritious foods in reasonable amounts. In simple language 'burn more calories than you consume.' The cardio helps to burn that stored fat and the lower calorie diet forces the body to use the accumulated fat for energy.

In addition, the crunches and a total body workout (with weight training) helps the body to increase muscle mass. Muscles burn fat; fat does not burn itself so, the more muscle we have, the more fat our body uses for energy, so we lose weigh faster. If you only do crunches, you will develop your abdominal muscles and strengthen them. This will reflect in better posture and less back problems, but you will not be able to see your abdominal muscles because they will be covered with fat

• Myth No. 3: Exercise is more important that nutrition.

Fact: Diet is one of the key factor when trying to get a flat tummy. Plan your nutrition in advance, to avoid dietary downfalls. Focus on protein, green vegetables, fiber-rich fruits, and zero calorie drinks such as Green Tea and water. Avoid all sugar.

• Myth No. 4: You must do train your tummy every day

Fact:You don't need to do direct tummy training every day. Instead, train them twice per week and use non-conventional exercises such as Mountain Climbers and Stability Ball Jackknives to reduce the stress on your low back. Avoid the overuse of crunches and sit-ups in your training program. Instead, beginners, should focus on abdominal endurance with planks and side planks, and work up to more advanced exercises, but still avoid doing hundreds of crunches lying on your back.

Concentrate on increasing daily incidental activity. Reduce the use of labour saving devices like remote controls etc. Rearrange the house or office environment so that it is physically inefficient making movement mandatory. Try standing or, even better, pacing when chatting on the phone. Park further away from the entrance of a shop, and use the stairs instead of the elevator. ...source: www.womenfitness.net

Hair Tips For The Winter Months

We have learned how to help protect our skin in winter, but very few product lines show us exactly how to help protect our hair. A dedicated winter rescue for dry, static, flyaway hair seems not only wise, but also mandatory.

"Cold weather dries out hair more quickly because there is less humidity in the air," says Sarah Kemp, spokesperson for the Pantene Pro-V "Winter Rescue Renewal" regime. "This dryness, combined with the cold makes hair brittle and susceptible to breakage. Wind can tangle the hair and cause individual strands to rub together, potentially damaging the cuticle layer, weakening the hair shaft, leading to damage".

* Here are some pointers

Few little things that you can do to protect your hair. I have listed some of my favorites and I hope that they will help you... until the warmer weather sets in.

* Use the appropriate shampoo and conditioner.

Some fab winter hats, from chic caps to the return of the beret, are being showcased in this year's fall and winter fashion collections. But this must-have seasonal accessory can cause static electricity and rebellious hair. Using a nourishing shampoo and an enriched conditioner will help lock in moisture and reduce static.

* Use conditioning products before using heated styling tools.

A gel or mousse alone isn't enough to protect the hair. If you normally use a gel before blow-drying, apply a repair cream, heat-protecting cream or leave-in conditioner first. Use it sparingly, especially on the ends, but don't forget it. You don't want to make your hair heavy or gunky, but more importantly, you don't want hot rollers applied directly to the ends of your unprotected hair.

* Shower in cold water

It's tempting to take a long hot shower, but the extra heat can dry out your hair, making it more prone to damage. Rinsing your hair with cold water after shampooing and conditioning helps keep moisture in, giving your hair extra shine.

* Reduce your use of styling appliances

Winter cold robs hair of its vital moisture, leaving it dry, brittle and more susceptible to frizz and static. Blow dryers and curling irons can harm dehydrated hair, leading to further damage. Keep your use of these styling appliances to a minimum and every week give your hair a special moisturizing treatment.* Don't go out with wet hair!To avoid damaging your hair, you've opted not to blow dry… but now you should stay indoors until your hair is completely dry. Believe it or not, damp hair can freeze and break when exposed to cold winter weather.* Get your hair trimmed.

It sounds like a no-brainer, but it's not always easy to fit more frequent haircuts into a busy schedule. Dryness starts from the ends. If you normally get your hair cut every 10 weeks, get it cut in eight weeks. If you usually trim your hair every six weeks, get it trimmed monthly. ... source:www.theworldwidegourmet.com

Enjoy the winter! Brrrrr...