Working out post-baby {guest post by Regina}

 Regina blogs over at Good One God and she has a gift for writing hilarious pieces about motherhood, as well as great posts on style and exercise. She is currently my hero as I delve back into exercising after baby...I mean, the girl ran a triathlon while she was breastfeeding!!:

The first post-partum workout is as frightening as the first time I attempt to wear my normal jeans. No matter how hard I try, my backside and stomach won't allow it. Yet, when both pivotal moments are approached with patience and proper technique a normal sense of self and a fully buttoned pant can and will be reclaimed and better than ever. As a mom of three with another on the way, the following are my tips and tricks to not just get back to the level of fitness that existed pre-pregnancy, but continue to grow with a stronger mind, body, and spirit while our newest bundles watch from their bouncy chair. 

It's mostly mental

One of my least favorite pop-culture paparazzi questions thrown at the rich and famous, and thus, imprinted on the body images of the normal is "How do you plan to lose your baby weight approximately 10 minutes after birthing that baby?" Offensive on so very many levels, the concentration on the physical appearance of moms, new and old, reduces all the incredible things of which our feminine figure is capable  and makes it much more about who can get back in shape fastest and with the best new nursing boobs. For me, post baby workouts, and all workouts for that matter, should be about function and strength so as to fulfill the duties of our lives with confidence, comfort, ease, and fun. Flat abs are a just a bonus. The way I see it, maintaining a healthy mindset that concentrates on health and strength, rather than looks and one day buttoning our pants, is a much more efficient way to actually get to the point of buttoning our pants and then running in them. 

Practice during Pregnancy

Muscles have memory, and do want to "get back" to their natural state. One way to ensure that they get their faster is by maintaining a comfortable level of fitness during pregnancy. My favorite, and most joint friendly recommendation is swimming. My particular masters team is coached by the "Killer Whales." Little did they know just how literal my current shape would take its name. Keep an eye on rapid heart beat, rapid breathing, too much exercise induced sweating and waddle along to your favorite tunes. Abs are not off limits! Try sit-ups or burpees, squats, walking, jogging, yoga, pilates, zumba, or whatever your two little heartbeats desire. 

Goals 

One of my favorite parts about being a mom is how much motherhood has inspired me to make new fitness goals, and grow in gratitude for the ability, albeit amateur and horribly uncoordinated, to do them. Take an opportunity away from me during pregnancy (skiing, comfortable running, hot yoga, etc. X 8 million) and I'll finally realize all the fun things that I do want to try. While at certain points in my post baby recovery, adherence to goals has left me much too tired and even injured, choosing reasonable goals to aspire towards has also been helpful and fruitful. For instance, while still pregnant, I might sign up for a race months and months away, pick a particular time goal for a 5k, or decide that I'd like to complete a new exercise or difficult movement by a certain date to keep me grateful for all the fun things that even a very short and uncoordinated mom can do. 

A Serious Six Weeks

If we consider labor to be what it is which is the equivalent of at least one but potentially 8-10 marathons, the thought of taking off several weeks in a row might sit better and help us do the same. Carrying and delivering a baby takes a serious toll on ligaments, joints, and internal muscles whose presence may have otherwise gone unnoticed until motherhood unleashed their beast and made it nearly impossible to sneeze without crying out in anguish. While each woman will heal at a different pace and might even get the doctor go ahead to resume normal activity, the postpartum body tends to communicate its needs and desires much more clearly than we might want. In my experience, if bleeding continues activity should not. If it hurts, it isn't healed, and working out with a body not totally healed only leads to injury and more pain. As well, if more children are desired, keep in mind that recovering well after the first and second can aid in a happier, more stable pregnancy and recovery for the children to follow. 

Baby Steps for the Baby Mama

After delivering my second baby I was so over eager to work out that I drove to the track 10 minutes after my doctor gave me the go ahead to begin normal activity. I told myself I would run 3 miles at my pre pregnant pace. After one successful lap, I left crying, hurting, and TMI!!! bleeding again. Start slow and stay there!!!! Pelvic exercises like kegels, light pilates, and lots and lots of stretching will allow the uterus and abdominal muscles to prepare themselves for normal activity. Shocking them only makes them mad! 

Strength Train with a Guide

If possible, work out with someone that knows how to to ensure gaining strength instead of sore muscles. 

