Floor of Your Core {Tummy Team Review - Pelvic Floor Rehab at Home}

Over the last few months I became aware of feeling like I was falling apart and my core was not feeling as strong as I was a few years back following the Core Foundations program by The Tummy Team. This was in no way the programs fault it was mine for not remaining consistent in maintaining the strength I had gained.

This time I know I needed more help than just my core.  As a woman I was noticing some symptoms that are often seen as a normal part of being a woman/mother and often the advice is just put up with it, this is how you cope. I honestly did not want to have coping strategies for the next 40 years.  I want to live well, strong and stable.

After seeing how The Tummy Team transformed my husbands life a few years back I knew I needed some true lasting functional pelvic floor strength with realistic tools to obtain it. I had noticed some chat on the Client Forum that The Tummy Team have a program specifically to help woman called: Pelvic Floor Rehabilitation.

Functional pelvic floor is about connection, coordination and consistency not tension, gripping and intensity - Kelly Dean, MPT

What I Gained doing Floor of Your Core

• I learnt realistic tools to obtain functional strength.  Functional strength is not found through a ten minute exercise session each day.  It's found in what you do the most of every day through out your day.  
• The Tummy Team taught me how my body was designed to function how to use this effectively to help me heal.
• Each week they provided me with a rehabilitation program that is structured into my personal daily routine (for example I learnt that I could do the calf stretch while brushing my teeth). 

  Symptoms of Pelvic Floor weakness

• Stress/Urge/Urinary Incontinence - wetting yourself when laughing, jogging, sneezing or being unable to hold on to go to the bathroom.  While this is common to many woman it is not normal.
• Pelvic Organ Prolapse - feeling pressure after intimacy, a feeling of heaviness down there, feeling a bulge when wiping.  
• Intimacy Issues - pain during intimacy or a numbness is not normal and may be a symptom of weakness or injury.
• Pelvic Pain - painful tailbone, pain in pelvis during your cycle, deep pelvic pain, pelvic instability, pubis-symphysis pain.
• Pain - lower back, sciatica, pubic bone pain/instability, abdominal and hip. 
• Birth Trauma - both physical and emotional.

Finding balanced helpful answers to these issues can be a challenge and I was so relieved to discover that The Tummy Team are committed to supplying woman with the correct information and dispelling the myths that surround pelvic floor issues and providing accurate medical advice and support.

After reading more about the pelvic floor on their blog and hearing Kelly explain how the pelvic floor is an important part of the core I contacted the team who have graciously gifted me a Floor of Your Core - 8 week On line Program to try in exchange for a review.

Floor of Your Core Program Walk Through

Once you have purchased your course and log in you will be taken to the My Account screen.  Here you are able to update all your information and access any courses and past purchases. This screen is accessible at any time by clicking on My Access.

Navigating to your course is via the My Courses tab.  Here you will find a list of your registered courses and pending courses that still need to be activated. Once you select your course, it will open a new page showing the weekly lesson/course materials links.

Upon completing the work for that week, and you mark a unit/week of study as complete a green check mark will appear. Lessons are released at the pace of one a week. This is intentional.  The information you receive builds one upon the other and needs to be viewed and implemented in the order that it is presented in the same manner as if you were actively meeting with your personal physio therapist once a week. 

Each weeks lesson/consultation is presented as follows and in the same format:

Each weeks class/consultation opens with a welcome note and summary of the weeks focus.  Below this there are three buttons:

1. Focus of the Week - Here is where you will find the purpose and focus for the week ahead. Some great encouragement and coaching.
2. Helpful Tips - Here you will find a bullet point list of possible physical responses to the exercises / stretches for the week.  The list is comprehensive and spot on.  I appreciated knowing these things before commencing the weeks homework as I was prepared for the changes and how my body may respond or react to the new alignment and strength it was gaining.
3. Weekly Downloads - This is where you will find the pdf downloads for you to print.
• Rehabilitation plan for the week ahead. 
• Exercise Explanation Summary -  these contain detailed  photographs and explanations of the exercises/stretches you will be focusing on for the week ahead.
• Exercise Chart - this is a chart to help you track when you do your exercises and helps you to find natural spots in your daily routine to incorporate them.
• Pelvic Floor Assessment chart - this is done three times during the course of your treatment.  I encourage you to take your time and do these.  I discovered symptoms that were such a normal part of my daily living that I did not even realise they were symptoms until I did the assessment.  It also assisted me to see my progress as it was so gradual I was unaware of my progress until I compared notes.

