Moms How do you stay in shape?

[smos]

*smos–I would be VERY interested in your morning workouts…I would so like to do this, but I admit…I love sleep. So how long do you workout in the morning, then? At least maybe two days per week I would like to make the transition. I look forward to your reply. *

I have never been a true morning person, but once I had kids, I have converted the best I can. I don’t have to be to work until 10am, so once the kids get off to school and I’ve had my coffee, I go for a run. Usually 5-6 miles, 5 days a week. At first it might be hard to get used to mornings, but once you do, I think you’ll like knowing you got it done with and don’t have to worry about missing if something comes up later in the day. I need to eat a little something with my coffee or I get sideaches in the morning running on an empty stomach so that was an adjustment that helped. Music is also a must for me. If you decide to give mornings a try, let me know what you think.

I’m going to check into your pilates recommendations. My endurance is great but my flexibility is laughable, so I think I’ll give it a try. Thanks!

 

[whatevergirl]

*That’s what would help, if I could go into work around 10am…lucky! Thanks for your reply…I sent you a pm with a link for the pilates reformer…hope you check it out. Take care. *

 

[smos]

*That’s what would help, if I could go into work around 10am…lucky! Thanks for your reply…I sent you a pm with a link for the pilates reformer…hope you check it out. Take care. *

I feel extremely lucky to be able to work around my kids schedule and have time for myself in the morning. If I had to be up at 5am to exercise, I highly doubt I’d use the same routine that I do now.

 

[ElisabethM]

Two ways to get and stay in shape:

First, what goes into your mouth in most important. Your story confirms this is the main problem area. No amount or kind of exercise is going to compensate for bad eating. Here are the points of a healthy eating plan:

1. Eliminate refined sugar (white and brown) from your diet. If you need a sweetener, use honey or maple syrup. And do not buy or eat foods that have sugar added. Read labels and you will see nearly every processed and pre-packaged food you buy, from peanut butter to crackers, has sugar or corn syrup added.
2. Eat as close to nature as you can. Again, eliminate processed and pre-packaged foods as much as possible. Eat whole fruits and vegetables. Bake with and eat whole grains, not all-purpose white flour (save that for making paste for the kids’ crafts).
3. Do NOT eat low fat. Fat is not your enemy–sugar is! But stick to butter, and good oils (like olive and coconut). You need good fats to carry many nutrients in your system and to keep you from feeling hungry all the time.

Second, of course, is exercise. But you have to get the diet under control before focusing on exercise so you’ll have the energy to do it! Do something you enjoy and do it every day. Start with taking walks up to 3 miles a day. Push your children in a stroller–it’s good for them and you! Or get a dog that requires daily walks.

Two years ago I started doing pilates on my own (using Ana Caban tapes) and I depend on these now for strength training. So if you can find some kind of home exercise program along with outdoors walking, you’ve got a lifelong keep-in-shape program.

 

[KGardner]

I REALLY REALLY REALLY like pilates and yoga. They both have are very relaxing and work muscles I have NEVER used. I still have to do cardio on my own, but I feel a HUGE difference in my posture and flexibility. Hope that helps.

 

[monicatholic]

**Moms How do you stay in shape? **

body shaper.

you gotta respect the compression.

 

[Corinne3]

Dear fellow Moms:

What to do about our tummies? after having kids, and not affording tummy tucks, (I would if i could)…lol, what to do about the waist line? This is my problem area, as is probably yours too reading this after having kids. I always used to have a flat tummy, then i had kids. Now it’s horrible. I have 2w exercise machines for abs, guess if i would use them they would help. lol have any of u managed to get your flat tummy back post kids?

thanks

P.S. I have the Body by Jake Ab Sizzor, and also the Ab Lounge. But I never did any of them faithfully. Guess that would help, doing it! LOL I’m so mad at one of my sons, because when dad moved out, he moved out all sorts of junk and re-arranged our whole house, which i was sorta mad at him for…

 

[smos]

Dear fellow Moms:

What to do about our tummies? after having kids, and not affording tummy tucks, (I would if i could)…lol, what to do about the waist line? This is my problem area, as is probably yours too reading this after having kids. I always used to have a flat tummy, then i had kids. Now it’s horrible. I have 2w exercise machines for abs, guess if i would use them they would help. lol have any of u managed to get your flat tummy back post kids?

thanks

P.S. I have the Body by Jake Ab Sizzor, and also the Ab Lounge. But I never did any of them faithfully. Guess that would help, doing it! LOL I’m so mad at one of my sons, because when dad moved out, he moved out all sorts of junk and re-arranged our whole house, which i was sorta mad at him for…

I’ve always heard that you can’t really spot reduce, you must lose fat everywhere. You can tone the muscles in your stomach, but if there’s extra fat there, which there seems to be for most of us moms, you won’t have a flat stomach. Everyone’s body composition is different, so where you deposit and lose fat will vary. Some of us have it equally distributed, some are pear shaped, and some carry it around the middle. If you lose fat through diet and exercise and build muscle through toning and strength training, that would be the best recipe to battle the post baby tummy.

