Full Impact Magaine Article

Your core is too tight... What?!
You’re probably wondering how that is even possible - I’m here to tell you that it is! There are some foundational misunderstandings about what healthy abs are, and more importantly, what they are not.

Core stability and core strength are different.

To generate power and strength you need mobility. To have mobility, you need stability. 

Traditional core stability exercises are described as spinal tracks which include a progression of similar movement of various levels of difficulty. And they all have one thing in common; your core remains still, and in a neutral position and your extremities move around this stable foundation. All tracks start with easier spinal challenges and sequentially increase their difficulty.  Take the dead bug track for example; once you have passed the first level which is raising your arms individually overhead, and you have performed it perfectly by maintaining a neutral pelvis throughout the movement, you progress to the next level.  It is only once you have performed each level in sequence correctly that you eventually get to the actual dead bug exercise. In all spinal stability tracks, your core does not move but your extremities do.

Core strengthening exercises are the more traditional core exercises you do when your core moves.  Some examples include crunches, seated twist, ab pull-ins and bicycles. Many of these exercises are performed in a state of instability, an approach that is much like putting the roof on a house before the foundation has been poured. Not a good idea.

Tighter does not equal stronger. 

‘Keep your core tight’. We have all heard it. We hold our breath and suck it in, in hopes it will help. It doesn’t. The destructive cycle continues as the tightness builds, creating more tightness and more dysfunction.

Gray Cook, one of my favorite physiotherapists, describes muscles tightness as the “parking brake”. This is brilliant! He says “Tightness is often a way that the body uses parking brakes in absence of real, authentic braking system: motor control”.  Our body’s motor control, when used properly, is finely tuned to input and process appropriate output.  When we don’t move properly and our bodies need to use our “parking brakes”, we slow down and are constantly engaged to compensate, causing us to exhibit tightness. The tightness we experience in our bodies is serving a purpose and to correct it is not simply attempting to get rid of the tightness. Proper movement and stability must be achieved so the tightness has no need to return.

Train the movement not the muscle.  
Proper core stability is patterned. Spending too much time without adequate mobility and stability often results in a faulty core stabilization pattern. Adding core strength to a bad pattern will only make things worse. Holding a plank for 5 minutes, while impressive, has nothing to do with proper core function.  It’s how you move that will dictate a functional core. Possessing that core strength in a stationary position doesn't mean you can stabilize yourself during movement. Muscles get their commands from the nervous system. It's doesn't matter how strong the muscle is, if the nervous system - supported proper spinal joint motion - is not ideal, you are wasting your time.  

This is where chiropractic fits in. Chiropractic adjustments restore proper spinal joint movement, allowing the nervous system to communicate properly to the rest of the body. This includes muscles and patterning the way you move.

Healthy core exercises focus on our alignment, promote stability and improve our body awareness.
Core stability is a part of all movement, whether it’s moving your big toe, walking briskly, or carrying groceries. For example, say I want to wiggle my big toe.  My brain decides to do it, my nervous system engages my core in anticipation/preparation of the movement to stabilize my low back and pelvis; then I wiggle my big toe.  Give it a try. What did your core do? Anything? If not, we may have a problem.

Once we understand how we are designed to move it’s easier to take that movement into our everyday lives, turning all our movements into proper, core stability activity. Our core requires functional movement to be healthy. So please, stop saving the last 15 minutes of your workout for core exercises!

Vertical Birth

By Pamela Hines-Powell

While the awareness about the dangers and disadvantages of giving birth while lying on one’s back is more widespread, this is still the main position in which the majority of women in the North America give birth.

The disadvantages of pushing while lying on the back include:

• Pelvic outlet is reduced, which creates less room for baby
• Less urge for the mother to push
• Baby takes longer to descend—the “curve of Carus” along the sacrum and tailbone when on the back makes more of an uphill route that baby needs to maneuver before emerging under the pubic bone
• Less oxygen to the baby due to increased pressure from the weight of the uterus and baby on the mother’s inferior vena cava (artery)
• More difficult for mother to reach down and assist in the birth of her baby
• Increased pain for mother
• Uterus has to work harder to create contractions to bring baby down
• Contractions may slow or stop
• Increased risk of further aggravating or creating new hemorrhoids
• Greater risk of perineal tears and lacerations
• Easier for care provider to perform an episiotomy, if needed
• Increased insecurity on the part of the mother, as she cannot as easily see what is being done to her
• Greater risk of shoulder dystocia (where the shoulder becomes lodged behind the pubic bone) because of the decreased pelvic outlet

