Natasha Ferrier PT

Instead of starting the New Year with going HARD.

How about starting with what your body NEEDS?

For example.

Normalising your pelvis and rib positioning

And ... accessing your parasympathetic nervous system.

.. aka calming the F down.

So ... you can show your body that it’s in a safe space
So ... you can reduce extension tone within your body
So ... you can genuinely improve your mobility (yes, without any need to ‘stretch’)
So ... you can feel better within your body
So ... you don’t feel pain, you don’t feel chronically tight.

You feel calm.
You can be free within yourself.

You can do then move as you want.
At the gym.
And in life.

All this... with just a little bit of the right stuff.

In the right position.

Not a HIIT workout, 5 times a week, at 5am, after only having had a coffee 😳

branding

Improving health can be about aesthetics.

In more ways than one 😉 ...

Three months of training with this lovely human - what a difference three months can make!

🔹️ Signficant reduction in piriformis, lower back and morton's neuroma pain
🔹️ Increased confidence of movement
🔹️ Increased sense
🔹️ Just look at that posture!

What's most exciting though, is that this is just the start!

Two years of wearing VIVOBAREFOOT] shoes 🙌🏻.

No surgery.
No lengthy rehab

And the feet are returning! Returning to how they are designed to be.

Wearing VIVOBAREFOOT] shoes has helped me avoid bunion surgery. Avoid any pain that comes with the progression of bunion growth.

A bunion is a bony growth on the big toe joint. Typically, it's accompanied by the big toe jamming into the second toe, out of it's natural alignment. A few years ago, I realised that my toes couldn't spread and my big toes were starting to creep sideways. I had to have horrific ingrown toe nail surgery.

The cause? Most likely years of tight, narrow shoes - Shoes with no resemblance to how a foot should actually look.

I haven't invested time in any toe exercises - yet.
I haven't invested in toe spacers - yet.

So could my feet be in better health now? Absolutely. But a "no effort" change of investing in my shoes has given me so much, so far.

I'm looking forward to seeing how much they'll change in the next two years!

👣 Have you looked at your feet lately?

👣 Do you have bunions?

👣 Are your shoes letting your feet live your best life?

Plus one.

Another year around the Sun.

Proud of where I am. Blessed to have who I have. Grateful to have the future.

Cheesy sentiment done. Now off to have some steak 🥩

Cannot be happier to be a woman today!

Cannot shout my good news loud enough...

✨️ I GOT MY PERIOD! ✨️

What better way to celebrate !

After 1100 days (3 years) without seeing one, I now have a cycle!

This has been the best Christmas, birthday, life present I could have received.

I'm super excited to share more about this beautiful in the next few weeks and the roller coaster I've had in refinding it.

And why you should really care about yours.

But for now... I'm revelling in the cramps. So so grateful. I think 😅

Come and get your festive wiggle on ... Next week! 🐧

Wednesday 15th December
7pm (via Zoom)

Last year, sharing a Christmas flow was so much fun! Come and play this year!

Thank you to the team, for hosting. And thank you for choosing the wonderful cause!

All proceeds will be donated to the Crosshouse Children's Fund ❤

Did you know?

Form the first cycle to menopause, an average woman will have around 450 periods.

That’s a lot of cycles.

That’s a lot of hormone changes.

Considering how many periods you’ll experience; do you actually know what your body is going through?

The menstrual cycle includes four phases – the follicular, ovulation, luteal and menstruation.

*Phase 1: Menstruation*

⚫ Typically lasts around 3-7 days
⚫ A drop in the hormones estrogen and progesterone
⚫ The time that your uterus sheds its lining

*Phase 2: Follicular*

⚫ Starts as your period happens and continues until ovulation
⚫ Typically around 16 days
⚫ Estrogen rises in order to release an egg
⚫ This phase is normally associated with increased energy

*Phase 3: Ovulation*

⚫ Occurs between your follicular and luteal phases
⚫ Typically lasting between 3 to 5 days
⚫ High levels of estrogen
⚫ Surge in luteinizing hormone (LH)

*Phase 4: Luteal*

⚫ The body prepares for a possible pregnancy
⚫ Rise in progesterone
⚫ Typically lasts between 11-17 days
⚫ The phase in which you experience PMS symptoms

What does that mean for your exercise?

If you want to know more, check out tomorrow’s post where I’ll break down programming options a little more to support those changing hormones!

Experiencing fluctuations in your training?
Can’t quite pinpoint why a weight feels so much heavier than it did last week?
Not seeing the same progress as the men around you, despite being on a similar training programme?

Frustrating, right?

It could very well be related to your menstrual cycle – your hormones.

“Women are not small men” is a statement taken from the work of Dr. Stacy Sims.

If you haven’t read her book, ‘Roar’, you really should.

Over the span of a month, male hormones tend to stay relatively stable. Hormones in the female body, however, can wildly fluctuate. Differing levels of these hormones can have a profound effect on mood, hunger, sleep quality, energy, fertility, as well as training and performance.

With what your hormones can influence, it’s no wonder that the gym might be an unexplained struggle one week, compared to the next.

How you approach your training, how you approach your fuelling, how you approach yourself. How forgiving you are in your daily performance goals. All these are key considerations to making the most out of your training, no matter what level of athlete you are.

Considering where you are in your cycle, could be the key to unlocking the optimal you in your training.

A small thought to consider today – and a great way to kick off the first post of the hormone series!

Want me to dive into anything in particular related to your hormones and how they can best serve you and training?

Let me know down below! 💙

If you're new to movement, copying the latest 'gram workout is not the way forward.

No one should blindly dive into movements that they may have not ever trained or experienced.

Understanding your start point is key 🔑

But assessments should in no way be a personal trainer saying, 'let's see a squat..'

You need to understand your body's capacity. At a fundamental level. You need to see the state of your joint health. You need to acknowledge what ranges of motion you have ... or don't.

This is where FRA comes in.

▶️ Establish your baseline of movement capacity at each and every joint

▶️ Quantify your passive AND active range of motion at the joint level

▶️ Evaluate the QUALITY of your movement capacity

Build yourself an effective road map to movement health.

But use an effective start point.



A weekend well spent! 🙌🏻

Are you invested in your pension?

Most likely, yes. Building security for later years is key and on the forefont of everybody's mind.

But how about your physical pension?

Are you investing in the future body that will carry you through your later years? Allow you to live well, live pain free, allow you to still be independent?

What's the point in saving up money for your future, but then when you get there, you're metabolically damaged. Everyday you're taking taking a fistful of medications. Your joints are limited. You don't have the capacity to move around without aides. You're not living as your optimal self.

Even when I'm 70, I want to be thriving. Even when I'm 90!

Eat well.
Move well.
Sleep
Do your CARs.
Bulletproof your joints - even the little guys as I'm doing here!



Do something today that the future you will thank you for 💙.

coach