Anticipate Work out Interruptions and/or Cancellations

A crying baby, messed up nap, bad feeding, 18 loads of laundry, meals that need to be made, other kids, baby up all night, bad mood, colic, clothes that are too tight, messy house, accidental flood, crayon on the walls, nap protests, thrown pasta, breast milk ruining a sports bra are all valid and probable reasons why you might cancel your workout. Its ok. 

Stay at Home or Join a Gym with Childcare

There are tons of floor workouts to be done in 10 minutes that will get a heart rate up while the kids play (or destroy something- it can happen quick).

There are also great babysitting places at gyms!  Find what works and have a blast doing it. 

Have Fun

The responsibility of bringing a new life into this crazy world is inherently stressful. Allowing fitness goals to be a source of stress is a great way to go completely crazy, and hate every minute of getting in shape. Finding things that are fun FOR YOU will relieve stress, increase endorphins and allow for mental rest. For some of us though, fitness will never be fun. It can, however, be a source of spiritual edification and personal growth. By reaching goals and feeling good about ourselves, we moms will be better, stronger, faster, and all that other stuff printed largely on athletic Tshirts.

On being postpartum...

Stripes: J. Crew Factory (only $14.50 right now!)

Skirt: J. Crew (factory version here, retail version here)

Shoes: old, similar here

Despite everything that women say about it, the weeks postpartum are kind of like labor: nothing can really prepare you for it. I hit the rut that people talk about this week; the scale decided to stay at a standstill, I'm still just barely squeezing into my pants, and a look in the mirror shows flab where I never had it before and the little squiggly red lines that appeared on the sides of my stomach at 39 weeks pregnant.

It's funny because any time I've mentioned how awful labor was (I'm working on my birth story by the way - just not quite satisfied enough with it to share just yet) or how discouraging the postpartum body changes are, people always respond "Oh, but it's worth it, right?!" Of course it was worth it, 1000 times over. But that doesn't mean that labor wasn't horrible, or that postpartum body changes are more disconcerting than I thought they would be.

Anyways, I was more than thrilled to find this skirt in my closet from last summer which actually fits - thanks to the elastic waist, but I'll take it. Speaking of elastic waists, I just discovered that pull-on (a.k.a. elastic waist) shorts are totally in this summer. Perfect timing for the newly postpartum...I ordered these and these on sale to try, and I also found these from Old Navy.

And this is what Stephen Gabriel and I wore to mass yesterday, so we're linking up with FL&P.

Life lately...

I'm not sure how all you mommas find time to blog regularly (Grace, you are my hero) but I have all sorts of admiration for you. I've had so many post ideas bouncing through my head lately but every time I sit down and try to blog, baby Stephen wakes up or needs to eat or I get an email from my residency program with some really important thing that I need to address right now.

Here's some insta shots of life lately (for those of you who already follow, sorry that most of these are repeats).

1. The little guy's favorite way to be held, and favorite way to curl up on his arm (I'm convinced he looked just like this in-utero, only head down).

2. He changes every single day...he's starting to fill out his newborn clothes and can even wear some 3 month outfits, which makes me kind of nostalgic already (ha).

2 week glamour shot:

Can't resist this face...

One month birthday shot:

3. I cannot get over how incredibly wonderful Stephen (Sr.) has been. There's something indescribable about seeing the man that you love become a dad, and I feel like I love him in a deeper way now than ever before. I've also been surprised by the way that he's fulfilled the stay-at-home dad role while I've been at orientation. My always-super-macho man now gets excited about cooking dinner, folding laundry, and burping the baby. And I love it.

4. A few shots of the move. We did it, two-week-old in tow. We still have a lot of unpacked boxes but at this point we've found most of the essentials. We love, love our new house which is only two blocks away from the hospital.

5. I also somehow made it to Stephen's brother's wedding, which was a 9 hour drive away (actually 12 hours on the way back when baby Stephen decided to rebel against the car seat) and happened to be the weekend before I started orientation (call me crazy and you're probably right). I had decided to stay home for the sake of both me and baby (bringing a baby around that many people made me all kinds of anxious) but at the last minute changed my mind. I felt like it was important for me to go and support Stephen (I've been thinking a lot about the importance of being there for my husband despite our new baby and residency), and I have no regrets despite the craziness. I even wore a bridesmaid dress, safety pinned on since I had decided to order three sizes bigger than normal just to be safe.

