Postpartum — Page 2

Postpartum Running {6 Months}

November 18, 2013 by Michelle 17 Comments

It’s crazy to think that Evan is already 6 months old! I know I say that every month, but I really do feel like I was 38 weeks pregnant and trying to “run” him out (unsuccessfully).

Seriously mom, wear hats all the time. They taste so good.

I initially planned on updating my running progress on a monthly basis — but I apparently overestimated the time and energy I would have to write my blog posts. Do you know that I used to post more than once a day? How did I do that?

So, to to follow up my last post on postpartum running – here’s my 6 month check in!

What and how I’m doing:

I’m still not up to any serious kind of mileage, but at 2-3 months postpartum I was happy to be hitting 10 miles a week. I’m happy to report that on an “on” week (more about that in a minute) I’ll hit about 20 miles. A far cry from when I was marathon training, but more than I’ve run for over a year.

I’ve gotten MUCH better at taking selfies though. Priorities.

As far as a running schedule goes… my body is STILL recovering from pregnancy. Since I’m breastfeeding, I still have extra hormones hanging around that make it difficult for me to go “balls to the wall.” My biggest weakness is my hips. I’ll feel great one week and then I’ll randomly have hip flexor pain. I think a lot of this is because I quit my chiropractor. It wasn’t something I WANTED to do necessarily, but his office has weird hours and none of them fit into my schedule. I discovered that there is a sports chiropractor near work – so I’m hoping to check him out soon.

Until then I will be following a “week on” and “week off” running schedule. One week I’ll put in 20-25 miles and the next I’ll put in 5-10. For whatever reason, it’s working right now. I feel stronger and faster every on week. I focus a lot on strength training on my off week. This schedule also makes me miss running – so when I comes time to get my long run in, I am completely pumped up for it!

Seriously – how good is this selfie?

What’s on the schedule?

My next race is the Orlando OUC Half Marathon on December 7th. This is my third time running it and it’s a favorite – I guess because I really enjoy running through my city!

After that I have two half marathons in January (back-to-back weekend– so I’ll really be pushing it) and The Best Damn Race in March:

ZOOMA Florida <–Prettiest race you’ll ever run… read last year’s recap!
Celebration Half
Best Damn Race Orlando <– Better live up to its name

Psssst – I am a ZOOMA Amabassador — use code FLAAMB8 for a 10% discount!

What’s next?

I’d like to run a few more races in February and March, but I’m not committing to anything YET. Once April hits it’s generally too hot to run during the light of day, so after that my sights will be turned to MARATHON TRAINING! *excited*

I have yet to register for these said marathons (yes, plural), but it’s exciting to think about. Of course, I’m getting a little ahead of myself. I really need to focus on getting back to running 20-25 miles a week. I would help if Evan would start sleeping through the night (ha), but that doesn’t look like it’s happening any time soon. Instead, it means I need to start getting my ass up at 5am again to run.

Hmmm. I’ll you know how that’s going at my next check-in.

Inspirational words of wisdom (aka – a pep-talk to myself)

I’ve read a lot of blogs where women are up and running 2 week postpartum and running marathons after 4 months. And you know what? That’s awesome for them, I guess. A part of me thinks, “why would you want to run that much with a little baby?” I get it though. It helps them feel like them again.

I thought the hats were tasty — OMG the straps on these medal things are AMAZING. PLEASE KEEP RUNNING, MOM.

However, part of me is envious that they are able to “bounce back” so quickly. Here I am 6-months in and still struggling to build back my strength and speed. I know a lot of it has to do with priorities (I know it’s shocking that running isn’t my #1) and breastfeeding. But, I do want to put out there and remind MYSELF that it’s OK. Just because I’m not back to “normal” at 6 months postpartum doesn’t mean my body isn’t capable of doing more. It might take another 6 months or a year, but pushing my body beyond it’s limits is NOT a good idea when I have a little person who is primarily dependent upon ME.

So, if you’re like me and you aren’t running all the races or PRing all over the place, it’s cool man. Be patient and keep working at it. Instead of diving in head first you’re chipping away and building a solid base. At least that’s what I keep telling myself 😉

At least the baby is cute.

Yep. Worth it.

E and Me {5 Months Postpartum}

October 25, 2013 by Michelle 8 Comments

Well, I’ve been slacking on these monthly posts…huh? Oops.

Well, E is 5 (and a half) months old and I wanted to document what’s going on in our world.