The advantages of pushing while upright and/or squatting include:

• Squatting increases size of the pelvic outlet, thereby creating more room for a larger baby or baby with a presentation issue (posterior, asynclitic, etc)
• Gravity helps baby descend
• The force of the uterus during pushing is helped by being upright—gravity assists in the uterus being able to contract and tilt forward
• Baby is better able to present naturally in the mother’s pelvis, and rotates into more favorable positions, if needed, while the mother is upright
• Less pain is felt by the mother as the baby descends past the sacrum due to the fact that there is no pressure (by a bed) on this part of her body
• Perineal tissues stretch more effectively, often reducing the need for postpartum repairs and/or discomfort
• Mother is able to help assist in the delivery of her baby, as well as see her own baby being born
• Sacrum is much more flexible and moves with descent of baby’s head
• Mother is able to maintain eye contact with care providers (if she desires) and there are no surprises in touch

Even semi-sitting or semi-reclining positions interfere with natural, spontaneous pushing stages. In both the semi-sitting and semi-reclining positions, the sacrum is compressed, thereby reducing the diameter of the pelvic outlet.

Other options include hands and knees, standing, or kneeling. Squatting is easiest on the mother when she is supported and/or in water.

Sitting on the toilet is another fabulous position, as this is the place where we unconsciously relax our pelvic floor muscles. (Some women worry about their babies falling in the toilet, which is rare, but putting a chux pad under the toilet seat will offer some reassurance—as will having another person—preferably the partner—help with the delivery of the baby. Most women will instinctively start to stand as the head emerges.)

Side-lying is a great position because there is no pressure on the sacrum, and it facilitates oxygen flow to the baby and great blood flow to the uterus (positive blood flow to the uterus results in coordinated, efficient contractions). The upper leg can easily be supported by care providers or partners.

Squatting low over a pillow, cushion, or mat is a wonderful way to birth, as the baby can slide right out and the mother can easily pick up her own baby after taking in the entire experience. (This, compared to babies that are “thrown” up on the mother’s belly, seems like a more gentle way for mothers to make the transition after such physical work.)

Above all, just because the cervix is completely dilated does NOT mean a mother needs to push (it’s also normal to have small, involuntary pushes at the peak of a contraction to help with the last couple centimeters of dilation). The uterus will bring the baby down on the pelvic floor with contractions, while the mother breathes or copes with these contractions. After awhile, there will be an overwhelming action of the mother’s body to bear down. Active pushes on the part of the mother should only occur when the mother feels them, and not between contractions. Holding the breath while someone counts will only fatigue the mother, as well as create a risk of fetal distress due to the decreased oxygen. The whole idea is to listen to her body.

Some pushing stages take 20 minutes. Others may take 3 hours. These are all variations of normal and the mother should try a variety of positions that feel good for her, while staying hydrated and emptying her bladder (an empty bladder helps baby move down into the pelvis, as well as helping the uterus contract after the baby and placenta are delivered). Warm compresses over the perineum and rectum may offer some comfort, but hot compresses over a long period of time could swell the perineal tissues. Many midwives put herbs like grated ginger root into a crock-pot for compresses. Plain, boiled water works wonders, too.

For Partners: A hint for long pushing stages: cold cloths. Fill a small bowl with ice and a little bit of water. Get two or three washcloths and immerse them in the ice water, wring them out and use them to stroke the mother’s forehead or place on the back of the neck. These will warm up rather quickly, so replace them often with newly cooled cloths from the bowl. You can also add a little bit of essential oil to the water (lavender or clary sage are two labor favorites).

See more at: http://pathwaystofamilywellness.org/Pregnancy-Birth/vertical-birth.html#sthash.FmXOi6ob.dpuf

Diastasis Recti: Do I Have It & What Can I Do About It?

Written by Lindsay Nealon, DC  
Diastasis Recti. Perhaps you’ve heard of it, perhaps you haven’t. Most of us are first introduced to Diastasis Recti during pregnancy, but it doesn’t only affect pregnant or postpartum women, it can also affect men and children too. As many as 30% of newborns have this split at birth which closes once they gain head control and their core takes on more of an important role, interesting yes?  However, postpartum women have a higher risk because of the increased intra-abdominal pressure created by the growing uterus in pregnancy which pushes the abdominal muscles apart. But let’s get one thing straight, all pregnant women will experience some degree of stretch or separation. We have to or our bodies would not be able to carry a child. See it’s not all bad!
 
