Not Your Mama Podcast: Recent Episodes
Kelly Bryant Wellness
Welcome to the Not Your Mama podcast! I am Kelly Bryant, and I am THE prenatal & postnatal trainer who GUARANTEES results in less time per day than your partner spends on the toilet. I help new parents fix their abs, heal prolapse, stop peeing their pants, and get pain-free. Here on the Not Your Mama podcast, we are embracing the fact that your are so. much. more. than just a parent. We're here to reclaim your body AND your identity after having a kid — whether you're pregnant now or decades postpartum.
Over the past several months, as I’ve been recovering from my broken elbow, one thing that has really helped me out of any funks or potential funks in my day-to-day has been the idea of routine. I have built certain parts of my day around non-negotiable routines that guarantee I get my day off on the right foot with: energy, hydration, exercise, nutrition, and more. So, I wanted to share these routines with you and why I developed them. Not so you can copy and paste them into your own lives, but so that you might take some inspiration on how to use the principles to make some of your goals non-negotiable.
We also reference Ep. 70: My “Resolutions” for 2023 & How to Create Your Own, if you want more reference around my beginning of year goal setting philosophy.
If you're loving my podcast content, but are looking for something more to support your wellness journey, here are my programs currently available:
Strong As A Mother: Postpartum (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother/)
Strong As A Mother: Live (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-live/)
Strong As A Mother: Prenatal (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-prenatal/)
As always, you can find me on Instagram @kellybryantwellness
One of the most common questions I get, especially early on with clients, is “why am I not seeing results?” and today we’re going to dive into a couple of reasons:
- Have you given yourself enough time? Change doesn’t happen overnight
- Are you actually sure you aren’t seeing results, or just not the end result you want? Maybe you’ve improved in some key areas like strength, but your weight is the same
- Then the tough question: are you actually putting in the work in a good program?
We’re going to dive into these areas so you can determine if you are actually seeing results, or not and how. How to give yourself an appropriate timeframe, and how to make changes if what you’re doing truly isn’t working.
If you're loving my podcast content, but are looking for something more to support your wellness journey, here are my programs currently available:
Strong As A Mother: Postpartum (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother/)
Strong As A Mother: Live (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-live/)
Strong As A Mother: Prenatal (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-prenatal/)
As always, you can find me on Instagram @kellybryantwellness
I’ve got a quick hit episode for you today to talk about one of the most common pieces of advice I give my clients. We all have days where we just don’t feel like hitting the gym, or where we push a workout back because we think we can do better tomorrow. And while self-awareness and self-care are important parts of your fitness journey, so is putting in the work even when it isn’t your best work. That’s why I use the phrase “the road to your goals is paved with mediocre workouts.” In this episode we’ll dive into why giving the best you have to give that day is better than waiting for everything to line up perfectly and give the best you ever have.
If you're loving my podcast content, but are looking for something more to support your wellness journey, here are my programs currently available:
Strong As A Mother: Postpartum (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother/)
Strong As A Mother: Live (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-live/)
Strong As A Mother: Prenatal (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-prenatal/)
As always, you can find me on Instagram @kellybryantwellness
This week we’re taking a break from FAQs and diving into a subject that can feel overwhelming and discouraging for many folks postpartum and well beyond. That’s pelvic organ prolapse. This is a condition that can be caused by a number of different organs and musculature of the pelvic floor. It’s also one where the severity diagnosis from a doctor doesn’t always match the patient’s symptoms, such as a doctor might call it severe and the patient has minimal pain, or a doctor says that it is mild and the patient is experience severe discomfort doing basic movement. So today we’re diving into:
- Exactly what pelvic organ prolapse is
- The most common mistakes I see in healing from a pelvic organ prolapse
- How to best assess whether you need to take it easy or push yourself a little further
- and more!
If you found this episode helpful, but you’re still struggling with exactly HOW to mitigate pelvic organ prolapse symptoms and get back to normal pelvic function, I encourage you to check out my free class Revitalize Your Core & Pelvic Floor: The Ultimate Guide to Breathing Techniques.
If you're loving my podcast content, but are looking for something more to support your wellness journey, here are my programs currently available:
Strong As A Mother: Postpartum (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother/)
Strong As A Mother: Live (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-live/)
Strong As A Mother: Prenatal (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-prenatal/)
As always, you can find me on Instagram @kellybryantwellness
We’re back with another FAQ from my clients. It’s pretty common in fitness for people looking for specific physique or weight changes to try and achieve a calorie deficit. So, this week, we’re diving into exactly what that means. We’re covering everything from:
- What exactly is a calorie deficit
- Why it is or isn’t necessary for your physique goals
- Several ways to achieve a calorie deficit
- The issue with most online tracker formulas
- My recommendation for determining maintenance calories & an appropriate deficit
- And more!
While I do recommend the self-tracking method I mentioned above, if you do feel the need to get a baseline number to start you on your journey, I highly recommend the Precision Nutrition Calculator.
If you’re struggling with constant dieting, maybe too large of a deficit and yo-yoing back and forth between diets, I highly recommend my Ditch the Diet Drama program to learn how to eat sustainably, without restriction and with a feeling of satisfaction without overindulgence.
If you're loving my podcast content, but are looking for something more to support your wellness journey, here are my programs currently available:
Strong As A Mother: Postpartum (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother/)
Strong As A Mother: Live (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-live/)
Strong As A Mother: Prenatal (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-prenatal/)
As always, you can find me on Instagram @kellybryantwellness
While most of my clients are looking for a lot of functional improvements when they embark on a fitness journey - things like playing with kids more easily, being pain free, or just having more energy - a vast majority of the time they want some aesthetic changes too. The most common aesthetic changes I see amongst women is wanting to look longer, leaner and more toned.
At the end of the day, you can’t actually change the length of your muscles, but how they appear is within your control, by focusing your exercise on building muscle and reducing body fat. In this episode I break down exactly what that all means and the various ways you can go about it.
If you're loving my podcast content, but are looking for something more to support your wellness journey, here are my programs currently available:
Strong As A Mother: Postpartum (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother/)
Strong As A Mother: Live (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-live/)
Strong As A Mother: Prenatal (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-prenatal/)
As always, you can find me on Instagram @kellybryantwellness
One of the most common questions I get from clients and followers is always about how much cardio people should do. This episode is about dispelling a few myths and exploring all the great benefits that cardio has. Then we also discuss how cardio actually fits into your goals, and what other exercise modalities we can incorporate to achieve fitness goals like looking lean and getting toned.
If you're loving my podcast content, but are looking for something more to support your wellness journey, here are my programs currently available:
Strong As A Mother: Postpartum (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother/)
Strong As A Mother: Live (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-live/)
Strong As A Mother: Prenatal (https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-prenatal/)
As always, you can find me on Instagram @kellybryantwellness
Especially with my postpartum clients, I get asked this question all the time. As a new parent, we have limited time, limited energy, but we don't want to give up on our health, fitness and physique goals. So, we need the most bang for our buck. In this episode, I dive into what workouts are going to be most effective for each person.
