Keep good habits

By Sarah Baribeau, founder of Bougeotte and Placotine

Lifestyle habits… Oh la la! Certainly one of the hardest things to acquire, but the easiest to lose!

The arrival of a baby upsets 100% of the habits of a family and/or parents, and that is fine. Of course, the habits of the mother-to-be change from the moment she learns that she is pregnant, and sometimes even before the pregnancy: her diet, her sleep and, very often, her practice of physical activity which descends rapidly into his list of priorities!

The two questions to explore are therefore:

“Why maintain healthy lifestyle habits with the arrival of a new baby? »

" How to get there? »

Why maintain healthy lifestyle habits with the arrival of a new baby?

As soon as baby is born, it becomes the most important thing in the life of the mother; it's human, I would even say cellular. However, I am convinced that, to be available for their child, the parent must also flourish, be well in his head and in his body and give importance to himself. A woman's body has undergone tremendous stress during pregnancy and childbirth. As a kinesiologist, I can confirm that if you don't take care of your body, it won't be able to "heal" naturally. Your body and your mind deserve to be pampered, thanks to specific progressive rehabilitation exercises. By taking this time, you will avoid long-term problems.

Also, it has been shown over and over again that regular physical activity brings a ton of psychological benefits. As we know, lack of sleep, falling hormones and isolation are psychological trials. Thus, integrating physical activity daily will allow you to take advantage of the hormones of happiness secreted by its practice, but will also allow you to regain control of your body, connect to it, gain self-confidence and perhaps even socialize.

How can you manage to maintain healthy lifestyle habits?

Of course, a pregnancy lasts nine months and each birth, although unique, creates a lot of stress on the body. Thus, the first step to reintegrate physical activity is to quickly begin muscle strengthening exercises for deep muscles. Of course, I advocate here the support of an expert health professional in the field!

Then, it is important to ensure that a progression is respected in the intensity of physical activities. For example, it is better to start with short walks and then incorporate brisk walking rather than doing nothing or starting to run right from the start.

The body LOVES progression, it allows it to adapt, build muscle, respond to demand and tolerate better. He doesn't like jumping three steps at the same time.

Practical tips to keep a place for physical activity in your life as a parent

I know, I know, it's not easy to make room for physical activity when you're a new parent, so I'm sharing my list of the most efficient tips:

1. Tell family members and your spouse that this is something important to you and that you want to be encouraged.
2. Plan the day before when you will take time for yourself. If the schedule needs to change, don't give up and quickly put this appointment with yourself back into your schedule.
3. If possible, take a friend, neighbor or colleague with you and write to motivate and congratulate you.
4. Sign up for a group class; simply having something on the agenda will give you a better chance of success.
5. Don't let the guilt creep in. If you skip a day, too bad, tomorrow is another day, always go back to the big picture!
6. Note small successes and congratulate yourself!

Having a new baby is life changing. This is a great time to review your priorities, what is important to you, visualize the life you want. Taking care of yourself also means giving yourself importance as a woman, as a whole human being and not just as a parent. Yes, lifestyle habits are not easy to acquire, but I'm sure you can do it!