But what exactly is it?
Essentially Diastasis Recti is when those core muscles, specifically your rectus abdominus (you know, the ones that make up your six pack?), split apart. It sounds uncomfortable! But you’ve got some connective tissue (the linea alba) holding the 2 sides of muscle together. It can stretch and thin out causing the abdominal separation. The more dysfunctional your core is, the more likely something like this can happen.

Image of Diastasis Recti before and after. Credit.

Do I have a split? 
You may still have a ‘mommy tummy’ or your abs may pop up when you get out of bed. But do you have a split? The most common test performed to evaluate diastasis recti is, of course, the diastasis recti test, otherwise known as, the curl-up test, the crunch test, abdominal separation test, etc. You get the picture.  Here is how to do it. Diastasis Recti Test

• Lie on your back with your knees bent, feet on the floor, shoulder width apart.
• Place your dominate hand on the top of your abdomen, just below your ribs, with your fingertips across your midline-parallel with your waistline.
• With your abdominal wall relaxed, gently press your fingertips into your abdomen. Get a feel for it.
• Roll your upper body off the floor into a "crunch" making sure that your ribcage moves closer to your pelvis.
• Move your fingertips back and forth across your midline, feeling for the right and left sides of your rectus abdominis muscle.
• Relax.
• Move your fingers down and assess the area below. It’s important to test for separation at, above, and below your belly button. 

The diastasis or split is measured by the number of finger spaces that fit in between the two rectus abdominis muscle bellies (the left and the right side).  Normal: 1 finger space or less.  Diastasis Recti: 2 or more finger spaces or a distance of 25 mm (just less than 1 inch). But again, this is just a clinical observation! This test gives us no information regarding the function of your core and that is what truly matters. You must first regain proper core function and then address the gap. Diastasis Recti Curl Up Test Demo  

The Research (Or at least some of it)  
In the last decade many studies regarding pregnancy and diastasis recti have been published. Of note, in postpartum moms, the ‘inter-recti’ distance (the space between the left and right sides) of the rectus abdominus muscle decreases markedly on its own from day 1 to week 8 after pregnancy. Great! However, if there is a gap after 8 weeks and no interventions are done to help it, the gap will remain unchanged at 1 year postpartum. Keep in mind that many times diastasis recti doesn’t just hang out on its own, other core dysfunctions tag along like stress urinary incontinence, fecal incontinence and/or pelvic organ prolapse, again letting us know that the split is just a split and we have a dysfunctional core.
 
Is my core is dysfunctional?  
First we have to become aware of our core and what it’s doing (or not doing) as we get through our day.  Core is a part of all of our movement and the fifteen minutes of core exercises we complete every few days isn’t going to make a dent in our overall core stability and strength. And while it seems like more and more postpartum women are dealing with Diastasis Recti, a sedentary, unhealthy lifestyle doesn’t help either; certain muscles are overworked and others are never worked at all. My guess is that even before pregnancy your core could have used some work. Why? Because we simply don’t move right! Think about what your body is doing all day long. How is your posture? Are you sitting upright engaging your core throughout the day? What about your breath—do you breathe deep into your diaphragm or shallow only breathing into the top part of your chest? Do you find you have back problems or experience incontinence? Does it hurt to do everyday functional tasks like squatting or lifting? Are you answering ‘yes’ to any of these? Then yes, your core is probably dysfunctional and could use some love and attention.

Ways to Help
Let’s look at a few known ways that may or may not help heal diastasis recti so you know what to invest your time and energy into.

Should I brace?
I see why some may think a brace or splinting would help. It is my understanding that the intent of the brace focuses on healing the connective tissue. “It holds everything in place, eliminating any chance of connective tissue (linea alba) stretch due to intra-abdominal pressure,” says Julie Tupler of the Tupler Technique. However, the brace itself adds abdominal pressure so while the pressure isn’t creating the gap it will create some other dysfunction in another part of your core.  And most likely it will be your pelvic floor or the bottom of your core that fails.  It is my opinion that bracing has nothing to do about regaining proper function and will leave you with superficial, temporary results. So my answer is no you should not brace. What should you do? Well that’s coming next.

