Fit Mama; Week 2

Monday was an official rest day. Technically day 7, but I could rest or stretch with the dvd. I took the day off, went out to lunch with a friend, and had Joe babysat for the first time ever by my mom and grandma. They were so excited to hang out with him.

Tuesday was Day 8 Chest & Back. We made it 45 minutes before the babe had a mini meltdown, so we sat down, I fed him and I picked it back up again. I'm still having a rough go with pushups - also, it turns out I have "mommy thumb" (kinda gnarly tendinitis in my left wrist). I'm icing it, trying to change how I hold baby, and Monday night I ordered a wrist brace for extra support. It didn't help that I was trying to do a ton of pushups though. Using freeweights as pushup bars helped take a lot of the pressure off.

Wednesday I opted to do Cardio X again for Day 9. I figure I'll try Plyometrics next week and see how I do. I managed a pretty good workout. Did need to stop and give thebdude specified but for the most part, as long as he could see me - and I was doing lots of big movements and silly faces - he was happy.

Thursday was Shoulders & Arms for Day 10. I moved my weights into the nursery so I could put Joseph in his crib and talk to him while I did my workout. He made it almost 40 minutes before that wasn't cutting it. At that point, I wrapped him up, wore him into the garage to start a load of laundry because walking calms him down, and then did my best to pick up where I left off and finish my workout wearing him. It put a little added pressure on my upper back, but I made sure to keep my shoulders down and chest up, I also couldn't do a lot of the actual moves. So I had to modify with similar moves. Lying down tricep extensions turned into overhead tricep extensions. Crouching curls turned into good old fashioned regular curls.

Friday I was at my parents most of the day, but when I got home I managed Yoga X for Day 11. I am feeling so much stronger in my chuttarungas. I even managed a couple extra pushups. Baby started to lose it while I was in right angle pose, so I literally reached behind me, rocked his rocker with my free hand and it totally knocked him out. SCORE!

Saturday my inlaws were visiting, so a little rearranging turned it into my rest day for the end of week 2.

Sunday hubs kept the babe entertained while I did Day 13 Legs & Back. That's still my favorite workout. Hubs got me a really cool (super cheap) workout accessory that allows me to thread my resistance bands between the door and the frame, so I can use my bands for pull-ups instead of the door frame pull up bar - you may remember how the door frame bar ended last March. I'll give you a hint. It may or may not have involved a concussion and bruised tailbone.
I also managed Ab Ripper X for the first time this go-round. Of course it was especially tough, being that it was my first attempt at real ab work in over 6 months. It felt so good to start using those muscles again.

Kitchen Adventures; Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Lactation Cookies

Yyyyyyep. This is the first recipe I'm posting since having a baby. These cookies are the only thing I've made, let alone baked, that didn't involve reheating frozen something I made in November.

As you know, I have a tiny one now. He eats breast milk only, so I'm very conscious of my supply, and working to maintain or even increase it a little. A friend of mine had a baby in 2013 Andi remembered she'd made special lactation cookies. I did a little research and found tons of recipes, all with a couple necessary 'supply-increasing' ingredients - oats, brewers yeast, and flax seed meal.

Good thing these cookies are yummy. Otherwise I'd have nothing to post about. 

I baked the first batch of these on Monday, and by Friday it was time to bake the second.

Oh, something to keep in mind should you make these: this recipe is giant. I hope you have plastic wrap or parchment to roll up the dough and keep in in the freezer.


Lactation Cookies
Yields about 3 dozen cookies. (more if you make them smaller than I do)

1 cup of butter
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of firmly packed brown sugar
4 tablespoons of water
2 tablespoons of flax seed meal
2 eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla
2 cups of flour
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of salt
3 cups of steel cut oats
1 cup of chocolate chips
4 tablespoons of brewer's yeast

Preheat oven to 350°.
Mix the flaxseed meal and water, set aside and let sit for 3-5 minutes.
Cream the butter, sugar, and brown sugar.
Add eggs and mix well.
Add flaxseed mix and vanilla, mix well.
Sift together flour, brewer’s yeast, baking soda, and sa
Add dry ingredients (flour, brewer’s yeast, baking soda, and salt), and mix.
Thoroughly stir in oats and chocolate chips.
Scoop onto baking sheet, approximately 1” balls.
Bake for 12-14 minutes
Allow cookies to set for a few minutes before removing from tray.

