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S3E1 Who?! Wellness Redefined: Nutrition, Fitness, & Grace in Motherhood
50 Plays14 days ago
Summary
In this empowering episode, we connect with Jenn and Ash from Jenn and Ash Wellness to discuss the foundations of wellness for women during pregnancy and postpartum. Together, they explore the concept of whole health, the importance of understanding macronutrients, and practical tips for self-care and stress management. Jenn and Ash highlight the significance of community support, coaching, and establishing healthy habits, while also addressing common misconceptions about health during pregnancy. They encourage women to prioritize their well-being, seek help when needed, and give themselves grace as they navigate the challenges of motherhood. We hope you find this episode inspirational and practical in helping you find your personal path to wellness.
Takeaways
-Wellness is a continuous journey, not just a New Year's resolution.
-Understanding macros helps in fueling the body effectively.
-Whole health encompasses fuel, movement, sleep, stress, and environment.
-Pregnant women can often continue their pre-pregnancy fitness routines.
-Hydration is crucial for overall health and wellness.
-Movement positively impacts mental health, especially during pregnancy.
-It's important to listen to your body and adjust activities accordingly.
-Postpartum recovery requires grace and prioritizing healing.
-Mindset plays a significant role in achieving wellness goals.
-Food should be viewed as fuel, not as a source of guilt.
-Giving yourself grace is essential during postpartum.
-Asking for help is crucial but can often difficult.
-Hydration plays a key role in recovery and health.
-Balancing blood sugar is vital for overall well-being.
-Stress management techniques can significantly improve mental health.
-Self-care is not selfish; it is necessary for health.
-Community support can enhance the postpartum experience.
-Nutrition should be tailored to individual needs and goals.
-Movement encourages healthier eating habits.
-Finding personal wellness strategies is empowering.
Links
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to Jen and Ash Wellness
00:00:01
Speaker
Hi, everyone. Welcome to me, you, and who? On today's episode, I am joined by Jen and Ash from Jen and Ash Wellness. They eat, sleep, and breathe, empowering women through wellness, nutrition, and fitness. In this episode, we explore how understanding whole health can make a difference, particularly during pregnancy and postpartum.
Whole Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
00:00:27
Speaker
Jen and Ash share practical tips on navigating nutrition, managing stress, and building healthy habits while emphasizing the importance of self-care, community, and giving yourself grace. Wherever you are on your wellness journey, this episode is packed with inspiration and actionable advice. Enjoy!
Whitney Hall on Surrogacy and Egg Donation
00:00:49
Speaker
Me, you, and who?
00:00:51
Speaker
Who knew it would take more than two people to have a baby? In a world where infertility is no longer a taboo topic, this podcast will take you through all of the different aspects of surrogacy and egg donation through the lens of many who walk this journey in different ways. My name is Whitney Hall and I am a two-time Surrogate Now Turned Surrogacy Coordinator for Egg Donor and Surrogate Solutions.
00:01:16
Speaker
the very agency I used when I chose to carry for two amazing families. With this podcast, it is our goal to help guide and support you as you learn about what it takes to grow a family in an alternative way, as well as hear inspiring and beautiful stories of how this path has changed lives forever.
Podcast Goals and Surrogacy Support
00:01:37
Speaker
We can't wait for you to hear about just one more way happy families are created every day.
00:01:46
Speaker
how Hello, Jen and Ash. I'm so glad you're here. <unk> you thanks coming Yes, no, absolutely. I'm so, so excited. So, um, for those who don't know, um, you know, it's new year. Everyone's talking goals and wellness and, you know, all of those fun things. And, um, you know, we're lucky enough here at egg donor and surrogate solutions to get to partner with you all for kind of this,
00:02:12
Speaker
coaching and accountability program that you guys have for our postpartum GCs. But before we get there, who are you? How did we get
Jen and Ash's Wellness Journey
00:02:24
Speaker
here? How did this become? How did wellness and just all of that become kind of a passion of yours?
00:02:30
Speaker
Yeah, well, thanks for having us. We are so excited to be here all times of the year. But especially this time of the year, there's a natural rhythm of just taking some time to focus on yourself. Absolutely. and And maybe what that looks like. So we love it. And if you're listening to this later, and it's June, you can still do that. Absolutely. you know As it goes live, we're excited. And I'm Jen Morosco. I live in Kansas City with my four kids, my husband, and two dogs that I only like half the time.
00:02:59
Speaker
there you go one of them did pee in the house morning oh then we don't like him today yeah hey ashley yeah We have been, we've both been in fitness, wellness world for almost two decades and I'm a certified personal trainer. Um, do a lot in the fitness space, teach group fitness classes, and then have worked with women, the holistic nutrition space and just overall wellness coaching for about 20 years, just kind of walking alongside women, just kind of being there to be kind of that voice of encouragement. A lot of times we just need, um, I don't know someone to maybe even look at our goals or our lifestyle and just say, Hey,
00:03:36
Speaker
Can you help me just tweak this? I don't know why I'm having such a struggle here or it is. And I just love that. I've done that for a long time and something I'm really passionate about. Yeah. My name is Ashley. I'm a mom to three boys. And I knew growing up that I wanted to do something with nutrition. I loved kind of that health and wellness exercise, but my focus and really just made me tick.
00:04:01
Speaker
And I worked at a gym growing up and ended up in a nutritional, excuse me, in healthcare, care like traditional nursing school. And I was trying to figure out how that could really piece with nutrition. Nursing just felt like a really natural thing to do. I could focus on education. um I could still sprinkle in some of that nutrition education, how I wanted it. And I went through that schooling and I ended up working at a local pediatric hospital I worked with therapeutic and I helped them learn how to give themselves insulin and how to work with carbohydrates and all of that. And so it felt really good, but ultimately I felt a call to do more. I really wanted to focus on the prevention side instead of that symptom management. Oh, love that.
00:04:51
Speaker
Yeah. And I ended up actually kind of simultaneously going through some personal stuff with my oldest son. And it dove me really deep into kind of a holistic mindset and really thinking about healthcare care differently. So fast forward, lots of self-learning, lots of certifications and meeting Jen. And it was just kind of ah a good partnership to work together and kind of compliment each other and help support women on their journey.
