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April 10, 2010

Can I measure my own diastasis? Is that what is causing my funky midsection?

Yes, YOU can measure your own diastasis. You don’t need a doctor or a surgeon to measure it. Many doctors don’t even know HOW to measure it, in my experience. But you can take control and empower yourself with how to find out if its a DIASTASIS that is causing that “I-can’t-put-my-finger-on-it-but-my-midsection-does-not-look-normal” look.

HOW TO DO IT:

Lay on your back (getting down by laying on your side and walking your hands down).
Bend your knees
Place your straightened fingers perpendicular to your body RIGHT at your belly button.
Lift your head just a little

If you have a diastasis you will feel a valley or a gully.
THE MEASUREMENT: How many fingers can you place in the gully when you FIRST start to feel the muscles engage around your fingers? Is it 1 fingerwidth? Is it 2 fingerwidths? 3? 4? 5? 6? 7? 8? more?

REPEAT if you don’t know what your measurement was the first time by putting your head BACK down and then lifting it up just a LITTLE with your hands in place until you feel the muscles engage around the fingers again
REPEAT 3 inches ABOVE the belly button
REPEAT 3 inches BELOW the belly button

That’s it – then you will know your measurments of your diastasis!

TROUBLESHOOTING?
“I can’t feel the muscle engage around my fingers”
You may be putting your head up too high. Or if your pregnant, you will fill a protruding ridge rather than a gully, depending on how far along your are. Or if you are a larger measurement like a 6 or 7, you will need to measure with BOTH HANDS.

Many people think its gross when they feel it for the first time. But knowing is half the battle, as my husband always says.

SO GO FOR IT!! Find out if the diastasis is causing a bulge, or unsightly look in your abdominals! What did you find out?

April 6, 2010

Flax Seed Part 3: Blueberry Flaxseed Kefir Shake

My third and final installment on flaxseed: Using flaxseeds in shakes.
I have to say it totally MAKES the shake good for me. Just like fresh press garlic MAKES guacamole for me.

I have this particular shake every other morning. I like to change it up so my body doesn’t get too used to something or start producing antibodies towards something it gets too much of, and its especially good for making sure my body doesn’t get stuck in a rut or plateauing if I am wanting to lose weight.

So here it is:

8 ounces or 1 cup Kefir (I have starters for any of you who live by me!)
1/3 cup frozen or fresh blueberries
2 TBS fructose sweetened protein powder (I use cookies n cream flavored by Herbalife)
2 TBS flaxseed
1 TBS black sesame seeds (VERY good for brightening the eyes – I found in china town for way cheap)
1 TBS coix seed (optional – but VERY good for brightening the eyes and complexion – I found in china town for way cheap)

I whirl it around in my vitamix for 20 seconds – I don’t like it freezing cold anymore – just cool. Any blender should do.

And WHALAH – its so good, and keeps me full – tons of great beneficial probiotics and beneficial yeasts from the kefir and omega 3s and fantastic nutty taste from the flax seed, protein from the powder, powerful antioxidants from the blueberries, eye and complexion brighteners from the seeds. What a GREAT way to start the day!

What powerful breakfast food(s) to you have in the morning?

March 25, 2010

Flax Seed Part 2: Making peanut butter with flax seed

So another one of my favorite things to do with flax seed? Peanut Butter! YUM! Once you make your own peanut butter, it is very hard to go back to regular peanut butter. Why? The easiest way for me to describe it – it takes synthetic, plastic, and a little off (store bought, that is). Most peanut butter – skippy, jif, peter pan – is just loaded with HFCS ( High Fructose Corn Syrup). HFCS wreaks havoc with weight loss, childhood obesity, the spare tire look because it creates a HUGE spike in your Insulin levels, which is the FAT STORING hormone.

Anyhoo – this peanut butter might feel different to your palate if its accustomed to having the plastic-like smoothness of regular peanut butter. But after a few times – you will slowly begin to prefer it. And then you will wince at the regular peanut butter you once thought of as a comfort-ally.

For this recipe, you will need a Vita-Mix or other high speed blender.
Don’t worry so much about the price listed, you can totally get them refurbished for about $150 less, and free shipping. Call the company and get on their mailing list if you want one refurbished and free shipping, they are always sending out specials!

