TUESDAY: The First 8 Weeks

Welcome to the FIRST 8, the First 8 Weeks after giving birth. This is the first section of your One Year Postpartum Program, using Breathography and the Ab-Ribbon.

Firstly, congratulations MAMA! Whether you're 6 weeks or 2 years postpartum, you have the ability to make huge changes in your core control and strength. I have witnessed women 10-15 years postpartum find their deep core using the Breathography Technique to connect to their movements, erasing lower back pain and creating a STRONG core that promotes efficient movement. I can't wait for YOU to be next!

Please scroll to the bottom for you TWO SHORT ASSIGNMENTS FOR DAY 2!

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We will take it VERY SLOW at first with short spurts of learning. After all, most of you will only have those TINY 5-15 minute windows when your baby is napping to complete the first videos...and this is EXACTLY what I recommend. The first nap your baby takes over the course of the day is the PERFECT opportunity to de-stress as you learn the breathing technique Breathography in manageable chunks.

Breathography is a research supported breathing technique that has been shown to increase fat-loss, strength, and metabolic rate. Additionally, years of training women as a postpartum specialist has shaped both the Breathography Technique and the Ab-Ribbon that is used to deepen your core connection in every movement. Please visit HERE to learn about the Ab-Ribbon backstory! It involves Broadway and a famous actress who sent me a cease and desist letter as a joke...😂 Yes, my life has been very colorful as a celebrity personal trainer...more on that later...

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I have designed a highly specialized Breathography Breath Cycle specifically for YOU, a postpartum female, who needs both strength and mobility of your pelvic floor and deep core with an attention on recovering your 9 month "baby growing posture" in EVERY single exercise that we do. It is truly all about focus on the set up of each exercise...QUALITY OVER QUANTITY IN EVERY WORKOUT!

As we progress through the year, you will gain strength, endurance, posture, mobility, and a sense of CALM through the breath-work that you integrate into your exercise and daily activities. There are modifications for beginner though advanced, and as your super passionate coach, eager to answer every question that you have. Please ask questions HERE, so everyone in the community can benefit from the question and answer. If you would like to inquire about a private coaching package, please book a call HERE.

The combination of Breathography + functional training is a wonderfully effective method that just FEELS good as you gain strength during your postpartum recovery. There are several bonuses to learning this method on top of the clear deep core strength you will feel in a short period of time:

  1. Carbon Dioxide Tolerance (linked to stress and muscle health, both of which need attention in that first year after birth!)

  2. Respiration strength (this declines with age!)

  3. HRV Increase (also linked to stress, which we NEED to manage with the little ones around!)

  4. Body Composition (this breathing method Breathography is being shown in formal and informal research to improve body composition due to a variety of physiological factors!)

  5. Cognitive Enhancement (due to alpha waves, higher cerebral blood flow, and increased factors such as BDNF resulting from the slow breathing!)

  6. NOW, let's build the STRONGEST core you have ever had, while enhancing your cognition, and balancing your nervous system - SUPERMOM!

3 TASKS for TODAY:

  1. RESTING HEART RATE

    1. Upon waking, count the number of beats in 6 seconds. Multiply that number by 10, and this is your resting heart rate! You can perform this task tomorrow morning if you got this message later in the day.

    2. Post your RHR HERE! At the conclusion of this course, you will find your initial post and hit "REPLY" under your first data to compare the two! Later in the program, when I ask you again for your resting HR, you can SEARCH the forum for your name, the word "resting heart rate", or some other search term to find your initial post from 6-12 months prior. Here is where the SEARCH is in the Postpartum Breathing Core Community:

      You Community SEARCH Tool

  2. CO2 TOLERANCE SCORE

    1. Watch this guided video to take this test that is representative of your breath control, your stress, and your fitness!

    2. Please write down your score beneath the video. Every 4-8 Weeks over the course of your program, I will ask you to retake this test. Please hit REPLY underneath your original post each time you repost a score in order to keep track of your progression over time!

  3. NOOTROMUSIC BREATHING

    • Can you hear the 2 Second Inhale and the 8 Second Exhale within the music? That's a Nasal INHALE and a gentle EXHALE through the mouth.

    • How many Breath Cycles of 2:8 can you perform in a row?

    • Research shows that elongating your exhale increases activity of the parasympathetic nervous system (CALM + COLLECTED), which as a new MOM, you are in dire need of!. Research supports that a minimum of 3 minutes is necessary to achieve a shift physiologically. Try practicing with this track for 3 minutes to sense the difference :)

    • Please find your NOOTROMUSIC tracks HERE. During ONE of your baby's naps (or if you have gone back to work, do this at the top of your lunch break), GAZE to the farthest point away from you (a tree out the window, far down the hall, outside whether that be a mountain OR a skyscraper...), and SLOWLY BREATHE with the breath in this music. The Nootromusic tracks are composed with the Breathography Breath Cycle mixed into the music. You will hear the 2 second inhale and 8 second exhale to guide your Breath Cycles while pushing a stroller or simply taking a walk to get your MORNING LIGHT to regulate circadian cycles! To optimize your experience, please wear headphones. Gabe Churray is the genius composer of the Nootromusic tracks. Follow him on social media @gabechurray

    • Please COMMENT under the Nootromusic Track how many seconds (or minutes) of 2:8 breathing you were able to perform in a row!

    • NOTE: Inhale through your nostrils and exhale through your mouth to retain nitric oxide with your breath-work. Studies have shown a 1500% increase in nitric oxide when inhaling through the nostrils. Not only does this lower blood pressure, but increases blood flow and improves the health of your endothelium (lining off blood vessels).

See you in the morning!


XX,

AJ