00:05:18
Speaker
Oh, I love that. I love that.
Nutrition and Macronutrients Explained
00:05:21
Speaker
So to, just because we're talking about the nutrition part and you know, I know as part of the programs and you know, things that you offer, I hear and see the big word macros and I have to like, what is that? Favorite questions. I can't tell you. with I'll talk about macros and I'll get a message from a friend that's like, you've said this word for a year. What does it mean?
00:05:48
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. So macronutrients. So macro is just kind of the shortened abbreviation sure of the three big types of foods that we consume. So okay, carbohydrates and fats. And then there are micronutrients, which are all of those vitamins, minerals, and all of the other kind of smaller things. So it's basically different ways to categorize food. And most foods are not going to be a single macronutrient. So for example, like peanut butter, that is a protein and a fat. And so we work with women to help them kind of understand what a macronutrient is and then kind of their role in supporting your body. And then how can you use them together to give yourself the most energy and balance your mood and sustain you in your day-to-day actions of being a busy mom.
00:06:44
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, I would add to that. I think the best part is for years coaching women kind of stuck on this like calorie deficit, right? So people want to make change and you want to give them something tangible, but all you can really say is like, okay, put these foods in your bodies, but you got to be in a calorie deficit. And and that was hard because I think it takes the focus off of fueling your body well and onto depriving your body. Yeah. what I love about macros as complicated as it could feel at first when you're like, Oh, this is new to me. I don't get it. Is you're really just learning how to fuel up to a goal.
00:07:19
Speaker
Instead of saying, Oh no, no, you can't have that. Like hold back. So it's, it's hard to explain, but most women tell us, I don't, are you sure I can be eating this much? Like I'm eating so much. And we're like, yeah, your body actually needs a lot of fuel. Fuel is energy. You know, like, it's you through the day. You need to eat. We were eating.
00:07:40
Speaker
Calories is not a bad word. Calories, it means energy. Yes. So we're just trying to help women really see that like when you focus on putting good food in your body, and so there's not a lot of room left right for the junk, and but you can still have it. like Enjoy, and we want you to live your life. Oh, yeah, absolutely. That's spirit food right there. It is. Get from the Lord. No, I love that.
00:08:06
Speaker
so Yeah. mean the first For sure. For sure. And I mean, I think that kind of leads into kind of this idea that you will have of whole health. Yeah. Yeah. So, I mean, you kind of touched on it a little bit. I know, you know, growing up in and just obviously so much has changed. Um, and so much is always changing in the health fitness world, but so much has changed from, you know, the nineties to now I'm for sure. And you know, what is,
00:08:36
Speaker
specifically geared, you're advertised to women and and things like that. And so tell me a little bit about your meaning of what you mean by whole health. Good question. make start yeah um So we think about, I think a lot of people, for example, like in the eighties, it was focus on exercise. As long as you are doing your cardio, you are healthy, you are doing good. Yes.
00:09:05
Speaker
Tight, sweat bands abound.
Five Pillars of Wellness: A Holistic Approach
00:09:07
Speaker
Yes. Learned and stepped back and teach through a different lens. So we really have five pillars that we look at that really the goal is all of those are in a pretty good optimal state to really so support you, excuse me. So fuel, movement, sleep, stress, and your environment. And so we can certainly dive into those if you want, but really it's a whole body approach, not just, um,
00:09:34
Speaker
what you're eating or how much you're spending time on the treadmill, if that makes sense. Yeah. And thank goodness. There's kind of a cultural shift to this too. You know, I mean, I remember 15 years ago when I was coaching women, it was unique to say mind, body, soul is all right. And now there is more awareness around the fact that, you know, we are just so interconnected, right? Your sleep impacts how you fuel yourself, your fuel impacts your muscle, your muscle impacts your mental health, your mental health impacts your spiritual health or your emotional health or your sleep. It just makes a big circle. Absolutely. Absolutely. No, for sure. Well, so obviously I know um you know women have been kind of your focus and you know of course we, again, are lucky enough to get to partner with you all for kind of the postpartum track of things. but
00:10:29
Speaker
For pregnancy in general, you know, either as you're, you know, in our case gearing up for a transfer day or, um, you know, pregnancy throughout, um, and then of course the kind of the postpartum, what would you say are maybe some of the more like common misconceptions that you hear for health and wellness during pregnancy specifically, I would say.
Exercise and Nutrition in Pregnancy
00:10:52
Speaker
That's a good one. One of the biggest ones I feel like I hear is that, you know, you can't work out or you got to scale it back.
00:10:58
Speaker
You need a ah really big increase in the amount of fuel you're consuming. Okay. You actually don't need as big of an increase as you think that you do. Yeah. um and What they say it's about 500 calories. So what that could be, you know, an extra sandwich, it could be a handful of samples. And that's going to vary by, you know, woman. And that's going to be something her and her doctor probably need to discuss. But it's not as much as you would think.
00:11:24
Speaker
Um, and you can keep anything you did before pregnancy in most cases, if your doctor, of course, all of this is the caveat of each pregnancy and situation. It's different, but most women.
00:11:34
Speaker
they are able to continue whatever they were doing before. And some, I've actually seen a lot of women have big muscle gains and even learning gains during their pregnancy because that was something that they were focusing on, which is awesome to see um because for so long it was just like sit on the couch, do nothing but eat bonbons, you know, which that might be what you want to do during pregnancy. and ah you And that's okay too. but It's really just good to feel empowered with the fact that you can just keep doing the things you were doing and living your life. And you're actually probably going to have a better pregnancy and better labor able to move your body and feel your body well. Sure. Sure. Absolutely. And really, I mean,
00:12:15
Speaker
Just to kind of summarize, it's looking at your baseline, but so individualizing it really for you. I mean, there are women who run marathons when they're pregnant because they were big runners before. If you were lifting weights, now we wouldn't recommend you go and start those things. Of course, there you go. You are fueling well and you are taking care of your body and more importantly, listening to your body. Like it's not right.