6. Another benefit to the wedding - Stephen Gabriel met great-grandma for the first time. Isn't she precious? They were beyond thrilled to meet each other.

7. In case you've missed it, I've had some lovely ladies guest post while I've been away from blogging:
- Britt from the Fisk Files posted here on personal style
- Heidi from Notes from Heidi posted here on choosing a doctor
- Anne from In Residence posted here on style post-baby
- Theresa from The Brez Blog posted here on getting back into running postpartum
- Sarah from D-Isis posted here on having a baby during residency

Stay tuned for guest posts from Kallah, Mary, and Regina.

Linking my seven up with Jen.

Nursery + One Kings Lane

When One Kings Lane contacted me a few months ago and asked me to feature some pictures of our nursery as part of their Creating a Comfortable Nursery campaign, I wasn't sure that we would even have a nursery until after we moved for residency. I knew that I wanted to have the baby in our room for the first few months anyways (we purchased this Arm's Reach cosleeper, thanks to Katrina's advice) and so I didn't feel any sense of urgency to set up a nursery. However, when we got our crib, a gift from my parents, and realized that we would need somewhere to set up a changing station and store his little clothes, blankets, etc. my mom helped me to clean out our office room (which mostly consisted of getting rid of garbage bags full of med school notes) and set up a little space for the baby.

I wanted the basic colors for the nursery to be gray and cream, since I had found the perfect gray crib (thanks Theresa!) and we already had a lovely gray and cream striped rug from Crate and Barrel that was a wedding gift. I also like the gray and cream color scheme because it blends perfectly with pale yellow and baby blue accents for now but will also work with pale pink if/when we have a little girl someday.

I originally was looking at changing tables/stations on Amazon but decided that a six drawer dresser would be perfect both to set a changing pad on top and to store clothes/onesies/blankets/burp cloths/towels. Our wipe warmer (that everyone told us not to get haha) and Diaper Genie are ready to go, along with a giant box of teeny diapers from Costco. We found the dresser in the clearance room of our local Art Van (it was a floor sample but in perfect condition!) and I love the cream color and etched leaf pattern.

We added a whale-themed baby mobile above the crib that encompasses blues, grays, and yellows and our crib bedding set includes a chevron/polka dotted quilt (I originally also picked up a chevron diaper pad cover but Stephen said that was too much chevron for him ha).

A shelf and hooks in the corner house our Ergo swaddle wrap and Eddie Bauer baby carrier along with a bottle warmer, baby monitor, diaper bag, and a few 3-6 month outfits that I haven't washed yet. Our car seat is ready to go (Stephen set up the base for it in his car already) and a basket holds some extra sheets for the cosleeper and crib along with a couple extra blankets.

We found the "You are my sunshine" picture at Target and it has the perfect shades of gray, yellow, and pale blue. The "I love you more than you'll ever knew" picture was a print from Etsy that I framed for Stephen but equally applies to baby M :) I'd like to add a couple more prints after we move (I love this set and this print from Etsy).

And last but not least, the rocking chair...if we got nothing else for the nursery before we moved, I wanted a glider to sit in while I rock and nurse the baby. My mom gave us this beautiful teal/pale blue chair as a graduation gift and wrote me the sweetest letter about thinking of her support and love while I rock him in this chair on difficult days/nights during residency.

Now that everything is all ready to go, we are just waiting on baby! I can't believe that this Friday marks 38 weeks.

Be sure to check out all the loveliness on the One Kings Lane site - they are offering a 15% off code today only!

Quick Takes: Maternity pics + updates

1. So I was originally planning on sharing seven of our maternity pictures and then linking up with Jen, but I couldn't pick just seven...

{all pictures by Jillian J Photography}

Outfit details: Wrap Dress//Fuchsia Top//Jeans//Navy Top

I'm so happy that we have these pictures to remember such a special time in our lives.

2. We had a surprise ultrasound yesterday after I went in for my appointment to check the baby's weight and amniotic fluid index along with cervical length and placental position. We hadn't seen the little guy since 22 weeks, so it was pretty darn exciting. Stephen was super nervous because we watched What to Expect When You're Expecting on our mini-babymoon and one of the babies came out a girl when they thought it was a boy (Stephen was already worried about this). The first thing they saw when the put the probe on my belly was the baby's boy parts (picture was way too graphic or I would post ha) and the beaming look on Stephen's face was priceless.

