Tuesday, February 17, 2009

What You Need to Know About Early Pregnancy Diet and Morning Sickness

Does the thought of eating the foods that once were your once part of your diet before pregnancy make you want to vomit?You are not alone.Morning sickness in the first trimester of pregnancy is not only a nuisance, it makes eating as unpleasant as it is nauseating.  For many pregnant women this is worrisome since we are required to eat well in order to have a healthy pregnancy

Fortunately, your early pregnancy diet can play a role in helping you overcome morning sickness or at least let it affect you a little less.  Don’t expect a magical disappearance of morning sickness symptoms following an early pregnancy diet but do at least expect that by making the effort, you will feel a little better.

Snacks are a Morning Sickness Sufferer’s Savior

What is the first thing you should do after waking up?  Snack.  Take your time when you get out of bed because rushing to start the day will only aggravate your nausea.  The key to an early pregnancy diet that combats nausea is constant snacking.  Don’t eat junk food however.Leave stashes of saltine crackers by your bed, in your car, and anywhere else you frequently find yourself.  Other good snacks known to curb nausea are lemons, anything containing ginger (ginger ale, ginger tea, ginger snaps), pretzels, and popsicles.

Never Let Yourself Get Too Hungry or Too Full

An early pregnancy diet that will help you kick nausea to the curb consists of plenty of fluid intake.  Don’t drink water while you eat because it can make your nausea worse but do drink water a half hour prior to eating and a half hour afterwards.Make sure to stay hydrated all day by drinking plenty of water because this helps you from getting too hungry.  Eat small meals throughout the day rather than scarfing down a plate of food at once.If you let yourself get too full, you will have more nausea.   Also avoid napping after eating, as sick as you may feel.  It can worsen the symptoms of morning sickness.

Food to Avoid to prevent Morning Sickness

An early pregnancy diet should consist of healthy, balanced meals but to prevent yourself from feeling more nauseous than necessary, avoid foods that make you feel ill when you smell them or see them, no matter how healthy they are.  Don’t eat or cook foods that have a strong odor or flavor; the blander, the better.  Try to avoid cooking if possible because during pregnancy you are very sensitive to smell and the smells in the kitchen can worsen your nausea.Spicy and greasy foods can aggravate nausea as well. 
Morning sickness may be inevitable for many pregnant women but by following a good early pregnancy diet, you can lessen the symptoms and feel a little bit more like yourself.  By doing so, the early months of your pregnancy will be easier and pass by more quickly and before you know it, you will be well into your second trimester and feeling great.



Friday, January 23, 2009

Maternity Evening Wear Problem Solved!

The fab six way maternity dress, perfect for all those parties, wedding and other functions you have whilst pregnant and is perfect for maternity evening wear. It's a great buy for your pregnancy enabling you to ring the changes unlike any other maternity outfit we've seen. It can be worn as a variety of formal maternity fashion styles or as a maternity skirt throughout pregnancy; it also makes a great post-pregnancy piece.

During your pregnancy you will have several formal functions to attend. These will range from parties, weddings, to formal dinners - imagine buying a new maternity dress every time you attend one of these events! The 6-way-maternity-dress enables you to have six different maternity evening dresses for the price of one!

Basically, it's a long black dress which can be worn in six different ways from a maternity skirt to a stylish dress to glamorous maternity evening dress - perfect for all occasions.

The 6-Way Dress can be worn as a Strapless dress, a Halterneck dress, a One shoulder dress, Crossover, a Cap sleeve dress and a maternity skirt.

The 6 way dress is made up of a long skirt, a bandeau (which is worn around the bust or the tummy), and a wide, tapered piece of fabric attached just below the bandeau which forms the ties in many of the styles.

The maternity dress fabric is soft and drapey (not clingy), with a stretch. The bandeau is snug fitting, providing support for the bust when worn as a maternity dress, and for around the tummy when worn as a maternity skirt.

It's difficult to believe that this maternity dress is as flexible as it seems, and as comfortable to wear. When we tried our sample we were really impressed!

Each maternity dress comes with a set of clear instructions. These show six main ways to wear the dress, with a few variations also explained. Most likely you'll find more ways to wear it!

Benefits Of Exercise For Pregnant Women

Any form of exercise for pregnant women may have some benefit for them. There are several highly recommended exercises for pregnant women that may fit their needs and preferences. Some can be as common as walking while others may be as specific as yoga. The exercises for pregnant women that should be highlighted are those that have the maximum benefit with the least amount of stress. Stress can negatively affect pregnant women which is why stress should be avoided.

