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  • Jane Tri - It is my local tri on sunday and probably one of the few I will do this year as getting babysitters on a sunday for 3 children is not easy as DH is doing this event too!!!

    It is held at Burnham on Sea. The swim (500m)is in the pool where I teach aqua aerobics, 20 K cycle is almost past our house (flat but can be very windy) and the run 5K is on the beach thru the dunes and golf course and is ok if the sand is not too soft.

    I'm looking forward to it even though I know I'm not super fast I normally mamage a respectable mid placing of the people in my age group. Though in 2005 I did get a prize for being 3rd local lady home even if I was half way thru the field overall.
  • Sarah - I have the Quinny Speedi and now have five months experience with it under my belt :-) It is a nice pram, very manouvrable and easy to fold. After using my sister's pram whilst in the UK I realise it is quite light as well. Obviously so far only used it with the Dreami bassinet and my only gripe is that it is possibly on the small size. Oliver looks big in it now (he's 66cm) and just has a bit of room top and bottom. I heard from someone else that they found it on the small side too and switched earlier than recommended to the pushchair. I didn't buy the pram with running in mind and in my booklet it does say it is not suitable as a baby jogger. Don't know why cos it has that sporty look...

    Thanks for the feedback on getting your babies to sleep. There are certainly some good tips I am implementing. His waking in the night is getting better and I never thought it was really cos he was hungry. An additional problem now is that he is rolling onto his tummy and he can't roll back so I think after a while he wants to be back on his back. I also can't sleep as soundly knowing he is on his tummy but when I turn him onto his back he either wakes up or just rolls over again.
  • my oldest kept rollin on to her tummy too so in the end I just gave up and let her sleep their unless she had a bad cold. My mum told me that when I was a baby the health visiters advised you to let baby sleep on tummy. Now number 2 slept in the same way on the tummy and so does number 3, infact he is there right now.

    If you have the right matress and correct bedding (my last last 2 use/d sleeping bags which are brilliant), right room temperature and baby has no fever, frequently check baby is ok and can breath easily it is easier to let them sleep as they wish or yiu just keep waking them up. For the oldest DD I have some great photos of her sleeping on her hands, knees and forehead at 9 months.

    It is just a case of commom sense and trust your gut instinct as it is usually right.
  • Just a quick bump so I can find this thread easily!

    Also I have a question - I'm sure this has been answered already but if you've had a baby how long did you wait post birth before running, and did you do anything in the meantime - core exercises etc. - before running? If anyone has folowed a 'post-birth' training programme I'd be really interested for details.

    Thanks ladies!

    sb x
  • After my first baby it took about 3-4 weeks to start running again (run/walk in the beginning). After the second baby I started running (again run/walk) after +/- 10 days. I didn't have a programme, just listenend to my body.
    No abdo-exercise until about 6 months after birth.
    But: I ran/exercised/swam (I found swimming is excellent in later stages of pregnancy!!) throughout both pregnancies and I had two "normal" births (no ceserean, minor tears, etc). Just listen to your body. I found it is amazing what it can do during birth and how well it tells you afterwards what is right and what is wrong.


  • I had 3 very normal/easy births with only minor compliations tears etc...

    This is my experience
    My children are 6,4 and 7 months. On Sun I did my firs tri for 2 years and have improved on the bike, swim is the same but my run was 3 seconds down but I was quite pleased with overall.


    For the first 2 weeks I did the abdominal exercises suggested by the physio (they give us a sheet of suitable exercises at our hospital) and only walked as much as I felt capable. As I was breast feeding I felt I got shaky if I did too much. The dog ran off 1 week after DS(child 3) was born and I chased after him and everything felt loose and wrong and I knew I was not ready for running. So do listen to your body.

    Withe number 1 and 2 I had 2 aerobics classes running out of a local church hall and after 2 weeks I returned to teach those but I mostly walked my routines, did minimal squat/leg type exersices (I did mostly one or 2 demos them talked/counted) and did no impact til 6 weeks.