00:12:39
Speaker
It's that tap on the shoulder is there for a reason and really trying to kind of get in tune with that and and stepping back and allowing yourself grace and rest while still maintaining those things that are important to you, knowing that huge transformational shift that your body is going through and.
00:12:58
Speaker
Maybe, you know, you're not going to be doing HIIT workouts at six in the morning. button No, thank you. The body is telling you to do a shorter one and in the afternoon and still kind of maintain that same ah level of exercise, but you maybe have to tweak it and do it differently. so again Sure.
00:13:20
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. no No guilt if you need to just have a saltine cracker and not make it to that workout for that, for that first trimester. It's all yours. I mean, I lived on saltines the first trimester. Yes. I mean, yeah. Yeah. And kind of not to choose Doritos for one of my pregnancies, but yeah. It's funny the things that... Absolutely. Look, it' at some point, sometimes, like you said, fuel is fuel. And so we're just trying to get there. Yeah. but
00:13:48
Speaker
No, for sure. For sure. What would you say are maybe some, you know, I didn't, you kind of mentioned it before, you know, if you, you were a runner before, then absolutely, it totally makes sense that you continue to run, you know, during pregnancy, but if you get pregnant and then maybe let's not decide right then and there that now is going to be whenever you start your CrossFit journey. Um, you know, so like, what would you say are maybe some,
00:14:13
Speaker
kind of long-term habits or routines that women could establish to just kind of overall promote, you know, just health and wellness, either prior to pregnancy, um particularly prior to pregnancy, but even during pregnancy, if they're looking towards, you know, that postpartum stage, kind of what does that look like?
00:14:32
Speaker
Yeah. or I mean, I would say the biggest thing is walking. If you're not walking, the one is, I mean, we hear this a lot, but it is so important getting in yeah you and movement. I mean, the science behind the benefits that we see for moving our body throughout the day is huge. So even if you don't have time to go on a 30 minute walk, I mean, I'll set my timer and just get up and walk around my house for two minutes.
00:14:54
Speaker
You know, so if you're, if you have a desk job right now and you're, you're getting ready, you know, to try to get pregnant or to become a surrogate or you are pregnant now, just go there and just maybe build that up to where then maybe you're walking for five minutes or 10 minutes. Um, if you do not have to do an hour walk up a hill for it to be valuable and then building muscle in any way you can is important. And it's not too late to start. Once you're pregnant, you just want to do that safely and carefully. Right. So I would start with lighter weight.
00:15:22
Speaker
Um, we, that's something that we offer in our program. There's a lot of programs that you can look to and follow and just simple. I mean, even if you're just, even if it's body weight, you know, you could do pushups, you can, you know, do some bicep curls. I talk about leaving them in my kitchen or leaving a band in my kitchen. And sometimes like while I'm cooking, I'm just, you know, pulling the band heck yeah and so that your body is one just moving. It's another way to move your blood sugar, which is really important for overall health. And.
00:15:51
Speaker
It's building muscle, which is is really valuable. But most of all, I think it's the mental health piece, right? Like there is something about moving your body that is so good for your mental health. And science has proved that, but we all know that. Like anecdotally, you've experienced that, right? You're having a crummy day and you go 100%. And you're like, oh, I'm doing so much better. And your hormones are doing a lot during pregnancy. And so I think that's really important to remember um how that movement's supporting your mental health and your hormones.
00:16:20
Speaker
So I'm just kind of laughing to myself while she's talking because this is Jen and I. Like Jen immediately goes to fitness. My mind went to food. And this is why you guys are a great pair.
00:16:32
Speaker
i can tell you food related and she went to
00:16:36
Speaker
everybody. I love it right now. I would they come to mind again from the fueling perspective is hydration. I think that's something we hear from women a lot is they struggle to get in water. So it's easy to just say go drink your water, but it's not fun necessarily for people. So just little things like set your timer on your phone. um Try really hard to have at like eight to 16 ounces of water first thing in the morning. That way you're fueling yourself because we all wake up dehydrated. Even if you get busy with your next two hours of morning, you know you have some good solid ounces of water in your system right off the bat. um And then the other thing from an actual food perspective, and she talked briefly about blood sugar, is learning how to eat to balance your blood sugar. So please don't encourage to throw back in that macro word that anyone restricts macros, any of the three.
00:17:34
Speaker
So as women, we're often told to avoid carbohydrates and we actually feel very strongly that that is not what women should do. It's how to strategically eat the carbohydrates. That's great news. This is, yeah. <unk>ugh bread I mean, ideally we're having quality carbohydrates, but we're going to have the salting crackers and Doritos, some too, but 100%. There's room for it all. hey How to consume those carbohydrates and utilize them appropriately.
Long-term Wellness and Blood Sugar Balance
00:18:04
Speaker
So for example, if you want to have a sweet treat, maybe have the sweet cheat, excuse me, that's a tongue twister with your dinner or shortly after your dinner, because you know, you had a good piece of protein, probably like a chicken breast or something with your dinner or some taco meat. And that's going to sustain a more kind of normalized blood sugar curve versus waiting a few hours later to have your dessert. And then your blood sugar goes like this.
00:18:33
Speaker
and then within 45 minutes to an hour, you're crashed, you're craving more, you're tired, you're slowing up. So it's how can we teach you to do that in a way, again, that's gonna support optimal utilization of those sugars that you're having from those carbohydrates? um that makes fun of that But I don't wanna go too much into the weeds. Oh, no, but that makes a ton of sense. I i actually say it to my kids all the time. you know we have a when we still have our bag of, you know, Halloween candy, of course. And so, you know, we're slowly going through it, but I'm like, yes, absolutely. Go ahead. Have your, have your piece of candy. We got to pair it, like pair it, pair it with cheese, pair it with, you know, yes. No, that makes a ton of sense. And I love what you said. You know, I think again, it's, it's going from right. The, the eighties and sweat bands to the nineties and no calories, no fat, no added sugar, all it like, no, no, no, no, no to food is not bad.
00:19:31
Speaker
so yeah It's a mental thing. It brings people together. it It doesn't have to be bad. It shouldn't be bad. It shouldn't be. And you know, it's funny. We'll have people tell us a lot like, okay, I don't want to do this right now because I have this event coming up or that event coming up talking about our groups. And we're like, Hey, we're actually teaching you. I mean, I, I respect that. There are seasons where you're too overwhelmed to even take the time to educate yourself on it.
