Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
The New Mom Podcast is a Christian motherhood podcast for women navigating pregnancy, postpartum, and early motherhood.
Whether you're a first-time mom, expecting, or in the middle of sleepless nights, this show offers real, honest conversations about motherhood, marriage, identity, and faith. We talk about birth stories, postpartum recovery, relationships, mental health, and trusting God through every stage of motherhood. If you're looking for encouragement, practical advice, and a reminder that you're not alone—this podcast is for you.
Our prayer is that New Mom leaves you feeling seen, strengthened, and a little more equipped for the beautiful calling of motherhood!
New episodes weekly.
Welcome back to New Mom. I am so excited about today's episode personally. This is a pregnancy and postpartum fitness episode with my cousin in law, Janelle Ahrens. She founded Phase Empowerment in 2016 and has served over 2,000 women in establishing better habits for fitness and nutrition. And she's also helped many women specifically with pregnancy and postpartum fitness and nutrition goals over the last five years.
Carrie:This conversation is so helpful whether you are preparing your body to become pregnant or you're in the first, second, third trimester postpartum. We really cover all of it. This might be a note taking episode. So I hope you guys enjoy getting to know Janelle and hearing some of her awesome encouragement. Basically her main piece of advice is, remember that you are stronger than you think you are.
Carrie:So hope you enjoy this moms. Welcome Janelle. Hi. Hello, Thank you so much for being our new mom.
Janelle:Thank you for having me. I Absolutely. Like I was telling you before we went on live today, you are you were meant
Carrie:to do this. Like Thank you.
Janelle:You were meant to do this. So I am honored to be here.
Carrie:I'm so happy to have you. We are coming at you from Tip City, Ohio from my hometown, again with Janelle. And you are just to introduce everybody, you are not technically my cousin. You're married to my cousin.
Janelle:Yes.
Carrie:But I feel like you've been in my family basically my whole life because you guys have been dating so long. When did you guys start when did you and Kyle start dating?
Janelle:We started dating we went to Freshman Homecoming together. Oh,
Carrie:so cute. It's the most adorable small town story ever.
Janelle:Thank you. I'm gonna say I love our story too.
Carrie:Your story's like the best. It's like it's goals.
Janelle:It's simply goals. As soon as to and then our conversation today, it's like just the whole motherhood and the transitions that happen and doing that with like your spouse is like the most magical thing ever. Yeah. It is pretty awesome. So, yeah.
Janelle:I've like where we're at today recording this, it's like, it's just so good to to see you.
Carrie:Yeah. It's good to see you too. Yeah. We get to I feel like we're, we come from a very big family like, my cousin Kyle and, you know, your kids and everybody. It's like we have a there's a lot of us.
Carrie:So I don't get to see each other all the time, but thank goodness for social media because I feel like I get to keep up with you a lot. And then also whenever we do all get back together, it's always a blessing and it's always so fun.
Janelle:Because look where you left off.
Carrie:You do. Yeah. You do. And I'm super grateful for you because well, tell us a little bit about your business because I feel like that's a good way to kinda get started in this this fitness pregnancy conversation.
Janelle:Yes. So I I always say I'm a health and fitness coach for women. But more specifically, I help women who are interested in weight loss and body recomposition. So building muscle, losing body fat and doing it in a way that they can keep up these habits after they like reach their goal, essentially. So my business started ten years ago now, which sounds crazy to say.
Janelle:I was in Have
Carrie:we been like out of school for anything for ten years?
Janelle:100%.
Carrie:We're teen moms over here.
Janelle:Exactly. I'm like, wait, I'm like almost 30. That's crazy.
Carrie:That can't be.
Janelle:But I started so from a personal experience when I went to college freshman year, like, I guess maybe a little bit more of a backstory would be. Yeah. Grew up in a house where my one of six kids. My mom never really bought like what we call the fun food. And so it was like, if you're if you're hungry for a snack, grab a fruit and vegetable, you know, home homemade meals with the family.
Janelle:And then when I got to college, was my eyes were way bigger than my plate. And I was an athlete my whole life. So I was still in the gym working out, but I gained thirty thirty to 40 like really quickly. And I was like, who is this now? Like, I didn't recognize myself.
Janelle:None of my clothes fit. I was like, how do I go from where I am to where I wanna be? Like, it's it confused me like the heck out of me.
Carrie:Oh my gosh. Especially that age. College age girls. I feel like so many women struggle with the body image in college regardless of like childhood and all that stuff. But I bet especially when you're just like out of nowhere feeling like you don't recognize yourself in your body.
Janelle:Yeah. And I was so confused because I was like I said, was working out like seven days a week. That was a habit that I had instilled like just from being an athlete. Yeah. And I was like, it it literally must just be the food.
Janelle:Like that's what like what the problem is, my food. So I wanted so I resorted to first like just cutting carbs.
Carrie:That's what I thought I needed to do.
Janelle:I was googling is fruit healthy? Like I did had no idea where
Carrie:it Is it healthy? I love it. Like is it is it a sugar? Like what's so real? Yes.
Janelle:So real. So I I did.
Carrie:I cut carbohydrates and I felt like I
Janelle:was starting to see body changes. But one day I was in my dorm and I was seeing black spots. And I like felt like I couldn't see straight and went to the urgent care. They told me I was dehydrated. And I'm like, I don't think that's the case, but okay.
Janelle:So went home and I was like, I'm probably not eating enough food. And so I was like, I need to learn. I need to learn all about food. And so that's where it really my interest in health and fitness really started. So I essentially help women walk through kind of the same experience of they find themselves thirty, forty pounds heavier than they'd like to be and they have no idea what to do.
Janelle:So yeah, that's that's why I've served over about 2,000 women so far in
Carrie:my business. So
Janelle:amazing. And it's very rewarding and yeah, I love what I do.
Carrie:That's amazing. And then when did you specifically get, into the pregnancy and postpartum space? Because you specialize in that as well.
Janelle:Yes. That's been about three and a half years in the making. So, yeah. So after my first pregnancy with Jayla, which we'll talk about, I'm
Carrie:sure throughout the episode, there's more details on that.
Janelle:I was very sick during my pregnancy. I was the strongest and leanest that I'd ever been when I got pregnant with my first daughter. I have three kids. I don't know if I mentioned that yet.
Carrie:Yeah. Was gonna say we didn't say you need to say it. She has three adorable, adorable kids. And how old are they now?
Janelle:Jayla is almost five, Liam just turned three, and Adeline is one year old. Okay. So and they're all just such different experiences. It makes the whole experience super beautiful. But when I got pregnant with Jaila, our first, I was strongest and leanest I've ever been.
Janelle:And I went into a very sick pregnancy. Like I puked like twice a day for like twenty six weeks. Was like, this is
Carrie:Rough. Rough. Yeah.
Janelle:It was hard. And just like a little bit of context, when I got pregnant with Jaila, was like one hundred and forty eight pounds. And I lost like 15 pounds of muscle throughout that pregnancy. Because I was so sick, I didn't know how to work out. And I knew we wanted more kids.
Janelle:I was like, okay, if I'm gonna go into our second pregnancy, I want to be prepared. Like I wanna know even as a personal trainer, like I know all this stuff about muscle building, fitness, body recomposition. I know like I'm an expert at this, but when it comes to pregnancy, it's just different.