To get more information on my Strong As A Mother:Live Program, you can find that at https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-live/
I love building functional fitness and strength training plans. It’s the bread and butter of what I do at Kelly Bryant Wellness. There’s a lot that goes into my programs, and a lot of things I consider. However, having someone else craft your workouts isn’t for everyone. Sometimes you want to do it yourself, and so today I thought I’d give you a peek behind the curtain at what you should consider when building your own strength training programs, including:
- The various types of strength training
- How to plan your year, your month and your week
- The foundational movements that should be in your individual workouts
- Some other helpful things that I like to include.
I reference Episode 32: Progress Your Progressive Overload Workouts
If you’re interested in my Strong As A Mother: Live Program, you can find it here: https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-live/
I used to think resolutions were absolutely useless. If you want to start a habit, start today, don’t wait for the calendar to change. Now, I’ve softened that stance because I’ve realized a few things about New Year’s Resolutions, including what makes this one of a handful of good timesto establish new habits. In this episode, we’ll discuss why and how to establish some resolutions that you can actually stick to (if you even want to at all!). Ones that don’t involve trying to become a whole new person in 3 weeks and then crashing.
In this episode, I mention my Strong As A Mother: Live program, which is starting a new phase this week, making it a great time to apply for the program. Head to kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-live/ to learn more!
The holiday season, for many of us is one of the busiest times of the year. Sometimes it’s travel, or events, or just a scattered and chaotic work and possibly child care situation. It is really easy to let your movement practice go off the rails and take longer than we would really like to get back on track. In this episode, I’m going to talk about a few ways that we can shift our mindset, expectations and short term goals to deal with this. Instead of trying to fight the chaos, let’s explore how we can lean into it, give ourselves grace and come out of the other side of the holiday season refreshed, patting ourselves on the back and ready to keep the train moving down the tracks.
It's officially the holiday season! And while that means, hopefully, lots of joy, cheer and spending time with friends and family, it also can mean worry, stress and battles with food. This year, I wanted to give you some tips to navigate this time of year if you struggle with food this time of year. Whether that's restriction, decision making, or over-indulgence, I got you.
In this episode, I'll discuss:
- Stressing over every decision and why we shouldn't
- Tools for managing your eating - NOT calorie counting
- The psychology of holiday eating
- How to stop trying to control your environment and just focus on yourself in any situation.
- And more!
If the types of struggles I mention in this episode are really speaking to you, I invite you to check out my Ditch The Diet Drama course, that starting on Wednesday Nov. 23rd is being offered for $40 off as a Black Friday special. To get all the details, FAQs and to sign up, head over to kellybryantwellness.com/black-friday.
The Sacroiliac Joint is one of the areas of the body that you may never have heard of, but if you have, it's probably because it's caused you a lot of problems. This can be a real troublesome area, especially during, or after a pregnancy, so let's dive into a little bit about what's happening in this joint, why it can bother you so much, and some ways to manage or alleviate your discomfort and dysfunction.
At first, the idea of past vs. future oriented may sound like one of those personality tests you might be given during a productivity seminar to find your “type”, but I promise today’s episode can help you understand a little bit about how your brain works and how that affects your movement and wellness practices.
In this episode, I talk about:
- The difference between being past oriented vs. future oriented
- How those can manifest in daily life
- The pros and cons of each
- How to work with your brain to use your orientation to your advantage, and what modifications you can use.
If you thought this was interesting, I’d love to hear about how this impacts you and some tricks you use in your life. DM me or tag me @kellybryantwellness on Instagram!
"How long will it take?" is one of the most common questions I get from clients, and it's a very normal reaction whenever you're trying to make a change. We all have that end goal in sight, and we all want to see progress on the way. Well, the answer is never one set amount of time, and it's different for every person.
I could give you a timeline, but it may be longer than you like. You can do "more" (as in harder workouts, stricter nutrition), but are you willing to do that forever? This episode is a little bit about mindset shifts, and a little bit about how everyone is different.
I discuss:
- Why we may want to set our timelines longer than we'd like
- Why sustainability is much better than quick results
- How our goals don't always match the work we want to do (sure, we'd all love to walk around with as little body fat as possible. Is the work required day in and day out worth that to you?)
- And more!
We're doing something a little different this episode and actually doing an embodiment practice together in the episode. Often when I coach people through Moderation365, which is the nutrition perspective I work from, they're very wary of hunger. After years of dieting, being hungry can be positively panic-inducing, and when we're learning satisfaction, it's easy to assume that we should just never feel hungry. But that's not true.
We need time to make a decision about what to eat next, and we won't always have satisfying, nourishing food on hand immediately. Hence, this practice. Today I'll guide you through how to feel hungry and how to make a mindful choice about what to eat next.
Tight shoulders, neck, and upper back...every nursing parent's got 'em! This week on the podcast we're diving deep on this type of tension to understand:
- Why do our muscles feel so terrible when nursing
- What role does posture play
- 4 exercises and stretches to do right now to feel better
Be sure to also check out Ep. 60: Being kind to yourself and your movement practice with Erica Webb, whose perspective on muscle tension I referenced here, as well as Ep 62: Reframing Tight Hip Flexors where we discuss some of these same concepts in relation to the hip flexors. If you're interested in more tools for getting out of pain with a new baby, be sure to apply for the next cohort of Strong As A Mother: Postpartum.
Tight hip flexors are easily one of the most common complaints I hear from my clients. You may feel like your hip flexors are tight when you work on movements like lunges or sitting criss-cross on the floor, or perhaps you've been told by a chiropractor, PT, or other movement pro that you have tight (or weak) psoas muscles or anterior pelvic tilt.
Overwhelmingly, though, the movements people do for tight hip flexors don't help. While they may feel better in the moment, there's no long-term improvement, or they may even feel worse afterward. Today, we're going to reframe tight hip flexors to help you understand:
- How to know if you're hip flexors are tight
- Why your hip flexors are tight
- Why the stretches you've done before don't work
- 5 exercises you can do in 10 minutes per day to feel better in your hips within a week.
Honestly, this episode could be titled something like “Do as I say, not as I do”, because I absolutely tried to assess a diastisis recti, or DR, during my second pregnancy.
Just as I knew before my pregnancy, there are a couple of major reasons you don’t want to assess a DR during, or even shortly after a pregnancy. One, it’s really hard to do because every person's body is different and recovers in a different way. Two, you can’t do anything about it except add more stress.
I discuss this, and the right time and way to assess a DR in this quick hit episode, so let’s get to it.