00:19:51
Speaker
A hundred percent. Absolutely. You know what I mean? But a lot of what we're working on in these six weeks with the women we're working with is things like this, where you're actually not depriving yourself at all. You can do all your events. We're just teaching you how to do them in a way that this can be your lifestyle, you know, and you don't need to track your macros every day of your life. You know, part of tracking your macros is to learn if you're fueling your body. Well, most women learn that they're under fueling tracking and they're under eating and they actually need more.
00:20:20
Speaker
Um, but I just, I love the fact that we're really teaching like that, you know, is have your dessert more with your protein or go on a quick walk after a meal because that's going to help your blood sugar. Just things that are very sustainable. It's not a whole 30, right? Where you just don't eat anything. And then at the end of it, you like start managing, you know, for sure. For sure. Yeah. That reintroduction part of whole 30. I never quite understood because it definitely like, I just went.
00:20:46
Speaker
Give me the ice cream. Give me the bread. Give me. Yeah, for sure. Yes. When you restrict, you want it more, right? When you tell your kids that they can't have something, it's like they maybe start sneaking it or they, you know, if you restrict, it's like a mindset thing, which is a huge thing. Jen is really good about this, but we have mindset moments in our group all the time because we devalue how powerful our mindset is. so we come in with a lot of work to do and changing all of these little self talk things that society or how we were raised, yeah, ever it is the TV shows, the the ads, all of that is coming at you and working really hard to change your foundation at the base of everything we do.
00:21:34
Speaker
Yeah. Well, again, that wholeness mind, body, soul, the, just the whole health. Absolutely. Absolutely. And no guilt in the days where it is only saltine crackers or, you know, you're a busy mom or like, Hey, I am just trying to make it through the day. And I've got hormones out the wazoo from all of these injections or, you know, just whatever, like no shame in the game, but at least you have.
00:21:58
Speaker
the tools, you guys are giving us the tools for, you know, to, okay, we're going to get back into it tomorrow or I'm going to eat my Doritos, but I am going to go take that five minute walk. The biggest thing I should say over and over is to lose the all or nothing mindset, right? Because what happens is we're pregnant and maybe we're having, you know, a Dorito week or a Dorito few weeks. And then we think that's the rest of the pregnancy, right? right Whereas like, it doesn't have to be like that. It can be the Doritos, it can be the wok, it can also be, oh, I'm starting to feel better week 13, 14. I could have maybe not a salad because that really never sounded good, but I can with a bunch of vegetables. Sure. Losing that. Okay, I'm doomed. This is just it's inevitable. You know, I'm gonna have to eat Doritos every day this pregnancy. And maybe you do, but balance it out. Yeah. Yeah. I love what you're saying. Yes. Keep
00:22:49
Speaker
keep that mindset forward of it's always, there's always little things you can do to make yourself feel better and yeah, have a healthier pregnancy. For sure. Accountability groups set up. I think it's nice because we just say, just show up. Even if you show up and say, I had Doritos for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Right. It's your next choice yeah that you always have and ah another next choice. Right. And so knowing that you have people there and can support you and say, Hey, that was me last week and I'm good now. And, you know, cheering each other on is, is a really valuable piece of these groups. Yeah. Yeah. I think gone is the, you know, gone is the shame of not, of not being perfect or not showing up to the gym already looking gym ready or, you know, just nailed it. I think a lot of people that are in our space,
00:23:41
Speaker
present as perfect. And one of our goals is if you see, I say all the time, I'm like, if you see me out at a good restaurant, I'm eating fries. I just want you to know. Yes. I think it's the idea of you must eat perfect all the time. And I'm like, absolutely not. That's not the real world. No. Pretending that we do everything perfect. We're not actually helping you or ourselves.
00:24:02
Speaker
Yeah. To know what real life looks like. Now, am I eating fries every meal? No. if you know like But if I'm on a date with my husband and we're at a good restaurant, I'm going to get them. And I want i want people to know that so that they feel, like you said, so the shame is gone. and Yeah. Yeah. Or lucky fries after transfer day. Go for them. It is. Yeah. They work, you know? Yes.
00:24:27
Speaker
Absolutely. Yeah. If you do it every day, you're not going to feel your best. So something to think about, you know? Yeah. Well, and again, that just that, that mindful part of it and just, it is, it's so, it's so layered and all encompassing and braided together and it's beautiful.
Postpartum Self-care and Healing
00:24:46
Speaker
And I love that you all focus on each part of that.
00:24:50
Speaker
What would you say specifically? So, um you know, maybe it's the surrogate who meds were really tough. First trimester is really tough. Okay. Second trimester, we're feeling better, but now we're headed into third trimester. We're uncomfortable. It's, you know, we've got a lot going on and we're about to go be into kind of postpartum. And maybe we have a little bit anxiety about postpartum because it's like, Oh gosh, I'm I haven't, you know, quote unquote, done all the things I should have done or, you know, just things like that. What would you say are maybe just really, and even for anybody, the most important things to focus on in that first postpartum moment? Yeah.
00:25:42
Speaker
me yeah Okay, so I've never been a surrogate. So I'm not sure the pieces that you know hormones and yeah, sure shots and stuff. I don't really know all of that piece but from going through postpartum four times with my own, you know,
00:25:57
Speaker
journey with that. yeah And I think I got better at it each time. There you go. We learned something new each time. Speaking from that, I think the biggest thing is I tell myself going in, I call the first six weeks the dark days and no might not feel like it's that way. But for me, my hormones were a mess for six weeks. Yeah. Um, I was hardly sleepy. I had babies that didn't sleep, ah which I, that that situation could be different in some of these, but I just think going into that mindset of like, this is going to be really hard.
00:26:26
Speaker
Um, emotionally, this might be hard on my body, but I know that three months from now, four months from now, I'm going to continue. I'm just going to slowly get back to myself. And I guess having that mindset up and I don't say I say going into the dark days, like a wah, wah, I don't know. I'm, I see the glass half full kind of person. So that is a way to prepare myself of don't, I guess not expecting it to be sunshine and rainbows and just saying, it's going to be tough. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other.