PEANUT BUTTER WITH FLAX SEED AND STEVIA

16 oz. Unsalted Peanuts

3 TBS flax seed

1/2 tsp SEA SALT (or to taste)

1 tsp stevia, if desired

Blend on high, using a tamper to quicker grind it all up into peanut butter. Once it “chugs” 3 times, then turn it off (or you will overheat the blender).

HOW TO SERVE:

On BROWN-RICE Rice Cakes.

Its also good with craisins on top – yum!

WHAT GOOD IDEAS do you have for flax seed – please share!

March 23, 2010

What to do with your Flax Seed? SUPER Flax Seed Banana Bread with Stevia and Kefir

So I have been thinking a LOT lately on how to really take advantage of my FLAX SEED, which I get from Trader Joes (of course). I alternate between buying flax seed meal and whole flax seeds. I was afraid to try them at first, but they make everything taste SO DANG good. Like a very delicious nut.

Benefits are:

(HealthCastle.com) Its high content of alpha linolenic acids has made the ancient flax seed become our modern miracle food. Alpha linolenic acid (ALA) is a type of plant-derived omega 3 fatty acid, similar to those found in fish such as salmon. Benefits of flax seed as shown in many studies include lowering total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol (the Bad cholesterol) levels. Other benefits show that flax seed may also help lower blood triglyceride and blood pressure. It may also keep platelets from becoming sticky therefore reducing the risk of a heart attack.
flax seed health benefits

Other Benefits of Flax seed

Aside from alpha linolenic acid, flax seed is rich in lignan. Lignan is a type phytoestrogen (antioxidant) and also provides fiber. Researches reveal that lignan in flax seed shows a lot of promise in fighting disease — including a possible role in cancer prevention especially breast cancer. It is thought that lignan metabolites can bind to estrogen receptors, hence inhibiting the onset of estrogen-stimulated breast cancer. Recent studies also showed positive benefits of flax seed oil in IBD (Crohn’s Disease and Colitis). Flax seed oil seems to be able to heal the inner lining of the inflamed intestines.
Moderately include flax seed in your diet. Indeed, a lot of food products contain flax seed such as bread, cereal and bakery goods. Bakers may use flax seed flour or include flax seed in baking.
Note: Flax seed oil is not the same as flax seeds. Flax seed oil is a concentrated source of ALA, which has been questioned for its potential association of increasing prostate cancer risk.

Here is the one I have fine tuned to perfection.

SUPER Flax Seed Banana Bread with Stevia and Kefir

1 large egg
1/4 cup smart balance butter blend (or butter)
1/3 cup kefir (makes the texture SO moist and delectable)
1 tsp stevia
2 ripe bananas
2-3 TBS Molasses
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 2/3 cup Oat Flour (just blend up oats in the blender until fine)
3 TBS flax seed (blend with the oats if you have a vita mix or super speed blender) – or use flaxmeal
2 TBS black sesame seeds (opt) (blend with the oats if you have a vitamix or super speed blender)
2 TBS raw almonds (opt) ( blend with the oats if you have a vitamix or super speed blender)

Preheat oven to 350. Blend Oats, flax seed and black sesame seeds in blender until fine flour. I have a Vitamix – which I LOVE. That thing grinds ANYTHING. Anyway, then you add to the dry ingredients – allspice, cinnamon, baking powder, and sea salt

In a clean blender, add egg, banana, molasses, stevia, kefir, egg and butter and blend. Combine ingredients.

Spray breadpan with olive oil spray or pan spray, and dump the batter in.

Bake for 1 hour and WHALAH! Its not assaultingly sweet, but its a pleasant sweetness. Have with some butter or smart balance – SO DANG GOOD!! The Kefir makes everything super moist. You can add more if the batter seems dry. And the flax seed is great for ALA and an AWESOME nutty flavor. The black sesame seeds I find at China Town here in Chicago, but you can find them around. They are FANTASTIC for making the eyes brighter. Raw almonds pack a ton of calcium. Baking them with other ingredients robs them less than roasting them of their properties.

And my family is used to my food experiments. Some are good, some are…just VERY OK…some are…um…anyway (those are fewer and farther between anyway). So my husband had a thick slice last night and said, “Babe, Good bread!” So – if HE says it – then I know its true. He just doesn’t say anything when they are NOT successful. But I firmly believe that old standbys such as “banana bread” etc can be remade into superfoods – depending on what ingredients you substitute in.

