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.

I used to be an office-based working mom. Currently I am a work at home mom (wahm), which unfortunately, many people don’t take seriously as work. But I am a working mom and my kids are at a childcare facility while I am typing this on my home computer.

It is with trepidation that I present the results of a study here that will surely illicit strong reactions from other working moms out there, reactions that may probably range from outrage, defensiveness, to guilt.

Kids of Working Moms Are Less Healthy

It’s true, according to a study reported by MSNBC. British researchers looked at 12,500 children aged 9 months to 5 years and analyzed their dietary habits and physical activity. The results showed that kids of working moms, regardless of their race, maternal education, job level or whether they are working full time or part-time, are less healthy. For example, they are more likely to eat junk food and spend more time in front of the TV or the computer. In addition, they are more likely to be driven to school and snack on chips and sweetened drinks. The researchers put the blame on the time constraints of working moms.

Now, before we overreact and blast the researchers for their bias against working women, let’s take a deep breath and look at ourselves and our family whether there is any truth to their findings. And if your first thought would be “I don’t have time for this,” then they’re right.¨

I suggest that we take the results of the study as a constructive criticism and an opportunity to check out our current lifestyle. There is a lot that we can do and here are my suggestions:

What’s in the Fridge?

If there’s no or very little produce in your fridge or in your pantry, then you have to rethink your family’s dietary habits. There are fresh produce that keeps long and this includes tomatoes, cucumber, bananas capsicum, and apples. Incorporate these into your shopping list and weekly menus.

What’s in Your Child’s Lunchbox?

If there are only potato chips, cookies or peanut butter sandwiches in there, then there’s something missing. An apple or a banana would be a health addition. Apples are especially great – they keep, they are sturdy, and can fit in a pocket. Choose the sweet varieties such as gala, pink lady or golden delicious.

Junk Food

Another British study reported that people who consume too much sweets as children have a tendency towards aggression in adulthood. So why do some of us keep buying junk food for our family against our better judgement? Some suggest it may be guilt, that those treats are our way of saying sorry for not spending enough time with our kids. Some people think if they don’t get it at home, they’ll get it somewhere else. In a previous post, I’ve listed some tips on children’s nutrition.

Communicate With Your Child.

How did his/her day go? If it’s just all about TV shows or video games, then it’s time to look for alternatives. What about a sports club? Soccer and tennis camps during the holidays? Active family outings on the weekends? Don’t wait until your child becomes overweight. The earlier they start the better.

Childcare

It is not easy to find the perfect childcare provider but we should make the effort to monitor what kind of care is being provided. My twin boys started at a daycare at 12 months, preschool-daycare at 3 years. Now at 1st grade, they attend after school childcare provided by our town. In other words, I’ve had experience about checking out childcare facilities. I, for one, wouldn’t go for a daycare with a TV set. I talk to the caregivers about the daily activities and compare their version with my child’s version. It’s not that I don’t trust them. I simply want to know whether I am getting my money’s worth. Yes, I pay for childcare and I make sure that as the customer, my child gets what he/she needs in terms of healthy food and physical exercise. The same goes if you have a nanny or a babysitter coming in. I am not saying you have to install a nanny cam at home but if we need crosschecks at work, there should also be some at home.

Some of us may not have the means to pay for childcare. A family member such as grandma or aunt might have to pitch in to help with the child care. Check their dietary and exercise habits. Talk to them about nutrition and health. A healthy child needs a healthy caregiver.

Look Within

Your diet and physical activity level reflects that of your family. What you eat at breakfast and at suppertime, your children eat. You are their role model and they learn your good and bad habits. A workout or a run is a great way to wind down. But how do you include your children into your adult exercise routine? Do cycling or inline skating together. I am not keen on both so my kids do either why I jog along side. It helps me keep up my pace. Check out Mrs.H’s list of habits of a healthy family.

I know that as working moms, we are juggling too many things at the same time: motherhood, job, marriage. It is difficult to be a career woman and the perfect mom at the same time. But hey, it’s not about being perfect that counts. It’s about being happy and healthy.

With families so busy these days it’s sometimes hard to make time for your health by exercising. How can you justify an hour at the gym away from your family when you haven’t seen them all day and dinner’s still up in the air? With parents working harder than ever, homework piling up for kids, extracurricular activities plus the hours it takes to commute to and from those activities, it’s easy to let things slip through the cracks: Take-outs most days of the week, eating in front of the TV soon becomes the norm.

