Tips For Making Time to Work Out With a Little One.
Hi, I’m Kaella. A 30 year old mom living in Lethbridge, Alberta. I’m THRILLED to be joining the For Two Fitness community as an ambassador. You can find my blog at http://www.kaellaontherun.com where I blog about my life and my love of running. My husband and I welcomed our son, London, in October 2012. I gained sixty pounds when I was pregnant and began working to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight when London was about eight weeks old. We bought a treadmill, a running stroller and a set of weights and I started getting busy. I’ve had some people ask how I started my post-pregnancy fitness and how I manage to work full-time and find time to train for dozens of races (including three half-marathons) with a toddler. Here are a few of my tips:
- TAKE THEM WITH YOU
I started going for walks with London when I was given the all clear at 4 weeks. I had a c-section and had to stay off my feet for about a month. A month later, we started running outside. I put him in his bucket seat and snapped it into our Bob Revolution SE. I trained for my first half marathon mostly with the running stroller while I was on maternity leave. I was running every single day so London got used to being in the stroller and he STILL loves it! These days, we usually get out together about twice a week for a run of 3-5 miles. Now that he’s older he loves to say “hi mama, go faster” or “up” when we’re going up a hill! He’s a great personal trainer and I love taking him with me! I hope he loves running as much as I do someday!
- WEAR THEM
When London was younger he loved being held. He basically refused to nap in his crib and was happiest to just be in my arms. While I did take advantage of this (a LOT) I also wanted to find time to work out every day. I started putting him in our Moby or Ergo and would head outside for a walk or pop in a DVD and follow along with an exercise video with him tucked safely away. He loved the motion and would usually fall asleep. The extra weight makes for an even better workout! Now that he’s 32 pounds, just carrying him around is a workout!!
- TAKE ADVANTAGE OF NAP TIME/ PLAY TIME
Thanks to cold, snowy Canadian winters sometimes I was forced to stay inside and workout. On those days, I would run (or lift weights) during nap time. If London woke up, I would nurse him and then put him in his bouncy chair or exersaucer and allow him to entertain himself while I ran. These days, I run either before he wakes up or during naptime on the weekends. If he doesn’t want to nap, I pop in a cartoon DVD (usually an episode of Bubble Guppies) and he will sit quietly in his chair in the basement and watch the show while I run. There are 22 minute and 44 minute episodes so I usually pick based on how long I want to run. If it ends before I’m finished he’ll usually pick up some of his toys and start playing. I can usually squeeze in about 5 miles with him close by.
- ASK FOR HELP
There are definitely times where I want to go for a long run alone or go to a group fitness class, at the gym, so I depend on my husband, mom and friends. Thankfully, I have a (mostly) supportive husband who knows that exercise makes me happy!
So, there you have it, some tips on making time to work out with a little one.
Mom and Dads, how do you make time to exercise with (and without) your child(ren?)
This post is brought to you by For Two Fitness®. For Two Fitness® is the premier maternity fitness apparel brand, proudly made in the USA and available worldwide. Visit our site to explore our maternity fitness apparel and purchase for you or a loved one today.
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