Carrie:It is different.
Janelle:And I don't think women realize that or not even just women, just general population. Like, not every personal trainer knows fitness for pregnancy.
Carrie:Yes. Yes. I did realize that like as I learned that in pregnancy that it's very specific and that the needs are different and the goal should be different.
Janelle:Yes. Yeah. And so I was like, I'm going to go into my second pregnancy with like having a plan in place. And so that's when I got my certification. I was like, I'm gonna learn everything I can.
Janelle:And it made a world's difference during my pregnancy with my second. Like labor and delivery was about 10 times better. And we can talk more about that throughout the episode too. But yeah. So that's when that's when my interest in like the fitness for pregnancy world really
Carrie:So great. Well, it's blessed me a lot because I love your podcast, which is which is called Fitness for Pregnancy. For Pregnancy by Janelle Ahrens. Okay. Love that.
Carrie:And I I listened to that when I was pregnant. I actually listened to it, I think when I was when we just started trying to conceive because I wanna say you had an episode on that maybe about or you at least touched on it of like nutrition and fitness stuff even if you're if you're newly pregnant or if you're trying to become pregnant, things like that. So I started listening to you because you were really my only resource that I knew of. Yeah. I'm so thankful for it.
Carrie:And it really it just really helped me from first trimester on because you have specific episodes about each trimester. You just do a really good job of that and your episodes are short and concise. And I was just able to I remember first trimester, was like five weeks pregnant, still feeling good. And so I'd listen to your first trimester fitness episode. Like, this is how you're gonna feel throughout the trimester and these can be your goals.
Carrie:And if you can only do five minutes, do five minutes. And you're just such an encouraging presence for women that are expecting and and women that really that are at any phase of life. But I really appreciated that. So that's kinda why I wanted you on today. I'm like, let's give the people what I appreciated and what so many of us I know like Amber, so many of us in our family, just look to you for that stuff.
Carrie:And but yeah. So I guess if I could, I'd love to briefly touch on tips and your experience of things that are helpful even before like just when someone is considering trying to start, like trying to conceive, trying to have a baby because I didn't realize like I guess before I started trying to conceive, I had this moment of, okay, I think we're ready for this. And I realized like I was kind of an intermittent faster at the time. And I was like, I did a lot of strength training but I also was a total cardio bunny. And I was like, I kinda just worked out for fun.
Carrie:Right? I was like, I'm I'm pretty fit. I'm having fun with this. I try to eat pretty lean. And then I remember that moment of, okay, what is actually optimal for fertility and for health for my body?
Carrie:And the goals became different. So touch on that a little bit if you could. Yes. I I love this conversation because it really goes to say like, it's not
Janelle:it it is a very specific time. Like if you wanna get pregnant, like caring about your health is super important from like the moment of conception. And really if someone's like hoping to make lifestyle changes, those changes should be starting like, they should be implemented at least like four months before you conceive. Okay. Like four months of consist four months of consistency is about the time frame where like the change can really start happening.
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:And so if we're looking at some goals to set in that preconception state,
Carrie:I would say, I guess one misconception a lot
Janelle:of women have is they need to go slow or they they can't raise their cortisol or they they're they want to take Yeah. Because they they're they're afraid they're gonna do too much.
Carrie:I've definitely heard that misconception a lot. It's like just just rest. So just yeah.
Janelle:Yeah. Chill. Chill and don't go too hard or don't, you know. And and honestly, it would be really hard to go too hard. Although it's not that you need to You don't need to, you know, work out seven days a week for an hour either.
Janelle:Like that's not necessarily the goal. But if you are hoping to, you know, conceive in the next six months, I would say muscle building would be a primary goal. So more muscle the better, especially like given my my scenario with my with my first pregnancy, which I guess I can touch more on that now. Yeah. Before we, I couldn't believe just like how sick I was and how much I did Oh, I naturally just didn't do much because I was so sick.
Janelle:And you do that that is one way
Carrie:to lose muscle mass. Not that it
Janelle:would be like, not that not to tell anyone listening it's you're gonna lose your muscle mass while you're pregnant because it's not the case. But you wanna you wanna go into your pregnancy with as much muscle as possible.
Carrie:That makes sense. Start strong if you can.
Janelle:Start strong if you can. Yeah.
Carrie:And then your goal throughout
Janelle:your pregnancy would be to maintain what you have. Mhmm. Can you gain muscle strength? Can you lose a little bit of body fat during pregnancy? Sure.
Janelle:But that you know, body fat's not really the main concern
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:As much as maybe maintaining your muscle mass.
Carrie:That's a great goal. That's good. That's good to know. And I think that helps so much with the, you know, I feel like we can all be so consumed with the body fat thing. I don't know.
Carrie:I'm just like, okay, like how do I stay thin and be pregnant? How do I, you know, stay the most fit, but really it's how do I still keep looking the best? And I think that mind shift was huge for me in pregnancy. Again, shout out to your podcast for that. And also just for really encouraging women in general, like be strong, you know, just focus on being strong and healthy.
Carrie:And that was I'll have to post a reel of like I did like my pregnancy fitness, like gym journey a while ago. I'll have to like re post that. It. I it was so fun. And everything was about feeling strong and being so thankful that my body could move like during all these phases.
Carrie:So and mostly because of what you said, just think about strength and and not about, being thin at that time.
Janelle:Yeah. You you really wanna just maintain your strength. Yeah. And so in a preconception state, it would be the question becomes how can I gain muscle mass effectively and efficiently? And it's really the answer is to challenge your muscles with weight.
Janelle:And I I love the quote challenge equals change. So if you're not challenging your muscles enough, and when I say challenging, mean, it could be with weights. It could be with time. Like if you're a runner, challenging yourself to run longer or run harder.
Carrie:Like not just doing what's comfortable. It feels pretty chill or easy.
Janelle:Yes. Mhmm. Yeah. So how can you run more distance in this amount of time? Or how can you lift a little bit of a heavier weight?
Janelle:A lot of women underestimate how strong they are. So, know, you might have Keep on that. Like, you know, you go to the gym and you just grab the same weights that you always grab because that's what you do. And can you lift the Nexus heavier set?
Carrie:Yes. Probably could. You can. Yes. Yes.
Carrie:Especially legs. Women are strong and I don't think a lot of them realize it.
Janelle:They don't. Yeah. And they're
Carrie:like, don't squat. I don't I don't do anything that would, you know, pump my legs. Like, girl.
Janelle:Yes, you can. I used to say
Carrie:that too. I was like, I'll just lift two pound weights. I'll just keep it keep it light. But it's incredible to realize how strong we are.
Janelle:Yes. And I like I work with women all the time here. Like, I had no idea I could lift a 20 pound weight. It's like 100 you can start there. And, you know, yes, you don't wanna hurt yourself.
Janelle:But if you are going slow and you're focusing on your breathing, like, you're you're not gonna hurt yourself. I say that with so much confidence like you're not going to hurt yourself. So, yeah, muscle building would be a primary goal. And so what that would look like is anywhere from like three to four thirty to forty minute workouts a week where you're identifying, I call them or what they are called as compound exercises Mhmm. Where you're recruiting a lot of muscles at once.