I will post my homemade flax seed peanut butter another day (but YUM!!)
What are you favorite things to do with flax seeds? SHARE!

March 20, 2010

Guess I will have to read The China Study!

So sometimes you start hearing things for totally different people, from different parts of your life, and in different locations that say the same thing and the same time and it seems like one of those parallel universe/warp zone/twilight zone kind of things.

I guess the The China Study will be one of those things for me. Not only have I heard about it from different people from different places at the SAME TIME,
http://fitmepink.blogspot.com
also just posted about it. THE LAST LOG ON THE FIRE, I suppose!

Apparently in
the China study, they talk about why you should eat meat VERY SPARINGLY. Now I am a total granola girl, but I LOVE my protein. I really don’t want it to talk me out of eating meat.

I am a little leary because they lump red meat, fish, and poultry all as “MEAT” when fish with its Omega 3s has had SUCH positive impacts on people’s bodies and brains, which need Omega 3s to thrive, not to mention GREAT benefits on cholesterol, blood pressure and depression.

I am also wondering if it will address, as I mentioned to my friend Robyn at FitmePink, the studies of indigenous people such as Eskimos. 70% of their diet is Whale Blubber (sounds sooo yummy, right!) and they have one of the lowest percentages of heart disease, cholesterol and blood pressure in the world.

So, with an open, yet skeptical heart, I think I will read this to see what I think about “The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition Ever” book.

I also want to find out who FUNDED the study 🙂

Anyway – just want to do a call out to those in the universe who have read it!?! What did you think? What did you learn? Did you feel they altered or slanted any of the data or results? Are you going to stay away from meat forever after reading it?

March 16, 2010

The BEST (healthy) dressing EVER!!

So I have to credit my friend Liz for this one, but I have found the BEST dressing for salads. I am very picky about my salad dressings, and I get bored with same old same old. This is a GREAT one to compliment the springtime weather.

Liz’s Dressing:

1 cup canola oil

1/3 cup Red Wine Vinegar

2 Garlic Cloves (IMO they have to be FRESH PRESSED or the taste goes down a couple notches)

2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp pepper

3 TBS Lemon Juice

Its is ESPECIALLY good if you put a good quality lettuce (red leaf is my favorite) feta cheese and grape tomatoes in the salad – there is just something about the combination that makes it POP!

On an unexpected side note, Liz’s husband (hope its ok I share this!) said that after having this dressing every day, all of his warts went away. What an unexpected benefit – but cool!

Do you have any to DIE for recipes – that are HEALTHY (a MUST!) – if so, let me know – bonniewayne1177@hotmail.com – and I will post the best ones 🙂

March 13, 2010

Latest Results? Diastasis Recti…

I have decided to periodically post great results that I am seeing lately to let women know that surgery or perpetual frustration does not have to be the answer. There is hope for your abdominals POST PREGNANCY!!

I have one woman in one of my classes who just had her 2nd baby 5 months ago. Shet had a 5 fingerwidth separation of the recti three inches above the belly button, a SEVEN fingerwidth separation of the recti right AT the belly button, and a 4 fingerwidth separation of the recti three inches below the bellybutton. (We always measure the diastasis in these three areas). This case would be considered by many doctors and most plastic surgeons, if not all, to be a prime tummy tuck candidate to artifically bring the recti together.

Well, first thing she did was get a Splint to bring the two halves of her recti in closer approximation. You can get a splint if you are two fingerwidths apart. The larger the gap, the more pronounced the need to splint the recti. She even wore hers to bed, so she would train herself not to jackknife out of bed.

She did 5 to 7 sets of 100 a day of seated tuplers. Since she is a working mom, she would do all her sets on her commute to and from work. She would say, “I’m going to do 2 sets by the time I reach Aurora” and things like that to give her a goal.

By the time the 6th week rolled around, we retested – she was 2 on the top, 3 in the middle, and 3 on the bottom – MARKED improvement.

The 8th (and final) class rolled around. We measured her recti – TOTALLY CLOSED – TOP, MIDDLE, AND BOTTOM. We measured her waist as well – 32.5 inches before, and 30.5 inches after – TWO inches lost. Total time to close a LARGE diastasis and get back her prepregnancy midsection? 8 WEEKS!!

Her husbands comments that last week (who she claimes never notices anything), “You look kinda hot in that tank top.”