Enjoy!

Fit Mama; Week 1 - Getting My Body Back In 2015

Oh hey, guys, remember how I had a baby at the end of last year?

There's a funny thing about having a baby - it does a number on a human body. Then you basically sit on your a** for a month and before you even know it, you're ready to try going on a short walk, which ends up leaving you completely out of breath and wondering what happened to the strong, fit, healthy person you used to be.

No? Not You? Maybe that's just me then.

So, this is the beginning - the campaign to get my body back in 2015.

I gained 36 lbs during my pregnancy. Most of it came off on its own. On the 5th, I started taking Joe out on 2 mile walks in the afternoon, and on the 12th, after my postnatal checkup, I started working out from home. As of today, I have 8 lbs to go to get back to my prepregnancy weight.

Aside from trying to eat a healthy diet, this is what my workouts have looked like this week...

Monday I had planned to start P90X, but forgot that I had lent it to my sister, so I did 45 minutes of Dance Central Spotlight. It was so much easier than trying to dance with my giant pregnant belly. I could do all of the squat moves, move my feet faster, and most of the bouncing didn't bother me either - though next time I will have to wear a better bra. Joe loved it too. The combination of watching me flail around and listening to pop music made him very happy.

Tuesday I got P90X back from my sister, so mid evening I started Day 1 - Chest & Back. 20 minutes in, the baby lost his shit, so I nursed him until hubs got home. Then he sat with him mwhile I finished my workout, which by the way, was so freaking hard. It's a pretty intense hour long routine of pushups and pullups.

Wednesday was supposed to be Plyometrics, but I wasn't feeling ready for it so I subbed in Cardio X for Day 2. Joe was a rock star. Totally chilled out and watched me workout in the dining room. He likes to watch my workouts when I move my arms and legs around a lot. I'm so so glad opted to do cardio x instead of plyometrics. It was a really tough workout, especially considering the only cardio I'd done for a month was a week of two-mile walks.

Thursday was Day 3 Shoulders & Arms. Another really tough one. I let myself slide on some moves. I'm not supposed to push myself too hard (seeing as I was only 4.5 weeks PP). Dude was a little fussy. I needed to stop halfway through to feed him. I managed the whole workout nonetheless.

For Day 4 on Friday, I did Yoga X. It was my first time doing an actual complete practice since before Joe was born. Dude was a little fussy so it wasn't very Zen, but it worked out. I gave him a pacifier when he fussed and then he brought him down to do floor work with me. I finally started to feel stronger on Friday. I had a rough time the first few chuttarungas but they actually got easier as I went through the practice. It felt great.

Saturday was Day5 Legs & Back. Joe was pretty entertained by watching me do lots of squats and lunges. The last 15 minutes he got pretty fussy, so I started using him as a weight. I had to sub in some baby press instead of the last round of pull-ups. He worked great as my extra weight for squats and calf raises.

Sunday I managed to get my workout (and shower) to coincide with Joe's nap. He doesn't always take a real nap so this was a pleasant surprise. I put him in the rocker while I did Kenpo X for Day 6.

Sooooo, that was my first week working out again. I'm so happy I've been able to start working out. It hasn't been easy, and a lot of days its my only time off my butt, but it feels pretty darn fantastic!

I'm back to workout update posts every Wednesday (as long as I find the time to type them up - which I can usually do while nursing). Fun times. :)

A Day In The Life... with a newborn

Ok. This post is a little ambitious for me right now. I'm living a whole different life than I was just over a month ago. Every day is different and in some ways exactly the same...

This was my Friday, January 16th...

3:35 AM - I get up to feed the dude. I usually change him before he eats, but this morning I toy with leaving his diaper until we get up for the day.

4:05 AM - He's asleep, so I put him back down.