Is surgery an option?
I’ve spoken to many moms who believe surgery is the only option. It is not and it shouldn’t even be on your radar until you have been accessed and followed a treatment plan provided to you by an expert! Besides that, there are many things to do before you go under the knife. Some women, in the end, still opt for surgery, aka a ‘tummy tuck’ but by this point of this blog post you know that the gap isn’t necessarily the issue and by just fixing the gap other dysfunctions may pop up in the future. You must ensure proper core function is restored.

Okay, so what can I do to make my core more functional?
We need to look at ‘exercises’ that address all aspects of core and retrain our body’s proper movement.  Here are a few of my favourites! Dynamic Stretching

Most of the tightness in our extremities stems from a sloppy core and poor posture.  Our bodies are smart. If I have taught my core to be sloppy or unstable then the tightness in my extremities is there for a reason. It is serving a purpose. It is creating ‘fake’ stability. So I must loosen up my hips and my shoulders so that I can regain my core. The dynamic stretching videos are designed to loosen up your hips and shoulders so that they core exercises below are more effective.  
Lower Dynamic Stretching Demo Upper Dynamic Stretching Demo  

Crocodile Breathing  
Breathing can help a slew of problems, including regaining proper core function, so don’t underestimate it! First off, do you breathe correctly? The inhale should be initiated at the lower abdomen with the belly expanding with the inhale and contracting with the exhale. The pelvic floor muscles (a group of muscles contained in the pelvis) should drop down with our inhale. The reverse happens with the exhale, the pelvic floor muscles lift up and the belly flattens, allowing air to move out of the rib cage. For our pelvic floor to function properly, proper motion must happen during each breath cycle. Crocodile breathing is a great way to add function to your diaphragm and pelvic floor.

• Begin by lying on your tummy, rest your head on your hands.
• Breathe in through your nose pushing your belly into the floor, out to the side and up to the ceiling.
• Release the air and relax into the floor.
• Complete 10 times at least 2 times per day. 

Why crocodile? Because when our back goes up and down we look like a crocodile lying on its belly breathing.

Heel Drops

• Begin on your back with your knees bent and feet on the ground. Relax neck and shoulders and lay arms by your side.
• Find your pelvic neutral position. Move your pelvis through its full range of motion (anterior pelvic tilt/posterior pelvic tilt) and find pelvic neutral which is the position half way in between.
• Raise both legs, one at a time, to ‘table top’ position (hips at 90 degrees, knees at 90 degrees) while maintaining pelvic neutral.
• Slowly lower legs, one at a time, to the ground while maintaining pelvic neutral.
• If you begin to arch, don’t reach your legs out as far or bend your knees more.
• Perform 15 perfect reps on each side x 2.

Resisted Bridge

• Begin sitting, tie a piece of tubing around your legs and place just above your knees. Keep your hips in line with knees, knees in line with feet. The tighter the tubing the more difficult it will be to maintain this position. Your butt must fire to keep your legs in line. 
• Lower onto your back, keep your knees bent and feet on the ground. Relax your neck and shoulders and flip hands to palms up so you don’t cheat with your arms.
• Bridge up and down while maintaining pelvic neutral.
• Complete 25 x 2.

How Can Chiropractic Help?
The basics: our nervous system controls and regulates every cell, tissue, organ, system and muscle of our body. It’s our power supply. When our nervous system isn’t functioning properly we don’t function properly. This includes the core.  Our core is built like a cylinder. It is synergistic in nature, meaning that all the parts must work together in order to serve its purpose. From a muscular standpoint it looks like this; 

• Front: Abdominal muscles (specifically transverse abdominus)
• Back: Intrinsic back muscles (multifidus), psoas & lateral glute muscles
• Top: Diaphragm
• Bottom: Pelvic floor & obturator internus muscle

Here’s what we know about muscles. They are dumb! All of them! They are told what to do from your nervous system. They don't contract unless your nervous system tells them to. The nerve supply to your core includes: 

• Transverse abdominus: Lower intercostal nerves (T7-T11), iliohypogastric nerve (L1) and ilioinguinal nerve (L1).
• Multifidus: Posterior nerve root T10-S5.  Psoas: (L1, L2, L3), Gluteus medius and minimus: L4, 5, S1. 
• Diaphragm: C3-5, intercostal (T5-T11) and subcostal nerves (T12).
• Pelvic floor: Sacral nerve roots S3-S5.  Obturator internus: L5, S1, S2.