Janelle:So we're thinking big compound movements like squat, deadlifts, bench press, rowing variations, lunges. And that's what they're doing. They're recruiting a lot of muscles
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:Per rep. And so if you're just focusing on those lifting heavier each week you do them Mhmm. You're you will gain muscle efficiently.
Carrie:That's so great. Yeah. That's really what the
Janelle:I goal
Carrie:love that. And now walk us through first trimester, you just got pregnant. Maybe you're starting to feel sick. Maybe you're not. But let's say you are kind of as the example person that we're like giving advice to.
Carrie:Yeah. Because so many of my friends and myself included, the first trimester is a struggle. It is a with with fitness and also with diet, but that's kind of its own thing, I guess. But just just trying to get in the gym at all. So challenging.
Carrie:Yes. And I did notice that when I and sometimes you just can't and like, I'm sure you'll say the same thing like, it's not about shaming moms that are like, hey, you don't get it. Like, I actually am not able to do it. I'm in the ER getting fluids.
Janelle:Yes. That's different.
Carrie:Yes. That's different. But for those of us, like, just dealt with a lot of nausea. Mhmm. And I maybe if it was just even two or three times a week, I would do maybe a fifteen, twenty minute workout.
Carrie:And every time without fail, I would feel better and my nausea would lift. And I was like, oh my gosh. I wanna tell all my friends and it was just it was an encouraging thing to me. And and though I already kind of get nervous about first trimester gangsters stuff. I've got friends in it right now and
Janelle:It it is. I mean, I'm in there too. Like, I think we we know we'll have a fourth kid but and sometimes I catch myself
Carrie:Fearing it.
Janelle:I'm gonna be really honest. We had a party for we had a party what was it? Oh, thirtieth birthday in a couple months ago. And I woke up feeling a little fuzzy and I was like, this is what first trimester feels like. And
Carrie:I'm not ready.
Janelle:You think about that and it's like, man, you know, I'd have three other kids to take care of or, you know, you have Archie take care of. Yeah. It just yeah. But you do, you get through it.
Carrie:You do. So what are some some tips or some encouragement from your experience with first trimester? What what's reasonable?
Janelle:Yeah. I think I think one really discouraging thing that can get in our minds is everything I did prior to this, like, doesn't count or something because now you're sick and you're not able to keep it up. It's like you lost progress.
Carrie:Oh, That's not true.
Janelle:That is not true. When you gain muscle mass, it is there to stay. Unless I guess, unless you truly are not moving for like five months. So if you're not engaging your muscle. It's kinda like I always like to use an example like if if you if you have ever been in a boot before or someone that you know has been in a boot before and they they lose muscle on their calf when they don't walk on it.
Janelle:Yes. It's a it's a very it's a similar concept. But you'll be moving around, you'll be living, like you're not gonna lose your muscle mass. So little bits do really really count. And during that first trimester, if you can just do all your workouts like laying on the ground, perfect.
Janelle:Like you can do like things in a quad stance where you're on your hands and your knees and you're in all fours position. Maybe you're doing cat cal or maybe you're doing just breathing is a great goal during pregnancy in that very first trimester. Because when you can learn how to breathe, which I'm I'm curious, are you familiar with like belly breathing or diaphragmatic breathing?
Carrie:A little bit. I'm not the best at it. I won't lie. I tried. Yeah.
Carrie:I would try in the first I'd like all all the way through. Was like, okay, I'm gonna do some intentional breathing. I get bored so fast. Yeah. Is it though.
Carrie:It's boring. It is boring. Think especially for those of us that do like workout because it's so fun and and it's it feels like it's giving you all this energy and you feel so awesome. And then it's just like, I'm just gonna sit here and and it's just kind of a lull. But Yeah.
Carrie:Teach me about it. Yes. Tell me how great it is. Yes. Yes.
Carrie:Know I should do it and I did it a little bit but
Janelle:Yes. And and so when I work with my
Carrie:fitness for pregnancy clients, we we establish diaphragmatic breathing just three minutes a day Mhmm.
Janelle:Every day is really your goal. You can do this in bed. You can do it before your workout. You can have it you can have it stack up with your workout Or you can do it before you fall asleep. Mhmm.
Janelle:If you have another kid, like lay on the ground with your one year old and do your breathing while they climb on you, you know. And so really what we're trying to do is get our breath out of our chest and into our belly or your diaphragm muscle engaging it with intentionality is really the goal. And as your baby grows and as you enter more towards labor and delivery, this breathing pattern is quite literally how you're going to push your baby out. So cool. It's so cool.
Janelle:So it's like just understanding where the muscles are, like when you're breathing in, what you wanna do and think a really good cue, that I teach my clients is putting your thumbs on your outside of your rib cage. Mhmm. And what you're gonna do is you're gonna breathe in. And when you breathe in, you should feel your ribs expanding like out to the walls to the left and right of you.
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:So if you're laying on your back and you're doing this and your hands are there, you shouldn't feel your chest rising. Your chest is gonna rise naturally a little bit but really, you should feel your see your belly physically go up and you should feel your ribs go out. And that's a great way to know that your air is going to the right place. Okay.
Carrie:That's And
Janelle:really, if you're just doing that when you're in your first trimester, if that's all you can do,
Carrie:that is Okay. That's so good to know. That's
Janelle:amazing. Yes.
Carrie:Okay. Now, how about second trimester? When you're feeling great, most most of my friends, at least our experiences have been feeling amazing, feel like a little trad wife making sourdough, hitting the gym, you know. It's like the best era of you're not that big yet. You can still feel cute.
Carrie:Yes.
Janelle:Yeah. It's like the magical trimester.
Carrie:It's the magical trimester. A 100%. So what about what about that? Like Yes. What do you think would be optimal for fitness for that time?
Janelle:Yeah. So I love following that cue of more energy. Like you have more energy now. Like you are okay and healthy to go to the gym. If you wanna go up to four times a week, great.
Janelle:If you wanna keep it at two times a week, that's great too. But you can up the intensity a little bit. So you can You are safe to lift weights. You are safe to Some women like to run, I think that's definitely a preference thing. So like if you were a runner beforehand and you still feel comfortable running, I would say it's safe to run.
Janelle:Your belly, if it starts feeling heavy or your pelvic floor starts feeling like it's got a load on it, I would just you don't need to be running.
Carrie:Okay. So I was a runner before. Not intense anymore. Like I would do maybe three three four miles kind of a thing. And I pretty quickly first trimester, just didn't feel like running because let's be real.
Carrie:And then by the time I got to second trimester for me personally, I kind of showed fast and so it did feel heavy. So I shifted to StairMaster and stationary bike and elliptical kind of when I wanted that cardio, I guess High. High. Yeah. It kind of is.
Carrie:And and I didn't go back to running for a long time until about maybe five six months postpartum. Yeah. Which is great. I ran this morning. I love running now.
Carrie:But yeah, I think that's really that's really true because I was a runner too in a sense. And for me, it just didn't feel I wasn't comfortable running. Like, it just didn't feel great. And then I have other friends that ran a half marathon in their second trimester and are absolute queens. So I think it just, you know, it just depends.