But in today’s stressful, high-tech world, it’s even more crucial to stay healthy and personally connect with your kids, and with your spouse. Your body is your only body, and if your health is neglected and falls by the wayside, everything can go by the wayside too. Your family is your only family, and the same rule applies.

How to keep your family healthy?

• Eat often and eat healthy. Pick healthy foods, and don’t skip meals. You and your kids have a lot on your day’s schedule and you need the fuel to get through it. Chips and soda isn’t going to help you stay alert and healthy. Experts say to eat every 2 hrs. That means a breakfast, lunch, dinner and two snacks in between meals.Time constrained? Pre-prepare meals before-hand if needed, and pre-package snacks in snack baggies that can be grabbed to go from the pantry . Make your own trailmix filled with nutritious foods like nuts, whole-wheat pretzels, raisins. Resist the temptation for frozen or pre-packackaged foods or snacks as they do not pack the same nutritional punch as home-made munchies, and often contain unhealthy ingredients like partially hydrogenated oils and high-fructose corn syrup.

• Exercise at least 20 minutes a day. An hour is just unmanageable for a lot of families, but just 20 minutes of exercise a day is better than nothing . What’s more, if the activity is something that you enjoy, you end up doing it for longer than 20 minutes.What can you do as a family? Chase the kids in the backyard for at least 20 minutes. Walk the dog together. Take a bike ride around the neighborhood. I know a lot of parents who’ve purchased the bike trailer to attach to their bikes.

• Eat dinner together at least five nights a week. First thing you should do is make sure the the TV is off. It IS possible to eat dinner together. Studies show that families who eat dinner together on most nights have healthier kids who choose more fruits and vegetables even when not at home. It also provides time and opportunity to catch up on everyone’s lives, and it becomes the perfect time to open up lines of communication.What if dinner together is just impossible to make happen? Turn breakfast into your family meal. Make sure you wake up early enough that it isn’t a harried affair.

• Have fun as a family. Take the time to do something silly and fun with the kids. Game night, playing music, dancing, throw water balloons in the backyard, even watching a favorite show together as a family can be a destressing event for each member of the family. All the activities listed are at-home activities because you’re not taking up more valuable time driving somewhere, and they usually end up being cheaper!

• Get plenty of sleep. Sleep should be a calming time, and you need it for your body to recover from the day. Lack of sleep carries the same symptoms as being under the influence. Your groggy, your reflexes aren’t as fast, and you can fall asleep at the wheel while driving. Your kids won’t be able to concentrate as well in school if they’re too sleepy to pay attention. Get your family into a routine that includes lights out at a time that gives you all plenty of time to sleep.

• Don’t forget date night. A strong, happy couple is the backbone of any happy family so you shouldn’t forget about each other. Sure you can hire a baby-sitter to get away from the kids once in a while, but any moment you take time to connect as a couple is better than nothing. This can mean having a later bed-time than the kids and popping open a bottle of wine, plopping in front of the TV and watching an R-rated movie together. Better yet, forget the TV and have a conversation. One caveat: kid topics not allowed. Talk about your day, reminisce, make plans for the future, anything as long as it’s not diapers, and toilet training. You’ll feel a lot closer doing so.

Six tips. How do you incorporate them into your day? Start one at a time. Announce it to the family and get everyone excited and on board. They all involve almost no work or minimal alterations at worst, and the payoff can be huge. Start this week and see if you can’t incorporate all six into your family routine by the end of the month. Please report back and tell us how your family feels after adopting these habits!

Source: Families.com

One in five preschoolers are obese, according to researchers at Ohio State University. That adds up to half-a-million obese four year olds in America.

Baby fat is adorable, and even necessary for survival. Babies are designed to be fat, because fat is needed to help babies regulate their temperature. Those adorable little rolls around their tummies? Their sausage-y legs, fat little fingers, chubby cheeks and squidgy little knees? Precious.

As babies become crawlers and toddlers, and become more aware of the relationship between having a coat on and not being cold, being fat is not vital for survival. And crawling and toddling and running uses up calories and builds muscles, so that baby fat is designed to gradually disappear.

It seems like that isn’t happening in many of today’s children. Many people can tell you their opinion of why people are getting heavier, and getting heavier younger.  Perhaps our kids are getting less exercise, maybe they are eating more food, or the wrong kind of food. Perhaps it’s a combination.

Most of us know that a healthy diet and plenty of activity is vital for maintaining a healthy weight, and that seems to apply to everyone from babies on up.