His profile

Face shadows + chubby cheeks

3. So aside from the fact that we know the baby is still a boy, we also know that he is head down (I was 99.9% sure of this already), he is on the smallish side (currently 5 lbs 2 oz and 39th percentile), and his feet and hands were just where I thought they were based on all the crazy movement I've been feeling. His rather large foot was wedged right up against my uterus, which explains a lot ;) We also don't have the official report back, but I'm pretty sure that the placenta previa they saw earlier in my pregnancy is completely resolved and that my cervix is not doing anything (I couldn't see the screen when they checked but Stephen claims it looked like a little slit and then proceeded to demonstrated this by tightly closing and rolling in his lips). It's is a little shocking to me based on the amount of cramping I've had over the last two weeks, but a good thing I guess since I'm not full-term yet.

4. I told my doctor that if the babe comes late I'm going to freak out because of all the cramping I've had...and she told me that she'd be shocked if he's late, which makes me feel better but not completely. I'm 35 weeks but starting to feel ready to be done...I got some prescription compression stockings this week (sexy) which has helped my leg cramps (the only really unbearable pregnancy symptom I've had) as has walking...although I still really miss the elliptical. My weight gain is at 23 pounds and I'm crossing my fingers that I stick to 25 pounds total...but I realize that it might not be realistic (and obviously there are more important things to worry about than my vanity).

5. I realized that I hadn't done any pregnancy reading yet, so I picked up Ina May's Guide to Childbirth (a little weird so far, but also has some great tips on having a natural labor) along with Happiest Baby on the Block. I've heard good things about The Baby Whisperer and The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding, but being honest with myself I'll be lucky if I get through the first two books (and I'm planning on using my mom, who breastfed 8 kids, as my breastfeeding resource).

6. If you are a fellow preggo (and I'm guessing if you've made it this far into this post that you are) you can enter a giveaway for $25 to Pink Blush Maternity here. They have a ton of cute and reasonable things (I really, really want this maxi dress).

7. Lastly, I just loved Grace's link up of wedding first dance songs. It did a preggo soul good to reminisce about our wedding day and rewatch our wedding video (happy tears are therapeutic).

Have a lovely weekend.

5 Favorites

5 favorites this week (linking up with Hallie):

1. This hoodie: I wish I would never have bought a pair of running pants from Lululemon last summer, because before that I would never imagined spending so much on yoga/running clothes. Two shirts and one more pair of pants later, I'm hooked. Both of my shirts from there are baggy in just the right places to make a great maternity top (at least at this point of my pregnancy). This hoodie is sold out now online, which is a good thing because it's so wonderful that I want every color that they every made.

And this little guy is not so little anymore (comparatively that is). I went to a prenatal yoga class yesterday which was ridiculous ("cross your leg over your chest and grab on, now practice rocking your baby") and all kinds of relaxing all at the same time. Anyways, it was my first time and after telling the yoga instructor that I was almost 26 weeks, she asserted that "Well, you're not very big" to which I responded seriously?

2. These booties: I've been looking for a pair of camel booties for a while, and happened to see these on Kendi while I was wasting precious time on Pinterest. They looked way too expensive to be from Old Navy, so I was shocked when I clicked on them (here). $32 later (they were 25% off) I think I found the perfect pair of camel booties...side note that the leather is surprisingly not pleather-ish.

3. J. Crew baby: Did you even know there was such a thing?! And let's be honest, it's a little silly (cashmere jumpers for your newborn, anyone?) but these onesies are just adorable.

 

4. Mi bebe: He's now an official mover and groover, since I saw my stomach moving (!) last week. Despite loving everything OB I did not know that it was possible to see a little 24 week old moving inside of you, but I now know that it is. Stephen has yet to see it for himself since I've been trying to take a video for him but the little guy has yet to cooperate (he always stops moving, at least visibly, after I start recording). At my conference yesterday I kept getting distracted by my belly moving around.

5. These lip pencils: I've never been much of a lipstick wearer - until I got this one with a J. Crew credit (they sell a couple of colors at J. Crew). Don't get one yourself because then you'll be addicted too.