Fit Mom's Blog

Since I’m on the topic of weightlifting, I thought I should take a few minutes to tell you about what I think the absolute best poses for yoga are.  By the way, I do have a 200 hour Yoga Works certificate and do teach 10 hours of yoga a week!  During my training we spent hours on studying the human body, how they work and really analyzing a foot position, leg position in a certain pose.  This training has helped me learn how to get my body where it needs to be in a lift.

Weightlifting requires lots of squats right?  In fact almost every lift we do will end in a squat, so the possibility of having tight hips is likely.  Although, I bet you’d never believe that the top weightlifters in the world are super bendy!  Look at the overhead squat position, a sedentary person who sits in a chair 8 hours a day probably can’t even get into that position!  In fact, I’ve found that even doing a moderately easy yoga class with simple standing poses can unglue some of my tightness. {Although, I still need deep tissue sports massage regularly!!}

This post started as a Top 5 list, however, I’m finding it difficult to narrow down to just five.  For my tight hip body,  it will take hours of daily yoga to unlock all my problem areas and I find I love lifting more than yoga at the moment, so…which poses to do every single day you might ask? Handstands, Back bends, and Twists.  I enjoy teaching yoga to my students and also enjoy the physical benefits of getting to practice it daily.  Best thing to do is to work on your “goats’…the things you stink at.  For me, it’s a fully extended backbend!  And, wow does it feel good when I can do even a partial one.

For more information on yoga, please visit Yoga Journal and seek out a good teacher in your area.  I highly recommend for many reasons!

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Anue by New Balance offers great prices on yoga/workout apparel! Check it out.

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Click on this link right here and save 20% off PV Body! If you’re like me and you live in workout clothes, then, PV Body is a great alternative to shopping at Lululemon (I know it’s addicting to gather as many crops as possible, but), you can get your hands on new and exciting stuff through PV Body.

Highly Recommend it.

Save 20% through this link.

FTC-This is an affiliate link.

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During my Yoga Works training, we spent hours and hours studying the human body, how it works and why yoga can benefit every person– whether it be for stress management, exercise and just personal time.  Every single body is different and will have different needs, so for today’s post, I’d like to spend some time discussing the poses that I think weightlifters might benefit from.  No, I don’t think they need to go down and take a 1.5 hour power yoga class!  A power yoga class can be seriously intense and has hard on the body as an intense weightlifting session.   However, a few minutes spent either before or after a lifting session could be beneficial for the weightlifter.

This post is written from the viewpoint that anybody that is doing any lifting or high rep high intensity exercise will benefit from spending some time working on their tight areas.  I believe there are two areas in the body that will need the most help- the hips and back, particularly by doing the opposite of a squat.

In addition to working on your tight areas, most people doing any yoga would benefit from having certain props at home to enhance their practice.  Yoga Mad offers plenty of yoga blocks, straps and mats for you to check out.

The Five Most Important Poses

Garland Pose.   The pose looks and feels like the bottom of a squat.    It can help by opening working on the tight areas of the hip joint and feels really good.  I like to spend at least a minute or more in this pose.

High Lunge Position  This one, if done correctly, also looks like the bottom of the Split Jerk and for me it helps lengthen the front of my hip.

Strengtheners/Upper Back work such as Upward Facing Dog Pose, Locust Pose  These are highly valuable poses because they both strengthen the upper back as well as lengthen the front of the body.

Bridge Pose with it’s variations of a full backbend.  By far the hardest of all yoga poses for me is the full back bend.  I spend lots of time in bridge pose, squeezing blocks and pushing the top of my hips forward.  This pose along with camel pose can do wonders for tight hip people.

Questions, comments?

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I’m excited to introduce you to a new brand of yoga clothing, called Yogamat Boutique. An eco-conscious, not for the landfill, made to last yoga clothing designed by three women in New York City (Karri Jinkins, Ananda Adams and Amber Jung-Devine), who felt the need to have stylish yoga apparel go from the mat to dinner without the need to change.

Yogamat Boutique has a unique line of yoga clothes that include some really nice tops and bottoms. I particularly liked the Tripural and the Delhi Bottoms. In addition, they were kind enough to send me a top, called Bihar which I absolutely adore. This top could be worn over your Cami tops to yoga and then back on for a trip to the store. The shirt is made from an Eco-conscious bamboo and the softness is amazing. I’m sure I will wear this shirt over and over again. It can be worn to yoga, but, yet, it’d look great with jeans as well.

You can purchase Yogamat clothing online at their boutique store or in stores throughout the US.

per FTC rules: Yogamat Boutique sent me one shirt for purposes of review and the above opinion is my own.

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As a new parent of just one baby, I had plenty of time to do what I loved- running.  When my youngest was 6 months old, I ran a marathon after training just barely 3 times a week.  I don’t remember it being too stressful because, babies take naps and they also don’t move around too much as a six month old.  Also, my husband was around plenty to pick up and carry our six month old baby boy.

I believe I spent the better part of my first two years plus one year pregnant running only.  I’d also acquired a treadmill during that time, so, if I couldn’t go out to run, I could do something on a treadmill.  In addition, I found I could jump rope, do pushups with the baby in the car seat.