And the researcher’s best non-obvious advice for preventing a baby becoming an overweight toddler and an obese preschooler?  Helping baby recognise when they are full. Babies are born knowing when they have had enough to eat, and trying to get a baby to eat more than she needs disrupts the natural system and may lead to overeating in future.

I scared myself stupid tonight. Recently I got into rock climbing, and since I live in Minnesota where it is 1. rather flat 2. currently under 6 inches of snow I’ve been doing it indoors in a climbing gym. Most indoor climbing is called “top roping” where a rope is attached to the climber, attached to the ceiling, and down to a belayer. The belayer is a person who holds the rope and catches the climber if they fall. The most you can fall is maybe two feet. So I’ve been doing that for a while, and it’s fun. And it’s mentally and physically challenging, it’s a decidedly non-mom activity, and it’s giving me fierce arm muscles.

But, I want to be more fierce. The most interesting kind of climbing is called “lead climbing“. If you wants to climb upsidedown under an arch, or up a 40 degree overhang,  or anything more interesting than a plain vertical wall, you need to take your rope up with you and attach it to bolts on the rock (or gym wall) to catch your fall if you fall off. It’s more complicated, and also more scary. The bolts on the wall are around five feet apart. Imagine falling off just before you reach the next bolt – there’s a five foot fall plus another five feet of rope plus another couple of feet of slack and the rope that pays out before the belayer catches you, so that’s a 12-15 foot plus fall. And that’s probably starting 30 feet off the ground and with nothing but a little metal bolt to catch you.

So I take a lead climbing class, and to pass the class, I have to take a lead fall which I think is to demonstrate that I am not a wuss but is actually to learn how to fall correctly. That’s one of those 15 feet kinds, starting 30 feet up, with a rope tied to my waist, nothing above me, and relying on the guy standing on the ground with the other end of the rope to catch me in time. I start shimming up the wall. I get most of the way up and clip the rope onto the last bolt I can use in the test. Now I have to climb up another six feet and let go. My shimmying turns to clinging onto the wall with shaking fingers and advancing very slowly.  I’m at the drop point and look down. It’s a long way down. My fingers tell me this is a stupid idea.

My belayer seems to be holding the rope, I’ve seen other people do this and so far, they’ve all survived. It’s still a really long way down. To cut a long story short, I didn’t do it with any kind of glamor, or style, and it took a little coaching yelling from those on terra firma but I let go. I plummet down about 15 feet in free fall which is just enough of a drop to wonder if I’ll stop, before I stop and all the bolts in the wall clang and everyone else in the gym turns around to have a look at who fell off.

And I started thinking. Are moms braver, or less brave than non-moms? Are we more likely or less likely to take chances? Do we have less fear or more fear?

To answer that for myself, I think my assessment of risks has changed. I’m more fearful for my child. I see peril everywhere that non-parents don’t. Tall, wobbly, furniture that might tip over. Unguarded outlets. Swimming pools.  I try to manage fear of danger versus never letting my son do anything but when he starts climbing on the furniture it always makes me nervous. Before I became a mom, I would have concerns for a child’s safety, but I couldn’t imagine all the things that I would worry about.

And for me, I think I’m much less scared of things that are common fears, but aren’t actually dangerous, or not that dangerous. Like I’m a shy person, but now I’m much less scared of talking to new people. Or climbing 30 feet up a wall and letting go.  Or having 100 other people turn around and look at me. In relation to the worry I have over my son, these things just don’t seem as scary any more.

And I’m more scared of doing things that are actually dangerous, like walking by myself at night in a strange neighborhood, or talking on the phone and fiddling with the radio while I’m driving, mostly because I don’t want to be injured or killed and not be there for my son.

How about you? How has motherhood changed the way you view the world?

Leaving the gym early to pick up my son from the babysitter tonight, I felt kinda jealous of my friends who don’t have children and could stay out as late as they wanted then go for a drink afterward, and I got to thinking about what I missed about being childless. So what do I miss?

• Being able to leave the house in 10 seconds. No getting complaining child into boots-hat-coat-mittens, packing diaper bag with enough supplies, dealing with carseat.

• Peeing in peace. Showering in peace. This morning, my toddler was in the bathroom, he wanted to throw rubber ducks at me, “help” shave my legs, squirt an entire bottle of shampoo down the drain, then break out of the bathroom and go and cause havoc elsewhere.

• Sleeping late. ‘Nuff said.