Janelle:It does depend. And just because like your friend who loves running and feels comfortable running just because she's doing it doesn't mean it's a great goal for you. You know
Carrie:what I mean? Yes. Like So true.
Janelle:That that is a really great point because we've and and that's even a mindset that women enter pregnancy with. Is I have this expectation that I need to keep doing what I was doing or if I want to feel good and look good, I need to try to keep running. Mhmm. And you don't you don't need to set that goal upon yourself. Do what you're comfortable with.
Janelle:And I know that's part of the conversation is what should I be comfortable with or what am I safe doing? Yes. Definitely. To your point, like a lot of women don't exercise because they don't know what to do
Carrie:or they don't Absolutely. Don't know how to do anything. Don't know what yes. What is helpful and also what's safe. So I'm just gonna maybe do nothing or just do some stretching or whatever it is, which is beneficial.
Carrie:But I think a lot of us are, like you said, stronger and more capable in pregnancy than we think we are. So what are some Yeah. In in let's say second trimester, what are some exercises? Is it is still just a lot of strength training? Can we be squatting?
Carrie:Can we be, you know, chest pressing? Like what what's what's good and
Janelle:helpful So in that time? You can do, I would say, like 80% of the same exercises that you're doing during preconception. So ones that we want to be avoiding or I guess anything anything that's making your, like, stretching your belly Mhmm. Or making it feel uncomfortable like I'll use the like a, like the cobra position where you're like belly is stretched. Yeah.
Janelle:I don't wanna be stretching any muscles in your belly.
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:Anything on all fours is great. Anything, like anything seated is also great. Like a shoulder press seated. Perfect.
Carrie:Great.
Janelle:Okay. I like the quote or the like the little little nugget you could take away today is the more intense the exercise, the more intentional your breath should be. So if you're, you know, lifting a heavy shoulder press, you really wanna focus on how you're engaging your core before you start. And so this is the same engagement for every exercise. Essentially, what it is is you're gonna breathe in and on your exhale, you're kinda gonna hug your baby
Carrie:a little bit is what it will feel like. I've heard I've heard someone say that before. Hug your baby like as you push up or as you As you push up. Yeah.
Janelle:And that's and It's helpful. It is. It's really helpful visual. Cue. And essentially what you're doing is there's this your biggest ab muscle is called your TVA.
Janelle:And it wraps from your rib cage all the way down to your hips all the way to your spine in the back. And it's a huge corset muscle. And so what you're doing is you're hugging your baby with that muscle. So it's not just the front of your calves, it's it's the sides. It's like where your obliques are and your whole cat like core cavity is just hugging your baby.
Janelle:And so as you're hugging your baby, you're going to continue to breathe through that flexion
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:And you're going to exhale on the hard part. So when I say hard, I mean, if you're doing a shoulder press, you're gonna exhale when you're pushing up. Mhmm. You're gonna inhale when you're coming down. And before your next rep, you're gonna just hug your baby.
Janelle:Yeah. Like you're gonna hug your baby and you're gonna breathe through your your exercises as you are doing them. Awesome. And so you asked about the squat.
Carrie:Yeah. I'm just I'm just curious. I did some leg pressing. I think I I'm trying to remember. I'm pretty sure that I leg pressed until my knees like which weren't comfy with my bump kind of a thing.
Carrie:Yeah. And I kinda had to like make it a little wider then eventually I just went to like lighter squatting. But what do you recommend? Maybe it's person by person but are those things pretty safe to do when you have that energy at that time, like halfway through pregnancy?
Janelle:Yes. And arguably, squats are probably one of the best exercises you can
Carrie:be doing. Like, would probably
Janelle:put it on like top three exercises to do.
Carrie:Okay. Makes
Janelle:sense. Yeah. Because it and really as your belly gets bigger, that's what's going to help descend your baby.
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:And so same concept as before. So when you're squatting, I I I think it's extra important to be focusing on breathing maybe during a squat too. Mhmm. So you're gonna be inhaling on your way down and exhaling on your way up. Yes.
Janelle:Inhale on your way down, exhale on your way up. And doing like lunges are great too. Like any any stagger stance that's comfortable is gonna be great for your pelvis.
Carrie:So Okay. That's great to know.
Janelle:And even like for me, like I was an athlete my whole life and I I need to modify these exercises too. Like it's not a good modification would be to like hold on to a wall Mhmm. And just stay in one spot. You don't need to do walking lunge even.
Carrie:You can
Janelle:just stand in one spot, hand on the wall for balance. One leg out in front of you, six reps on each leg is is perfect.
Carrie:That's actually really good to note because I think that there's a lot of women listening that are like, okay, I didn't wanna do anything. I'm gonna start doing stuff now. There's another group of us that I could almost fall into where I had it in my head, like you mentioned earlier, do everything the same. Stay as in shape as possible. Like, don't mod modifying is becoming lame or something.
Janelle:Yes.
Carrie:And giving into the pregnancy or whatever it is. And that was really helpful when I started hearing you and a couple other fitness moms that I followed kind of talk about, like, you're in such great shape your whole pregnancy. Seeing these other moms that are strong and capable say, I'm not gonna be doing lunges anymore because my knees aren't feeling so good, so I'm gonna do it this way. I'm gonna modify it and realizing you know what? I'm gonna do step ups instead or whatever it is.
Carrie:Just kind of being okay with those modifications. And actually, it got to the point where I like shifted my mindset from feeling like, oh man, I'm not doing as much or I'm not doing to actually being like, oh my gosh, like I'm I'm I'm progressing in pregnancy. Now I'm getting to the point where this is the helpful thing to do. This wouldn't be as helpful. Because if you're not doing it well or it doesn't feel good, then you can't really do the motion the way you should be anyway.
Carrie:Yes. So then you're optimizing it by doing the modification. So that helped my like perfectionistic brain. Yes. Actually feel awesome about kind of progressing in pregnancy and doing these like simpler things.
Carrie:But that's such
Janelle:a great point because really in one way I and I do this with my non pregnant clients and my pregnant clients. So we set goals in three month increments always. Mhmm.
Carrie:So I
Janelle:think three months is a great amount of time to say, this is my goal for the next three months. Create a twelve week calendar, hang it up on your on your bathroom wall, and keep it like, how are you doing? Like, you can see twelve weeks in front of you. So trimester one, twelve weeks. Trimester like, they're all three months.
Janelle:Right?
Carrie:Perfect. Yes.
Janelle:So for trimester two, make it make it a goal to be consistent with your three to four workouts.
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:You can pick five exercises to do. And then Could
Carrie:you just do the same ones each day that you work out? Like, you do all of them? Do you recommend, like, splitting up lower body, upper body, anything like that? Or do you usually just do all of them each time? You could do I think one way to keep it, like, keep your attention to
Janelle:the workout would be to kinda split them up a little bit.
Carrie:So you
Janelle:could do like
Carrie:a leg day. You could do and then
Janelle:you could pair it where you're doing like squats squats and calves maybe one day. And then your other leg day could be like hamstrings and glutes. Sure. And then you could do a shoulder and chest day, and then you could do a core day and a walking day. Great.