Preconditioning

Most exercises for pregnant women act to condition their bodies for the next several months which will be full of changes, both externally and internally. While not all exercises for pregnant women may seem able to penetrate the mind due to its being too physical, there is some effect which will benefit the mind. The knowledge that she is fit during pregnancy will help ease the mind of the individual. This will give her confidence to cope with what pregnancy may bring her during the next months of gestation.

It is not only the mind which is preconditioned to perform well during childbirth but also the muscles are trained to perform well.Getting enough exercise for pregnant women will benefit them in the sense that they can have stronger and more resilient muscles as well as a body that can cope with childbirth, and even before and after it. 

Muscles And Endurance

Exercise during pregnancy will yield better toned muscles and bones which can help the woman deal with the enormity of childbirth and the vast physical changes that she may experience during the time. The many different forms of exercises for pregnant women can help tone and flex muscles. Endurance is also important especially during a prolonged labor which may tax the woman sorely. Some muscles may not be visible from but can be exercised in the inside such as the pelvic muscles. The Kiegel's exercise for pregnant women will give the, strong pelvic muscles that can cope with contractions and faster healing after giving birth. Stronger pelvic muscles can also help the woman push the infant out through the birth canal when the time of childbirth comes.

Concentrating on a particular exercise for pregnant women can be great but getting the different muscle groups to work well in a coordinated fashion will benefit you more. Having a choice of one or two exercises for pregnant women daily can suffice in making childbirth easier.

More about day by day pregnancy including FREE! chinese pregnancy calendar

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Highly Recommended Exercise While Pregnant

Being pregnant is something that many women cherish and look forward to. It is a uniquely feminine phenomenon and it is something that bounds women to their child forever. It can also bind several layers of fats to your abdominal region which can be difficult to get rid of. Enter the merits of doing exercise while pregnant. Women who exercise while pregnant have a higher chance of getting rid of the excess fats that they may have accumulated during pregnancy.

Yoga

Yoga is something that women can use as a form of exercise while pregnant. In fact, there is a specific prenatal yoga exercises that pregnant women can do during their pregnancies. Yoga exercise while pregnant can benefits both the body and the mind since yoga is actually focused on enlightenment for the spirit and uplifting the mind. This exercise for pregnant women can even be continued after pregnancy and with the newborn. This will strengthen the bonds between the mother and child. Benefits of this exercise while pregnant is the strengthening of the back muscles to accommodate the additional weight and the opening of the hips and pelvis in preparation for childbirth.

Walking


Walking is a form of exercise that many people can benefit from whether they are pregnant or not. Doing this exercise while pregnant can help you maintain your weight and also build your endurance. Maintaining the weight is important because gaining too much during pregnancy can complicate the pregnancy and bring rise to many conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure. Building one's endurance will help when the women experiences rough labor. This exercise while pregnant needs to be done in moderation with regards to intensity especially during the last trimester.

Kiegels Exercise

This exercise is supposed to help during pregnancy and during labor. The point of this exercise while pregnant and even if not, is to strengthen the pelvic muscles, internally. Doing this exercise while pregnant improves the performance of the pelvic muscles. Most doctors will give an example of how to do this exercise by trying to stop the flow of urine when you are urinating. You do not necessarily need to be urinating to do this kind of exercise but this example is the best way to explain how it works.

Doing an exercise while pregnant will ultimately benefit the woman. The key to choosing an exercise while pregnant is to see what you can endure without feeling the slightest bit uncomfortable of threatened by it.

More about day by day pregnancy including FREE! chinese pregnancy calendar

The Role of Prenatal Fitness

Pregnancy is not an excuse to stop exercising if you are used to exercising and keeping fit. In fact, prenatal fitness is something that a pregnant woman should get, whether she is used to exercising or not. Prenatal fitness can be achieved with or without a personal fitness coach and there is actually no need to visit a gym daily to achieve this. There are many ways to achieve prenatal fitness and while you have done this you can maintain the fitness program or exercise after pregnancy.

Walking Your Way To Prenatal Fitness


Walking is one of the most recommended prenatal fitness exercises for women. This is because it is probably the least expensive of the entire exercise lot and you can do this almost anywhere. Walking your way to prenatal fitness is easy and one can even do this with some variations, like walking up a flight of stairs. This can be your exercise after pregnancy because it can be very easy to resolve walking around while trying to lose the fat that you might have accumulated for the past nine months.

Swimming To Prenatal Fitness

Swimming is another prenatal fitness exercise that one can take advantage of during pregnancy. This low impact sport and form of exercise can actually help you keep fit and some women even contemplate a water birth when they are comfortable enough with the idea. The aspect of swimming being a low impact sport is one of the main reasons why it is highly popular for pregnant women to indulge in it. Not only do they keep fit but they also keep cool in the water.