• Going out, getting drunk, staying out until 4 a.m., coming home, raiding the kitchen, falling asleep without bothering to remove dress or eyeliner and being able to be hungover in peace the next morning. I’m probably too old for that kind of thing but now I can’t do it, I miss it.

• Exercise and recreational activities. There’s some things I can do with my son, but other things I love to do like snowboarding or rock climbing require organization and the expense of a babysitter, or being subject to the irrational whims of my son’s dad, and whether he wants to see him or not. And there’s prioritizing what I can do with my free time and often the need to work or sleep takes precedence.

• Go traveling. Traveling with small children requires a major amount of planning and a child-friendly destination. And it’s not really a holiday, more of a change of scenery for the diaper changes.

• Stuff staying where I put it. Why is there a lemon in my sock draw? Why is there a plastic lion in the fridge? The suspect is 2′8″, approximately 35 pounds, blond hair, blue eyes, was last seen carrying saucepans in the direction of the bedroom.

• Somewhat related to the above. Not treading on lego bricks when bleary and not quite awake. Ow.

Now I’ve vented, I feel better. And i feel, like I always do, that all the things  above are a small price to pay,  and I wouldn’t exchange my wonderful son for anything. The love and wonder and joy he gives me makes up a millionfold for lost snowboarding and drinking.

So what do you miss about life before becoming a parent?

Not even a month after giving birth to son Samuel Kai, Naomi Watts is back on the red carpet looking like nothing ever happened. She told People magazine that she lost a lot of weight when she delivered Samuel (well, duh) and she’s lost the rest through breastfeeding. I suspect this may not be the whole truth – extreme diet and many hours on the treadmill perhaps? I don’t know if that’s the truth, but it’s not normal or natural to loose weight that fast.

What choices Naomi Watts makes is up to her, but the simpering People article really irritates me. Beginning with  “New moms, eat your hearts out. ” Because we are supposed to be jealous that she’s a twig again? Yeah, it’s depressing that she looks freaking phenomenal for a 40-year-old mom of two but her job is looking good, she’s got a nanny,  and us mortals want to do stuff like, well, look after our babies.

If you wanna be even more depressed, check out People magazine’s collection of insanely fast celebrity post-baby weight loss.

Most doctors tell post-natal moms that it just isn’t healthy to start any weight loss or exercise program until at least six weeks after delivery. Your body needs to take that time to recover from the birth, it needs nourishment and rest, not diet and exercise.

It’s taken me almost three years to get back into shape after the birth of my son. So I wasn’t trying very hard or very consistently… I did more eating cake and playing with my son than cardio and I am perfectly happy with my choices. What I wanted to do in the first month after my son was born was to hold him and sing to him and nurse him and smell the top of his head and just be amazed at this tiny little person who was changing and growing and becoming more incredible every day. And eat cake. I had zero desire to go running. I kinda feel bad for Naomi for missing out on that in the quest to get skinny and go to premiers.

Hollywood moms are not all like that though. Salma Hayek told Oprah recently that she still hasn’t lost all the weight she gained when pregnant with her toddler daughter, Valentina. And in the news this week, former Spice Girl Emma Bunton told reporters that she took a year to loose the baby weight from her son, Beau, and she did it with sensible eating and exercise. “It’s got to be about balance though, being healthy but not letting it rule your life,” she says.”When my friends ask me ’round and say, ‘Let’s get a pizza,’ I would hate to be the only person picking at the pepperoni.” Good for you, girl!

Post-natal moms? Look after yourselves, ignore ridiculous celebrities, and let’s hear it for pizza!

In the interest of honesty, I’ll let you in on something that most of my friends probably already know but have been kind enough to not mention to me…at least not to my face: I gained too much weight with both my pregnancies, and even though my son is now a preschooler I still haven’t shed all the weight I gained from my first and second pregnancy. I guess when your “baby” starts speaking in complete sentences it becomes absurd to blame the pregnancy for the larger sized pants.

I could have been a little more careful with my eating and exercise during my pregnancies, and I know for sure that I went a little too crazy with my appetite while breastfeeding. I remember a friend telling me that Weight Watchers offers a special program for nursing moms, and while I never checked it out myself I couldn’t help but think that it took some of the fun out of being a nursing mom.

Now I’m reading about a “pregnancy diet” that is designed to help women keep their weight down throughout pregnancy. Talk about taking the fun out of something! It’s one thing to watch what you eat while pregnant and to make sure you get enough exercise, but an actual diet? My jaw would drop if a pregnant friend were to turn down a piece of pie, stating that she was on a diet. A diet? While pregnant? Well, I never.