    With each child I checked my abdominal gap at 2-3 weeks and as it had closed so I stared to do a little more stomach work say 10 curls and 10 secods plank and added in the odd mild toning exercise say 10 sqats, 10 lunges a few tricep dips and push ups. If I felt any discomfort I stopped instantly and did nothing the next day. I kept this up with a lot of walking to 6 weeks.

    At six weeks I bounced thru an aerobics class with child 1 and 2 (or tried too) but I did gradually over the next month or 2 build up to full impact aerobics and running. I went to the gym at week 3 to do very mild exercise and from weeks 6-12 built back up to what I was doing before.

    With child 3 I ran around our block with the jogger once at 6 weeks one day, did 10 mins step another, went for a short cycle one day and another I did more toning as my gym creche had closed. Now he is 7 months I can run up to 8 miles (the increase was gradual, cycle 20K, swim 1 mile no difficulty (then with swimming I only stopped while I had blood loss which was around 3-4 weeks). I returned to teach aerobics classes at around 22 weeks when my ML was up and went straight back almost as if I'd never stopped.

    With each child I had trained and taught aerobics til the day I went into labour. I ran on the tradmil til DS was born but witht the others stoped running sooner dur to comfort really. I didn't cycle at all in 3rd pregnancy due to varracous veins and discomfort on the saddle but could run and swim. My weigth programm got adjusted to suit me as my body changed. I alwasys put on too much weigth though and still have 7lbs to loose.

    Sorry this is a lnog post if anyone has any questions please feel free to ask.

  • Thanks Annemarie and Tracey - it's really interesting to hear what others have done. Although I'm expecting no. 3 I've never exercised during / post pregnancy (started running when no.2 was about 18 months) - I've got an idea of what my body will feel like post-birth but I guess I'll need to take things slowly and listen hard to what my body's telling me.
  • Thanks Astrorunner! I think I'm definiteloy going to go for the speedi option!
  • MinksMinks ✭✭✭
    Wow, great to see some familiar names popping up on here!

    We've used what I call the "essence of Gina Ford" with Kit. We found her actual routines were just too rigid and prescriptive, and Kit just didn't want to sleep at the times he was "supposed" to. We've been quite rigid with Gina's suggested feeding times though, mainly because when we first brought Kit home from hospital we didn't have a clue what to do and this gave us some direction. From the start I've given him a bath, put him in a sleepsuit and had quiet "wind down" time before bed each evening. He now goes down by 6:30pm and occasionally has to be settled once or twice - I just pick him up in his sleeping bag, hold him and stroke his forehead gently. This seems to soothe him and he associates it with going to sleep. He then sleeps until we wake him at about 10:30pm for his last feed of the day. Even if he's wide awake after his feed, as soon as I put him back in his cot and turn off the light he settles down. He's been sleeping pretty much through the night most nights since he was 10 weeks, but we do get some nights where he'll wake about 5am and will need his dummy to get him back to sleep. Last week he started waking up several times during the night. After eliminating the obvious things (wet, hungry) I figured he might be chilly as due to the warm weather we'd been sleeping him in a 1.5 tog sleeping back. I think as the temperature dropped a bit during the night he was waking up cold, so I switched him back to his 2.5 tog bag and he slept all night until 7am.

    I'm now in my third week of running and although I'm doing frustratingly low mileage it's great to be back out there and to be running with some consistency again. I wasn't able to start training as soon as I'd have liked after the birth as I had a C-section which makes recovery time longer. The physio at the hospital told me I wouldn't be able to do anything high-impact for at least 4-5 months, but I started back after 3 and it's been fine. I weigh about 5lb more than I did pre-pregnancy but my body shape has changed a bit: I have a bigger waist and my tummy still isn't as flat as it was. I also thing I'm slightly larger on my thighs, bum and upper arms although everyone else thinks I look normal and was too skinny before. I guess pre-pregnancy I had just completed my third marathon and was fitter than I'd ever been before, but the high mileage (for me - 45-50 miles a week) kept me very lean. Realistically I haven't trained (as opposed to just running) for over a year now so I can hardly expect to be the lean, mean running machine I used to be!