This week on the podcast, I’m so excited to delve into self-kindness and movement with my guest, Erica Webb. Erica is a yoga teacher and pilates instructor whose focus is on looking at movement through the lens of self-kindness. In a world where it feels like so much of our movement practices revolve around punishing ourselves - either for that big meal, or for gaining some wait - approaching from a place of love and kindness can work wonders. Erica and I discuss:
- Her journey of becoming a mom, dealing with postpartum depression and using self-kindness to pull herself out
- Translating that into her movement teaching, evolving from a more “traditional” teacher to one who looks at movement as an act of self-kindness
- How this approach can benefit our movement practices.
- How taking this approach can cross over into other parts of our life - like parenting
- How to introduce kinder movement into your life.
- And much, much more.
If you want to connect with Erica, she’s on Instagram @ericawebb_selfkind
You can also check out her podcast: Self Kind with Erica Webb
And you can learn more about her Self Kind Hub at ericawebbyoga.com.au
I’m super excited to have Dr. Kirstin Lauritzen on the show today, because she is such a wealth of information when it comes to gut health. She’s a doctor of chiropractic and holds a masters degree in human nutrition. I’ve had Dr. K, as I call her, talk to my groups and have chatted with her for Instagram content, but wanted to bring her on the show to really pick her brain about just how integral the GI tract is to overall health.
- Her personal journey into chiropractic care and focus on nutrition.
- How and why she blends alternative care with traditional medicine for her patients.
- The effects that hormone balance can have on our body, and specifically our cycle.
- How high levels of cortisol (stress hormone) can affect your day-to-day life.
- How there isn’t necessarily “good” and “bad” bacteria in your gut and how it affects the rest of the body.
- Antibiotics and your (plus your kid’s) gut.
- And more!
If you’d like to learn more from Dr. K, check out her course and other awesome resources at https://drkirstin.com and follow her on Instagram @drkirstin
I know, I know with a title like that, this doesn't sound like the funnest episode. But in all seriousness, my guest Holly is a delight, and I think her story will help provide so much healing. Whether you've experienced loss, know someone who has, or just want to understand how to respond if it happens to someone you love, this episode will be really helpful.
In this replay, we actually update you on Holly's journey over a year later, and how strength training has helped her meet her goals.
We discuss:
- Late term loss at 16 weeks, and the strange place that puts birthing people in between typical miscarriage and stillbirth/infant loss.
- The unimaginable decisions parents must make, like what to do with a baby that's miscarried in the second trimester.
- Holly's subsequent pregnancy and birth experience.
- The effects of pregnancy loss and traumatic birth on the pelvic floor.
- Postpartum preeclampsia and being readmitted after discharge from the hospital.
We also referenced ep. 13 with Brittany and you can click-through here to see Holly's cross-stitched Starry Night referenced in today's episode.
If you'd like to join the waitlist for Strong As A Mother Live, you can at https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-waitlist/
The idea of routines means doing the same thing, but that doesn’t mean your routines should be the same as everybody else’s. You have your own unique goals, and your routines should help you achieve your goals, not meet the goals that someone else thinks you should should be striving for.
In this episode I discuss:
- How to decide what’s important to you
- Developing Minimum Viable Programs for your movement
- Developing Daily Eating Commitments to help your eating routine
- How you can dive deeper into your routines to figure out the common threads and adapt these routines when life throws a curveball (new baby, vacation, eating out)
- And more
If you are interested in joining any of my programs, here are some helpful links:
Strong as a Mother Live: https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-live/
Strong as a Mother Postpartum: https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-waitlist/
Ditch The Diet Drama: https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/ditch-the-diet-drama/
This week we have a replay of one of my favorite and most useful episodes about strength training 101, and how to tackle progressive overload!
Too often fitness recommendations come with the what to do, but don’t include why you’re doing it. Today I’m nerding out a little bit about strength training, discussing why it’s good for you, and more. In this episode I talk about:
- What delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is and why its a sign of progress
- Why it’s important to gradually change things up to keep progressing
- How to make sure you’re getting a well-rounded workout.
- Why tracking your progress is key to getting better and stronger
- How to effectively change up your workouts to keep progressing toward your goals
If you're looking for a strength training program that guarantees you'll get stronger, while keeping a focus on the core and pelvic floor, then I'd love for you to checkout Strong As A Mother Live. The next round of the program opens in July, and the waitlist is now open, so hop on over to my website and jump on the list!
https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother-live/
It’s time for some real talk ladies, we all need to be strength training. I don’t want to hear about feeling bulky (that takes a LOT of work and specific dedication). I am here to tell you that strength training, and specifically getting stronger is a fantastic way to improve your life. Will it solve everything? Absolutely not, but in this episode, I discuss a few of the ways that being stronger will make your life straight up better, including:
- You’ll burn more calories
- You’ll need to eat more calories (YASS, food)
- Those tight muscles will start to loosen and you can alleviate a lot of pain
- You’ll be able to function a lot better at your day to day tasks (picking up kids, anyone?)
- And with all of that, you’ll get an insane confidence boost just because of how capable and awesome you’ll feel
- And more!
This is the episode where I try to make amends for what many fitness experts tell you regarding working out until you give birth (myself included). Bragging that you did burpees or ran a 5K the day before labor may be great social media content, but is it really the best for a productive labor?
Even back when I was teaching barre at a fitness studio to now working with and being connected to many fitness experts/fitness junkies, I noticed a high correlation between intensity leading up to birth and longer, more intense labors. That got me thinking:
- What should we be focusing on leading up to labor from a fitness standpoint
- How full intensity (yes, even with modifications) can make labor worse
- How I changed it up between my births and found more success
- and more!
If you’re looking to help prepare your body for, or help it recover from giving birth, I encourage you to check out my Strong As A Mother Prenatal and Postpartum courses.
As we've gone through this series on moderate eating, we've talked a lot about how to ditch dieting for good. However, maybe you've still got a goal related to aesthetics or weight loss.
While weight loss is never the primary goal of moderation (never dieting again and loving the way you eat is the goal), it is actually possible to sustainably change your weight or body composition. Today we're diving into what that actually looks like.
If you're interested in learning more about the approach to nutrition, jump on the waitlist for my new Ditch the Diet Drama group program at kellybryantwellness.com/nutrition
As we continue our series on moderation, we're talking today about WHY every diet fails. While most people blame themselves when diets fail, leading to yo-yo-ing back and forth and continuing to try every new fad diet that comes out, the truth is, it's not you at all.
Diets fail because they leave us feeling physiologically and psychologically deprived. In today's episode we're diving into why exactly you will ultimately plateau or quit any and every diet that's based on ongoing calorie deprivation. And of course, we'll touch a little more on what you can do instead.
If you're interested in learning more about the approach to nutrition, jump on the waitlist for my new Ditch the Diet Drama group program at kellybryantwellness.com/nutrition
Welcome to the first episode of a new series! Over the next few episodes we're going to be talking about #Moderation365, which is an approach to eating that eliminates the "on plan"/"off plan" mentality and teaches us how to eat in a way that's satisfying 365 days a year.