00:26:53
Speaker
take the naps, get the sleep, prioritize sleep, rest, and healing. When you're prioritizing sleep, rest, and healing, you'll find that you're able to you know get the walk in. I would say just make small goals for yourself. like One, I'm going to go outside and get sunshine for five minutes a day, or I'm going to go on a walk for five minutes a day. and That's going to be kind of like Ashley was saying earlier, very depending on what people's baseline are you know is, that's going to be different. But I would ah take the time to write down a couple goals for yourself and put the bar low on what those are and give yourself a lot of grace and a lot of freedom. A lot of space to heal. Healing is priority. We don't live in a culture that allows women time to heal. and her right I'm literally like working from my you know
00:27:40
Speaker
Uh, hospital room. Cause i was like I was coaching groups from my bed. Yeah. Thing. I'm sure you were too. I remember my midwife who I absolutely adore.
00:27:52
Speaker
we had babies around the same time. And I went to visit her in her room and she was working from her bed too. And I was like, we, this is our culture. Stop it. Yeah. Well, and I think to the, you know, kind of that added level for, for surrogates especially is, Oh, well I don't have the newborn at home who is keeping me awake. And my family just Nothing stops. Like I just did kind of this really big, huge thing, but I come home and home is still home. And there are expectations for me as a mom. But like you said, you just did this really big thing and your body needs to heal. Yes. Yes. Just allowing yourself grace. Yeah. You may feel guilty.
00:28:39
Speaker
Um, ah again, it goes back to that shame, right? Cause it's not allowing us to do that. I think it's so important that you just give yourself grace because you have to during that period. That's such, I mean, you just massive transformation in your body.
00:28:55
Speaker
and you need to allow yourself that time. Mm-hmm, for sure. Like, I think for me, I have to write this stuff out. You know, I have to know what does grace look like, because it's easy for me to say. I'm going to give myself grace, but then I feel pressure in the back of my mind that I'm not, you know, going right back into getting the laundry done for, you know, right his families are like, hey, mom, there's no baby. Let's go. Yeah, exactly. You know, so maybe saying, I'm not cooking dinner for two weeks, even though I don't have a newborn at home.
00:29:23
Speaker
right out for yourself and, um you know, get a meal straight. Like, I mean, it's hard for women to do that. I get it. But just freeing yourself to do the gift cards.
00:29:34
Speaker
Um, sleep, early morning workouts, whatever that is, whatever that equation is to you. And then start setting like what you're going to add on each week. Maybe, you know, I'm not going to do yeah laundry or dinner. And I know sometimes there's nothing we can do about that. the The laundry in my house is coming, whether I'm doing it or not. Unfortunately. Oh, unfortunately. It's still always there. who' there oh
00:30:00
Speaker
But having your point, having a plan, getting those people in your home, on board, um teaching somebody else how to do the laundry in those last couple of months, <unk> because they want you to feel well too. Almost always the pressures that are there are self-induced. I very rarely Am I seeing a significant other or something who's like, get up off the couch. You need to come in and do this. Like no, no, all that guilt that we're not up engaging with our kids or we're not up cleaning up the kitchen. So just setting, having those conversations with your loved ones before you get there. And then I love the idea of having a plan. So maybe for the first couple of weeks, here's what I'm not going to do. And here's where I need help. Again, asking for help is really hard for women, but just, just trying really hard to ask for help and allowing yourself that
00:30:51
Speaker
And then building on, you know, I, here are the things I feel okay that I can, um, add back into my routine at week three, week four, whatever that may be. And Hey, you may surprise yourself and feel like you can add on more earlier, but that way you don't go down this rabbit hole of your two months postpartum. And you've kind of lost all grip of yourself and yeah you even know how to get back in.
00:31:17
Speaker
Yeah, for sure, for sure. Because again, postpartum, like those hormones are still changing. there's yeah yeah There's a lot happening for sure, for sure. I i love that you guys mentioned, yes, asking for help and your partners because i it is it feels so self-inducing wherever you are you know in your journey. I know i i had C-sections and i was it was my first my first surrogate journey and I'm like, okay, well,
00:31:47
Speaker
gotta get up, gotta keep going, you know, all those things. And I remember my husband looking at me and he's like, sit down. You are literally ending the day like bent over because you are in pain. Sit yeah down. Sit down. It goes back to the cultural pressure too. You know, I just think, like sometimes I think about other cultures or even, you know, 200 years ago, I'm like, I feel like when women had babies, they probably just like,
00:32:16
Speaker
laid with the baby in the tent for you know hours and days. like I don't know. There wasn't social media showing the mom that just had the baby like out on the walk. Sure. i don't I don't know. I don't i know exactly what happened, but I imagine it cannot be like it is in our culture. That's just like get right. I keep going. And especially if you don't have, you know, the baby in your home after, then you're really feeling well, that baby's that baby's that reminder of like, Hey, I, you, yeah, you, you, you're forced to sit, you're, you're, you're forced to sit. But whenever you're a surrogate, like I said, your, your life keeps going. And so it's, yeah, you do again, to your point, you do have to have that grace with yourself and having that plan or, and you know, just things like that is, is so, so helpful.
Nutritional Guidance for Surrogates
00:33:04
Speaker
for, no, we have surrogates who not every surrogate, but a lot of surrogates will pump for intended parents. um And so, you know, you, I guess maybe this is more of a question for you, Ash, but what does kind of that nutritional aspect look like as you're recovering, you have some of these health goal and goals in mind, but also you're pumping and that's a whole different,
00:33:32
Speaker
Calorie fun happening. Well, I think we kind of hit on a couple of big things. the Hydration is going to be key. and Yes. Just knowing how much you're eating. So it's funny. We run groups where we teach people how to macro track, but then we actually don't encourage macro tracking for the long haul.
00:33:50
Speaker
But it gives you really objective information about what you're actually consuming because I think like to what Jen said, most women under eat, but there are definitely women that go the other end and you don't really have a good grasp on what you're consuming. So when we have women come through, we tweet their macros based on if they're breastfeeding, how far postpartum they are, but just making sure you're getting enough fuel and enough fuel early in the morning.