    The other downside for me is that my periods have become much heavier. True, I'm only on my third since the birth but for the first couple of days they are debilitatingly heavy. Before I was pregnant I used to have to remind myself I was having a period and to change my tampon as they were so light. I would get through one box of 12 regular tampons per period, sometimes less. Last time I went through a box of 20 super tampons and a few regular ones at the end.

    Kit's just woken up and is crying - better go!
  • Minks - re the periods - I think it's partly due to just having had a baby, but I also wonder if it's to do with reduced training? I know when I started marathon training my periods got a lot lighter / easier to manage - if that's what you were doing pre-pregnancy that might be the reason? Only a guess on my part - I've done no research to back it up!

    Good to hear everything's going well with Kit and the running's going well.
  • Janie - I don't have any personal experience of breech babies but my sister's first was breech and she had him turned in hospital which was successful - it's quite an uncomfortable process, I believe but can be effective - did your midwife talk about this at all?

    I also have heard that acupuncture and reflexology can be used to turn a baby - a friend of mine had acupuncture and her baby turned but up to a certain stage of pregnancy the baby will continue to turn anyway so it might not be directly attributable to the acupuncture - mioght be worth a try though?

    I know it's horrible to be faced with something unexpected late on in your pregnancy when things have been going well - I was whisked into hospital last time when I wasn't expecting it and told I would have to stay in until the baby was born (luckily this was only a few days - he was already overdue) and it was a bit of a shock.

    Good luck - I'm sure there will be other people around to give you advice as well.
  • Minks, reassuring to hear about heavy periods. I was always very light and over in a couple of days - a full week this time. Hope it goes back to the way it was!

    JT loads of babies are breech and some only turn during labour. I don't think it is anything to worry about. Again, lying on left side might encourage baby to shift..... in reality though, baby will move when baby decides!

    Have completed 7 working days now and have yet to be taken away by the men in white coats- although I am sure they are looking for me. I came home for a doctor's appt on thurs, checked my diary to clarify the time... right time wrong day. Unfortunately I was 24 hours late. Oops. Then on Fri I phoned a friend we were supposed to be going out for a meal (I was shattered and not overly enthusiastic) they then informed me that it was the 29th June we are out - 3 weeks early! Today my husband had to leave a prescription in as I ran out of my asthma tablets, last night......

    However, it has been stressful with my Mum staying. She is looking after James which is great although I am so fiercely independent I do not want her to be doing any washing up, cleaning etc.... She is only trying to help but then I feel incompetent that she is having to do these things.......

    Hubby had yesterday, today and tomorrow off as my Mum went back to Belfast for a long weekend. He has had fun.

    Unfortunately I went to work a couple of times last week before James got up. Having always settled at night he then started creating a fuss. I guess he was not sure if I would be there in the morning for him or not. Also he will not take much milk (Mum will only give him a bottle every 4 hours) He might only take 2 oz from a bottle so then has decided when he should be sleeping is a better time to have milk to make up for the lack of milk in the day.

    Still love being a Mum though - best thing in the world!
  • MinksMinks ✭✭✭
    Sarahbob, I had thought that too re. periods. If they get lighter as my training increases then I'll know it makes a difference. It's just a pain at the moment as I have to plan around them which I never had to do before - have just told hubby I can't go on holiday the week he wants to go as I'll have my period and it'll spoil the holiday for me!

    Janie, if they know your baby is breech it's possible to attempt to turn it - this procedure is done in hospital and I believe is rather uncomfortable and does not have an especially high success rate but is worth a go. Timing is the key though as at 34 weeks there is still time for the baby to turn of its own accord - if turned manually now it could easily turn back! My problem was that everyone who examined me told me that my baby was cephalic (head down) and engaged so I wasn't examined for breech and it was only discovered once I was in established labour. I felt the same as you - that I'd fallen at the final hurdle as I'd had such a fantastic pregnancy - but I realised it wasn't my fault and there was nothing I could do about it. If you do have to have a C-section it really isn't as bad as I expected: I recovered well and quickly but it does mean you're more restricted in the early weeks than if you'd had a normal birth as you can't lift things or start exercising.

