Daily Maternal Movements
As important as daily exercises such as OMP Pelvic Alignment Protocols, it is important to become aware of your daily maternal movements.
A simple daily maternal movement such as getting in and out of the car.
Most of the time when people get in and out of the car, it is very common for them to put one leg in first then slide in and turn the other leg in to follow. In order to maintain dynamic equilibrium, the ideal way for her to enter and exit the car is to ensure that her knees are locked together and she turn in with her legs together in one motion.
Step 1: Getting out of the car
Imagine when she is getting in and out of the car that she is wearing a kimono or a long skirt, where she keeps her legs together, sit in holding onto the handle, lock her knees together.
Step 2: Getting out of the car
Lock her knees and swing her legs out together.
Step 3: Getting out of the car
The same thing applies when she is going into a vehicle, sit down, locking knees together, holding on to the handle for support, and swing her legs in together.
A simple daily maternal movement such as sitting
Always make sure that when sitting, her hip is the same height or higher than her knees. When her knees are higher than her hips, it can potentially cause tension on the soft tissues in front of her body such as the round ligaments, psoas muscles etc over time. You don’t want her to be slouching like a banana, slouching position as this can cause her baby to go into a posterior position. Also try to avoid positions where she is sitting like a mermaid. Slouching to one side and leaning with her feet up on the couch as her hot air balloon will be twisted. Always make sure she has pillows supporting her from behind so she can lean back yet not slouch her pelvis, always making sure that her buttocks don’t shift.
Sitting
She can use a slightly inflated ball with a slight amount of air placed on the chair before she sits down (especially if she has to sit down for quite a long period of time). It may not always be convenient to sit on a gym ball (which is preferred) yet a soft, slightly inflated Pilates ball is transportable in her handbag to take with her. This will allow her to have pelvic mobility and movement which is very good for pelvic alignment.
Standing
Always do her best to stand on BOTH feet wearing flat footwear and do her best to avoid high heels as this will cause misalignment.
Be consciously aware of alignment when she is standing and ensure she is not slouching to one side.
A simple daily maternal movement such as Lying down
Exactly the same analogy of locking her knees together when getting in and out of bed as she swings them together. If she chooses to have a pillow supporting between her legs, do so in a way that supports both her knees and ankles together.