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Another girl I trained during a private 3 session course was a very tall, dancer’s body, slender woman. She was frustrated about her tummy not looking right, 6 years after having twins. She had a FOUR fingerwidth gap on the top part of her recti, a FIVE fingerwidth gap in the middle – right at the bellybutton – and a FOUR fingerwidth gap on the bottom. Her waist – 29 1/8 inches. She was also what would be considered by many to be a prime tummy tuck candidate due to the separation of her recti.

She immediately got a Splint to approximate the recti. She did her 5 sets of 100 seated tuplers a day and by the 2nd session (two weeks later) was down to CLOSED recti at the top, 2 fingerwidth split in the middle, and ONE fingerwidth split on the bottom. Her waist size 27 5/8 – down 1 1/2 inches.

She continued to do her 5 sets of 100, get up and down correctly, avoid “crunches”, and wear the splint. We measured her after the 3rd session and she was CLOSED on top, CLOSED in the middle, and CLOSED on the bottom. Total time to close her diastasis and get back her prepregnancy midsection? 6 weeks!

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Do you know of anyone who has a “mummy tummy”? Feel free to spread the word – its VERY HARD information to find. Most practitioners, surgeons and most personal trainers DO NOT KNOW this is out there for their clients and patients! Spread the word and give some hope for those who don’t know that there is an answer to post-pregnancy midsection woes!

March 5, 2010

The Macaroni SWAP

Sometimes you JUST want some macaroni and cheese, darn it! At our house we have a tradition to make macaroni every Wednesday night because that is the day Daddy is gone until way late. So its a win-win – the kids really look forward to it, and I look forward to making a very quick dinner.

However, I thought to myself, there has to be a healthier way. I saw the “organic” mac and cheese at Trader Joes for $1.84- $2ish dollars for a small dinky package – STILL made with refined flour and thought “ARE YOU KIDDING ME?”

Then…as I passed more shelves (and NO Trader Joes does not pay me anything to write this stuff….) and I found the perfect solution. I don’t know about you, but whole wheat pasta is a decent solution to pasta stuff, but my kids don’t like it as much, and they get so much wheat as it is. So when I saw the

BROWN RICE PASTA

that has big macaroni shaped noodles, I knew I had found the perfect solution. They are just plain noodles, and they taste so much lighter and “whiter” than the whole wheat pasta. So here is what I do. I take the cheese from the Kraft Macaroni, and the noodles from Trader Joes.

After making the giant Trader Joes Macaroni noodles, I add Soy Milk or Skim Milk, Butter or Smart Balance, and the Cheese sauce. (And if you sneak in some butternut squash or carrot puree, more power to you!)

AND WHALAH! A much healthier option to tradition mac and cheese. And because I only use about 1/3 to 1/2 of the bag of Trader Joes Brown Rice noodles that cost me $2ish – I can reuse those for 2 or 3 more packages for mac and cheese Wednesday. And if you get the crappy mac and cheese on sale – like .35 or so – and use the cheese packet from that – and it makes for a pretty darn cheap, but much better meal. I figure net cost of $1.35 – $1.70. It makes more, and its just as fast!

And for moms, ahem, like me, that sometimes JUST want to have a bite of mac and cheese, you can feel good about doing it.

Do you have any great substituting tricks to do with your kids?

March 2, 2010

What do you mean I shouldn’t do crunches? Never? But…

Yes, I have been asked this question many times. Lets face it, people just LOVE their crunches. I don’t know why – it doesn’t make sense to me. Even before I knew the damage they could do to the recti, I knew that they hurt my neck muscles. There is ALWAYS an abdominal bulge-out. Even when people THINK they are bringing their stomach muscles in, they are not able to fully engage the abdominals because it is PHYSICALLY IMPOSSIBLE to bring in the innermost abdominal muscle (TRANSVERSE) while doing a crunch.

In fact, the only REASON, in THEORY, to do a crunch is to SHORTEN the long stretched out recti muscles (outermost abdominal muscles – 6 pack muscles) and make them strong, toned, and lean.

Well, a crunch will shorten the recti from the TOP by bringing your head off the ground, and a crunch will shorten the BOTTOM of the recti by bringing your legs to a bent position in essence tilting the pelvis. HOWEVER, the pitfall is that it DOESN’T shorten the recti from the MIDDLE – which is the MOST important part.