    Ploddingalong, my mum is going to have Kit 2 days a week when I go back to work - hubby will have him on the other day. Am dreading it as love being at home with him but we can't really afford for me to give up work completely. Why will your mum only give James a bottle every 4 hours? Surely she should do what you want and follow your routine?
  • MinksMinks ✭✭✭
    CC, the time that they're really tiny goes so fast, doesn't it? Kit is 15 weeks and 13lb 1oz - we were looking at all the early photos last night, including the very first picture of him moments after he was delivered and I just can't believe he was ever that small. Have also put away his newborn clothes, although I may have to keep just one sleepsuit to remind myself of how tiny he once was!
  • Janie - great news! How annoying that the other MW was so thoughtless, though - could have saved a great deal of worry for you.

    Minks - I still feel like that about my 11 year old - everything carries on moving so quickly. I can't belive my baby girl is about to go to senior school. It's a bit scary but worth every minute!

    CC - had a great time camping - it was cheating as we went to a tent that was already up with beds and fridges - but really relaxing as the kids entertained themselves for a lot of the time - my daughter was brilliant and kept taking DS off to the playground or for cycle rides around the campsite. I've planned a 1 night camping trip in the summer holidays with some friends - it'll be the week before I'm due but it's only an hour away from home so I think it should be OK if I'm feeling all right - we'll see!
  • MinksMinks ✭✭✭
    Sarahbob, that's very brave of you! Not sure I'd have wanted to be too far away from home the week before I was due! I did arrange a coffee get-together with my antenatal group for the day after I was due though, as I was convinced I'd be late by then - and had to miss it as Kit decided to arrive that day.

    Am really enjoying being a runner again. I have my schedule pinned to the notice board in the kitchen and it's great ticking off all the runs and feeling that same sense of achievement that I used to get from ticking off runs on my marathon schedule. OK, so I may only be running about 10 miles a week at the moment but I'm gradually adding a little more each week and although it can be frustrating building up this slowly, it's better than injuring myself again and it actually fits quite well with our current lifestyle. I have to run when hubby gets in from work so couldn't be doing 10 milers at the moment anyway or we wouldn't eat until midnight!

    Hubby and I went out for dinner last night - our first night out together since Kit was born. Hubby has been out a few times but I haven't been out at all, so it was nice to spend time together as a couple. It was my birthday on Thursday so seemed like a good excuse to go out. My mum babysat and Kit was fine - he was asleep when she got here and stayed asleep the whole time. He always sleeps well at that time of the evening so we weren't too concerned about going out. Have to say though that I won't be having as much to drink another time - getting up at 5am and then 6am to settle a baby with a fairly well-established hangover isn't fun!

    Any ideas on how to stop him waking up at about 5am every morning? He doesn't get a feed at that time (hasn't for a while now) and settles back to sleep quite quickly with his dummy - but we just can't work out what's causing him to wake. Have ruled out being too cold/hot, have put blackout lining in his curtains so the light doesn't disturb him - but still he keeps waking up! Over the past couple of days he's also started waking again at about 6am then refusing to settle back to sleep. I thought it was hunger, but when he has his morning feed he doesn't take any more than he was taking a few weeks ago and doesn't always seem that hungry. It's a mystery - and also a bit of a pain as basically we get woken at 5am and don't really get much more proper sleep beyond then.
  • Hi Minks - I'm not too worried about going away then - I'll see how I feel, but as the 1st 2 were late I'm fairly confident this one won't be early (or even on time - famous last words!) - I'm just hoping I can find ways to keep the kids occupied over the summer. I don't think I'd feel the same if it was my first baby though.

    Well done on your running - it sounds like it's going well at the moment, and being made to build up gradually definitely sounds like the best thing. I've been looking at schedules for getting back to running post birth - just to make me feel better about my current low mileage really. I know it'll be really important to build up gradually though so I will follow your example!
  • Just stumbled on this thread and I'm very excited. I feel as if I've bumped into old friends I haven't seen in a long time.
    Haven't read through the posts as I'm back to work full time and sneaking this post in on my lunch break.

    Hope you and your precious ones are all well and you are enjoying motherhood.

    My DS will be 9 mths next week and my other DS is 3yrs 4mths.

    I started back running when DS was 6wks and started training for the FLM in January when he was mths. I managed 60% of the training and finished the marathon in 5hrs 44mins. My best time before that was 4hrs 15mins.