Credit.
Does your nervous system play a role in a functional core? Absolutely. If these spinal levels are not moving correctly will they play a role in a dysfunctional core?  Most definitely. Throughout your pregnancy and delivery, your pelvis has experienced a ton of stress. So while functional exercises are important, your spine must be moving properly. The nerve supply to these muscles must be free of interference or the program will be ineffective. I have worked with hundreds of women regain their core function. If you have any questions I am here to help. You can reach me at drlindsay@thewellnessstudio.ca.

Xx
Dr. Lindsay

 

Sources:

Be-Fit Mom. July 2015. http://www.befitmom.com/diastasis_recti.php

Carey, Elea. Heal Diastasis Recti: Exercises for New Moms. Healthline. Aug. 2014.  http://www.healthline.com/health/pregnancy/disastis-recti-exercises

Lee, Diane PT. Diastasis Rectus Abdominis & Postpartum Health. July 2015. http://dianelee.ca/article-diastasis-rectus-abdominis.php

Lee, Diane PT. Understand Your Back & Pelvic Girdle Pain. Jan. 2011. http://dianelee.ca/articles/1-Understanding-Your-Back-&-PGP-2011-opt.pdf

Lee, Diane PT and Linda-Joy Lee. The Pelvic Girdle: An Integration of Expertise and Research. Churchill Livingstone, 2010. Print.

Powell, Wendy PT. Why You Should Stop Measuring Your Diastasis, Or Anything Else For that Matter. MuTu System. Apr. 2014. https://mutusystem.com/why-you-should-stop-measuring-your-diastasis-or-anything-else-for-that-matter.html

Scapens, Lorraine. Does Your Diastasis Need to Close for Optimal Function? Pregnancy Exercise. Jan. 2015. http://www.pregnancyexercise.co.nz/does-your-diastasis-need-to-close-for-optimal-function/

Breath Work - Exercise 2

Our diaphragm is the ceiling to our cylindrical core. To train core properly all core elements must be addressed. Breath work must be incorporated into all core programs. Dr. Andrew Well recommends three breathing exercises, the second is The Stimulating Breath (also called the Bellows Breath) Exercise.

The Stimulating Breath is adapted from a yogic breathing technique. Its aim is to raise vital energy and increase alertness.

• Inhale and exhale rapidly through your nose, keeping your mouth closed but relaxed. Your breaths in and out should be equal in duration, but as short as possible. This is a noisy breathing exercise.
• Try for three in-and-out breath cycles per second. This produces a quick movement of the diaphragm, suggesting a bellows. Breath normally after each cycle.
• Do not do for more than 15 seconds on your first try. Each time you practice the Stimulating Breath, you can increase your time by five seconds or so, until you reach a full minute.

If done properly, you will feel invigorated, comparable to the heightened awareness you feel after a good workout. You should feel the effort at the back of the neck, the diaphragm, the chest and the abdomen. Try this breathing exercise the next time you need an energy boost and feel yourself reaching for a cup of coffee.

Breath Work - Exercise One

Our diaphragm is the ceiling to our cylindrical core. To train core properly all core elements must be addressed. Breath work must be incorporated into all core programs. Dr. Andrew Well recommends three breathing exercises, the first is The 4-7-8 (or Relaxing Breath) Exercise.
The 4-7-8: This exercise is simple, takes almost no time, requires no equipment and can be done anywhere. Although you can do the exercise in any position, sit with your back straight while learning the exercise. Place the tip of your tongue against the ridge of tissue just behind your upper front teeth and keep it there through the entire exercise. You will be exhaling through your mouth around your tongue; try pursing your lips slightly if this seems awkward.

• Exhale completely through your mouth, making a whoosh sound.
• Close your mouth and inhale quietly through your nose to a mental count of FOUR.
• Hold your breath for a count of SEVEN.
• Exhale completely through your mouth, making a whoosh sound to a count of EIGHT.
• This is one breath. Now inhale again and repeat the cycle three more times for a total of four breaths.