Then, since I had been a cyclist in college, I briefly dabbled in bike racing- between the years of 2006-2009, although I bet I completed only a handful of races during that time.  I enjoy bike riding and occasionally bike racing, but, in order to get really good at bike racing, you need to do it all the time.  No go, for me.  Two kids under the age of 5 was not a time to devote myself to a sport that requires a minimum of 10 hours a week on a bike.   Also, I recall having complete and total meltdowns 15 minutes prior to the races as my husband would be out racing, and I was supposed to be warming up, but, couldn’t concentrate because I was worried about what my children were doing.

Back to running in 2008, trained for the St. Geroge Marathon and ended up injured and running it after having lost a month of training.  Long story, but I ended up in Yoga “rehab” for my stupid hip which had lead to basically tendonitis in my right knee. Yeah, me.

Now, 2012, my longest “workout” takes 15 minutes or less and I can be completely torn up in just 7 minutes.  I love lifting weights and I love that my quads are bigger than they’ve ever been and I love seeing progress in my lifting.  And, I love spending time on mobility work and I just happen to love crossfit.  In all my years of athleticism, I’ve never felt or seen as much progress in my own personal strengths or in my change of body type or in my overall outlook on life as I do with crossfit.  I’ve also met some of the coolest people on the planet through crossfit and have improved my diet by 200% since I first began.  Bye bye iced mocha’s with whip cream daily!!

In summary, CrossFit is working for me because it takes a hell of a lot less time (more or less) {I’m still a die hard}, I’m fitter than I’ve ever been in all my years as an athlete, and I have a 100 pound Snatch, heck yeah!!

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alo sport has some of the best organic/bamboo cotton tanks I’ve ever worn. They are super soft, long lasting and well made. Check it out!

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Created by Kira Karmazin, KiraGrace yoga apparel offers something to yogi’s that many other brands don’t. That is…incredibly sexy, open back-style tops for all women.   I particularly liked the spaghetti straps/open back style of the Yoga Halter for handstands and arm balancing work.

As for the bottoms, I loved the Yoga Capri pants with the ruching on the side legs.  It’s just a nice little touch of sexy for a pretty standard style of yoga pants.

I would definitely recommend KiraGrace for any of you looking for new, unique and exciting yoga apparel.  The quality of the is equivalent or better than many other yoga brands out there and it’s always nice to support up and coming brands that have been created and designed by women for women (and moms).

One other cool thing about KiraGrace that I’ve never seen before is their styling sizing: For all Goddesses, there are the curvy, athletic and regular build women out there, and they have created a line just for you.  Venus fits you curvier ones, Diana fits the Athletic types, and Victoria fits the natural goddess.

P.S.  KiraGrace provided me with samples for purposes of review.  The opinions above are my own.

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Welcome Readers, for another lesson learned by Yours Truly.

Back in 2008, when my knee blew up on a downhill run in training for a downhill marathon, I’ve known that my hips were my problem. They continue to be my problem. Last year, I was off squatting and dead lifting for more than six months before a chiropractor took an ex-ray of my back only to explain to me that basically I have a “muted hip”. Meaning that they DO NO MOVE. When my bones go on (my very technical term) “lock down”, I immediately will have muscular pains/knots in my a**/give me some ice now kind of pain. Lately I’ve been running back to the chiropractor a minimum of 2x a week! Holy Crap…that’s too much.

So, my complaint lately has been to the chiropractor, “well, you can’t fix me” and his comment is “well you’re over-training” and my comment back to him is, “no, sir I’m not”. There is something related to my muscles that are pulling me out of alignment!!

Guess what?! Nobody has identified which muscles that they are for me that are not doing their job, but, what I can tell you is that the front of my body is ENTIRELY TOO TIGHT in comparison to the back of my body.

What does that mean exactly? You know when you go to yoga class and you know you can’t do certain things—hello, backbends–because you are just too tight, you can’t do them, therefor you don’t even try to do them….I could go on and on. Bottom line, I neglect the crap that I suck at (full wheel, camel pose, bow pose) because I can’t do them.



Now, thanks to Network Fitness’ kindness and generosity in teaching me how to be MOBILE in my tight spots, I at least know what to do! Note above photo of my “mobility tools”..A $9 PVC pipe from Lowe’s, a $1 LaCrosse ball from Amazon.com, a $10 foam roller from the local running store and the cream of the crop, the “bumpy roller” obtained from Network Fitness for a ridiculous sum of money. However, what I’ve learned has been invaluable to teaching me how to be more flexible and release the tight areas of my body.

Learn from me, if you suck at something, figure out how to improve the situation. The only thing that can occur from super tightness is injury.

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This week I was generously given the opportunity to try out MPG Sport’s new styles for winter. Can I just say that I am always impressed with the details that MPG puts into their clothes? For purposes of review, the sent me the Gemini Shawl Cardigan in black and it is beautiful. This cardigan is a lightweight fabric with internal warmth on the cuffs, a zebra print on the back and a long, flowing design–perfect for layering over yoga clothes. Also, perfect for going out with jeans. In addition, MPG also sent me their Nadir pant. They are a really nice lightweight yoga pant that would be great for all indoor workout activities.

Below are a few styles from this seasons Fall line which I loved! Thank you, MPG!!

FTC- For purposes of review, MPG sent me two pieces of clothing to try. The opinions above are mine.

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