    On the day at many points I did think it was a really bad idea but looking back I did enjoy the day and I'm sure the training helped. I did the St Albans marathon 2 wks ago in 2hrs 11 which I was really pleased about as it means I'm getting back to my former pace.

    I've said no more marathons as it's just too hard to fit in the training around family life, but my goal is to run a Half Marathon in under 2hrs by the end of the year.

    My parents and MIL have been fantastic and have been on hand doing lots of babysitting which helps when you want to go out running, I'm lucky that we all get on so there are never any problems. I think I'm much more relaxed this time around and just let them get on with it, I was the opposite with my first.

    I went back to work when DS was 5 and a half mths old. I'm a freelance contractor so grabbed the opening as it was so near home.
    He goes to nursery once a week and my MIL looks after him on the other days. On the whole it's okay as long as I follow my routines when I get back from work.

    I've almost gone back to my pre-preg weight which was 60kg, I'm currently 62kg, although I'll confess I've dabbled into several diet worlds detox, Atkins etc.
    My only concern is my stomach, it was flat before my last pregnancy and now it still looks like I'm 3 mths pregnant especially in the morning.
    It's feels like it's inflatable. Any tips please. I do weights maybe twice a week and stomach exercises after my runs.

  • MinksMinks ✭✭✭
    Hi Tonia, great to see another 'old' face! It really is like meeting up with long-lost friends - strange as none of us have ever met each other!

    Not sure what to suggest re. the tummy. I'm about 5lb off my pre-pregnancy weight, but I'd just finished my 3rd marathon on my highest-ever weekly mileage when I conceived and I was a little below my normal 'resting' weight. So I'm probably about 2-3lb away from where I'd like to be but I'm fairly happy with my body considering Kit is only 4 months old. I was very impatient at the beginning to be back to being as slim as I used to be, but I've accepted that it might not be as instantaneous as I'd have liked - and may not happen at all - so I'm also starting to look at my current shape in a more positive light. My waist is definitely bigger than it was - I can get into all my low-waisted trousers comfortably but any that sit a little higher won't do up. My thighs are also slightly larger as are my upper arms. In some ways though I don't mind being a little bit bigger as it gives me a lot more choice when it comes to buying clothes. I was a very small size 6 before - probably nearer a size 4 - and everything drowned me. Now I'm probably a 6-8 and some of the clothes I'd abandoned pre-pregnancy because they just hung off me now fit and look quite nice again! Hubby seems to like my slightly curvier body so I can't really complain too much!

    The biggest plus is that my tummy seems to have gone back to being almost flat again, although it's slightly more rounded than it used to be and is not as taut. My belly button will never be the same again though - it's definitely stretched! - and I still have the remains of my linea nigra which seems to be taking ages to fade. I haven't done any specific tummy-toning exercises although I probably should have done - am hoping that the running alone will tighten everything up in time. What sort of stomach exercises are you doing at the moment?

  • Minks good to hear and that you and Kit are doing really well.
    I do basis crunches, bicycle type moves, press ups, the plank and some exercises using a swiss ball which are hard to describe.

    I think 9 months is long enough for it to be almost normal which is why I am starting to panic!

    I'm worried I'll be back to my normal weight and still have a large tummy. I refused to buy any new clothes for work, even though I couldn't zip up my size 10 trousers, now I can zip them up but just can't do the buttons so that's progress I suppose. Have a good weekend and enjoy the little ones Jane Tri, Minks and everyone else.
  • After children you find that your body shape changes. After my first I got back to pre pregnant weight but I still have some hot pants that I couldn't get done up on the waist and anything high waisted. After the second I went back to pre pregnant weight and my waist returned back as it had with number 1. Low waised jeans are great and not a problem and my hips/legs were slimmer than before number 1. Now with number 3 nearly 8 months old the weight is creeping off so slowly (i'm now 35). Still 5lbs to go and it loks like if I keep going as I am it will be a year before I am at pre pregnant weight(before all 3). I don't think I will ever have a 24 inch waist again and I have spoken to other mums about this and they have had similar experience with waist size.
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