I did a little research and found out that the diet is supposed to be based on medical research and be safe. Nonetheless, it has some nutritionists and doctors up in arms. I think the fear is that women will get the idea in their head that they aren’t supposed to gain any weight during pregnancy, and that’s just not healthy. I remember cringing at the numbers on the scale when I was pregnant, but never so much that I ever considered going on a diet.

It seems to me that if I had gained too much weight my doctor would have told me to cut back on my caloric intake and to increase my physical activities, but if he had referred me to a diet place I think I might have looked for a different doctor.

Then: People used to believe that physical exercise can be harmful to the unborn baby. After all, pregnancy was referred to as that “delicate condition” and doing anything strenuous could be lead to spontaneous abortion or pre-term birth.

Now: Exercise is encouraged for women during pregnancy and after delivery. It is beneficial to the health of both mother and baby.

Recently, researchers at the Michigan State University helped the US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to draft the first-ever guidelines on physical activity for Americans.

And it even includes detailed recommendations for pregnant women. The guidelines call for moderate-intensity aerobic exercise for 150 minutes scattered throughout a week. However, the following activities should be avoided:

• Exercise that involve lying on the back after the 1^st trimester.
• Activities that present high risk of falling or injury or impact to the abdominal area.
• In particular, contact or collision sports such as horseback riding, soccer, basketball, and downhill skiing are strongly discouraged.

According to research studies, some benefits of pregnancy exercise are as follows:

• Exercise can reduce pregnancy complications.
• Exercise may shorten labor time.
• Postpartum exercise increases the cardiorespiratory fitness and reduces low moods.
• Postpartum exercise, combined with a proper diet can help with weight loss and maintaining a health weight.

However, an exercise routine during and after pregnancy should be discussed with a qualified healthcare provider.

A complete copy of the guidelines is available at the DHHS website. The guidelines for pregnant women are in Chapter 6: Safe and Active and Chapter 7: Additional Considerations for Some Adults. Also of interest to BOL readers would be Chapter 3: Active Children and Adolescents. You will also find a great deal of information on prenatal exercise right here at Babies Online.

The whole process of conception, pregnancy, childbirth is an overwhelmingly incredible thing. But evolution has shortchanged us women somewhat, and while our bodies can do miraculous things, having children can take a toll on our physical selves.

One of the hardest working, and most neglected parts of a woman’s body is the pelvic floor. Your pelvic floor muscles are like a sling that holds up your internal organs. Part of the pelvic floor’s job is to help support the uterus and baby during pregnancy, and especially during late pregnancy, the pelvic floor muscles are under a lot of pressure.

Pelvic floor muscles are also responsible for bladder control and that’s often why many pregnant women, or women who have recently given birth, occasionally pee a little when they sneeze or try to lift something heavy. It’s called stress incontinence. Don’t feel bad if it’s happened to you – it happens to almost every mom at least once.

But, do take it as a sign that your pelvic floor needs a little attention. Doing pelvic floor muscle exercises, commonly known as Kegles, will strengthen your pelvic floor muscles and help reduce the likelihood of stress incontinence.

Here’s how you do kegle exercises.

First, you need to isolate your pelvic floor muscles. You can do this by trying to stop the flow of urine when you go to the bathroom. That’s your pelvic floor muscles working.

So now you know where it is, practice contracting the muscles. Try to relax the rest of your body, and not hold your breath.

Squeeze the pelvic floor muscles for a count of 2, then relax for 2. Repeat 10 times.

That was easy!

As you get more experienced, try to hold the squeeze for longer, try 3, 4, 5, or more seconds.

Try to do a couple of sets of Kegels every day if you are pregnant, if you have a baby, and even if you are trying to conceive. You can do them as you wait for your computer to boot up, or waiting at traffic signals, or as the coffee percolates, or as your toddler tries to make the important decision of frog shirt or truck shirt. Get into the habit, and you’ll be at much less risk of peeing when you sneeze.

People who live in older neighborhoods, those not designed around cars, tend to be slimmer than those in modern neighborhoods and suburbs. Your neighborhood might be making you fat.

I can completely understand this. Until last year, I used to live in a 1980s suburb in California, built for car-owners, where the only thing I could walk to was a gas station.