Below this section you will find your video list for the week.

Week 8 Video List

  As you work your way through the video's the little dot to the left changes colour to green indicating you have completed that specific video.  Once you have completed the list of video's there is a button at the bottom to Mark your week Complete.  This in turn changes the tick box to green on the course home page making it super easy to know where you are each week.

Week 7 Video 3 - Low Impact Fitness Guidelines

When you click on a video to watch it opens an embeded video. At the top just above it there is a short one or two focus sentences for the video class.
The video can be played full screen by clicking on the four mini arrows on the right and the little cog allows you to manually select the quality of the video you want to play, available streaming is 360p to 1080p. It's default setting is auto. The video's in the play list will auto load upon completion, there is no need to click on next video.

What does each week cover?
When I started Floor of Your Core I had a traditional mindset of pelvic floor exercises and was a little confused when for the first four weeks there was no specific pelvic floor exercise instruction. Having worked with the TT before I trusted their judgement and did the exercises I had been given.  I was thrilled to discover that all the exercises I was doing, were effectively exercising my pelvic floor without me being aware of it. By the time I did week five I had the correct basic strength and technique needed to do the exercises taught to bring about deeper healing and strength.

• Introduction
  
  • Welcome
  • Connection Between Core and Pelvic Floor
  • Anatomy of the Abdominals
  • The Transverse Abdominis Muscle
  • Common Symptoms
  • How Exercise Contributes to Dysfunction
  • Emotional and Spiritual Connection
  • Splinting for Pelvic Floor Rehabilitation
  • Pelvic Floor Self Assessment
• Week 1 - Anatomy and Core Awareness
  
  • Understanding Your Transverse Abdominis
  • Active Sitting
  • Basic Abdominal Massage
  • Functional Integration of the Core
• Week 2 - Core Connection/Pelvic Floor Awareness
  
  • Engaging vs Bracing
  • Bones of the Pelvis
  • Adding Pelvic Floor Awareness to TA Holds
  • Common Compensations
  • Potty Posture
  • Preparing Your Environment for Baby
• Week 3 - Neutral Pelvis
  
  • Neutral Pelvis
  • Standing Transverse Holds
  • Active Core Postures
  • Active Walking
  • Weaning from Your Splint (Part 1)
• Week 4 - Pelvic Floor Connection
  
  • PF Reassessment
  • Muscles of the Pelvic Floor
  • Pelvic Floor Strengthening
  • The "XOXO" massage
• Week 5 - Pelvic Floor Integrations
  
  • Pelvic Floor Standing Integration
  • Pelvic Floor Connection in Active Walking
  • Weaning From Your Splint (Part 2)
  • Neutral Rib Cage Stretches
  • Vaginal Devices
• Week 6 - Functional Awareness/Intimate Connections
  
  • Integrating Squatting and Bending
  • Listening to Your Body
  • Intimacy Issues
  • Pelvic Floor Massage
• Week 7 - Challenge
  
  • Squatting Progression
  • Low Impact Fitness Guidelines
  • Low to High Impact Progression
  • "I love U" Massage
  • Finding a Pelvic Floor Specialist
• Week 8 - Fitness and Lifestyle Transition
  
  • Final Self-Assessment
  • Case Studies
  • Mini Trampoline Training (advanced)
  • Transition Fit2B
  • Fit2B: Pelvic Floor Connections
  • Fit2B: Defining Deltoids Workout
  • Fit2B: Walking Workout
  • Thank You 

What do you get with the program

• Eight weeks of personal Pelvic Floor and Core Rehab Specialist  instruction. These are presented by a Core Rehab / Pelvic Floor Specialists in pre-recorded video sessions which are accessed in the comfort of your own home, or any Internet connected device. 
• A new set of instructional on line video's are made available to access each week. This is intentional structure in the course so that the content builds upon the week before. It is important to watch each instructional video as understanding why you are doing things a certain way is foundational to you successfully healing.
• Each week there are a set of pdf sheets containing a summary of  the weeks lesson.  Where appropriate an exercise tracking sheet and on line support handout.  These are the same handouts which are given to clients who come into the clinic.  They are a written summary of the key elements of your program for the week.
• Access to a private client forum on Facebook. On this forum you can ask any question and one of the Tummy Team Core Rehab Specialists will answer you.  Most questions are answered within a couple of hours. 
• Tools to help you become strong at life.
• Ten weeks of on line access. 
• If you need an extension you can purchase an extra Four Weeks of on line access  for your course.  Please note that extensions begin immediately so do not purchase until your original course access is complete. 
• Extension access can be purchased should you want to do a refresher of any of the courses you have completed with the Tummy Team.