00:34:21
Speaker
That's a big um kind of shift in society. I feel like intermittent fasting is a big thing that has gained popularity. And we are 100% advocates for digestive rest. You need a period of time where your body is not eating so that it can do the repair and regeneration and all of those things help support our hormones, get us into a good night's sleep,
00:34:50
Speaker
But what we find women doing is they'll eat up until 9 or 10 o'clock at night, and then they're not eating again until 12 o'clock the next day. They're being mindful of making sure you're eating pretty soon after you can't and after you wake up if you can. um And if you don't feel like eating a meal, because sometimes the actual act of eating, making a meal, um and it sounds silly, but even just the chewing for some people in the mornings, it's like, i don't I don't have a desire to eat a meal. Find a protein powder or a shake or a smoothie because that's a really easy way to throw so much nutrient dense, heavy quality food into that first meal. And that first meal of the day is what sets your blood sugar.
00:35:37
Speaker
And again, which impacts your cravings, your hormones, your energy, thanks for the entire day. So I would say think about timing of your eating, just having awareness of that, making sure you're eating some good solid meals, snacks, and keeping that hydration up. Yeah. Oh gosh. Hydration. I was the worst with hydration when it came to pumping and you sit down and like you would just immediately become thirsty as soon as you started.
00:36:07
Speaker
We're lights in if we're in the summer, which I know we're not you can think about hydration rich food. So watermelon cucumbers. Well, um just any way you can add in hydration is going to keep your your pumps your, your mouth supply up, but then all of your cells in your body as well. Yeah, for sure. I think sleep helps everything. And especially if you don't have a newborn in your home, but still sometimes your hormones make it hard to sleep, right? Or your rhythms or the stress that you're feeling, there can be other factors. So definitely know that, you know, and I'm sure you've experienced this know that even if a baby's not keeping you up, there's other things that keep you up. Right. And so just really prioritizing that's part of eating earlier in the day that actually helps you sleep.
00:36:53
Speaker
if you've kind of stopped eating two to three hours before it's time to go to bed. It helps your body even wind down. I don't know, adding in like a sleepy time. I don't know, some people don't like you to drink before bed, because then you might have to use the restroom at night. But I think- Well. he Right. I mean, priorities. if If it's the hydration, then get it in. So I think- Yeah. That's important. And then you, I think I can always tell my milk supply if I wasn't getting enough fuel. Yeah. It's like, oh, i my I had a harder time. So I love that.
00:37:23
Speaker
some women are able to pump and you know continue to be a part of, yeah, just helping. Yeah, it's just one more way that they're giving. Absolutely. No, it's fantastic. But i love the but this is so this is such vital information you know for that for that part of the journey and you know just in general for sure. What, if you could give just one piece of advice for a woman preparing for pregnancy, um you know that transfer day, yay, and your transfer day prize.
00:37:52
Speaker
Um, ah or, you know, as you're preparing for postpartum or even if you are postpartum right now and you are, you know, kind of needing a little bit of direction, what is maybe a piece of advice that you would give?
00:38:09
Speaker
Oh, I know there's so many in regards to like what they could be doing to support their health. Absolutely.
00:38:20
Speaker
Oh, I'm not good at one, two things came to mind. Go look go for it, you too. Well, i I know we've kind of been a broken record, but I think eating to balance your blood sugar is the number one most underrated thing from a fuel perspective. Yeah. um Because that is affecting everything. I mean, how many women who end up with you know, gestational diabetes and those type of things. But even outside of that, it just, it having a stable blood sugar is going to keep inflammation down in your body to help you maintain a healthier weight. It just affects so much. So I'll just kind of recap some of the things we talked about, like having a protein rich breakfast. I love a shaken smoothie, Jen, and I argue about this all the time. You won't catch her cleaning up.
00:39:15
Speaker
eggs while and bleder i don't know why It's hard to blame.
00:39:25
Speaker
20 to 30 grams is kind of a goal for in the morning. yeah There you go. Eggs are one egg is six grams. So that's a lot of eggs to eat in the morning in order to get you to that goal. So again, that's why I'm pro smoothies and shakes. It's easy. You can do them on the go. You can prep them the night before.
00:39:42
Speaker
you can throw in all sorts of good things. It gets you to that goal quickly. um And then throughout the day, just making sure anytime you have carbohydrates, you are pairing those with a protein or a fat um are kind of two easy, easy ways to balance your blood sugar from a food perspective. um And then I think the most underrated piece of like the holistic pillars is the sleep and stress management. Just really, it's really, it's annoying. It's not efficient. It would be sleeping, right? If we, we don't want to be stressed, like that's just the society we're in. So finding a tool from your toolbox, what works for you. So yeah stress,
00:40:32
Speaker
One of our favorite things is teaching people just a very basic breath work that your exhale is longer than your inhale. So you can do this at a stoplight. If you have kids in the back seat, you can do it before you're walking into a doctor's appointment that you're nervous about. You don't have to put your headphones in and do a 15 minute meditation. It's just literally doing three, five, 10 deep breaths where you're inhale.
00:40:57
Speaker
is maybe two pick an arbitrary number and then your exhale is double that. So two, four, four, eight, whatever. it means And that automatically will bring down your nervous system regulation. And when you are in a calm state, everything just works better. Everything in your body is going to function at a more optimal So I don't know if you answered your question, but that's the two places I went. Do you have anything to add? I mean, mine kind of goes on with that. I think there's a lot of different, there's a lot of different things that are going to help different women, right? Sure. And of course in my mind, it's like mental health. Like if your mental health is good. So if you're, you know, able to have some sort of stress management, you know, hormones are going crazy. Like we've talked about.
00:41:38
Speaker
So of course, for me, the best thing that I think helps most people's mental health is moving your body. Yeah, there we go. Of course, I'm going to very rarely hear someone be like, Oh, I just went on a walk outside and it was awful. like Most people you get some fresh air, you get some sunshine, even if it's for a few minutes and you just feel better, it impacts everything. And I think yeah that impacts your ability to eat the smoothie, right? To prepare the food um because you're just kind of, I think that like movement begets movement, movement begets healthier eating. Like I just think it's something that helps add on because you're moving your body. You feel more like having the smoothie opposed. Yeah. Cleaning the blender doesn't feel as daunting.