Today I'm sharing what moderation really means, why I don't think anyone needs to lose weight (but if that's your goal, I get it), and my own history with dieting — or lack thereof.
If you're interested in learning more about the approach to nutrition, jump on the waitlist for my new Ditch the Diet Drama group program at kellybryantwellness.com/nutrition. In today's episode I also referenced past episodes with Kara Trochta (Ep. 19) and Christi Brown (Ep. 8).
So you're chugging along with your workout routine and then it just starts to feel...meh. This week we're discussing what to do when your exercise M.O. feels stale. Typically, one (or a combination) of three things is responsible:
- Boredom
- Fatigue
- Lack of Results
In this episode I discuss how to address boredom by switching up the where, how, what, and why of exercise. We talk about common causes of fatigue (other than lack of sleep), and explore why you may not be seeing results and what to do about it.
In this episode I also mention my Strong As A Mother Live program (that's the post-postpartum program), which is not currently open for enrollment. If you want to join, DM me @kellybryantwellness on Instagram, or message my page on Facebook. If you're interested in Strong As A Mother Postpartum, you can register or join the waitlist at https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/strong-as-a-mother/
You just had a body part go from zero to 10 centimeters in a matter of hours. So are you just supposed to sit back, wait 6 weeks and then go back to everything as if it’s completely normal? No! Like any other recovery, you need to ramp back up to what you were doing before.
If you know me, you know I don’t believe that there’s some magic number where everything is magically good to go and you can exercise again. That time can be different for everyone, but I believe even from the moment of birth you can be doing things to positively affect your outcomes.
This episode is about those little routines between giving birth and getting back to exercise. Today I talk about:
- The value of early skin-to-skin contact
- How breastfeeding often can help your healing process
- How to introduce the first foray back into exercise
- Why you shouldn’t check or freak out about a diastasis recti super early in the process
- Areas to focus on when you do start exercising again
- and more!
If you’re interested in learning more about the diaphragmatic breath, check out this video I did a couple years ago now. WARNING: If you are a few days postpartum, the video does get into moves that you cannot or should not be accomplishing quite yet, so listen to your body. The breathing is at the beginning and something you can do a few days postpartum.
I’ve casually mentioned before the importance of childbirth education, and touched on some of the childbirth education I’ve done in both of my pregnancies. Usually people are coming to me while pregnant to find out how to have the easiest birth and recovery experience possible, and the answer is always education. Having a plan is key - even if everything doesn’t go exactly as planned - so you can understand the potential side effects of the various choices you’ll be presented with before, during and after birth.
In this episode, I discuss:
- How various interventions may change your recovery path
- The value of a doula in the decision-making process
- What’s included in a good childbirth education class
- When to take a childbirth education class during your pregnancy
- What to do before you decide on a childbirth course
- How many birth classes you should take
- and more!
Find a Lamaze Class
Find a Hypnobabies Class
Find a Bradley Method Class
It’s been a minute since I posted a new episode for you guys, and part of the reason has been pregnancy which is now over! So, to get back in the groove, I wanted to bring you guys my second birth story. We all have this perfect idea of how our birth is going to go, and it never quite goes to plan, so I brought my husband, Alex, back on the podcast so we could not only talk about how everything went down, but share some of our insights on what we knew would be different, how we planned a little differently for our second time around and how this birth couldn’t have been any more different from our first birth experience.
In addition to just the details we talk about:
- Why we chose to add a doula to our birth team
- Induction techniques we tried, with a bit of data on what can help (spoiler: nothing will absolutely guarantee labor)
- How we incorporated our daughter into the birth plan
- How we managed a birth that went faster than we could have expected
- Techniques we used that helped improve our chances at a good birth outcome
- and more!
If you’d like to go back and listen to my first birth story, it’s Episode 25 in your feeds, or at https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/podcasts/ep-25-my-story/
To check out our amazing doula, Bonnie Kelly, her practice is Coastal Doulas (for those local to the Palm Beach area) https://www.coastaldoulas.com/
For those local to the Treasure Coast who are curious about home birth or birth-center birth, check out Abundant Life Birth Center at https://www.thealbc.com/
For the massage class we love, check out https://couplesmassagecourses.com/
And to be first to know about the next Strong As A Mother opening (I’ll be teach AND participating), join my email list: https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/email/
This was an amazing episode to do. So often when talking with my clients, and even here on the podcast, I reference partners, and how we can lean on co-parenting, which is why I was so excited to talk with Jacqueline Joy about her choice to get pregnant and become a mother while single. This is such an important conversation to have, letting people of any age know that being a parent doesn’t have to depend on having the right partner in your life, and I hope you’ll enjoy this episode as much as I did recording it. Jacqueline and I discussed:
- What her journey was like knowing that she wanted to be a mom, but not finding the right partner
- What the decision to have a child without of partner does for her mentally
- How this decision doesn’t always have to be based on the proverbial ticking clock
- How she navigated the decision on how to go about conception
- How Jacqueline has built out her support system through this process
- The stigmas and difficulties of choosing to be a single parent
- and more!
If you want to follow more on Jacqueline’s journey, you can visit her Facebook Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/jacquelinejoy, or visit her website, https://jacquelinejoy.com
We’re getting everything delivered at home these days, why not our babies? I’ve been a fan of home birth since my first pregnancy, and am planning my second in a few months. That’s why I was so excited to talk with Sarah and Matthew Bivens, hosts of the Doing it At Home podcast and home birth advocates. In this episode, we discuss:
- Their journey from feeling like the had to have a hospital birth to realizing they were much more comfortable birthing at home.
- How the experience of both of them being involved in birth created a lasting experience for their relationship.
- Some common misconceptions about home birth, and how not every non-hospital birth is the same.
- Things to consider when evaluating home birth options.
- And more!
If you'd like to connect with Matthew and Sarah, you can find links to all of their great content at https://diahpodcast.com, including their podcast, social media channels, books and more!
When you’re pregnant and postpartum, it’s a major life change and there are a lot of things you have to figure out for yourself. One thing we can sometimes try and manage (and stress over, let’s be honest) is nutrition. That’s why I’m so excited to talk to The Nutrion Doula, Alasen Zarndt. When you’re going through this life change, nutrition can make a huge impact on your health and well being to allow you focus on the things you can’t necessarily control as well. Today, we discuss:
- Diving past the surface level and how different foods integrate into your life and body.
- What foods are actually risky for pregnant people?
- Some of the most common deficiencies Alasen sees in her clients
- And more!
