If there’s anyone who knows what it’s like to exercise as a mother, and also while pregnant, it’s going to be Land O’ Lakes trainer Barb Ladimir.
She does, after all, have five kids.
“When you’re carrying a person, literally pushing on your abdomen, moving your pelvis, that’s going to put a strain on the back,” she said. “That’s why the program has you do it right, either during the whole nine months of the pregnancy or especially after the birth.”
That’s why her fitness program, Fitness320, has different focuses to tackle certain types of aspects women will need, and eventually want, to get and remain healthy.
For starters, Ladimir hosts boot camps — group fitness classes for women.
The locations are in Pasco, but also are available in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.
The boot camps provide a safe space for women — usually mothers looking to get back in shape — that are not a gym atmosphere and provide more one-on-one training expertise.
“When you get to a group fitness class, you’re going to see like 95% women,” Ladimir said. “Husbands sometimes show up to work out, but we don’t just have random men show up. Which is fine, because women love group fitness, and this is for women and moms who lead busy lives and to do it with a community of friends.”
As a mother, Ladimir knows that not everyone should jump right back into a boot camp, especially soon after childbirth. That’s why she also is a Postpartum Corrective Exercise Specialist, and certified to work with pregnant women and recent moms. That prompted her to create her Strong as a Mother program that integrates some aspects into the boot camps, but goes beyond those to target women’s cores. This is to make sure that after nine months, more damage isn’t done to the abdomen and core.
“Will I get you back to CrossFit or to running a marathon? Yes, of course,” Ladimir said. “But you can’t go from childbirth to six weeks later trying to lift too much weight or running 13 miles. Nor should you. (The) Strong as a Mother program should be given to women as like a fourth trimester.
“Most of the women coming to my classes, they may not be brand new moms, but they are moms, they’ve had kids and, most likely, they didn’t take care of their bodies afterward. That’s why the fitness program ensures they don’t get hurt, but still build strength in a progressive way.”
Jenny Hassenfelt, a 50-year-old mom of six, said these programs helped her get in shape, not only the right way, but in the best way.
“(Strong as a Mother and the bootcamps) really emphasize form and technique,” Hassenfelt said. “This really breaks it down and you’re really learning correctly how to work the right muscles and to stretch out any problem areas.
“My abs were pretty much shot from six kids — I never thought I would get them back or they wouldn’t stay flat. But these programs taught me how to breath and hold the core. I tend to slouch a lot, so she yells at me for that, but my stomach is a lot flatter than I ever thought it would be after six kids. I’ve done a lot of other programs and never, ever saw the results that I have seen with her.”
Hassenfelt knows being a new mother can come with the desire to get back to being and feeling healthier. And, she said, that also can be a tough road.
“I think (the boot camps are a) great place to start,” she added. “And Strong as a Mother, for people who have injuries, that’s a really good place for them to start. Boot camp gets them back into the right program, while Strong as a Mother teaches basics slowly, so they don’t get injured again,” she said.
At the boot camps, Ladimir isn’t there to be drill sergeant or a cheerleader. She’s there to be a teacher, teaching women the proper way to get back in shape and to be strong mothers.
“With Fitness320, that’s not a fitness reference, but the Bible verse (Ephesians 3:20) that says, ‘He is able to do immeasurably more than anything we can ask or imagine according to the power that is within us,’” Ladimir said. “The programs show you how you have more power within, and it’s my job, as a coach, to bring that out in these women.
“If I can empower these women with fitness, then I’ve done my job.”
Fitness320
Details: A total encompassing workout program that can include Intentional 21 dietary programming that reduces inflammation; boot camp works out, in-person and via Zoom; and Strong as a Mother: a core-specific strengthening program for new mothers.
Info: Visit fitness320.com.
Published June 22, 2022