00:42:23
Speaker
doesn't feel as daunting. Yes. It's even better. yeah Oh, we love that part.
00:42:33
Speaker
the It's so important. And so just setting whatever that is. And I think you know, yourself, like if you stop and take a second and say like, okay, exercise comes really easy for me, but eating healthy doesn't come as easy, right? Or for somebody else,
00:42:47
Speaker
taking time to do breath work or do like a little yoga meditation is super easy for them. But, you know, getting out of the house and getting some sunshine is hard. Like you, we kind of know these things that are good for us in this season, right? We know we need to move, we need to feel well, we need sunshine, we need to breathe, like things we're hearing a lot, but what's that one for you that's a little bit more challenging? And then maybe that's where you focus, you know? So if you're already someone that's gonna get out and take a walk, then maybe you need to focus on What's that healthy breakfast going to be? And it's just that one thing. It doesn't have to be how am I going to eat healthy all day? Sure. How can I focus on one meal being really good fuel yeah and breaking it down? And that's what we love so much about like the individual part with clients, even in these group settings, we can.
00:43:30
Speaker
help them figure out like, how can we help you succeed? It's not a one size fits all. Everybody's doing this. We have tons of women that may like might only track their protein because they're too overwhelmed to track everything. Yeah. Just tracking their protein is helping them see that they're getting at least, you know, a hundred grams or whatever that goal is that we're setting for them. who yeah Well, and again, it's that it's reinforcing what you've already said of getting away from that all or nothing.
00:43:57
Speaker
mentality and it is step by step wherever you are in pregnancy or just as a woman in general, just and what season of life you're in or you know just in that moment. um So no, that makes a ton of sense. Now you've already alluded to it a little bit. um Oh, I'm sorry.
00:44:15
Speaker
I was just gonna say, let me add one more thing. I please, there is so much out of our control when we are on this journey, right? Like we cancel our hormones going crazy. Nope. We're finding that maybe one thing that empowers you to support your body to work in the intended to work that it's worked for thousands of years. Yeah, um I think is empowering. And it's just again, finding what that one thing is for you that is going to support you. And I think that it does, it impacts your mental health and it changes everything. Absolutely. Absolutely. Well, and and that kind of leads me into obviously, again, we are lucky enough to get to partner with you all for a um health and wellness group that you have specifically for our postpartum gestational carriers. But you all offer obviously way more than that. And I would love to hear just a little bit about wherever someone is on their journey, whether they're you know just
00:45:20
Speaker
about to be a surrogate or in the middle of it or just woman in general and you're just hearing this, what all do you have to help somebody maybe figure out, you know, those goals and and all of those things?
Support for Postpartum Gestational Carriers
00:45:34
Speaker
Sure. Yeah. Well, sure. Well, first I'll say I love, thank you so much for partnering with us. love but It's been so cool to see. And I love that you guys offer this for your GCs. I think you call them. i've heard Yes, we do. Good job. Good job.
00:45:49
Speaker
um I just think it's so neat. It really helps. I think the fact that you have invested in this for them helps women to know that it's okay to value it and to take the time to care for yourself. It's a different voice, right? From us talking about sitting in your bed, your postpartum bed working, opposed to someone saying, hey, we want you to take time to care for yourself and to heal and to be healthy.
00:46:14
Speaker
So I love that you're, you know, practicing that and how you support these women. Yeah. So thank you. Oh, thank you. Yeah. Just another voice telling us it's okay to focus not selfish to be healthy and to care for yourself. Um, which I think as moms, we have to get out of that mindset and that, you know, it's being selfish if we're caring for ourselves, but it's not, it's actually helping us. Right. So that said, we offer.
00:46:38
Speaker
So our groups, we offer six week coaching rounds for women and that's what the GCs are going through. And if you're GC listening to this, we'd love to have you. You can make it any way. And clearly you can see that we don't have cookie cutter answers for anything, right? Because it's so dependent upon the person, the lifestyle, the season, all the things. Um, so even within those groups, we can do that. And those give you a daily accountability, daily coaching.
00:47:03
Speaker
They give you the opportunity to have meal plans. You don't have to follow, but you can just pull them up on your app workouts. that You can pull up on your app and there's low impact options, which is great. So if you are healing, maybe you're still three months out and you don't want to jump or do really heavy weight, you can just kind of build that up as you go. You can do it from your home or in the gym. So that's all part of that six week round, which is.
00:47:23
Speaker
Um, I think just one of the best routes to go because you have that community, right? You have the other voices saying, know okay, I'm, you know, this I'm six weeks postpartum and I'm feeling this. What do you guys think? Or yeah you're not just getting coaching from us. You're getting coaching from other women going through it.
00:47:39
Speaker
which I think is really cool. And then we also offer just kind of as a baseline for people that are kind of wanting to figure out how to fuel up to their body. We offer just a macro plan. So they'll just give us basic information. It's not paired with coaching, a little bit of education on kind of what macros are and how to do it. And then we just send them targets. See this is how much protein you need, how much fat, how much carbohydrates and try to work up to that. And that's great for some people who feel like they don't need the accountability or the education. And then the kind of biggest extreme, which is probably my favorite. It's kind of how I started back in the day is coaching one-on-one. So it's not a point that they want more in-depth coaching and they just, they really want us to look at our pillars and we sit down and talk through the pillars. You know, how are you sleeping? What can we do to impact your sleep? And maybe we're maybe you're too overwhelmed to write those goals for yourself. Just tell us about your life. We'll write them for you. Yeah, there you go. Like here's the, and there's nothing I like to do more than write goals.
00:48:39
Speaker
I mean, didn't we just have one? But it's how I operate. like i mean I need something to shoot for. um I think we all do. It doesn't have to be that cheesy new year. you know No. New way. But I think we have to constantly evaluate just if we're moving towards the direction we want to move in our life. Yeah. Right? So many times we're half present in where we are and where we're going. I think there's something a business isn't going to not have a business plan, right? There are goals.
