I have a 2 yr. old, and before she started walking, I used to carry her all over the house, up and down the stairs. I remember having her with me while I attended to my chores like vacuuming . It definitely felt like a workout to me, and despite putting a stop to my regular gym visits, my muscle definition didn’t suffer during that time (we won’t speak about the rest of my body ). Well, a study done by Dr. Kelli O’Neill says to not count on the workout of chasing your kids to help you lose weight or get in shape. Most moms, the study found, overestimate how many calories they actually burn playing with their kids if they don’t put in an actual formal workout.

The study isn’t exhaustive by any means, with only 58 moms with kids under 6 were included in the study. Of those 58, only a third of the moms ended up receiving the recommended 30 mins a day of physical exertion, though most actually exerted one hour’s worth of activity. The level of activity was monitored by an electronic device they wore for a week. Afterward, the moms also filled out a questionnaire.

Of the moms who were getting the recommended 30 min. daily moderate/intense workout, some were actually making time for working out in the form of sports and other formal exercise. Many moms were surprised that they were way off in their estimate, especially after considering how tired they felt at the end of the day.

Guideline for Physical Activity

The federal recommendation for adults is 2 hrs. and 30 mins. of moderate aerobic activity a week with at least 1/2 of that time spent performing intense aerobic activity. To break it down, you need at least 30 mins of moderate-intense activity, or 15 mins of intense activity 5 times a week.

How Does a Mom Find Time to Workout?

• You can go to the usual gym, and leave your kids in the kids’ station, but I know many moms will find all that driving to be a chore. There are also moms who don’t find leaving their kids with strangers appealing, and still many gyms who don’t offer childcare.

• Next option is to work out at home, but one’s house often has so many distractions in the form of the couch, your kids, even your husband and it’s easy to end up in front of the TV watching your favorite show other than that fitness DVD.

• Consider stroller stride. There are formal stroller stride classes out there, but you can easily set one up with your neighbor, friend, members of your Moms Group.
  • The basics: you work out pushing your baby with other moms or even dads, and all you need is a pair of walking/running shoes and the one piece of equipment you probably already have: your baby’s stroller.

  Some mothers opt to buy a special jogging stroller if you’re planning to go on terrain other than the sidewalk. But if you’re planning to simply walk and not run, a regular, well-built stroller should be fine.

• Get a bike trailer and attach it to your bike. Take a ride around the neighborhood with the added resistance of your kids’ weight.

• Go to workouts that encourage and welcome baby involvement. There’s a Yoga Mama teacher in my own Moms Group, which welcomes babies. Just Google your neighborhood and see what comes up.

Be creative, be persistent. If you can’t do any of the above, make the time with your baby count! One of my favorite ways of getting a workout in was to put together a playlist on YouTube of my favorite songs and music videos and dance in the computer room with my daughter. It instilled a love of music and dancing in her, and it sure worked up a sweat for me.

Parenthood changes a lot of things. One thing I noticed was that I had less time for exercise, or so it seemed to me. A recent study I saw confirmed that my suspicions were correct and that I am not alone. The study also confirmed that the reasons I most often skipped my exercise times were also named by study participants. Those reasons (excuses) would be: lack of time, tiredness, and lack of child care options. Another reason for me: finances. With 5 children, I simply can’t justify spending the money I used to spend on a gym membership that I may or may not be able to use depending upon who has the stomach flu this week.

For a while, I was very depressed about the whole thing and critical of myself. I should be making the time and finding the money to do this for me! But the reality is that my husband travels frequently with work, and I am, for many days of the month, a single parent. In between homework and caring for the baby and driving the older children to their activities, there’s not a lot of time to devote to an exercise program.

I decided to try and think outside the box for a solution to my problem. Ok, so my life had changed, but that didn’t mean that I had to give up my life because of that. I just had to find a way to fit exercising into my daily life given my constraints on time, money, and energy. I found that while I just didn’t have the energy to do an energy charged aerobics workout anymore, I did like Tai Chi. Yoga was not only exercise, but it helped calm my nerves too! I found that Pilates workouts were wonderful too.

I discovered DVD’s for Pilates where you could squeeze a mini-workout into 10 minutes! It’s true that I couldn’t find an hour long block in my day to devote to exercising, but I could find a 10 minute segment! I have to admit that some days, I don’t even find the time for 10 minutes, but I’m working on it.

The best part of my new exercise routine is the cost. I can loan a DVD from the library for no cost and I can try a different routine each week if I choose to do so. I have purchased several DVD’s for my own collection, but they are still cheaper than a gym membership! I walk the children to school instead of driving them, and I try to be as active as I can during my daily routine. Just hauling laundry around for 7 people should count as exercise, right?

Not only am I exercising more, but my children are learning that exercise is an important part of a healthy lifestyle. They are also learning, just like I am, that sometimes we need to be creative when looking for solutions to our problems!

Sadly, a positive pregnancy test is not a green light to lie on the couch and eat jelly donuts for nine months. Now, I’d never recommend anyone gave up jelly donuts altogether, but being pregnant is no longer a reason to give up exercise.

Prenatal exercise has many benefits for mom. It helps with aches and pains, improves posture, may help you sleep better, and reduce stress. Moms who exercise tend to have easier labors than moms who don’t, and moms who exercise while pregnant usually get back into shape faster after the birth than moms who don’t.

Exercising while you are pregnant is an investment in your fitness now, and after your baby is born. And now doctors think that you are improving your baby’s fitness too.

A new study seems to suggest that exercising while pregnant makes babies’ hearts stronger. Moms who exercised when pregnant had babies with lower heart rates, and better heart rate variability, factors considered to be signs of a healthy heart. The doctors think that when moms exercise, it trains their baby’s heart to work more efficiently.

Even gentle exercise will be beneficial. What kind of exercise can you do? Most light-impact activities are appropriate, or can be adapted for pregnant women. Here’s some suggestions.

• Walking – even gentle walking will benefit you and baby. If spring hasn’t arrived where you are, you can join a mall-walking club.

• Yoga – a pre-natal yoga class is best, or follow a pregnancy yoga DVD at home.

• Aqua aerobics or water aerobics – many community pools offer aqua aerobics classes.

• Swimming – Being in the water feels absolutely wonderful. But no Shamu jokes, please.

• Aerobics – several pregnancy workout videos are available, with gentle exercises and lots of stretching to warm up and cool down.

Whatever you do, always start gradually, and listen to your body and stop if you feel dizzy, sore, or unwell. Remember your center of balance is changing and it’s easier to fall. It’s also easier to pull a muscle when pregnant, so please be careful.

And remember to drink plenty of water, and spend time resting and relaxing as well as doing physical activity.

Always consult your doctor or obstetrician before starting any exercise program. Exercising is safe for most pregnant women, but if you have certain medical conditions, then exercise may be harmful to you or your baby. Your doctor should be able to give you guidelines of what types of, and how much, exercise will be appropriate for you.