Yoga For Prenatal Fitness

Yoga is another form of prenatal fitness that is highly popular with pregnant women. This is because many of the different poses can actually help in positioning the baby, strengthening the lower back and opening the pelvis and hips.

Prenatal fitness can actually aid women cope with the changes in their bodies during pregnancy as well as cope with childbirth. It also keeps them from gaining too much weight which can be difficult to take away after giving birth. Exercise after pregnancy as well as a diet can help women lose the weight they may have gotten during pregnancy. The benefits of prenatal fitness far outweighs pigging out on your favorite food with pregnancy as the excuse and then regretting doing so when you have a difficult time losing the weight that was gained.

More about day by day pregnancy including FREE! chinese pregnancy calendar

 

Poses For Prenatal Yoga

Prenatal yoga is something that can actually help condition the body for the upcoming changes that pregnancy will bring. The focus of most women when they do prenatal yoga is the stretching that helps with childbirth and the changes of pregnancy but there are also other benefits that prenatal yoga brings. Pregnancy fitness is one of the benefits of this kind of yoga and so is the mental calm that one gets from yoga. For those who wish for prenatal yoga to help with the bodily changes brought about by pregnancy, here are some poses for you.

Cow And Cat Poses

For these poses, one needs to start with the neutral spine position on all fours. These prenatal yoga poses are best done slowly, feeling each movement as you change from a neutral spine position to the cow position. The cow position has you starting the change from the toes, which you curl as you inhale. The next thing is to slowly lower your belly and then lift your head to gaze up to the ceiling. The movement of lifting your head should start from the tailbone and travel through your spine up to the neck which is when you lift your head. This should be the culmination of your prenatal yoga pose.

Upon your next exhale, you will do the cat pose which entails releasing your feet from their curled position. The tops of your feet should rest comfortably on the mat as you start the cat pose. From the feet, feel the movement travel through your spine as you raise your spine to a rounded position. The last movement for this prenatal yoga position is to drop the head to such a point that you try to see the region of your bellybutton.

Supine Pelvic Tilts

This prenatal yoga pose is done lying on your back, which is great for those in their first month up to, maybe the fourth or fifth months. Many women are not comfortable with this prenatal yoga pose when their belly has grown to the point where lying supine presses the baby onto the vital organs and may causes some difficulty breathing. If you feel this, do the pelvic tilts standing up with your back against a wall.

Start this prenatal yoga pose by lying flat on the floor with your knees bent with your the heels of your feet almost touching your hands. Your hands should be flat by your side and there should be a slight natural curve between your lower back and the floor. As you exhale, lift your hips a little upwards, without actually lifting your entire bottom from the floor. In essence, you flatten the curve or space between your lower back and the floor. Inhale and return to your original, neutral position.

These prenatal yoga poses are well worth doing because they help strengthen the lower back and the pelvis. The cat and cow prenatal yoga poses also help to optimize the baby's position.

The Benefits Of Pregnancy Exercise

Pregnancy is not as fragile as others may lead you to believe, although, there are many cases where the pregnant woman should take special care of herself and her condition to warrant bed rest. Pregnancy exercise is something that many pregnant women do even up to their eighth or ninth month, depending on how fit they are initially. There are some pregnancy exercises that are suitable for those who are not fit initially while other pregnancy exercises are for women who really exercise before they even got pregnant.

Kinds Of Pregnancy Exercises

There are several kinds of pregnancy exercises that are suitable for women with minimum to maximum levels of exercise ability. Prenatal yoga is a pregnancy exercise that many women do whether they are initially fit or not. The reason for this is that prenatal yoga does not stress the body too much (especially for beginners) and there are levels with this kind of yoga that can segregate who have had yoga before they got pregnant. Many also agree that prenatal yoga can help the body accommodate the changes it goes through during pregnancy which is why it is best to start this as early as possible.

Walking is yet another pregnancy exercise that many women do since this is probably the easiest and the least expensive of all. Jogging and running are possible but only in the earlier months and only if you have been doing this for more than several months before you got pregnant and with a medical practitioner's supervision and recommendation. In all, after the third month, running and jogging are not advisable at all, so walking will have to do as your pregnancy exercise. If you have not been walking regularly before your pregnancy, it is best to start with just a few hundred meters or so to make sure you can handle the feat.

Another pregnancy exercise is just to stretch. There are many different stretches for the body, the most effective for pregnant women are side bends, side stretches and calf raises. Stretching during pregnancy is similar to prenatal yoga which conditions your body for the upcoming changes. It is advised that pregnant women start slow and carefully when doing stretches or any other pregnancy exercise.

A pregnancy exercise should be done with care no matter how easy it may seem. Although, a pregnancy is not as fragile as many believe it to be, it is best to be safe than sorry.