Janelle:Awesome. Break it down that way. And then you can have a workout for each of those and you can just repeat it. If you wanted to keep it super simple, that's one great way
Carrie:to do it. Love that. Okay. Got it. Before we get into third trimester, this is for all of them, I guess.
Carrie:But Yeah. Walking. Talk a little bit about walking. Is walking helpful? Is walking important?
Carrie:I've heard different things on this. But yeah. How do you feel about walking?
Janelle:So walking is very I feel like with when women don't know what to do, they do they walk
Carrie:because
Janelle:it's That's true. Easy Yes. And it works and it's free. Better
Carrie:is So free.
Janelle:Exactly. And there's nothing inherently wrong with walking, like especially if you work a desk job.
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:Like some experts argue that sitting for eight hours a day is more unhealthy than smoking a pack of cigarettes. It's like it's sedentary lifestyles are not, you know,
Carrie:ideal. Optimal. Yeah.
Janelle:So if you work a desk job, walking for thirty minutes a day is an incredible way to kind of bridge that gap. So walking is great. Although if you are committing thirty minutes to exercise in your mind and you're like, what should I be doing to propel myself through this pregnancy and to set myself up for postpartum? I would rather you do at least like incorporate some sort of resistance training in that thirty minutes.
Carrie:So prioritize strength over just the walking if you can. Yes. And when you can.
Janelle:Yeah. So like with that three to four workout goal a week, you could if you know you have 30 a
Carrie:day to set it set aside for your physical fitness during your pregnancy, three three or four
Janelle:of those days should be strength training. And then the other days, like, I want you going for a thirty minute walk.
Carrie:Great.
Janelle:Yeah.
Carrie:So you don't need to walk every day in addition to your you can just like sprinkle it in whenever you can Yes. To keep it helpful. Yeah. And I find
Janelle:that forty five minutes even for some moms is like like I have women who come in and they're like, I need to spend forty minutes on my on my physical health a day like for my mental sanity.
Carrie:Oh my gosh. Absolutely.
Janelle:So even if you have forty minutes, like twenty minutes strength, twenty minutes walking.
Carrie:Great.
Janelle:Perfect. And even one way to even make your walking maybe a little bit more challenging and good for your pelvis stability would be incline walking Mhmm. Or the stair step
Carrie:So good. That you said. It's so great for your hips. Yes. And that feels really good during pregnancy.
Carrie:I remember doing a lot of the incline. I did the stair master a lot and I also did a lot of the incline treadmill. You just kinda feel like a powerhouse when you're like strutting uphill and It's
Janelle:hard fast. And I guess like heart rate variability during pregnancy is kind of a whole other topic because your heart's going to be racing. Yes. Like, and that is common and expected. And a good tip for that would just be you can safely rate your exercise like a six or seven out of 10 on an intensity scale.
Janelle:So if your heart rate's up, you're not doing anything wrong for you or your baby, you're actually in a sense giving your baby tools to deal with stress during labor and delivery.
Carrie:It's really good to know.
Janelle:So if anything, you're helping them navigate what feels maybe a little bit stressful. It's not bad stress. It's just they're learning how to adapt Yeah. And and change based off their environment. And so that's a healthy thing for them too.
Carrie:That's so great. So cool. Great. Okay. Take us a third trimester.
Carrie:So you're preparing for labor. You're getting closer. You're probably getting more uncomfortable. What have your experiences been or, you know, what would you recommend to your clients that are in that phase?
Janelle:Yeah. So my personal experience, I going back to my first pregnancy with Jayla.
Carrie:I was like, I mean, I always knew I wanted a big family.
Janelle:And I was pregnant with her and I was like, how in the world am I gonna have more than
Carrie:one This is how am gonna do this again? Let alone a lot of times. Yeah. Yes.
Janelle:I'm like, my mom had six babies. Like, what do you mean? Like, this is this is crazy. And I I had some like my hips are actually like different heights. And I confirmed this on an x-ray and my chiropractor was able to help me like Wow.
Janelle:Move them. But I was I had a little bit of a shifted hip and I the bottom of my spine was a little bit crooked. So I was actually dealing with a lot of like SPD pain and just lower back pain during the end of my first during the end of my first pregnancy. Was like so uncomfortable.
Carrie:Oh my gosh.
Janelle:And so it's hard to do much of anything. But I feel like a good goal for even like someone who feels that way or and then some women around the opposite side of the spectrum where they're like, I feel good. I can keep working out. But I think your shifts can change to, okay, I'm still spending thirty minutes on my physical fitness, you know, five times a week. What am I gonna be doing?
Janelle:Mhmm. A great mindset shift to make would just be like changing your workout workout into labor prep workouts.
Carrie:Okay. That's great.
Janelle:So how can you and the really question becomes like, how can you help baby move down into your pelvis? Mhmm. A lot of that is through a lot of different like types of stretch stretching work. And so even if you YouTube, Bell Method is actually one that I love. Mhmm.
Janelle:They have a ton of free videos on just different exercises and positions you can put your body in
Carrie:That's to
Janelle:help baby move down. So there are some really great free, like, just videos to follow. And I think mom did you ever like do the follow alongs?
Carrie:Oh, I totally did. I loved it. I loved it. Especially for the stretching at the end. Third trimester is when I was the most not confused, but maybe directionless on my own in the gym.
Carrie:Like, okay, I can keep doing these fun HIIT workouts or something. Mhmm. But ultimately, I probably need to be preparing and stretching and doing those things. So I thought those were really helpful at that time. Even if I did a workout that felt fun and and strength building to then take ten minutes at the end to do those stretches felt like I was doing something.
Carrie:Remember Connor, do you remember at night, would always do the stretches in my bed by the bed? Yes.
Janelle:It's a great place to do
Carrie:that. Laughed so hard at me. He was proud of me being thought it looked ridiculous. Yeah. Was just like, before we get in bed, I'm just gonna do a giant deep squat and and cat cow and all of that.
Carrie:And get on the ball. Yeah. Hip, shake, shake, shake. I did. I loved the ball.
Janelle:That is I'm so glad you bring that up because that is every pregnant woman should have a ball.
Carrie:My gosh. The ball did wonders because well, even just to sit, if you do have to be sedentary, like you said Yeah. It just feels like it it felt like every time I was on the ball, I'm like, okay, well, I'm not I'm not making myself feel worse right now. Like, I feel like I'm maybe the baby's lowering or getting in a better position. Nothing's getting worse by me sitting on this ball.
Carrie:Even if nothing's happening
Janelle:Yeah.
Carrie:It's it's probably something positive. But you're you're you're an advocate for the ball.
Janelle:I am a 100 advocate for the ball. Even you just brought up a great point. Like, you're sitting in the living room with your kids at night. Everyone's winding down. You have thirty minutes till you're gonna get ready for bed or clean your kitchen.
Janelle:Pull out your the Bosu ball and sit on it and bounce around on it, figure eight with your hips. And you can in stretch with it too. Like if you're doing like you can so many different stretches you can do on the ball. Like where you're one leg out extended, kind of rocking side to side, stretching your hamstrings or even your back, you can do a lot of great back stretches with the ball. That's a great time to not just be on the couch but
Carrie:Yes.
Janelle:To be sit on the ball.
