Back in the Saddle (Sort Of)

My first "babies": Sophie (left) and Roxy

Two and a half weeks after giving birth to Luca, I managed to go for an hour long walk in the snowy woods with Sophie and Roxy. It felt pretty good – my pace was slow and I took in all the fresh air I could. But honestly, if it wasn’t for the dogs need to exercise, I probably wouldn’t have done it. I’m so sleep-deprived and my lower back is a little tweaked. (Childbirth ain’t for sissys!)

So my lower back…I went to my naturopathic doc last week and had an adjustment. He checked out my alignment and claimed that my pelvis is crooked, causing a muscle contraction in the lower lumbar spine – yuck! The good news is, with all the estrogren, my hips are “bound to return to their natural state at some point soon.” Several moms have told me that they came out of childbirth with misalignment and it’s very common – why didn’t I know this before? 

Which brings me to Sarah Palin – how on Earth did she go back to work three days after having her fifth kid? First, your child needs you around the clock on day 3 and second, you need to be in PJs on day 3! Maybe since it was her 5th she breezed through things…..but I’m puzzled by that.

But back to the dogs – they really do make you get outside, connect with nature and move. I have so much fun with them and I’m very proud of the fact that they are in great shape – they eat right, exercise often and get a lot of love. Did you know that animals in the wild are never overweight?

One last thing….everything in the woods right now is brown or snow covered but I came upon a vertical wall, like a cliff, that was covered with bright green fern. The fern looked neon in contrast to everything else! It took my breath away and I stopped and stared. Magnificent! It’s moments like this that I forgot about the bags under my eyes, the tweak in my back – and Sophie and Roxy were there to share the awe.

My Favorite Fitness Props

 

Every year, we move our living room furniture around so the xmas tree gets center stage, but look to the left - my two fitness staples, the foam roller and the physio-ball, also got relocated (but at least they stayed in the room!). When guests come over I'll stash them somewhere i swear....

Have you gone shopping in search of holiday gifts yet? I’ve gotta say, it’s not a pleasant experience for me and some people are really hard to buy for. Here are two wellness-oriented ideas that are inexpensive, and great for men, women and children, older folks and youngsters, the fit or the not very fit. They are the only two fitness props permanently in my house and they actually get used! Plus, they don’t take up much space and can be transported from room to room easily.

1. A Foam Roller (see in the picture, it’s the white cylinder standing upright) is great for muscle massage, posture perfection and ab-toning. You can find them online and also at most sporting goods stores. (I wrote a column about my love of the foam roller – to read it, click here.)

2. A Physio-Ball (the green thing in the pic besides the tree) is fun and versatile. I do passive back bends on mine and it really helps remove the day’s tension that accumulates around my lungs and chest. Physio-balls, also known as stability balls and swiss balls, are for sale at Target and cost anywhere between $20 -$50/each.

* As for a “honorable mention”  - I also adore using very light (1lb or 2lbs) wrist/ankle weights, but those I leave for full on Pilates/toning classes at the studio or the gym – they aren’t in my house.

I wish you all pain-free holiday shopping experiences! Good luck.  xo Ellen