Always inhale quietly through your nose and exhale audibly through your mouth. The tip of your tongue stays in position the whole time. Exhalation takes twice as long as inhalation. The absolute time you spend on each phase is not important; the ratio 4-7-8 is important. If you have trouble holding your breath, speed the exercise up but keep to the 4-7-8 for the three phases. With practice you can slow it all down and get used to inhaling and exhaling more and more deeply.
This exercise is a natural tranquilizer for the nervous system. Unlike tranquilizing drugs, which are often effective when you first take them but then lose their power over time, this exercise is subtle when you first try it but gains in power with repetition and practice. Do it at least twice a day, you cannot do it too frequently. Do not do more than four breaths at one time for the first month of practice. Later you can extend it to eight breaths. If you feel a little light headed when you first breathe this way, do not be concerned; it will pass.
Once you develop this technique by practicing it every day, it will be a very useful tool that you will always have with you. Use it whenever anything upsetting happens - before you react. Use it whenever you are aware of internal tension. Use it to help you fall asleep. This exercise cannot be recommended too highly and everyone can benefit from it.

Labour Aides

I was 5 months into my 1st pregnancy when my midwives asked me if I was ready to run my marathon. What?! What kind of question is that? In retrospect it was the best one to prepare me for labour and delivery. They were my marathons.
Dehydration becomes a concern during labour and delivery. The labour aide recipes below will help maintain good hydration by replacing vital minerals and electrolytes. Plus, they’re loaded with easily absorbed simple carbs to help you maintain your energy and deliver at your best. And much like the same instructions when training for a marathon, don’t wait until the big day to try anything new out. Take some time to come up with your special blend. I made mine into ice cubes.

Lemon Labor Aide

•  4 cups filtered water 
•  1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice 
•  1/4 teaspoon sea salt 
•  1/4 cup raw honey (or more to taste) 
•  a few drops of concentrace mineral drops (optional) 
•  a few drops of rescue remedy (optional)

Coconut & Lime Labor Aide

•  3 cups coconut water 
•  1 cup filtered water (or more, based on how strong you prefer the flavor to be) 
•  1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (lemon is delicious too!) 
•  1/4 teaspoon sea salt 2 tablespoons raw honey or maple syrup (or more to taste) 
•  a few drops of concentrace mineral drops (optional) 
•  a few drops of rescue remedy (optional)

Instructions - Mix all ingredients together and store in fridge or make into ice cubes.

About The Ingredients:

Coconut water is often referred to as “Nature’s Gatorade.” It contains more potassium and sodium– electrolytes needed for proper cell function – than Gatorade.
Raw honey is a superfood, rich in minerals and easily digestible sugars, which give us energy.  Sugar signals the body to down-regulate the production of stress hormones like cortisol. Cortisol levels spike during exercise and particularly during anaerobic (when you get breathless) exercise. Too much cortisol can disrupt the flow of labour, making this a super ingredient useful on many levels. Of course source local and yes, it must be raw honey. And yes, if you are healthy person going through pregnancy, you can eat raw honey when you are pregnant.
Sea salt is full of electrolytes and minerals. It also plays an important role in balancing the stress hormones produced during exercise. Salt reduces adrenaline levels and supports overall metabolic health.
Trace mineral drops add to the electrolyte content of the drink. Due to soil depletion many of us do not get enough trace minerals in our diet, so I supplement with this regularly.
Rescue Remedy is a bach flower essence that many mamas find help them feel more calm and centered during labour. Rescue remedy is a staple in our house used by all of us. I always have some handy.

Blog post created with help from

http://www.mommypotamus.com/how-to-make-a-labor-aid-electrolyte-drink/

http://modernalternativepregnancy.com/2012/10/09/is-it-safe/#.VEZu4GeBUTI

http://www.livestrong.com/article/536647-is-it-ok-to-eat-honey-when-pregnant/

Dynamic Warm Up

Controls and moves you into all 3 planes of motion. Here is a quick routine to try. Fell free to use a chair or the wall to hold yourself upright.

• Full squats with backward arm circles (10)
• Front to back leg swings (10 each side)
• Side to side leg swings (10 each side)
• Forward and backward hurdle steps (5 each side and in each direction)
• Side lunges (5 each side)
• Forward lunges (5 each side)
• Forward lunge with a twist (5 each side)
• High knee stretch (5 each side)
• Slow and controlled bum kicks (5 each side)
• Big Deep Breath