Alasen has great materials on how to stop breastfeeding cravings at https://thenutritiondoula.com/stop-breastfeeding-cravings/. If you’d like to connect with or work with Alasen, you can find her at https://thenutritiondoula.com or on Instagram at @thenutritiondoula
Everyone in life goes through some form of trauma, even as a child, whether big or small, and as parents we often strive to not pass these experiences on to our kids. That’s usually easier said than done, which is why I’m so excited to have Riana Milne on today’s show. Riana is a certified global life and love trauma recovery coach, a certified clinical trauma and addictions professional, a certified mindfulness coach and the bestselling author of “Love Beyond Your Dreams, and Live Beyond Your Dreams”. In this episode, we discuss:
- Defining the difference between “big T” Trauma and “little T” trauma
- Parental addictions & verbal messaging issues that can cause trauma for kids
- How not fitting into the mainstream and lacking peer acceptance can cause trauma
- How these traumas show up as adults
- How to help our kids process trauma
- How to reduce trauma during parenting where possible
- and more!
You can find Riana at rianamilne.com, where she has all the freebies! You can get the 4 free love tests, a free e-book “How to Have The Love You Deserve”, free book chapter downloads from her bestselling book, her podcast, and more!
During pregnancy, there are obviously some big changes to your body in many areas, but one place that experiences a ton of change is your feet. Today for the podcast, I wanted to bring you a talk I gave to my Strong As A Mother Group. In this episode, I’ll discuss:
- What happens to your feet during pregnancy
- Some pros and cons to common methods of addressing these issues
- What you can do about your changing feet (and no, it’s not just new shoes).
If you’d like to dive in deeper on reversing the effects of pregnancy and postpartum on your feet, I’d love for you to check out my Fix Your Feet Workshop. You do need to have an active studio or Strong As A Mother Membership to view the class.
So glad to be back with your guys after an extended break! Pregnancy has been kicking my butt a little, but I'm excited to share this episode with you guys that explores something I see with a lot of my clients, urinary urgency.
Frequent and sudden need to urinate is often one of those issues that gets accepted as a fact of life postpartum, but there are several ways you can absolutely address it, including:
- Focusing on both the mental & psychological sides of the issue
- Working on loosening and/or strengthening your pelvic floor
- Doing general strength training to feel more confident in your body.
- and more.
If you've struggled with urinary urgency, I think you'll be able to find tons of useful tips and tricks that can make a big difference in your daily life!
If you follow me on social media or are on my email list, then you’ve probably heard that I’m pregnant with our second child, so I thought for this week it would be a great opportunity to have my husband, Alex, a.k.a. “Mr. Bryant Wellness” on the podcast. As I mentioned in my email/social announcement, this was not a pregnancy that we were planning on at this moment, and so we wanted to talk in more detail about what that means, and have some honest conversations including:
- What it’s been like going through the early stages of a “happy little accident” as we’re calling it
- Issues we faced last time around revealing the sex of our first child, and how we want to handle it this time.
- How we’re handling the emotions
- And more
You can find Alex @bastrategies on Instagram and at bastrategies.com
I'm sure we've all faced it at some point, whether it's a major injury, trouble from childbirth, breastfeeding issues, or even a simple cold. That moment where we start to wonder "Is this just who I am now?" I've been there, and I am there as I recorded this episode with back-to-back head colds that won't quit. In this quick episode, I wanted to discuss that moment where we just accept something that isn't permanent as part of our identity, plus:
- How it can affect our ability to improve or get better
- How to notice when it's happening
- How to get over that hump
Now, I want to be clear that in no way am I trying to equate a head cold with a severe/chronic illness or injury, but I do think there's something that everyone can glean from this episode when they hit a wall.
With many of my clients, I get questions about pregnancy and postpartum bodily issues that are way outside of my scope, like proper skincare. That’s why I’m so excited to have Aimee Bowen on today’s episode to talk about what you should and shouldn’t be putting on & under your skin when pregnant or breastfeeding. Aimee is a Medical Aesthetician and On-Air TV Beauty Expert who is a fount of skincare knowledge. In this episode, we discuss:
- What to do about those brown spots and wrinkles that come up during and after pregnancy
- What products to avoid when pregnant and breastfeeding
- How your body can positively respond to certain injectables and treatments to help produce more of its own collagen and the like
- The value of treating your skin like your exercise regimen: staying consistent, changing things up, and focusing on your whole body outside of just your treatments.
- And more
If you’d like to connect with Aimee, you can find her on Instagram at @bowenbeauty1, and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/aimeebowentv. Plus, you can learn more about her med spa work at https://www.evolvemdmodernmedspa.com/
In this episode, we discuss Eminence Organic’s Sun Defense powdered sunscreen, which can be found at https://eminenceorganics.com/us/product/sun-defense-minerals-cherries-and-berries
On this podcast we cover a lot of topics regarding your physical wellness, but also your mental wellness, and a large part of that mental equation is having all of your legal i’s dotted and t’s crossed. That’s why I’m really excited to have Sabrina Shaheen Cronin (@sabrinashaheencronin) on today’s episode to talk about things that parents to be, new parents and even those of us who have been in the parenting game for years can do to gain that peace of mind.
- What it’s like being a single mom who owns her own legal practice
- The values and benefits of a prenuptial agreement or partnership agreement
- The types of power of attorney and how they could apply during childbirth
- Why even young, healthy parents should set up wills and trusts
- And more
If you’d like to learn more amazing legal tips from Sabrina, or work with her, you can visit her website at croninlawfirm.com. You can find her on Instagram @sabrinashaheencronin or through her firm’s profile @thecroninlawfirm.
Content Warning: This episode features discussions around disordered eating, rapid weight loss, and body image issues.
I am so excited to be talking to Alicia McCarvell (@aliciamccarvell), who is a body positivity expert, in this week’s episode. For lots of people, body image and diet culture may be things that you’ve been battling for years. For others, it could be something that is new to you because of pregnancy, childbirth, or even just a global pandemic that upended our lifestyles. And maybe you’ve never battled these things, but know someone who has, and you want to be an ally. In this episode, we’ll discuss:
- Her history with diet culture, extreme exercise and disordered eating
- How she realized her worth & health has nothing to do with her size
- How society often doesn’t ask the right support questions for people who “look” healthy
- How being the keynote speaker at BodCon is a dream come true and how you can listen to her talk about beach body positivity.
If you’d like to follow Alicia’s journey, you can find her on TikTok and Instagram @aliciamccarvell.
You can learn more about and buy tickets to TheBodCon TALKS: Beach Bodies - A Virtual Pool Party at https://www.thebodcon.com/beach-bodies. It will include a thought-provoking panel discussion (including Alicia!) that will tackle how 'bikini body' rhetoric affects us, how to face this potentially damaging communication, and how to promote body confidence now and in the future.
If you’re struggling with how to feel stylish at whatever size you happen to be, check out Episode 28 with Judith Gaton.
If you want to better understand how your health habits are better markers of your health than the number on the scale, listen to episode 19 with Kara Troctha.
One of my most-asked questions is what to eat before and after a workout, and in this episode I break down how to plan your workout-related eating. In this quick episode.
- Why we tend to make things more complicated
- Not letting perfect get in the way of good
- How nutrition research doesn’t always pertain to women (especially not elite athletes)
- Why women shouldn’t fast before a workout
- Some general guidelines for post-workout nutrition
- and more!