Please note there are two purchase options for each program

1. BUY NOW, START NOW - means your ten week access starts immediately upon payment of your program.
2. BUY NOW, START LATER - means you get a voucher that you use when you are ready to start your program.

FREE Resources for You
These include downloadable printables and where applicable YouTube video's.

• Daily Posture and Alignment instructions/worksheets: These cover active standing, sitting, computer station (standing and sitting), picking up items and driving.
• Parenting Postures -Carrying your children, stroller, high chair, diaper changes, play pens, playing on the floor, feeding baby etc.
• Stretches - These five stretches will help release the muscles that are compensating for your week core and pelvic floor.
• Pregnancy & Postpartum - These are really helpful if you are pregnant or just had a baby. There are 12 video's to help you.
• Pelvic Floor - Four Video's covering Kegels VS Functional Strength, What is a Prolapse, Exercise and Incontinacne and Why "Holding It" is a bad idea.
• Fitness exercise to avoid and three exercises to replace them with.
• Planks are not good for you, watch this clip and Kelly will explain why.  The second most common exercise done for core which does not work is the crunch.  Kelly explains here why you should stop doing crunches.

Who are the Instructors?
There are two instructors for Floor of Your Core: Gillian Sukachevin and Kelly Dean. Together they form an encouraging and empowering team and walk you through each stage of your rehabilitation program.

Gillian Sukachevin

Gillian is a passionate holistic pelvic care specialist who graduated from Andrews University in 1998, becoming a clinical instructor at Georgetown University where she became familiar with neuromuscular re-education.

Gillian teaches from a foundation of personal experience in that she herself has experienced a back injury, car accident, infertility and a delivery-related injury.  She came to The Tummy Team for care and recovery in 2012.

After finding healing and relief for herself she completed further training to specialise in Core Rehabilitation alongside The Tummy Team.  Gillian combined her passion for holistic pelvic care and core rehabilitation to develop Floor of Your Core bringing hope, health and healing to others.

Kelly Dean

Kelly is an articulate instructor. She takes time to explain your anatomy, the process needed to gain healing and more importantly the why behind every step of your core rehabilitation instructions.

Kelly's focus is on empowering you with knowledge to help equip you with the tools you need to become strong for life.  She is a Core Rehabilitation Specialist who specialises in neuromuscular rehabilitation and home health. Kelly is passionate about to fully understanding the neuromuscular, postural, and alignment issues that contribute to core weakness and abdominal separation. Her combination of multiple approaches specifically treats these conditions for long-lasting changes.

The thing I appreciate about learning from Gillian and Kelly is that they are speaking from personal experience.  They recognise that each of us have our own story and it is these very things that influence how our bodies are going to heal. Together they equip you the patient with the knowledge and tools you need to heal and become strong for life.

Learn More about The Tummy Team

• The Tummy Team Story
• The Full Story Behind The Tummy Team  (21 min)
• Benefits of Abdominal Rehab Splnting 
• Could you be suffering from a diastasis?
• Overview of Core Rehab   
• Encouragement and information on The Tummy Team Blog.

 Connect on Social Media

• Facebook @TheTummyTeam
• Twitter @TheTummyTeam
• Instagram @thetummyteam
• Pinterest The Tummy Team  
• Hashtag: #strong4life #StrongCore4Life
• YouTube: The Tummy Team

I would like to thank Gillian Sukachevin and Kelly Dean for their passion and dedication, for making Floor of Your Core available worldwide. It is revolutionising my life and helping me to take my health back in a way I did not think was possible. The changes that I noticed within a couple of weeks were surprising.  The initial symptoms I experienced were barely noticeable within three weeks of beginning my rehabilitation. I love the new habits I have gained because they are sustainable and I have a deeper understanding behind why I am doing what I am doing and how these actions are protecting my body making it strong for life.

Blessings

Chareen

A big Thank You to the Tummy Team for sponsoring me with Floor of Your Core.