Now, after moving to the Midwest, I’m lucky to live in a great neighborhood built in the 1920s. The local historical society has a cute photo from the 1930s of a car driving down a local street, with two little boys looking at it like it had landed from space. I can walk to a couple of parks, the chemist, a supermarket, my son’s pediatrician, and a cool coffee shop with my son. If I’m feeling energetic I can push a stroller to two museums and walk along a river bank.

I’ve lost 10 lbs from the walking. It’s also wonderful to be able to set an active example to my son, I’m supporting local independent businesses, and I’ve saved money on gas… although spent it on lattes. Mama has to have caffeine!

I really appreciate my neighborhood. After living in year-round-sunshine California, it was a shock that frigid temperatures kept us indoors most of the winter. So this spring and summer, we’ve been out and taking advantage of our neighborhood.

You can find out the “Walk Score” of where you live on WalkScore.com (My house got a 74 out of 100, woo woo!) and while you can’t do much about the walkability of where you live right now, it might be useful if you are planning to move home any time soon.

After researching 8,150 infants at 9 months old, half were primarily cared for by someone other than the parents, the highlights of the study are as follows:

• 40% of infants who had been in daycare since 3 months of age were less likely to have been breastfed and were eating solids earlier than those cared for by parents.
• Babies in part-time care had gained 175 grams or 0.4 pounds more weight at 9 months than those who were cared for by their parents.
• Babies under other relatives’ care gained 162 grams or 0.35 pounds more weight, and also began eating solid foods earlier.

Why worry about the weight gain in babies? There have been enough studies consistent in their findings that early childhood weight gain can be a a precursor to being overweight as adults. These infants were also less likely to be breastfed understandably due to lack of time (daycare is more often a necessity because both parents are working). Breastfeeding has been linked by some studies, as offering some sort of protection against weight problems later in life.

Parents of children in daycare, what can you do? First, see if you can rearrange finances and schedule so one of you can stay at home full time, part time, or work from home. If that is not possible, be very clear in instructions with daycare staff as to what and when and how much they should be fed. Third, practice a healthy lifestyle of balanced diet and exercise for your babies to grow up emulating. You as parents, aren’t helpless against conclusions from research. And your child is not destined to become overweight just because they are in daycare.

This preys on the minds of just about every mom – how am I ever going to loose the baby weight? When there’s no time for a shower most days, how can there be time for exercise? And who are you going to get to look after baby when you go to the gym? And perhaps, how can you afford the gym membership if you have given up work?

OK, first of all, go easy on yourself, and this applies especially to moms who delivered very recently, and breastfeeding moms. Moms shouldn’t do anything strenuous until at least six weeks after delivery, and it’s best to wait for your obstetrician’s OK.

You need to eat and nourish yourself to recover from the delivery, and breastfeeding moms need extra calories to make milk. So eat healthy, and don’t go on any extreme diets.

It’s easiest to do exercise if you have someone who can watch your baby while you go to the gym. But many of us don’t have someone who can do that as often as we’d like. So here’s some ideas for exercise you can do with your baby.

Stroller Strides or Baby Bootcamp, or a local variant: Moms, with babies in strollers, running, doing squats, lunges, kicks, bends, in a big group. Pros: Being in a group makes it easier. Cons: not for the shy and retiring, because people will stare. Good thing there’s a lot of you. Also classes tend to run around $10 each so it can get expensive.

Walking: pushing baby in a stroller is good for you both. Or even better, put baby in a carrier and carry her around the block, or around the park. I took my son hiking in a carrier and he loved it. Pros: free, and anyone can do it. Cons: hard to get motivated, and can be impossible in the winter. Unless you live near a really large mall.

Cycling: Bike trailers are the hippest accessory in the city where I live – this is my bike trailer. My son loves riding in the trailer, and I get some pedaling in. Pros: Multitasking – can get exercise and also go to the supermarket. Cons: You need to buy equipment, and it’s weather dependent.

Exercise at Home: There’s several mom-and-baby videos on sale, and for thrifty moms, there’s many places to get free exercise videos on the internet. Shape Magazine has many videos, and Yoga Today has a free yoga video daily. Press play during naptime. Pros: free, and no need to leave the house. Cons: I’d rather sleep at naptime. And the risk of being distracted by the rest of the internet.

Toddler-cise: Do what your crawler or toddler does. 30 minutes of running up and down the hall, jumping on the bed and crawling under the dining room table, is as good a workout as any.

What exercise do you like to do with your baby? Have you got any more ideas of exercise to do with your baby or toddler? Please share your ideas!