Carrie:Yes. And also toward the end, I kind of craved it because it just felt nice. It does. Nothing feels comfortable at the end. Yes.
Carrie:The only thing I wanna do is sit on this ball on a rock.
Janelle:Oh my gosh.
Carrie:I'll watch Gilmore Girls while I rock back and forth. Because see, I didn't have kids yet. So I was just You'll still be able to
Janelle:do that with kids. Oh. Like, you know Praise the Lord. Seriously, you will. Like, mean
Carrie:Sounds great.
Janelle:You're all hanging out in the living room at night and you're just hanging out too.
Carrie:Just hanging out on the ball. Exactly. That's so awesome.
Janelle:I remember with Adeline, my third. She she was so low, like the very I went three days I was 40 plus three. It's how long I went with her. And we were in the last two days, I literally could not sit. Oh, it's uncomfortable?
Janelle:I could feel I felt like I could feel her head. It was wild. I was like, okay, I don't know if this is a third pregnancy thing, but she is so low. Like, I literally could not sit down. I had to, like, lay.
Carrie:Oh, my gosh.
Janelle:And so we got to the hospital and they checked to see, like, where I was at. And she was technically low enough that I could have technically pushed her out right there and let's see.
Carrie:Oh my word. Okay.
Janelle:But they're like, you still have some progressing to do like it wasn't quite dilated enough but they're like, she is so She's
Carrie:so ready.
Janelle:Like they didn't even like check and chew like they they arched her head. I'm like, what? That's crazy. But and
Carrie:so then you'll think this
Janelle:is crazy too. They actually broke my water with her to help things progress, which that labor was wonderful. But, they broke my water and no water came out because she had plugged. She was like that low.
Carrie:Oh my word. Like that's how That is crazy.
Janelle:Yeah. So I felt like I was walking around for a week like that with her just down there and I'm like, oh.
Carrie:You came to my baby shower, I think when you were almost 40. So it was probably around that time. Yeah. Because I didn't know if you'd there. Was like, she's a loose yes.
Carrie:Yeah. She probably will be in hospital having
Janelle:a baby. Or something like that. Was like,
Carrie:So I remember aunt Susan, everyone was like, we're gonna try to be there unless we're having a grandchild, you know, which is very possible. And you were all there because you and I will say, she looked you looked amazing. Oh, you were It so wasn't just me. Everyone was
Janelle:like, this
Carrie:she's like, people didn't even know you're like, that girl's 40? Like Right. Because I think but I think it's a testament to to your health and fitness. And it's not it's not just that you looked when I say that. I don't just mean like, oh, you looked small or something.
Carrie:You just looked so well. Like, you you walked in with such a a strength to you. I mean, usually
Janelle:Thank you.
Carrie:At forty weeks, we're we're, you know, we're we're wheeling ourselves in. You are wheeling yourself in. Yeah. Real.
Janelle:And trust me, I felt this I felt like I was wheeling myself out
Carrie:It for was just really encouraging for a third pregnancy for you to say. Because I think you said you felt you felt pretty pretty good with the with the third pregnancy and that that was like Yes. Smoother than the first.
Janelle:Yeah. They all just got better. All my pregnancies just got better. So
Carrie:yeah. That's encouraging for moms. And I
Janelle:will say like, it's possible to have a pain free pregnancy. Like that sounds ridiculous to say. And I guess when I say pain free, I mean, you when your mind is there and you physically know how like that you can do it and how to engage your pelvic floor and your core, that baby you're you're designed to have that baby just fall out of you. Like it is you literally are. And not to say, I mean, everyone's experience is different and there's so many factors.
Janelle:But it's like just no
Carrie:one else is possible. Yeah. I love that. Love a positive story like that. Briefly, let's touch on postpartum.
Carrie:Yeah. Because I would love to know I don't feel like I was the most educated on on working out postpartum. I know the OB will tell you six to eight weeks don't do anything. Other people will say, well, you can start breath work or you can start a little this or that. What is your your wisdom with that?
Carrie:What have you with your experience?
Janelle:Yeah. I I do think that it's so again, setting expectations for in that three month increment is and I have a whole like episode on this too, like the first twelve months after you have a baby. But I think setting goals in three month increments is wonderful. So technically, if you hear someone say like you can start exercising quote unquote after you have a baby like the day of, like it is breathing. Like you can 100% start your breath work like the day you have your baby.
Janelle:Amazing. And again, that's just extremely gentle like reconnecting with your core. The very first
Carrie:time Oh had a baby my gosh. You I felt like Jell O?
Janelle:Literal, literal Jell O. Yeah. Your stomach feels like Jell O. And the first time I sat up after giving birth, I was like, that's what your core muscles do. I didn't know just rotating my core was that engaged because it just feels demolished Oh, 100%.
Janelle:After you have your baby.
Carrie:Yeah. And your literal stomach is like, like coming in, like a deflated balloon. It's like, what do I? But it's it's really incredible the first time you try to just like slowly control it a little bit and breathe. It's like such an unique feeling.
Janelle:Unique feeling. It's it's incredible. And so really breathing can start day one. And in two week increments, you can add exercises in a sense. And it's not when I say exercises or quote unquote workouts, it's not what you think it is.
Janelle:It's that boring simple stuff that you're talking about. Yeah. Anything on your back is wonderful. So like, even at two weeks postpartum, you're on your back and you're just bringing one leg in at a time. So you're like, your legs are extended out in front of you.
Janelle:You're gonna exhale bring your leg in. Exhale bring your other leg in. And then just back and forth like a marching stance almost. Super super simple thing And you can do on your then you can gradually make them a little bit harder. So and then there's another little piece of equipment.
Janelle:It's like a little foam, a rectangular foam block. Mhmm. Are you familiar with what I'm talking about?
Carrie:Yeah. I've seen this.
Janelle:Like, yeah. So those are another great tool that you
Carrie:can have like in the first six weeks postpartum where you just put
Janelle:the block between your legs and you squeeze your legs together like into the block and you just exhale and just feel your really your goal is to just mind body connection with your core the first six weeks. And so that's really where it starts. And then yeah. And then after you are technically cleared for exercise, which to be quite honest with you, this is a little bit of like a not a pet peeve of mine, but like when I was after my second baby, I I was kind of like wondering what my, like, obi was going to say about fitness. Because I kind of picked her brain and I had my own opinions and I was like, just wanna see what she says.
Janelle:Like, what is like, what are her thoughts on returning to exercise after you have a baby? And she like, she told me I could return to like crunches. Like that was a word that she used. And she's like, you can do your core work. You can do crunches and whatever.
Janelle:And I'm like, I'm thinking, oh my gosh, what a I'm gonna be very honest with you, like, a disservice to be told that I should start with crunches.
Carrie:Absolutely. I was like appalled. Out of all the the things you could like that's yeah. That is like the last six months. I kinda wince just thinking about doing that like crunches Yes.
Carrie:Eight weeks postpartum whenever they clear you. Eight weeks
Janelle:Yeah. Eight weeks. Like no no one should be doing a crunch like for the first six months of after having a baby. Like that's that is not
Carrie:I just forward started doing full like weighted sit ups or crunches. I'm nine months postpartum. We're starting to feel controlled and and good. And I mean, maybe other people it's quicker but definitely not That's a realistic timeline. Yeah.
