Fun Mom Workout

    

This was fun because it made me smile.  This was work because it made me sweat.  Let's just say it was a fun workout, a mom workout.

I suppose I'm feeling a little guilty for my lack of athletic achievement these days.  It seems all my sisters and friends are training, racing and working out but I still haven't found the time and can't even manage the amount of sleep required for such activity.

One of my sisters was thoughtful in sharing a detailed program on how to get fit, she's doing a triathalon.  I got tired just reading through the reps and responded instead with the program I've been following.  Here it is:

Wake up and nurse the baby (good calorie burning activity)
Shower as fast as you can (if you have time)
Wrap the baby on your back for resistance
Collect all the dirty laundry and carry it down two flights of stairs
Dance in the kitchen while you prepare breakfast
For added resistance you my want to also pick up a crying 30+lb toddler and bounce him on your hip
Carry one kicking screaming child up one flight of stairs to her bedroom
Run down quickly to assist the rest of the children
Repeat once or twice - until the misbehaving child calms down
Clean up kitchen - squatting as you help unload and load the dishwasher (20 lb baby still on your back)
More squats in the laundry room as you switch and fold the laundry
Rest and Nurse the baby
Take all the kids and dog to the playground - pull the wagon
For variation you could walk to the library instead and pull the wagon full of books and kids up hill
For lunch lift a 10 qt soup pot to the table - lunge over the dog
Load all the kids in the van - reach way over to buckle them in
Load a few kids in a cart and baby back on your back for grocery shopping
Push cart around gradually adding more weight
Load groceries into van - reach way over to buckle them in
Unload groceries - put them away as fast as you can before the kids start getting into them
Back down to the laundry room - more squats, less resistance this time because the baby is not napping on your back
Change crib sheets because of a nap time blow out - feel the resistance of those annoying super fitted sheet working your arms
Prepare dinner once again lunging over dog - toddler can add resistance by grabbing onto your legs
Chase all the kids to the couch for scripture reading
Drag a few up to the bath
Wrestle a chubby wet toddler into his jammies
Cool down with books and cuddles
Collapse on the carpet and leave all the dirty dishes for the next day's workout

This may vary day to day but following such a program will guarantee you back in your "normal" clothes in about six months after giving birth.  You may not look like an Athleta model or even as cool as your friends and sisters but go ahead and give yourself a break because sometimes mothering is all the workout you need............at least that is what I'm telling myself to keep from feeling guilty and instead just have fun with my kids.  

Sing Song Yoga

Earlier in the Spring I picked up this Sing Song Yoga DVD for the girls, it was intended to keep them busy (and out of trouble) while I nursed.  It was successful in keeping them busy and is now a part of their daily routine.  Sometimes the boys join in and sometimes I'll join in for a few poses but either way it is always entertaining to watch and actually soothing to listen to.

Here they are doing Vrschikasana or Scorpion pose......

 Here they are in Savasana or as Maryanna calls it "Cloud Pose".  It is a rare site to see the girls so still and focused.

I knew they would love it especially after all the practice they had looking at Athleta catalogs !

No More Excuses

I'm all geared up to shed some baby weight and work off some of the exhaustion that comes with caring for young children. 

With Paul working from home I was able to put the baby down for a nap, leave the older 4 with a few home school assignments and strap the two toddlers in for an 8 mile maiden voyage with my new bike and trailer.

We made it down effortlessly to the Huron River and enjoyed the quiet trail and bridges over the river.  The way back was not as fun mainly because it was all up hill but also because I had a two year old kicking, screaming and thrashing back in the trailer (that had to have added more resistance).

Just as I was huffing up the slight incline towards home I heard squealing and screaming coming out from our windows and down the street, the sound was familiar enough for me to know I had to pedal quickly.  Helmet still on I find all four kids (even Maryanna) piled on top of each other wrestling, the house was a mess and no assignments were completed.

I'm still glad I got the workout in and might even plan another one tomorrow....  but next time leave the two year old to nap in his crib and bring my 4 year old in his place (though heavier she may be easier to tow).  I'll also tell Paul to open the door to his office and be sure to check on everyone when the house starts sounding like a "home zoo" and not a home school.

It feels great to be back on the road to fitness!

Workout Challenge

9 years and 6 babies - it's a hard road to get back.  The running happens only about 3 times a week and I still can't break a 10 minute mile.  I am actually giving up my spot in the Wasatch Back relay to my 15 year old nephew.  It's not that I can't face the challenge but I'm just choosing to be wise in how hard I push myself. But the idea of the relay was enough to get me back on the road to fitness.

To add to the fitness challenge I can't get through sit-ups, push-ups or stretching without at least 2 kids crawling all over me. Paul just laughs and says it adds resistance.

Even more amusing though is me trying to do yoga with the 3 littlest ones crawling around. My surroundings are far from the zen landscapes on the instruction videos, the instructors themselves look like robots perfectly sculpted, not a hair out of place smoothly moving from position to position without the slightest grimace. Meanwhile there is me kicking toys out the way as I stretch to downward dog and then attempt to hold tree pose with a 2 year old clinging to the one standing leg.  I'm suppose to be slowly exhaling but instead I just start cracking up and ask myself why I even try.     

Challenging Myself

I decided to join in on the jeans sew along at patternreview.com.  I ordered the new Jalie jeans pattern and just about got through my test fit pair - the sewing wasn't as bad as I thought but the fitting is a problem.  Now I remember why I rarely sew for myself - nothing fits.  It is hard enough to find ready to wear that fits so I don't know what I was thinking in expecting a pattern to fit.  By the time I get through all the adjustments I'll be wondering if I should have drafted my own off the few RTW pairs that fit. I'm new to patternreview though and hoping the sewers there can help me through it.

I've also got my boys cheering me on and telling me not to give up every time they hear a grunt or moan coming from my little sewing corner. It has been good for them to see me challenged but it will be even better if they see me not give up. I used what scraps I had left from Henry's coat so I'll need to find some more denim for my final pair.

Aside from sewing I also committed to run the Wasatch Back relay a 170 mile relay from Logan to Park City with a few of my siblings.  There's 12 to a team and each team member will run 3 different legs over the course of 24 hours.  I use to run a lot but that was several years and six babies ago. I have until June 19 to train and I'm going to take it slow. My first run was at the track and it took me 20 min to run 2 miles - I've got a ways to go. But 11 years ago I finished a marathon under 4 hours so I know with proper training I'll be capable of participating in this race. I don't have a lot of time but I've got a super supportive husband and a bunch of little kids counting laps and sit-ups, cheering me on, and watching me step out of my comfort zone.

Speaking of comfort zones, I'm still hoping to find a nice comfortable fit on these jeans I'm sewing.