I just tried a free class for a baby gym with my 10 month old. I was really skeptical as to whether this is really necessary. I mean, who’s ever heard of baby gyms before this generation of kids? You got them together with their cousins, or your neighbors’ kids, or your friends’ kids. That was that. No one had to pay $50+ for a monthly gym membership for their baby.

Well I guess times are changing. There were 7 other babies at the class we tried. Moms have more dispensable income these days, and they want options. There are also lots of moms who find themselves without friends or relatives with kids the same age. Hence the popularity of gyms, where your child can strengthen their muscles as well as socialize.

Case in point, me. I for one aren’t really on more than a hi-hello basis with my neighbors. And come to think of it, none of them have little kids my daughter’s age. I have two brothers who aren’t going to be having children any time soon. All my cousins are 16 and younger, and I have a couple-friend who is planning to have a baby but aren’t quite there yet. The rest of them are enjoying the single life. People seem to be postponing having kids later and later these days.

So the entrepreneurial soul who thought of the baby gym concept, more power to you. Moms are definitely thanking you for filling a need they didn’t think they had.

As for my daughter and me, we’re going to stick to free playgroups.

Unfortunately, clinical depression is becoming increasingly common, in children as well as adults. It is considered to be the second most common psychiatric ailment in western society, with anxiety being the first.

There are many changes to lifestyle which can help ease the problem, whether not medication is taken as well.

A good, healthy diet is vital. This should include fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains rather than white flour, oily fish or plenty of sesame, sunflower and linseeds (these have high levels of the fatty acids essential to good mental health).

There are also many foods that should be avoided. First of all is refined sugar. The consumption of excess quantities of sugar can lead to unstable blood sugar levels which can then lead to anxiety, depression and related symptoms.

Many of the additives in processed foods can have negative effects on moods. The artificial sweetener, aspartame, has been linked to depression. Alcohol is a brain depressant and also affects various body functions including sleep cycles. Products containing caffeine are also not recommended because they use up the body?s stores of B vitamins which are vital for mental health and also can give you a boost which is often followed by a low.

It is also important to consider any food intolerances or allergies. These can affect mood quite considerably. We tend to be intolerant to items that we get cravings for, so try eliminating these and see how you feel.

I consider a good, all round, multinutrient is vital for everybody, especially those with any sort of health problems. It is very hard these days to get enough nutrients in the diet, and by the time we are feeling ill we are already usually deficient in something. Many nutrients such as vitamin B, zinc, omega fatty acids and amino acids are vital to mental health.

Exercise is something else that is very important. It has many useful functions in keeping the body healthy. It produces endorphins which make us feel better. Going out in the park or, even better, in the countryside is also important, many people feel noticeably better after a brief time in nature.

It is also important to talk and to cry if you feel the need, but also to realise that you can feel better and to look at all the positive things in your life. There are many books available now on this subject. Find one that suits you.

Here is another study indicating that physical exercise during pregnancy is a good idea. New research results indicate that stretching may be a better strategy than walking in preventing preeclampsia – at least in women who were not physically active prior to pregnancy and who had a previous history of preeclampsia.

Preeclampsia is a condition wherein a pregnant woman’s blood pressure dramatically increases several times within a short period of time, causing hypertension, swelling, and kidney damage. According to FamilyDoctor.org, preeclampsia commonly occurs

• during first pregnancy
• in multiple pregnancies
• during the second half of a pregnancy
• in women with family history of preeclampsia
• in pregnant women under twenty and over 40
• in women with hypertension or kidney problems before pregnancy
• in women who lead a sedentary lifestyle before pregnancy.

The cause of preeclampsia is not known. However, it presents a serious risk to the mother and to the baby, making it one of “the leading causes of maternal and fetal illness and death worldwide”

While carrying my twins, I had the first 2 risk factors on the list. My blood pressure was closely monitored and I was extremely thankful that I did not develop this dangerous pregnancy complication.

The current study followed up 79 women who had previously experienced preeclampsia and had a sedentary lifestyle. These women were split into 2 groups. One group did a 40-minute moderate intensity walk 5 times a week. The other group did slow, non-aerobic stretching exercises following a 40-minute video 5 times a week.

The results of the study show that 15% of the walking group developed pregnancy-induced hypertension while on 5% of the stretching group had it.

While walking showed some beneficial effects on maternal health in general, it seems that stretching had a more protective effect against preeclampsia in this group of women.