00:49:08
Speaker
they have things they're working towards. And I think even for me, I have goals as a mom. I literally have a goal to get one-on-one time with each of my kids every week, even if it's one minute. There you go. And I write it down. I track it so that I know it helps my mom go. It helps my mental health. And I'm like, OK, I sent one to my son this week, and we played Uno for 10 minutes. But you know like I need that more than he does. like just i need to know I need the goal for it. so All that to say that helps that coaching one-on-one helps us to figure out what that is. And for some women, it might not even be food related. who what It is, but for some of them, it might even be just exercise or sleep or supplement recommendations, which is really important to having those
00:49:55
Speaker
be correct for your body and your hormones. So yeah, that's an overview. Yep. No, that's perfect. I don't have
Engaging with Jen and Ash on Social Media
00:50:00
Speaker
anything to add. That was great. If people wanted to get, no, that's perfect. Um, obviously we're going to have it in your show notes or in our show notes, but if people want to find out more about you, where do they go? Yeah. Yeah. So we are debating a team Instagram. We don't have that yet. So we just both have our own individuals and then we can share our, our website link with you, but I'm Ashmore wellness and she's Jen Marasco wellness.
00:50:25
Speaker
There you go. Perfect. Yes. and let us know that you were here and any questions, obviously reach out. We'd love to hear from anybody. so Yeah, for sure. Oh my gosh, you guys. just Again, thank you so much for everything that you do just for women in general, but you know just selfishly, I am so grateful for what you do for our amazing GCs. um you know The journey doesn't stop after you've had a baby. So um I love that we get to um partner to support them beyond just that moment in their journey for sure. I have one last question for you. And it's my favorite one. um So for anyone who knows me, they know that I fuel my body with a lot of coffee. So I definitely am probably on the more dehydrated side.
00:51:18
Speaker
Poppy and I have a very codependent relationship, and so I always like to ask the question, what filled your cup today? Literally or figuratively, what was the thing that filled your cup?
00:51:32
Speaker
Oh my goodness. um i Honestly, like the reason I do this work is because I feel that things we take for granted in our day-to-day life because we live, eat, and breathe this yeah and have for 20 years is maybe a light bulb reaction for somebody else. and And that is empowering. And that's what helps us continue to show up so that we can support the women who then can support the other people that are in their life that they care about. So really helping them be their best self. I love that. It's good. That's really true. OK, so two things. My cup is very much filled from a wonderful cup of coffee. I know. Was that supposed to be a literal answer? Cheers. Cheers, literally or figuratively. You did good. You did good. It's a real, like, spiritual part of my day. Yes. of Yes.
00:52:30
Speaker
I do decaf espresso shots with steamed half and half. It's a long story how I got there. It actually has part to do with my postpartum journey, but that's a whole nother story for another day. Oh, love that. Okay. We'll have to go to Instagram. You'll need to do the story or something. Yes. also I just need my time in the morning. I'm learning more and more. I didn't get it yesterday because I needed to prioritize sleep from having a few bad nights of sleep, but I tried to do my workout in the morning and spend some time, how, what, whatever that looks like for my soul that morning. No time, time praying time, just being full, just sitting, being, whatever it is. yeah I can even stream myself for that to be two minutes, if that's what it is. And that is, I am finding for, especially from not doing it yesterday versus today, how much it is the actual best way my cup fills up. So, absolutely doing it. right Oh, that's the best part when the coffee comes in. Oh, great question. um so i do i'm she's She's very basic. um i have I get the Seattle's best, but it's the ah fair trade one. It's like the only one that I can find in my grocery store that's fair trade, but still just like in a regular grocery store. So I do that. um And then right now it has a lovely um seasonal
00:53:51
Speaker
peppermint, white chocolate, um, little splash of the cream, um, and you know, some collagen because the hair. So, yeah, and this morning too. There you go. There you go. Absolutely. So yes. Thank you. You know, it's so fun. Um, I think you're only my second guest to ask me what's in my cup. So, well, and I also want to know, do you have like Like that's your literal. Do you have a figurative or another way? Oh, such a great question. Um, so it seems, it sounds so silly, but I'm in Houston and it is always hot no matter what time of year. And we just happened to like be like living our best cold front lives at the moment. And I walked out the door this morning to like let the dog out and it was
00:54:33
Speaker
So just refreshing and it's like that cold that like hits you and then just like fills you up with energy You're just like this is gonna be a great day. No matter what. It's just gonna be a great day out out Yeah Yes, I miss my four seasons. I miss my four seasons. I mean, I'm a, I'm a native Texan. I'm a Houston girl for sure. But for the, for the brief moment in time where I got to be, um, in Missouri and I'm, you know, like walking on campus and I'm like crunching leaves and there's like snow and stuff. I was like, yes, I am Rory Gilmore in this moment. I am living my best life. Yes. So yeah, the cold is really cool. Brings. It just, it brings me joy. it brings
00:55:16
Speaker
I love knowing what's in your cup. Oh, thank you. Thank you so much. No, and I love that we just got to talk about all of this. And again, I mean, just supporting women in general is just, you know, such a shared passion, obviously.
Podcast Community and Additional Content
00:55:31
Speaker
And um I love that we get to do this together in this way. And I'm so grateful for, you know, just all that you guys are doing. And thank you for your time.
00:55:41
Speaker
guys Thank you so much. It was wonderful. Yeah, exactly. Thank you so much for joining us on this episode of Me, You, and Who. We appreciate your time and hope you enjoyed our discussion today.
00:55:53
Speaker
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00:56:23
Speaker
Head over to YouTube and hit that subscribe button there as well, and don't forget to click the notification bell so you'll be the first to know when the new episodes go live and for more exclusive updates, engaging discussions, and a chance to connect with fellow listeners. Be sure to follow us on our social media accounts. You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok at Create a Happy Family.
00:56:46
Speaker
If you're interested in finding out more about creating a happy family, please visit us at www.createahappiefamily.com. Thank you again for being part of the me, you, and who community. Your support means the world to us. I can't wait for you to join us next time as we continue to share stories and journeys of creating happy families.