Community› The Bump Message Boards› Health & Exercise
Health & Exercise
New Discussion

Exercising with a baby

meganjane86meganjane86 member
in Health & Exercise

I'm really trying to get back into shape after gaining 40lbs with my almost 10lb baby! I still have 15lbs to go, but my body looks... not good. I was a runner before getting pregnant, and ran until I was 6 months, but I'm finding it difficult to get back into a routine of daily exercise with a 2 month old.

Right now I do a mommy-baby yoga class on Wednesdays, a 2-3 mile run on Saturday with my friends, and I try to get to the gym one other day. I am starting the 30 day shred tonight and I'm hoping to do it everyday, but there are days where my son just doesn't nap!

So, a few questions Big Smile

Are there any exercise programs that involve the baby? And does it get any easier as they get older? How do you find time to exercise with a baby?

TIA!

Photobucket Our Bio! Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker
Report Reply to Post

Re: Exercising with a baby

  • frwndohfrwndoh
    Wow, I think you're doing pretty well. I seem to remember that there was a DVD I rented through Netflix that was a mom-baby workout. I enjoyed it but don't remember what the name was. My daughter was not a good napper and I attempted the 30 day shred when she'd be in the bouncer or something but would get frustrated if I couldn't get through it because she got fussy. What worked for me was to get up early and go the gym before my husband left in the morning. At first, I was really tired but it did wonders for my energy as the weeks went on and the weight started to really come off. It's become what I enjoy to do as "my time" even as DD gets older.
    Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker Pregnancy Ticker VOTE on my Name List
    Report Reply
  • Loading the player...
  • jessiej7428jessiej7428

    I know it's probably not what you want to hear, but they say it takes 9 months to make a baby and it'll take 9 months to go back to normal. It did get easier the older my son got because he could occupy himself a little more.  I tried to exercise during naps and before he woke up. I'd wake up about a half hour earlier than usual almost everyday and my husband would take care of Jordan if he woke up early. 

    After he turned 9-10 months the weight started falling off and my body looked almost normal minus the small pooch my stomach had turned into.  

    Warning No formatter is installed for the format bbhtml
    Report Reply
  • meg211meg211

    I had a hard time finding time too.  One of the few things that I was actually looking forward to about going back to work after 12 weeks was that I'd be able to make time to go to the gym again.  I now go either at lunch (I have an office job), or if I wrap up the day early and can book it out at 5pm, I can get a quick one in before I pick dd up from daycare. 

    But before that, I would take dd on long walks and find hilly routes so I could speed walk with her and pushing that heavy stroller up hills felt a little challenging.  And at home I'd do squats, push ups and sit ups, sometimes holding LO for extra weight

    Warning No formatter is installed for the format bbhtml
    Report Reply
  • mrstarawalshmrstarawalsh member

    If you were a runner before and are still running I'd get a running stroller. Jeep makes a great one (I'm biased I have it LOL) Mind you you can't RUN with it until baby is 6 months old (due to the jarring effects on baby). But it's an idea for later.

     

    Warning No formatter is installed for the format bbhtml
    Report Reply
  • mariahcademariahcade

    Are you really sure that you want to exercise with your baby? I think that's awesome and very noble, but after attempting to do P90X with my husband and two children, it's really not something I would do on a routine basis.

    Here's why...

    Babies need sleep. A newborn needs lots of sleep, and at 2 months of age, they should be sleeping about 18-20 hours per day. Naps should be long - an hour and a half to two hours or so. This is very important to establish early on, and once you've got that sleep routine established, then you can focus your attention to an exercise program. If you're having issues with sleeping, talk frankly with your pediatrician. They might recommend some great reading material that fits your family's lifestyle and beliefs and is beneficial for the baby...stay away from the mainstream parenting-book-of-the-month because there are a lot of them that crap & will tell you things that are completely untrue that evoke guilt in the new mama and make you think you are doing damage to your child if you don't do it their way. Your pediatrician will know which ones will work for you in your situation.

    The second reason is that mamas need their time, too. A balanced life is a blissful life. It's like putting on an oxygen mask on yourself before placing it on your child - it feels guilty, but the reality is that someone who has zero time for something as simple as daily exercise tends to become resentful, angry, depressed, or bitter. Exercise time is valuable time. It's only one hour a day...the other 23 can be devoted to everything else.

    If you're dead-set on doing all of your exercising with your baby, I'd keep it to the yoga. At 2 months, a baby can't really be involved in too much.

     Best of luck to you in getting back into shape, you HOT MAMA!!

    Report Reply
This discussion has been closed.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards
"
"