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E is still a BIG boy. At his 4-month check up he was 18.5lbs and 27 inches — 96th % for weight and off the charts for height. Now that it’s about a month and a half later, the trend continues. He’s not AS chunky (but don’t worry – he’s still got meaty thighs!), but he’s definitely tall. We were also excited that his head size is now on the charts as well. Barely. It came in at the 99th %. Lol.

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I’m still not sure what color hair he is going to have. Despite it looking dark – it’s coming in light. Possible a strawberry blonde/red.

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If it’s red, I will be GIDDY. It looks red, right?

He has also TWO teeth. Waaaa. He started cutting them about 2 weeks ago. I honestly had NO idea he was teething — he wasn’t fussy, he didn’t show any signs of discomfort, and there were no fevers (both B & L would spike high fevers when they were teething). No, he was gnawing on my knuckle and I thought, “That feels sharp!” and sure enough – there was a tooth. And 3 days later, there was a second one.

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As far as milestones go – this has been a big month! He finally started rolling. He’s actually been able to roll for a few months now. He did it a few times, but was like “Eh, being on my back is just fine.” (he was not a huge fan of being on his tummy) But things have quickly changed and now he’s rolling any chance he can get.

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He also figured out how to jump in his Jumperoo…

He could probably do this for hours – it makes him SO happy.

Speaking of happy – yep, he’s still our happy, easy-going little guy.

"I like waking the big people up at night. It's my favorite!"

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I love this lip thing he does.

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He loves people and flirt with them any chance he can get. He has transitioned from happy shrieks….

To saying “Ba ba ba ba.” (I’m trying to get him to say “Mama”, but we all know he’ll say “Dada” first.) It’s so cute watching him hear himself talk. Sometimes he’s surprised by it.

Around the 5 month mark we started introducing solids. We started with oatmeal and added fruits and veggies. He likes them. A lot.

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We all knows he loves his ~~food source~~ mama , but he also adores his daddy, big brother, and sister. He just lights up when he sees them. As long as L isn’t getting all up in his face.

When babies attack.

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The only area we are struggling in is sleep. *Yawn*

We were snuggling and he fell asleep. #tiredpuppybrother

We didn’t really experience the 4-month sleep regression…. until we hit 5 months. The past 3 weeks have been rough. For starters, we’re trying to transition out of the Rock n Play and swaddle. I bought a (ridiculously expensive) Merlin’s Magic Sleepsuit.

Trying out something new tonight. Trying to wean from the Rock n Play Sleeper. #fingerscrossed

Beam me up.

We call it the spacesuit. It definitely works for night, but we’re still swaddling/Rock n Playing for naps.

In the past three weeks we’ve made SOME progress. E can now put himself to sleep. Yay! I put him down drowsy, but awake, and he’s out in about 5-10 minutes without a fuss. However, he’s STILL waking up in the middle of the night. Like 3-4 times during the middle of the night. It’s exhausting.

I’ve been reading The Sleep Lady (which really helped me with getting E to go to sleep on his own) and I KNOW he can doesn’t need to wake to eat THAT often. Her rule of thumb is he can go his longest stretch without eating — which in E’s case is 10 hours. Not 2-4 hours. However, I’m a sucker and it’s easiest to just nurse him when he wakes up in the middle of the night (he’s now in the co-sleeper in our room), so I’m failing in this area.

I know what’s it’s going take — moving him into his crib and doing some sleep training. However, I’m NOT ready for it (which is funny b/c B was sleeping in the crib at 6 weeks and L at 3 months). It’s just so easy to have him in our room with us and he’s not a disruptive sleeper! Ah, I’m just making excuses. I’m pretty sure this is all going to happen in the next few weeks.

That’s a lot of rambling on sleep.

As for me…

I don’t have any measurement pictures for you – but I’m pretty much “back to normal.” Whatever normal is. My weight is maybe a little under my pre-pregnancy weight and most days I feel good about my postpartum body. My days have been getting easier and sometimes I even blow-dry my hair.

I blew dry my hair this morning. Chances of that happening again any time soon are slim to none.

Sometimes.

Running has been getting easier. The (slight) change in weather has helped! (minus my fail run last week – but we won’t get into that) I’ve slowly been increasing my mileage and even PR’d at my first race back (it’s helps that I ran the race pregnant last year!).

5MilerFlying

Apparently, I was SO excited to be racing again – I decided to take flight.

Emotionally, I’ve been feeling like myself again — minus the sleep deprivation and exhaustion — it makes me grumpy and tired. Especially in the morning. This too shall pass though, right? RIGHT?

That said – it’s crazy to me that it’s almost been 6 months since this little guy was born. When is someone inventing that Slow-Down Time Machine? I’m ready and willing to test it out!

I promise to be back with a real 6-month update. That’s kinda a big milestone!