Janelle:Yeah. And I was like, to even be a mom who is unfamiliar with fitness and to be told that and to try them, that could definitely cause like maybe more harm than good.
Carrie:Well, see. And that's why I'm so glad we're having this conversation is because a lot of moms well meaning amazing pregnant women and postpartum women, you don't know and then you just listen to, you know and obviously, OBs are incredible. But that's not their expertise. You know? They're delivering babies and they're like, yeah, you should be good.
Carrie:And and to hear that, I think, you know, women are they're they're crunching three weeks postpartum and going for a run or six weeks whenever they get cleared eight weeks because they don't know. Like they said it could work out again and then they're wondering why their recovery is so tough or why they're they're I remember Amber, one of our cousins. Yeah. She mentioned she's like, hey, you know, don't do too much too soon because you don't wanna go like three steps back. It's like four steps forward, three you know, it just kinda sets you back further and further if you don't like properly take the time to heal and grow strength the right way.
Carrie:Yeah. And that was good advice that she gave me. But yeah, I I think that's definitely something that is is good for moms to hear is you don't need to be doing Yeah. Crunching, running, like whatever those main things are.
Janelle:When you're clear for exercise.
Carrie:Just because you're
Janelle:right. Exactly. And I would say like there's there's like the the theory or the argument like listen to your body. And I do think that there is something to be said about that. I do think that you can, like yoga is a great place to start.
Janelle:Like you can you can confidently implement like we're talking about like that thirty minute physical exercise check mark. But it doesn't have to be like what you were doing before you got pregnant, you know. So really, in the really those first three months are a lot like what you were doing in like your second trimester pregnancy.
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:Is really kind of maybe a good way to compare it and kinda letting core work like kinda lead the way. So in core work is it doesn't have to be anything crazy. Like it's not not fifteen minutes of core work. It's literally like eight minutes of core work three times a week. Okay.
Janelle:With those kinda like with that foam block that I was talking about or just like the marching variations on your, all fours doing like a bird dog or on your back doing a dead bug. Those are perfect.
Carrie:Okay. Great. So helpful. Yeah. So one question that that someone wrote in was, is it a myth that the weight just falls off if you breastfeed?
Carrie:Great question. So this is this is a very multifaceted question.
Janelle:However, I will say there, yes, like burning you do burn more calories when you breastfeed. So like if and it does depend like how much muscle mass you have. So like Okay. If you give birth and it kinda depending where your metabolism is at and how much you're eating, you you can lose weight, like arguably more progressively than if you were not a breastfeeding mom.
Carrie:Okay.
Janelle:But I think some women do rely on breastfeeding as like a way to lose weight, you know, like Something you kind
Carrie:of expect almost.
Janelle:Yeah. Yeah. Like there, you know, I I have woman that come to me and they're four months postpartum and they're like, I was, you know, doing great with my weight loss the first like three months after having a baby and then it stalled when I didn't when I stopped breastfeeding. And I do think that this can happen. I think there's a lot more factors than just breastfeeding that have to do with weight management after you have a baby.
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:So, you know, you like I gained 30 to 35 pounds in both my pregnancies. Right? Completely normal and healthy expected. And you and a lot of that just has to do with like how much blood volume you have or the size of your uterus, like the extra fluids. Like there's a lot more that goes into that number than just body fat.
Janelle:Yes. Your body is technically storing more body fat while you're pregnant. Very very cool. It needs calorie reserves to feed your baby. Like you are producing milk and that's takes energy to do.
Janelle:So your body is like intentionally storing extra body fat to do that, which is fascinating. So so fascinating. But yeah. So, that does happen where women stop feeding and they're like, okay, my weight loss has stalled. Mhmm.
Janelle:So when it comes to like weight management, calorie intake is like one of the number one contributors to like how you're doing and how you're feeling.
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:And you're you've you're a postpartum mom, like I've done it like several times too. It's like you are hungry when you're breastfeeding. For a You're couple of different reasons. One of them being like hunger cues are just all over the place. And so when hunger cues are all over the place and hormones are trying to re regulate, your hunger hormones are just naturally going to be higher.
Carrie:Okay.
Janelle:And so that feeling of not being satisfied after you eat, very common. And then you just naturally eat more. Mhmm. So, yeah, just being intentional about how you're eating can really help anybody in the postpartum season with like feeling nourished, having good energy. I mean, I've I'm a very like happy go lucky person but I've dealt with like postpartum rage in a sense where I'm like, who am I?
Janelle:Like, I just Oh, it's hard. Postpartum
Carrie:is like Oh my gosh. It's an absolute beast. It gets all of us. Yeah. It does.
Carrie:No one comes out unscathed. Yeah. Yeah. It's like it's
Janelle:hard and like nutrition can definitely help your overall mood.
Carrie:Yeah. So that might
Janelle:be like any like follow-up questions on that? It's kind of like
Carrie:No. Left them good answer. No. That's a thank you so much for the thorough answer. Was gonna say, I loved this question because I've had friends that it's fallen on both sides of the spectrum where some friends have said, I don't know, like the weight just kinda did fall off when I when I breastfed.
Carrie:It made it easier compared to when I didn't or whatever. And maybe some of that's genetics. I have no idea. And then other friends of mine have really opened up about, everyone told me it'd fall off and instead I've actually gained weight breastfeeding since having a baby. What's that about?
Carrie:You know, so I think just I wanted to ask that question because, you know, maybe maybe it is different. I know that for me, was starving and I had to stop breastfeeding and slash pumping at four months. So I don't think I really have a full a full assessment because I didn't Yeah. Maybe breastfeed for long enough to tell because I, you know, you're still four months postpartum. You're still at the pretty early phase of like the weight kind of falling Yes.
Carrie:Off if you Exactly. Yes. So it's hard for me to have like an exact, okay, did it or didn't it help? But yeah, thank you for answering that. Your answer is great.
Carrie:I just wanted to know because I know I have a lot of girls that feel confused by Mhmm. The myth that they always will. And it's like, okay, well, maybe not for some of us. And then if I only have the time or energy to work out once a week, what would be most optimal in my pregnancy?
Janelle:Yes. So I would say going back to like that that idea for those compound movements.
Carrie:Mhmm.
Janelle:So muscles that recruit or exercise exercises that recruit a lot of muscles per rep. Okay. So that is literally your squat, your lunge. And deadlift variations, whether it's like with the barbell or with dumbbells or it's the RDL, those are fabulous. So another like muscle group that is big during pregnancy is your glutes.
Janelle:Like, I don't know if you're are you familiar with, like the like the term like mom butt? Like after you have a baby, your butt just disappears?
Carrie:Yes. Connor and I were just talking about I said I'm getting my butt back. Yes. This is so exciting.
Janelle:Yes. Oh my god. That is so common.
Carrie:It seems that way. Why do we lose our butts?
Janelle:Yeah. We because you literally lose muscle in your butt. Like you Okay. You your the way your body like shifts during pregnancy, your glute muscles are naturally turned off. Like you're not
Carrie:engaging them. Where the weight is with
Janelle:the baby? It's almost like the weight the shifted the shifts in weight. And then and then to the point of not exercising muscles as consistently or moving as consistently as before in the postpartum period, like what are you doing postpartum? Right? You're laying with your baby Yes.