 

[LilyElain]

My mother bikes around in the warm months…and we just got a Wii for the family, which she got some dance and exercise programs with… She loves it!

 

[misscharlene85]

I’m a Mom to a 13-month old and I enjoy taking her for runs in the jogging stroller. That way I am able to get my exercise in and not feel like I’m choosing exercise over spending time with her. I’m currently training for my second half marathon so I run outdoors about 4 days/week. From my experience, I have discovered that much of what you’re able to do physically is all mental. I never thought I would be able to complete the first 1/2 marathon, but I did, and it felt like the hugest accomplishment. Listen to an mp3 player while you workout to distract yourself, and just keep going until your BODY tells you you’re tired, rather than when your brain tells you you’re bored. Good luck!

 

[misscharlene85]

Oh yeah, I also really like doing Jari Love workout DVDs about once a week. Her videos really get your heart rate up and encourage lean muscle mass. You do high reps with light weight (that way you don’t bulk up). You can checkout reviews at www.collagevideo.com or amazon.com

 

[1momof4]

Hi Corinne,
I have four kids - girls ages 21 and 16, and boys ages 7 and 6. When the girls were little I would go for walks outside with them in a stroller or wagon so that I could really move! I ended up putting on some weight after the birth of my boys (I was, um, “older” when they were born!) and suffered through some bouts of depression and hormonal problems. Long story short, the boys got involved with martial arts, and their studio also offered adult “power kick-boxing”. I decided to give it a try and I LOVE IT. My energy is up, flexibility is improved, aches and pains diminished and I’m back to a weight that I haven’t seen in twenty years! It is a great cardio workout and the strength training and stretching are wonderful. At the same time I decided to change eating habits and pretty much eliminated anything “white” - potatoes, rice, bread, etc. and try to feed my family as naturally as possible…very little processed or packaged. Everyone feels better, and they have gotten used to brown rice and the other changes I have made. It has been about two years now.
When the kids are little it is very difficult to take time for yourself. Just remember, time flies and before you know it things will change and maybe it will be a little easier to work time in for yourself.
God Bless You,
1mom

 

[Truly_Beloved]

No amount or kind of exercise is going to compensate for bad eating. Here are the points of a healthy eating plan:

1. Eliminate refined sugar (white and brown) from your diet. If you need a sweetener, use honey or maple syrup. And do not buy or eat foods that have sugar added. Read labels and you will see nearly every processed and pre-packaged food you buy, from peanut butter to crackers, has sugar or corn syrup added.
2. Eat as close to nature as you can. Again, eliminate processed and pre-packaged foods as much as possible. Eat whole fruits and vegetables. Bake with and eat whole grains, not all-purpose white flour (save that for making paste for the kids’ crafts).
3. Do NOT eat low fat. Fat is not your enemy–sugar is! But stick to butter, and good oils (like olive and coconut). You need good fats to carry many nutrients in your system and to keep you from feeling hungry all the time.

:yup:

The only things I would add to this great list are: (1) eat lots of meat/eggs/other animal protein, and (2) carry the kiddos, assuming they’re young enough . I carry my kids around A LOT and the extra weight-bearing is really good for the figure.

What to do about our tummies? after having kids, and not affording tummy tucks, (I would if i could)…lol, what to do about the waist line? This is my problem area, as is probably yours too reading this after having kids. I always used to have a flat tummy, then i had kids. Now it’s horrible. I have 2w exercise machines for abs, guess if i would use them they would help. lol have any of u managed to get your flat tummy back post kids?

I have been really hesitant to do anything specific with abs, mostly because my abdominal muscles separated vertically down the middle during my first pregnancy (which, as I understand it, is fairly common), so traditional ab workouts may make the problem worse. Or so I’ve heard. My other tummy trouble is largely due to having excess skin. And, well, as far as I know, there’s nothing I can do about a little bit of extra stretched-out skin (since I want to avoid surgery).