The researchers speculate that stretching may induce more production of transferrin, “a plasma protein that transports iron through the blood and protects against oxidative stress on the body, and that helps guard against preeclampsia.”

However, in all cases, any form of physical exercise regime during pregnancy should only be performed after consultation with your obstetrician.

In many things in life, starting early gives the best results. This holds true for physical exercise as well. Exercise builds bone strength and the best results are seen when you start at a young age ? the time when skeletal growth and development is going on. Studies found that exercise that involves weight-bearing and mechanical loading such as walking, running or jumping has great effects on growing bones – much better in fact, than non-weight-bearing activities like swimming and cycling. Regular weight-bearing activities enhance growth of new bones, improve bone strength and bone mass. A healthy bone mass lowers the risk for osteoporosis and osteopenia.

In a previous post, I listed several strategies on how to keep kids active and moving and I`m happy to see upon reading this report that, indeed, my kids are ? moving? in the right direction.

On the other hand, we shouldn`t overdo it and overchallenge our kids with high strenuous activities like serious weight-lifting or endurance sports. Such exercises can overload growing joints and stunt bone growth. This, in turn, can affect overall growth of limbs and height development.

Sources:

Mercola.com

The benefits to mom for exercising while pregnant are well-known, and recently doctors discovered that it may benefit baby too – as well as giving mom’s heart a workout, baby’s heart also learns how to pump more efficiently.

There were many days during my nine months when I felt like a lump and wanted to stay in bed. But getting up, and going something active always felt good, once I was actually doing it. And my favorite thing to do was to get in the swimming pool.

Now, I have to pause and let you know that your boyfriend or husband thinks it’s in his contract to make whale jokes at the mention of swimming. You can consider yourself at liberty to bash him with a pool noodle or enquire what his excuse for not having a flat stomach is.

There’s also the tricky issue of maternity swimwear. You can wear your pre-pregnancy bikini and let the bump hang out, or buy a maternity swimsuit. For the best fit and bump coverage, I recommend the two-piece tankini style, as one-piece ones just don’t fit properly. I brought a black, halterneck Liz Lange for Target swimsuit that lasted happily through six months of swimming every other day.

Being in the water feels wonderful. I can’t even begin to describe how wonderful. Gravity seems to disappear as the water supports the bump. You’ll feel like you aren’t pregnant. It’s great for aches and pains, even if it only lasts while you are actually in the water.

Swimming is practically zero-impact, and you can go at the level that suits you. Almost everything goes – no diving of course, but otherwise pregnant women can swim just like non-pregnant women.

Aqua Aerobics is fun if you need a bit of motivation, or company, or both. Many community centers have aqua-aerobics classes and most pregnant women can join in with a regular class. Signing up for a session of classes is good motivation if there’s specific times you know you have a class. The class I took was at a newly-built swimming pool and for some reason, their new sprinkler system couldn’t be configured properly. A firetruck full of hot firemen seemed to arrive to tinker with it every week, a nice bonus!

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.

Still trying to lose that baby weight? Every magazine on the newsstand seems to tout a new way to ?walk off the weight.? But you know what? Combined with a healthy diet filled with lots of fruits, veggies and whole grains, walking really does work!

Walking is also the perfect exercise during pregnancy. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) says that, ideally, pregnant women should aim for 30 minutes of moderate activity, which can include walking, six or seven days of the week. For more tips on walking during pregnancy, check out this article.

Regular, moderate walking will also reduce your risk of heart disease, which is the number one killer in the United States. Now, the American Heart Association gives everyone?new moms, pregnant women, dads, and children–a reason to start walking on April 16, which the organization has declared National Start Walking Day! The AHA hopes to raise one million dollars for heart disease and encourage Americans to, collectively, take one million steps beginning on April 16. You can log in to AHA Start with a Million site to see how your city is doing!

You can squeeze in a 30-minute walk during lunch, after work, or even in the morning. Walk around the mall, your office building, or enjoy the fresh air, put the baby in his stroller, and walk around your neighborhood. If you have older children, walk around the park while they play on the swings. When I worked in an office, I took a shortened lunch break and then made a 10-minute walk to Starbucks (and back) part of my daily routine in the late afternoon. Walking requires no special equipment, no training, and no great physical abilities.

Whether you?re already in shape or need some inspiration to jump start your fitness efforts, why not tie on your most comfy pair of sneakers, invite some friends out this Wednesday, and start walking?

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.