January 2014

143 330

POSTNATAL WEIGHT LOSS
143 January14
Feel the Burn:
In one minute, you
could burn…
Push ups: 6 calories (done
moderately)
Jogging: 8 calories
Jumping jacks: 10 calories
(vigorously)
Kettlebell training: 20
calories in a minute of Kettlebell
swinging, according to personal
trainer Alvin Francis Fok of Alvin
Fitness. It provides high-intensity,
interval-style training, and is an
effective way to lose fat.
(All calorie counts are estimated
anddependon individual weight.)
Kettlebell training can help
you burn fat and calories
tailored programme that is critical to
progress and safety, particularly as new
mothers’ fitness levels can be affected
during pregnancy.” Although Kevin will
happily carry out home sessions, he
recommends gym visits to make the
most of your programme. “Included
in the training fees is the use of our
well-equipped gym on Joo Chiat Road,
where you will learn more skills with the
equipment.”
Kevin recommends three one-hour
sessions a week as ideal, but also notes
that success will come if four main
criteria are satisfactorily met: intensity,
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frequency, type of exercise and diet. Most
of Kevin’s exercises for new mums will
not exceed an exertion level of 7 out of
10, and weight-bearing exercises will be
restricted to 20 to 25 repetitions. “Most
will be isolation exercises to concentrate
on the hot spots, namely hips, legs, upper
back and triceps, but all other body parts
will be worked out too.”
Importantly, Kevin advises all clients
to manage their expectations, and not
be too ambitious. “Baby steps should
be advocated so that the client does not
feel too much stress, which would get in
the way of the fitness regime.”
Turning to technology
Sometimes, no matter how stringent the
diet and exercise plan it’s still hard to
shift weight from specific areas of the
body. For many women, these are the
stomach, thighs and buttocks, which
can be altered noticeably by pregnancy.
The HYPOXI method is a studio-based
exercise programme using equipment
that focuses on a combination of
compression, vacuuming and fat
burning. It encourages blood supply to
the lower part of the body, where trouble
spots can be targeted and fat burnt.
The equipment is safe for new
mums, but the Dermology machine is
not recommended for breastfeeding
mothers: it applies high and low
pressure to the skin, which could affect
milk supply. The studio carries out
a body analysis before you start the
programme, and ensures you have
clearance from your doctor.
“This is for anyone interested in
reducing the size of their stomach, waist
and buttocks,” says studio manager
Margaret Cermak. “They’ve usually done
what they can at home, and now it’s time
for them to come to us and kick-start
things again.”
Studio trainer, Tanya Strinich, is a
mother of three children who used the
HYPOXI method after her second and
third pregnancies before she began
working for the company. “I was one of
those people who would put on 25kg
during pregnancy, and although I’d lost
the bulk of the weight after my second,
I was getting frustrated and finding that
gym work only helped up to a certain
point. I also found I had a tummy that
I didn’t have with my first, and I had
saddlebags from hell. Using HYPOXI
helped reduce my waist, stomach and
thighs, and I recently bought a pair of
jeans without realising they were two sizes
smaller than what I used to fit into.”