Exercising Without Sacrificing Attention To Your Baby

Many people have been asking how I managed to lose baby weight so quickly. Well in my previous posts I have explained that I just maintained a healthy lifestyle eating healthy foods and staying active all before, during, and after pregnancy.

But how does one who must cook, clean, care for baby, teach baby, and tend to dogs, (and in my case stage and sell a home) find time to workout....most importantly...how is this accomplished without your baby's attention, needs, and bonding with you suffering?

Simple. Ellie, after God then Eric is my number one priority above all things on my to do list. I also need to remain healthy in order to do all I do and to keep my heart in strong shape. I am possibly the only mom that exists who does not put my baby in a swing or a rocker or lay her down for more than 5 minutes on her back. I want her to be up and playing and learning all the time she is awake and or when she is not eating.

So, I get my exercise while Ellie and I play together. I serve her by interacting with her, helping her learn to pull up, grab, stand, roll over, and crawl. All of these are things she is doing or already slowly starting.

When Ellie is having tummy time, I am on the floor with her cheering her on and keeping her happy and ambitious as I plank, do push ups, or mountain climbers. I move and grow while she does the same. She loves watching me go up and down or moving in place quickly right in front of her eyes. She smiles and starts her tricks and antics with me.

When Ellie wants to be cuddled and doesn't want to have bumbo, jumper, or tummy time, I hold her and we dance and do light jogs around the house. I hold her and do squats and lunges. I lift her up and down in the sky and side to side and engage my core along with my arms. Sometimes, I sit and hold her hands while she stands on my legs, and I lift my legs up to work my thighs and core. Ellie loves all of this action. She giggles so hard, smiles so wide, and coos incessantly!  I continue my vocal and facial interactions with her while I exercise/play with Ellie.

When Ellie is in her Jumper, I entertain her with jumping jacks, cardio intervals, and more push ups, planks, and mountain climbers. I never stop looking her in the eyes and playing with her while I do these things. I am singing or making funny noises or talking to her. (I must look insanely crazy!)

I also take advantage of her sleepiness and put her in the jogging stroller for her nap and choose to go running during this time.

All day....and I do mean alllllll day long for about a total of 8 hours as we subtract naps and feedings, Ellie and I play and exercise together. Primarily, the idea is to entertain Ellie, teach her social interactions, teach her to discover things, help her to learn to grab and lift and push and pull, crawl, roll, etc. To not have her laying on her head in a rocker or watching tv, but to have her constsntly interacting, playing, and learning. The bonus is I can use this time to exercise because it is so easy to incorporate that into her play time and time with me to bond! She gets to learn and play and grow and wear herself out for a full night of rest, and I get to play with her without sacrificing my exercise or time with my Ellie!

I choose to do most cleaning after Ellie is in bed, though most things I can do when she takes her short spurt nap.

Exercise is totally possible when you have a little one. Just make it a game for both of you. She/he will think you are silly and funny and you will feel so good with yourself that you didn't miss the exercise.

For moms with toddlers....I am not there yet but I did keep my nephew 4 days a week when I was still single. We constantly ran and danced and jumped. He was always interested in what I was doing. Even weight lifting. Again, if you make it a fun game, it keeps them entertained, wears them out, they get bonding time with you, and you get your workout in!! He never ninded being my weight I could lift and toss or lift with my legs. he was always laugging and saying "again! again!"The key is to make it energetic and fun for them- attract their interest and keep it silly and fun!! You won't regret it and you will feel good about yourself but most importantly enjoy the play time you had with your baby!

This works for working moms, too!  Everybody knows how you can get exercise at work. Countless articles and pins have been posted on this. And when working moms get the time with their babies in the evening or weekends I know they are so excited to play with them! A lot of them feel like they have to sacrifice exercise. I am telling you, if you want to do both-  that baby won't know the difference. Your exercise time with them is their play time!! Just remember the main idea is to have fun with them and be very active. I have never met a baby who didn't love motion and play time and being silly with their mommy!! My arms are burning and on fire sometimes before Ellie is bored of my arm exercise using her as my weight. But her smile and laughter as I lift her and talk silly to her, making big expressions on my face to hers, keeps me motivated to keep "playing". It is good for both of us!

Give it a try if it is something you have been wanting a solution for or are interested in!! It is amazing how good it is for your energy level, too. Energized all day long, exhausted and ready for a good night of rest in the evening. (Both of us, praise the Lord!)