Check out the Kelly Bryant Wellness Resources Page for my newsletter and to be the first to know about my c-section recovery mini-course: https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/resources/
If you’re looking for nutrition tips for endurance athletes, check out @drkirstin on Instagram or at https://drkirstin.com/.
Roughly 30 percent of birthing people in the US have a c-section or belly birth. Today’s episode isn’t about judging any circumstances or choices that led to that birthing style but to recognize that even though it is a different birth experience, a c-section can still have plenty of implications for your core and pelvic floor. In this episode, I discuss:
- Some complications that can come from c-sections
- Why these problems don’t always show in the data
- How c-section recovery is often treated differently than other major surgery
- The three steps you can take to try and resolve them
Check out the Kelly Bryant Wellness Resources Page for my newsletter and to be the first to know about my c-section recovery mini-course: https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/resources/
If you’re looking for ways to stretch a tight pelvic floor, check out this blog post, which also includes a link to a free pelvic floor exercise video: https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/2020/03/24/kegel-alternatives-for-a-tight-pelvic-floor/
We all want to find the quick and easy way to really perfect our diet so that we can eat “healthy” and “well.” Step 1 is - SURPRISE - there is no quick and easy way to get a perfect diet. Step 2 is to realize that there is no such thing as a perfect diet. In this episode we’re talking about how to work on your relationship with food, and how you might take a few small steps so that you can feel better about what you’re consuming. We’ll discuss:
- The problems with calorie restriction
- What Intuitive Eating is
- How to better calculate what your body needs
- What lifestyle specifics you should take into consideration
- The benefits of thinking about your relationship with food
- How to make eating what you want to be eating easier
For more great tips, advice and conversations around Intuitive Eating, see:
- Ep. 8: Ditch the diet B.S. w/ Christi Brown
- Ep. 19: Making Peace with Food and Redefining Health w/Kara Trochta
For a real look at your nutritional needs, visit the precision nutrition macro calculator: https://www.precisionnutrition.com/nutrition-calculator#calculator
Too often fitness recommendations come with the what to do, but don’t include why you’re doing it. Today I’m nerding out a little bit about strength training, discussing why it’s good for you, and more. In this episode I talk about:
- What delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is and why its a sign of progress
- Why it’s important to gradually change things up to keep progressing
- How to make sure you’re getting a well-rounded workout.
- Why tracking your progress is key to getting better and stronger
- How to effectively change up your workouts to keep progressing toward your goals
I get it, you’re tired of being tired, but also tired of getting the same tips over and over on how to get more and/or better sleep. In this episode, I want to go deeper into sleep to help us all get more rest to show up for life as refreshed as reasonable. I discuss:
- Why sleep is so important, especially for parents-to-be and new parents
- What is enough sleep
- Some actual tips on how to get better sleep or steal more pockets of rest.
- And some strategies on how to counteract the mental drama that tends to lead to poor sleep choices
When it comes to the Sacroiliac - or SI - joint, you probably either fall into one of three camps: you’ve never heard of it, you’ve heard other people talking about it, but don’t know much, or you’ve been told you have SI joint issues that you don’t fully understand. Well, today is all about SI knowledge, SI empowerment, and SI relief. In this episode, we’ll discuss:
- What your SI joint is
- Some of the functions of the SI joint
- Why your butt is a masterpiece
- How strength can be your best pain relief
- and more!
I started hormonal birth control around 15 years old, and used it until I got pregnant for the first time. I haven’t gone back since, and honestly, the biggest adjustment has been excruciating, sometimes debilitating cramps during my period. If you’re not on hormonal birth control and suffer from strong cramps, this episode is for you! In it, I talk about:
- Why your period is different without hormonal birth control
- How your diet can play a role in period cramps
- Stretches you can do before or during cramps
- The benefits of taking a relaxing soak
- How shaking your body can reset your nervous system
Ep. 28 You deserve to feel stylish no matter your body size w/Judith Gaton
I often talk about how our bodies aren’t rubber bands that are going to snap back into place after childbirth. Some may get back to a similar pre-baby size in a few months, a few years or never! Today’s guest, Judith Gaton (@judithgaton) and I, talk about one of the areas that often gets neglected during weight changes - the wardrobe. Judith is a style coach for curvy women, and this episode is packed full of great tips on how we can change our mindset around size and style, realizing that no matter our size, or how long we think we may be at that size, we deserve to feel stylish.
In this episode we discuss:
- How weight changes can bring on a lot of emotions around your wardrobe
- Why choosing to feel stylish at a different size isn’t giving up on anything.
- Why feeling stylish - even if you are in the same clothes - is so important.
- and more!
If you’d like to work with Judith, visit her website at https://www.judithgaton.com/ or find her on Instagram @judithgaton.
If you've ever been told that pain with sex is normal, or that you should just drink a glass of wine and relax, this episode is for you. And even if you've never had pain with intercourse, it's worth sticking around to better understand how to identify and deal with pain during sex.
In this episode I'll discuss:
- Why it's important to have pleasurable sex
- Why you shouldn't just push through painful sex
- How to communicate and work on pain with your partner
During the episode I discuss/recommend:
- Call of the Wild by Kimberly Ann Johnson
- Franklin Balls
- Franklin Balls Video: Pelvic Anatomy and Hip Hinging
- Franklin Balls Video: Deep Hip Rotators Self-Massage
- Thera Wand
- The Playbook for Pain-Free Sex
One of the primary areas of focus with all of my prenatal and postpartum clients is the pelvic floor, which is an amazing group of muscles that can be a key to unlocking a ton of pain relief, as well as relief from other symptoms. But most people don’t even really know what the pelvic floor is, let alone how to strengthen it. So we’re breaking it all down today!
In this episode, I discuss;
- What the pelvic floor is
- Some of the key functions of the pelvic floor
- How to learn to release and engage your pelvic floor
- How to strengthen your pelvic floor
- and more!
We've heard so many amazing stories and journies here on the Not Your Mama Podcast, but for our 25th episode, I thought it was the right time to share the story that started this whole thing - mine!
In this episode I'll talk about:
- What my journey into the world of wellness and fitness looked like
- My own birth story
- How I became so passionate about prenatal and postpartum fitness and well-being.
- And more!
I named my podcast the Not Your Mama Podcast because, frankly, I hated people calling me "mom" during my pregnancy that weren't my child instead of calling me by my name. That discomfort pales in comparison to what transgender people go through on their prenatal and postpartum journeys. This is why I am so excited to talk to today's guest, Moss Froom (@mossthedoula), who is a doula, childbirth educator, and more.
In this episode we discuss:
- Some of the ways that the prenatal and postpartum space could be more inclusive
- What it can be like for a non-cis-gendered person to be misgendered by their health care provider
- What we can do on an individual level to make things more inclusive
- And more!
