Put Yourself First
Why Mamas Should put Themselves First…
Remember the saying “ You can’t pour from an empty cup!”? It’s popular, because it’s true! We know how demanding and all consuming it is to love, care and nurture your babies and families, which is why we are always reminding our members to prioritize their own needs as well as they do the needs of everyone else.
The practice of self-care is not selfish - in fact, it’s the exact opposite. However, it can be hard to figure out HOW to do it while also balancing the often unpredictable and busy family calendar. Today we thought we would share 6 easy ways you can incorporate some daily, weekly or monthly self-care rituals that are bound to leaving you feeling more fulfilled, content, patient and happy!
Involve your children in your exercise routine!
Drink Water
Seems simple enough, but most of us are pretty dehydrated. It can take some time to adapt to increasing your water intake (especially if you’re not used to it), but if you do we PROMISE you will feel better! Dehydration can impact our mood, our brain function and how our bodies recover after exercise, as well as how it digests food. It can be helpful to track your water intake, especially when you are not used to sipping throughout the day. There are tons of free apps out there, make your smart phone work for you and track away!! We also love a fun mug/tumbler that you would enjoy drinking from. These Costco knockoffs of the Stanley Brand (most recently featured on an SNL Skit) are great. Or get a Fitmama Strong branded insulated water bottle instead - they’re so nice!
2. Move your body
You know we are big fans of regular, consistent exercise. There are lots of reasons why we prioritize our movement and commit to regular, short and consistent workouts each week, but one of the immediate benefits of exercise is a better mood! Almost everyone leaves a workout, a walk or a spontaneous dance party feeling better and happier than when they started. We’re definitely in it for the Endorphins!
3. Practice Meditation, Breath work, or other mindfulness activity
We know meditation can be hard to incorporate into your daily practice. So why don’t you start with only committing 1-2 minutes of breath work each day. As your confidence grows and your skills improve, you can add more time. Practicing deep breathing is a fantastic way to regulate your vagus nerve (your parasympathetic system). People who are learning to manage their anxiety often add in breath work to calm their mind and refocus their brain to the present (anxiety LOVES to live in the future or the past). Practicing breath work at the start of your day, before you drink any caffeine BUT after you drink some water, is a great way to put yourself first every day. Do it again for 1-2 minutes each night as part of your wind-down routine can also set up a lovely bedtime ritual. You can always add more time if you need it, but almost everyone should be able to find 1-2 minutes in the morning and evening to start a practice of mindfulness.
4. Connect with a friend
Social connections are essential to our well-being. The more connected we are, the less likely we are to experience depression, isolation and loneliness. Motherhood and parenting can be a very isolating experience and far too many mothers and parents are often left on their own with little support. We know it can be hard to make friends as an adult, but joining community groups is a great way to start to meet people who have the same interests or are in the same stage of life as you. Nurturing the friendships you have already made can be difficult once babies and kids come along, but scheduling a 15 minute call with your bestie (even better if it’s a video call) can do so much to make you feel like yourself. Encouraging new parents to make connections is one of the most important reasons we run our Fitmama Strong programs (both online and in-person).
5. Create a night time ritual
Many parents work very hard to create the ideal environment for good bedtime sleep for babies, toddler and kiddos, but we think you deserve that too! If you love essential oils, use your diffuser to create a calming space in your bedroom. If you love to soak in the tub, make yourself a bath every night and do that instead of streaming or scrolling. Try reading a book for 20 minutes before you go to sleep. Work on completing your bedtime routine and going to bed at around the same time each night. These are all uncomplicated and simple rituals that can help you achieve better sleep and feel good (even if a baby is still waking you through the night).
6. Practice gratitude
Start or end your day recording 3 - 5 things that you are grateful for. The more specific you are the better. You might choose to record your thoughts in a journal, a jar or using an app! Either way, we recommend you add this practice to something you already do. This is called habit stacking and is one of the ways a new routine can be more successfully implemented. For example, if you always start your day with water and tea, have a notebook and pen to record a few items you are grateful for from the previous day. Did you know that people who practice gratitude every day are happier, may experience less stress, have a more positive attitude and can handle more of life’s unpredictable events?? As the saying goes “The days are long, but the years are short”. Practicing gratitude daily may help you appreciate each day a little more, especially if you are in a season of hard.
We hope we’ve inspired you to carve out a little more time for yourself each day! Consider it an act of self-parenting. What is self-parenting? It’s recognizing what your needs are and taking the appropriate action or initiative to ensure your own wellbeing. These are not always easy skills to incorporate, especially if you haven’t seen it modelled before, but with a little practice we know you can do it!
Interested in joining us? Our community is a great way to meet other new parents. Fitmama Strong Durham has been operating in-person classes in the Durham Region since 2010 and we’ve been offering Online classes online from our virtual studio since 2020. Our community is a thriving and welcoming space for you and your littles.
We offer Prenatal Fitness and Prenatal Yoga classes, on-demand from our virtual studio through a special series. Our 30 minute live, online Express classes include a Prenatal friendly Yoga class.
If you’re new to Fitmama Strong Online, try one of our 3 Class Passes! You can use them at any of our Express classes on our live, online schedule. It doesn’t matter if you’re pregnant, your baby was born 6 weeks ago or 6 years ago, we have something for all of our members! Already been to Fitmama Strong classes? Attend and in-person series or grab a monthly membership and keep moving with us. Please note that our New to Fitmama Strong 3 Class Pass cannot be used at our in-person series of classes.
Finally, we offer in-person Stroller Fitness and Babywearing Fitness in the Durham Region and Ottawa locations. We can’t wait to have you join us!
We can’t wait for you to #startwithus and #growwithus. Join us Online or at one of our in-person classes!