Why doesn’t a crunch shorten the recti from the middle you ask? Because it does NOT work the transversus abdominus – a.k.a transverse.

If the crunch does not work the transverse, or shorten the recti from the middle, is there ANY POINT in doing the exercises?

The answer is so VERY simple – absolutely not!!!

WHAT IS THE ANSWER?!?!?

Two things:

SEATED TUPLERS: Imagine your belly is a sideways elevator and the 1st floor is where your belly is normally at in its relaxed position. Bring your belly all the way back to your spine (5th floor) and hold it there for a second, then release to the 3rd floor (in between the 1st and 5th), then back to 5th floor again (squeeze and hold for a second) then back to 3rd floor. Continuing doing until you reach 100.

100 may seem like a lot, but a set of 100 only takes 2 ½ minutes. Do 5 sets a day, altogether, or spaced out, whatever is easiest. Do this exercise sitting down with firm back support. You should be able to feel this in your back, as it also works the lower lumbar muscles. This is the FASTEST way to repair your recti and bring them back together, closing the diastasis.

Yes you DO breathe. You “sniff” to bring air in, and COUNT as your exhale, which forces the air to work through your body.

HEAD LIFT: Lay on your back with your knees bent. Expand your belly to allow air to come into the body, Exhale, bring your bellybutton all the way to the spine (this is working the TRANSVERSE ABDOMINUS – the key to bringing in the recti). Hold the belly there and you slightly tilt your pelvus to bring the small of the back pressed into the floor, tuck the chin, and then lift up your head and bring it back down fairly quickly.

If your abdominals show any movement, then it means your TRANSVERSE is not quite strong enough. There should be no visible movement on your abdominals.

ONE LAST QUESTION: How do you get the transverse strong enough to do the headlift? THE SEATED TUPLERS – it is the fastest way because it strengthens your abdominals in a seated position, which is the MISSING LINK of abdominals. You will not have gravity working against you in a seated position. Then when you begin to do abdominals while laying on your back where gravity is working against you, you will already have a mind body connection to the muscle to tell if your transverse muscle is actually engaged.

So my question is WHY WOULD YOU DO A CRUNCH when there is really no benefit, and EVEN damage you can do to your stomach muscles (further splitting of the recti)? Even if you CLOSED your diastasis, the gap, why would you then go back to an INFERIOR way?

Have you tried these? Did you get stumped? Did you feel the seated tupler exercise in your back or your kegel area (that would mean you are doing them right)?

February 9, 2010

REPLACING YOUR EVENING MUNCHIES – Herbal Tea?

So this is my new favorite wintertime pasttime to avoid eating total CRAP at night time.

Lets face it, when you have your favorite winter time TV shows on, or if its been a go -go day and you just want some unwinding time, the pitfall is THE MONSTER MUNCHIES!!

Its never the craving for celery, spinach, or broccoli…its generally the things that sit all night in our bellies and pack on the pounds like crazy in the wintertime – like brownies, chips, cookies, etc.

So I feel as I am on a neverending quest to prevent that and find fun exciting things I can eat that will not make me regret it 20 minutes later.

Last winter it was “orange peel herbal tea.” or “tangerine peel herbal tea.” It is loaded with nutrients and VERY simple to make. You can buy these in stores dried with other herbs…but why if its soooo darn simple?

You just take your orange or tangerine peel from your kids lunch or breakfast or snack (or yours) and just pour boiling water on the peel. Let it set for 20 minutes and WHALAA!! Its a very orangey herbal tea FANTASTIC for digestion. Put 1 teeny tiny scoop of stevia to sweeten it if you want.

My other new favorite I got from a friend from her “YOGI” way of living book. But I am HOOKED!!

1 tsp anise

1 tsp mint

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp fennel

1/2 tsp rosemary (opt)

Just pour boiling water on those ingredients. Wait 20 minutes and strain it with a strainer. Put 1 tsp of stevia if you want and YUM! Its so good. Its great to make you feel GROUNDED according to the Yogi book. Also the mint is excellent for the complexion and the digestion.

Its great to curl up sipping something warm and nurturing in the wintertime when everything is so cold. I LOVE IT!!!!

Do you have any great herbal tea recipes? Do you have other tips for avoiding wintertimes munchies?

Beautiful After the Belly