If you'd like to work with Moss, you can visit their website at mossthedoula.com or find them on Instagram - which is an amazing resource for anyone looking to learn more about the community - @mossthedoula. All upcoming trainings that they mention are available on their site!
Everybody has to make decisions about money, but that's especially true when you have or are thinking about having kids. That's why I'm super excited for today's guest, Lindsay Perez (@thelindsayperez), a financial and salary negotiation coach. I kind of geek out about personal finance and we made this episode full of great tidbits that aren't just your run-of-the-mill tips, including:
- Why there's no amount of money that will let you stop thinking about money
- Where to focus your money when you can't save for or pay off EVERYTHING.
- How to start the conversation with yourself and/or your significant other about money goals.
- How to decide when the right financial time is to have kids and what steps to take.
- And more!
To get in touch with Lindsay, reach out to her on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/thelindsayperez/.
Some of the resources mentioned in this episode are:
- Nerdwallet https://nerdwallet.com
- Bankrate https://bankrate.com
- Lean In https://leanin.org/book
If you are trying to become pregnant, you may be trying to determine how to best position your body for your best fertility odds. Wading through all of the available information can be daunting and even contradictory.
In this episode we'll discuss:
- Some common myths around pre-conception fitness
- How to balance the narratives of working out to the extreme with taking it as easy as possible.
- How weight loss can affect your fertility and whether your weight loss really plays a role in your fertility.
Healthy At Every Size Book
If you're a parent, or planning on becoming one soon, you're probably thinking all about milestones for your kiddo. We can be bombarded with dates that our kids should be doing things like eating solid foods, crawling, walking, talking and more. Today we're talking with Lauren Grabowski (@lgthefitot), MS, OTR/L about these milestones, when to not worry and when it might be time to take some action.
We discuss:
- Simple daily things that parents can do to encourage development
- Who to see for developmental diagnoses (and if they matter)
- Which modern tools can actually hurt developmental progress
- How you are more awesome than any screen
- and more!
In this episode, we reference early intervention services for every state. For early intervention services in your state or territory, check out this list from Autism Speaks.
If you're trying to get your groove on check out Lauren's favorite Super Simple Songs video.
If you'd like to work with Lauren, her website is https://laurenpgrabowski.com.
I'm always a huge advocate of getting your partner's help where you can, but what do you do when you're sailing solo, either because they aren't in the picture, or in the case of today's guest, Alison, they are literally out at sea?
We discuss:
- How to plan for a birth when you aren't sure who your support will be
- How to reinforce other areas of your support system when your partner isn't available
- How to stay sane when it's just you and your kid(s) all alone.
If your partner has to travel a lot for work or is busy, or you just find yourself feeling like you have to do it all and want to expand your support system, this episode is for you!
In this episode, we're exploring the physical and psychological harm diet culture can cause. Kara Trochta (@karatrochta) and I discuss:
- How we develop unhealthy relationships with food
- How intuitive eating can repair this relationship, and your body.
- How being healthy is more than (and often exclusive from) the number on the scale or your BMI.
If you've struggled with yo-yo diets, binge eating, forbidden foods, or feeling like a number on the scale is somehow representative of how healthy you are, this episode is packed with tips and stories that will really resonate.
If you're interested in working with Kara, message her on Instagram. You can also find her Facebook Group here https://www.facebook.com/groups/karatrochtanutrition, and can check out her Reclaim course here: https://www.subscribepage.com/y4c1f2
In today's episode, Joanna shares her experience of having a COVID baby while also working in public health on COVID response (her story is wild!) We also cover:
- Differences between her first and second pregnancy and birth (and how we forget everything so the human race can carry on)
- Pregnancy and birth complications such as low fluids, group strep B, and forceps deliveries — and what she wishes she'd known.
- The 3 questions you can ALWAYS ask during birth if you feel pressured into an intervention.
- How to find out everything you really need before leaving the hospital.
- Pubic bone pain during pregnancy, or SPD.
We also referenced Brené Brown's Daring Greatly (on audiobook) and Aziz Ansari's book Modern Romance.
I know, I know with a title like that, this doesn't sound like the funnest episode. But in all seriousness, my guest Holly is a delight, and I think her story will help provide so much healing. Whether you've experienced loss, know someone who has, or just want to understand how to respond if it happens to someone you love, this episode will be really helpful.
We discuss:
- Late term loss at 16 weeks, and the strange place that puts birthing people in between typical miscarriage and stillbirth/infant loss.
- The unimaginable decisions parents must make, like what to do with a baby that's miscarried in the second trimester.
- Holly's subsequent pregnancy and birth experience.
- The effects of pregnancy loss and traumatic birth on the pelvic floor.
- Postpartum pre-eclampsia and being readmitted after discharge from the hospital.
We also referenced ep. 13 with Brittany and you can click-through here to see Holly's cross-stitched Starry Night referenced in today's episode.
Urinary incontinence: it's the dirty secret no one tells you about having kids and/or aging until you're in the middle of it.
The truth is, this is not something you just have to live with. There are actionable steps you can take to eliminate urinary incontinence (or at least significantly improve it) from the comfort of your own home. In this episode we're covering:
- Why urinary incontinence happens, and NO, it's not just because your pelvic floor is "loose."
- How to assess your own pelvic floor.
- How to use breathing and posture to improve urinary incontinence.
- Little things you may be doing that are contributing to urinary incontinence or urgency.
Listen to today's episode and then message me @kellybryantwellness on Instagram and tell me which tip you're going to put into action!
Heidi Snyderburn is a powerhouse of birth knowledge and resources and I am so grateful to her for coming on the show to talk to us about:
- What exactly does a doula do, and how do I know if I need one?
- Why is it so hard to get the birth outcomes we want and what can you do about it?
- What does having a doula cost (and is it worth it)?
- Why is telling birth stories so important, and how to find support and healing through birth stories.
Find the Birth Story podcast here, and subscribe to catch my episode in the next few weeks. You can work with Heidi virtually here, find her book here, and download birth affirmations here. Use code BIRTHSTORYPODCAST for $5 off and a free gift when you buy the book!
In today's episode, we also referenced episode 10 with Dr. Victoria Sekely on postpartum running and a forthcoming episode with my client, Holly.
Getting back to doing what you love for exercise postpartum is a PROCESS. You are not simply going to wake up one day and feel like, "hey, I've been laying in bed for X weeks with a newborn, but now I feel ready to go for a jog!"
When I talk about postpartum recovery and workouts, I mean: healing your pelvic floor and re-training your abs to help support you through day-to-day movement (not lifting heavy or hopping on your Peloton). Recovery is a spectrum of:
- Re-connecting and re-learning muscular engagement in order to...
- Start gentle movement and stretching in order to...
- Begin mindfully strength-training in order to...
- Return to the impact and full-intensity training you love
In this episode I'll break down the exact process I lead my clients through to get back to doing what they love AND feeling good while doing it.