Janelle:Cuddling with your baby, you're feeding nonstop. Right?
Carrie:That's what
Janelle:you do when you have a baby. And you're just this your glutes are disengaged. They are just disengaged. And, genetically speaking, we all store body fat in different places. So like that's a genetic component to to all this whole thing is you are genetically predisposed on where you store body fat.
Janelle:Okay. Not how much necessarily, but where you store it. So some women naturally store body fat in their glutes and their legs. Some women store body fat around their abdomen, arms, whatever it is. You know, every woman seems to know where their spots are.
Carrie:Oh, yeah. I get it.
Janelle:So yeah. So if you are losing body fat and muscle in your glutes, that like disappears. Like it just goes away.
Carrie:And I've I definitely experienced that too. I was like, very exhausted potentially. Yeah. How do you so is the best way to, I guess, like, I don't know, like slow down the mom butt? Would it be just to make sure that you're working your glutes, engaging your
Janelle:glutes? Yes. Yep. And the best way to do that will be the glute thrust exercise. Like the hip thrust glute glute thrust is arguably and this is actually new research like as of the last eight years, like the glute thrust has been hip thrust has been like really highlighted.
Janelle:And so it's it's the best exercise according to the newest research to engage your glutes the most effectively. Okay. So and that's another one like after your six weeks postpartum, like arguably, that is a core exercise. It's a great glute exercise. Mhmm.
Janelle:So one that you can be including, throughout your second trimester and Kind of prioritize.
Carrie:That's really good.
Janelle:And I remember when I was sitting in my car driving because I always had, like, muscle, like in my lower body. And then after I gave birth, my first time again, I lost like 15 pounds of muscle. I didn't even recognize myself. I was like, I'm so skinny. Where did my muscle go?
Janelle:I have no idea where where my muscle was.
Carrie:You feel like a noodle?
Janelle:I felt like a literal noodle. And like all of a sudden like I my calf was shaking weird. Like I felt like I lost muscle in my calf. Like I and I was sitting in the car driving and I was like
Carrie:Like after you have the flu. You're like, I'm a noodle. What happened?
Janelle:Yeah. Yeah. Like I feel so just like fragile. And like I was sitting in the car driving and I'm like, I don't even have muscle to sit on. Like this it was a weird feeling.
Janelle:I'm like, I just yeah. Mamba is real. It is. It's very weird. So glute thrust, lunges Mhmm.
Janelle:Stepping like So StairMaster would be a good one.
Carrie:Awesome. So Well, this has been so great. Anything else that you wanna specifically say before we we wrap up? Anything else we didn't say that you wanna touch on?
Janelle:I would say just like like to anyone listening, like you're stronger than you think. Mhmm. And you can exercise during your pregnancy with confidence. Breathing, keeping it a habit is just really one of the most important things. Not being perfect with exercise selection or intensity, but keeping it habit.
Carrie:Yes.
Janelle:Because as you know, like you have your baby and your priorities change and all of a sudden, I haven't worked out in two weeks and it feels like you're not doing it right when just keep going. Like
Carrie:So good.
Janelle:Yeah. That's really the goal is just to keep going and you will will gain your strength back. Like I'm at a point now in my motherhood where I'm like, okay, I'm ready to reprioritize myself a little bit. Like I'm I'm willing to step away from them and make my workouts harder and it feels good and that time will come. And, yeah, it's all it's fun.
Janelle:It's all fun.
Carrie:Something else I wanted to touch on before we wrap up that because I just think it's so great about you is you should follow her on her socials and I'll I'll put them in the show notes. Oh, thanks, Carrie. I love your content. And I think it is so precious the way that you you're a full time mom and also a full time entrepreneur. And you also just prioritize your kids are just with you when you work out.
Janelle:Yeah.
Carrie:You're just like, yep, this is my leg day. And there's just kids playing with toys and then there's the baby in here. Oh, had to quick nurse the baby. Get back down there. Okay.
Carrie:It's amazing. I think it's so I think it's such life giving content to watch for moms especially because every time I see your video, I'm reminded, I'm capable. I'm able. There's a way to do it. Your attitude is beautiful.
Carrie:But even on the tough days, you there you make a way to do it and I think it's really inspiring.
Janelle:Oh, thank you.
Carrie:Just wanted to shout you out for that.
Janelle:Thank you.
Carrie:I only have one. I'm like, okay. She's she can do it with three people in like within her like leg press. Like there's three kids in the shot. I got this.
Carrie:I can do it with RG sitting over there.
Janelle:And I will say like, and this hit me like a train the other day. It it was a quote when it said, motherhood doesn't get easier, you just get better. And that hit me like a wall.
Carrie:Snaps for that. Yeah. I was
Janelle:like, that is how you you do it because you you do get you get better at it. And and there are things that I do now with three kids that I could have never imagined doing with just one. And it's just that's just how it goes. It's it's all Yeah. Good stuff.
Carrie:So Yeah. It's so good. Well, thank you so much, Janelle, for taking the a
Janelle:little bit and tell people like what you offer online and that kind of stuff?
Carrie:Yeah. Tell us about tell us about your business.
Janelle:Yeah. So it's been it's been a work in progress. In terms of like the over the last three years, I made a business change and it was an outstanding change. So I turned a like a subscription model based fitness and nutrition service into like a high ticket, truly transformative program. So my I primary program is called my sustainable fat loss solution.
Janelle:And it's six months long and I walk women through a sustainable weight loss journey followed by increasing calories with confidence and nourishing the muscle that you now have on your body. And so everything that I teach is based off of sustainability. So like So we're just talking about like working out with kids and like why I can mentally do that is because I know a two minute rest break is actually way more important than a thirty second rest. You know what
Carrie:I mean? Like, you just
Janelle:have all these little tools and tips that you can implement with confidence. And that's what I educate my woman on is how to eat as a mom, to nourish your body and to optimize fat loss, but then also gain muscle while you do it. So, yeah, my program is six months long and then I have another component that's my fitness for pregnancy program.
Carrie:Okay.
Janelle:So that will walk someone through a strength training, like week by week of pregnancy program Mhmm. That helps them really target their glutes, full body, back, implementing cardio like in a way that makes sense so that they can evidently in, at the end of the day prepare for pregnancy. Yes. Or the event of birth. Okay.
Janelle:And so and then walking into a good post partum.
Carrie:So And that's all online. Right? Like anybody can be a part of that. You don't have to live locally. Correct.
Carrie:To
Janelle:Yeah. All my trainings online, which is also like a new outlet for like health and fitness coaches. Yeah. It's it's all virtual. So yeah.
Janelle:It's all it's all via
Carrie:an app. That's amazing. So anybody who's encouraged by Janelle, check it out. And like I said, I'll I'll link your your pages and everything in in the show notes. But Yay.
Carrie:So blessed to have you. You're just a bucket of fitness wisdom. You're making me feel good about round two whenever that comes. Like, got That's my goal. Yeah.
Carrie:Awesome. Well, thank you for being on today. Thank you so much.