4:15 AM - He fooled me. He's grunting up a storm, which usually means he's waking up instead of falling back to sleep. I get up to check him and he's more awake than ever. I unswaddle him, change him, and reswaddle him. For a minute, before I nurse him again, we just smile big smiles at each other and he coos.

5:15 AM - I go back to bed

8:30 AM - We're up. I wash my face and brush my teeth as quickly as possible while he slowly gets fussy. He leaked pee up his back. I still don't understand the physics there. I take him downstairs. Hubs is on the couch, sick and working from home. We need to be as quiet as I can manage while change him. We do okay, and head back upstairs for baby's breakfast. 

9:15 AM - I put Joe down while I get dressed and take my thousands of vitamins, then go back downstairs and one-arm some yogurt with granola and honey for breakfast while sick hubby asks if I can turn Joe to face him because he misses his face.

9:45 AM - Joe and I play on the bed. I find a rash on his neck and upper chest. It looks like an allergic reaction, but I call the pediatrician's office anyway. The nurse says it sounds like his skin was irritated by something, to watch it, keep him clean, and make sure he doesn't start acting lethargic, extra fussy, or develop a fever.

11:10 AM - I feed Joe while updating blog, texting friends and family, and checking social media.

12:00 PM - Change full but fussy baby's diaper, put on the Solly wrap and wear Joe around the house for a while. I eat a cinnamon roll hubby made and call it lunch. Then we (me and Joe) take Panda out to get the mail. Exciting mail day. Lots of fun stuff to open; two wedding invitations, the photo book I ordered, (more) vitamins, and a pumping bra.

1:00 PM - Joe's 2nd lunch.

2:00 PM - I get my yoga mat out of my car and put Joe down in his crib. The first 15-20 minutes he was half sleeping but gassy, which keeps him from totally falling asleep. I kept stopping to give him a pacifier so he didn't fuss. Once he felt better he kept himself pretty well entertained. I moved to floor stretching and brought him down to do it with me. I'm practicing for when I *hopefully* start baby & me yoga up next month.

3:45 PM  - Joe eats. I watch Friday Night Lights on Netflix

4:15 PM - I put Joe in his stroller and we go on a quick one mile walk around the neighborhood.

4:45 PM - I am a human pacifier

5:15 PM - I manage a shower. Joe is in his pack n play in the bedroom. I can hear him but not see him. He is not happy, but hasn't totally lost it. I have a few minutes. No time for lotion. I put him on the bed, talk to him, and keep his pacifier in his mouth while I take care of my skin.

5:45 PM - Diaper change for the dude. Then I wrap him up and wear him around for a while. I eat an Asian chop salad trying not to drop bits of salad on his head, and sterilize the parts for my new pump. (I had to send back my hospital grade rental that day) Hubby and I dance around each other, trying to maintain a 10-foot minimum distance between us so baby doesn't catch his sickness.

Little dude falls asleep in the wrap. I let him stay wrapped up until he starts rooting around looking for food. Its been a while since he's eaten anyway.

7:25 PM - I take him out of the wrap and he starts wailing (even though he was just trying to eat my sternum). He falls asleep in my arms on the way up the stairs and gets right back to wailing the second I put him down to go to the bathroom. I get myself situated, turn on the PS3 and try to watch more Friday Night Lights while he eats, but no luck. The playstation needs updates so I let it run while I update my blog from my phone and send text messages. 

8:00 PM - I draw a bath for the guy. We still wash him in the sink. I think he's outgrown it and it's time to move to the baby tub. This was my first time bathing him by myself since hubs was sick. I decided to dry him off with a full size towel instead of a baby towel. It worked so much better in my opinion. For starters, he didn't soak through the towel when I wrapped him up in it. Once he's dry, I get him in a clean diaper and some pjs and head on upstairs.

9:00 PM - I get washed up and we begin what will hopefully be the last feeding of the day... And it is! I'm trying to get both of us to bed earlier - instead of starting the going to bed process at 10 and hoping he's asleep by 11 (usually closer to 1130 or 12). 

9:50 PM - I rock him a little to make sure he's asleep and put him down. I crawl into bed before 10 for the first time in over a month.