In this episode I reference Ep. 10 with Dr. Victoria Sekely: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1391509/episodes/6734395
And the RECLAIM Postpartum Program. No matter when you are listening, you can sign up for the waitlist here: https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/reclaim-postnatal-group-training-program/
This show is all about having difficult and honest conversations about pregnancy and parenting, and my conversation with Brittany Dewire is exactly that. In this episode Brittany shares:
- How they ultimately delivered TWICE without Pitocin, despite preeclampsia and subsequently being considered high risk.
- What having HELPP Syndrome actually felt like postpartum.
- A masterclass on how to hold space for someone who has lost a pregnancy.
- Lessons on how our relationship with our parents influences the way we handle trauma.
- How to handle the fallout when your perfectly planned life doesn't go exactly as planned.
Their story is so generous and I cannot thank Brittany enough for taking the time to share it. If this story resonated with you, please take a moment to share it with a friend.
Ever feel like you're constantly chasing your tail and never get to focus on the stuff that's ACTUALLY important cause you're constantly putting out fires? Yeah, I've felt that, too.
I'm here to tell you that that is not simply a symptom of being a parent (or a working parent or a stay-at-home parent). It is simply the result of how you're organizing — or not organizing — your time.
In this episode I am breaking down the exact process I use to stay on top of my work life, my family life, and my self-care. Hint: It's not by working harder. It's by using the way your brain was actually designed to work in your favor.
In this week's episode we're talking about the enormous GIFT of failure. We're talking about what it actually means vs. what we're making it mean, and I'll make my case for failing WAY more than you currently are. Your journal prompts are:
- What are you making failure mean right now?
- What do you do when that's what you make it mean?
- What could you make failure mean?
- What would you do if that's what you really believed it meant?
- What happens when you avoid failure?
Note: This episode came from a call recording for Resolution Revolution. You'll hear me interacting with the live participants.
In today's episode, we're talking to physical therapist, run coach, and trainer Dr. Victoria Sekely (@trainsmartrunstrong) about why running is such an advanced athletic endeavor, and how to be able to do it without getting hurt. We're talking about:
- What you absolutely MUST be able to do in order to safely run
- Common running injuries and why they happen
- How to heal running aches and pains (RICE ain't always it)
- And why runners just wanna run
If you are a pregnant or postpartum runner (or are thinking about it) this episode is a MUST listen. It's also just straight-up fascinating even if you're not a runner. We talk a lot about healing injuries in general, too.
Check Vicky out on IG or her website to join her weekly runner's strength workshop or get a custom training plan.
In this episode I'm sharing a recording from the Resolution Revolution, my habit-change challenge for the month of December. In this call we're talking about how to think and feel differently in order to support new habits.
Trust me, dry as it might sound, this is info you NEED to know. And this episode is not just giving you tips like, "set a reminder on your phone" or "buy a really big water bottle." And the cool thing is, when you build habits in the way I'm teaching, you actually get to feel awesome along the way!
p.s. I would be so grateful if you would subscribe, rate, and review this podcast! Think of it as you holiday gift to me. ;)
In this episode we're exploring separating self-worth from pant size. Christi Brown (@intuitively_strong) and I chat about:
- her journey to intuitive eating
- how she reconciles training for strength competitions with intuitive eating
- how our kids are just little geniuses who already "get" all this — and our job might just be to sit back and let them figure it out.
It's seriously, FIRE.
If you're interested in working with Christi in 1:1 coaching, reach out to her on Instagram or TikTok.
'Tis the season... To mourn being unable to spend time with extended family and celebrate with the usual holiday traditions. Today's episode is all about reframing this weird year (after we feel all our feelings — cause we always want to feel our feelings first).
If you'd like support in building new habits this month (for free!), here's where you can join the Resolution Revolution: https://www.kellybryantwellness.com/resolution-revolution/ And don't forget to join me on the sosh meeds @kellybryantwellness for details on my holiday specials this year.
This week we’ve got a guest, Mark Breedon of @training.strong.women. Through his Badass Lifter program, Mark helps women level-up their self-identity and step into their strength — not just under the barbell, but in every aspect of life.
In the episode we get into:
-How Mark (a dude) became a fitness trainer for women
-How to choose a trainer
-Why strength is so important for women AND why comparison is so toxic.
-How to choose a strength goal (and blow your mind about what’s “realistic” for most women)
We also talk specifically about why strength-training is so essential, specifically for parents of little people. (Spoiler alert: Cause it gives you an identity that’s not wrapped up in your parenting skills and kids’ achievements.)
This week, we're talking about "yin weeks," or my tradition of including a recovery week every 5th week in all of my programs.
In the episode we're diving into the nervous system and how it impacts (and is impacted by) pain and stress, AND we're tying that into postpartum recovery and exercise. Obviously, I'll be explaining WHY I think that recovery week is so important and why I think everyone should take one. Plus, I'm also including a few of my favorite tricks to get your nervous system to chill the f--- out.
When you're done with the episode, please do me a favor and subscribe and review the podcast to help others find it!
In this episode we're getting into the nitty gritty of how to actually use your core muscles (like, for optimal health vs. to be on the cover of a fitness magazine). We're also talking about how to correcting engage your pelvic floor and how to never do a sit-up again.
If you're looking for the study about diastasis recti and pelvic organ prolapse that I reference, check it out here: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27037746/
Lastly, please rate and review this podcast wherever you listen to podcasts! Many thanks.
In this episode we're going deep (and a little nerdy) into why the way you breathe is so freakin' important. We're talking about how it influences stress levels, how that in turn affects your body's ability to heal postpartum, how pressure in your abdomen can be wreaking havoc on your abs and pelvic floor, and a whole lot more.
But, don't panic — you can also learn all about how to breathe BETTER, so that you can support healing and overall core and pelvic floor health. Bonus: you'll feel better, too.
This episode is brought to you by...ME! My RECLAIM Postnatal Group Training Program is the best way for new moms to really get a handle on this whole breathing thing — and how to use it to heal from birth faster and more completely.
Starting a new training program is not as simple as Googling the best program and then "just do it."
There's so much more involved. Today we're covering how to:
- Look at what actually hasn't worked in the past.
- Find your "why"
- And get really specific about what it is you want to achieve.
This might sound like fluff, but I guarantee, it's the difference between reaching your goals and falling short.
This episode is brought to you by... ME! And my RECLAIM Postnatal Program. RECLAIM includes everything you need to recover from pregnancy and birth and get back to feeling like YOU again. Learn more and sign up for the waitlist here.
Welcome to the Not Your Mama Podcast! On this episode, we're talking about the mental and physical shifts that happen during pregnancy and postpartum that cause your body to — for lack of a better phrase — fall the f- apart. Be enlightened and be informed to make better choices and get this train back on the rails. You got this!
This episode is brought to you by... ME! And my personal training services. Check out my website if you're ready to find out if maybe — just maybe — doing hard sh*t is your superpower.