Dirtbag Fetus' First Workout

 I have been doing some reading on birth, since that is what teachers do. Something coming up? Read a book about it! Super Awesome Wife has been thrusting Penny Simkin's The Birth Partner at me for a little while (SAW Note- SEVEN months! Seven! Five weeks away and just now you're reading it. Grrr.) and I've been doing my homework. Turns out there are exercises pregnant women can do to help labor! Hey, this is a thing that I can help with in a direct way! I am the Dirtbag of Dirtbag Fitness. I got the exercise thing down. Woohoo!

 She wants to labor as much as possible in the squatting position, which makes a ton of sense to me. I understand how gravity works (SCIENCE!) and I understand from which end the baby will emerge. Pushing down seems a lot easier than lying on your back and pushing out and slightly up. Yes, up. Take a look at the direction the Magic Baby Door (for the actual joke go to about 13:20, but watch the whole thing if you have an hour) is pointing. That, sir, is up. But squatting is not easy. That's some killer quad work right there. It needs practice.
Instead of going to the gym to swim and rehab today after school I came home, changed into workout shorts, and worked out with her. I did my four sets of single leg squats and during my rest time I sat on the foot stool we have with my legs wide and she lowered herself into a supported squatting position for a minute at a time. She said she felt stable and wasn't putting too much pressure on her legs. Which is good, she needs to be relaxed.
 Next I did three one minute planks, and between each plank she did three sets of ten squats with me holding her hands and helping spot her as needed. She started out going nice and low but by the end they were shorter and not so deep. Still good efforts, still making her stronger and preparing those muscles.

From The Birth Partner (Hey, there are two of us, who was going to take the picture?)

The last thing the two of us did was a set of ten Cat-Cow poses. On hands and knees, backs flat, we inhale and slowly rotate our hips beneath us as far as we can, arching our backs, and hold for a slow five count, then back to level exhaling through the move. Ten of those. At the end of that she was feeling done with baby workouts and I needed to shower and change to get to the theater to watch V for Vendetta because Remember remember the fifth of November.

From The Birth Partner

 I look forward to helping her workout and prepare for labor as much as I possibly can.