All The Things I Didn’t Expect

September 10, 2013 by Michelle 26 Comments

I can’t believe it, but Evan will hit four months at the end of this week. What? That’s crazy.

I’ll have a four month update sometime in the next week or so, but we have definitely hit a sweet spot. FINALLY. I feel much more emotionally stable, which helps. That said, I still have my moments. For example, the other night I was really, really sad that I didn’t have this huge baby bump anymore…

And then I remember how horribly uncomfortable that baby bump was and how I was SO READY to be done.

Unimpressed on my due date. Hey – remember when I used to do my hair?

And then I was sad that he’s no longer this sweet adorable smushy newborn…

Just focus on how tiny he looks here, now how scary I look.

And I remember how much personality he has now AND how much more he sleeps and how less often he eats.

So yeah… it’s a rollercoaster.

While there four months have been full of frustrations and sleep deprivation – they have also been full of so much love and joy. And, as the title of this posts indicates: surprise. There are just some things I didn’t expect (or apparently remember)…

How much I would be IN LOVE.

Obviously, I love my kids. I would give my life for theirs any second of the day, any day of the week. However, the love you feel for a infant is so much more consuming that the love you feel for your 7-year old. Or your 4-year old.

I’m hypothesizing that it has something to do with the fact that your infant cannot talk back. Call me crazy.

It’s not that I love Evan any differently than my older two. No, I was just as head over heels in love with them. But, over time they start forming opinions and you know there’s that whole “not listening to you” thing. When they are tiny and sweet and snuggly – you are their ENTIRE WORLD and it is amazing. This is exactly WHY I love the baby phase.

How tired I would be.

I remember being tired the previous two times, but this time I’m actually going to bed when the baby goes to bed and I’m STILL pretty effing tired. I chalk this up to being old. The last time I did this I was 31– and the first time I was 28. Man, those years have added up! A HUGE reason why I could never have a 4th is that I don’t think I would be awake for it.

How much my hormones would try to convince me to have more babies.

Speaking of having a 4th… that’s never going to happen. BUT, my hormones have been trying to tell my brain that I should consider it. Thankfully, those hormones are dying down now because no. Just no. I barely have the patience for three and like I said – there’s that whole tired thing. Oh and not to mention that whole finances thing. In case you didn’t know – babies are expensive. And I don’t want to spend ALL of my hard earned money on them. Well, on them just being babies at least.

How easy AND hard it would be for my kids to transition.

B and L looooooove Evan so much. They want to hold him, play with him, and kiss him every chance they get. They love trying to make him smile and laugh. I’m pretty sure they are also feeling the newborn love! However, as the weeks have gone on I have noticed little personality quirks in both of them that I’m now attributing to our newest addition. And I have to say, it’s the hardest freaking thing about transitioning to being a mom of three! I wish I could convince them I still love them the same as before and that, in the grand scheme of things, nothing has changed. I know eventually they will adjust – but it makes me feel a little sad and a lot guilty to see them struggle.

How easy the transition would be, but how hard each day would feel.

By easy transition I mean – the baby is really easy to take care of. If he were my first? I’d probably want 10 more just like him.
I can put him down and 85% of the time he will just play or shove his fist in his mouth and coo. Or, he’ll just look at me like this…

However, almost every day I feel like a champion because I make it through it. These past 2 weeks since school started have been INTENSE. It’s mad dash to leave the house every day (and despite the time I actually get to work, I am typically IN my car by 7:55) and then it’s a mad dash to do pickup before 6. Add more homework than ever and three exhausted kids – and I’m pretty much in bed myself by 9:15 every night. This is new for me. I’m used to being the one who can function on a little bit of sleep and caffeine, but it’s not flying anymore.

How much Evan fits in and how complete my family feels.

Evan really did fit in from the start. When Braeden was born it took a little while to wrap my head around having a baby. When Livie was born it took a while to wrap my head around having a baby who was SO different from Braeden in every way. But when Evan was born it just felt… right. I don’t know, it was weird. I also could imagine myself having another baby after B & L – but this time, I can’t. Evan is meant to be the 5th and final member. We are truly complete. Three is my number.

How sad I would feel that I’m moving on.

I think the hardest part about having your last baby is just that — it’s the last. I mean, duh. I won’t get to be pregnant again. I won’t get to feel the baby moving in my belly again. I won’t get to experience birth again (although, truthfully I’m OK with that), and I won’t get to experience the newborn stage again. At least with my own. My maternity clothes are packed up and ready to be dispersed to pregnant friends and family members. I’ve started packing away newborn and 3 months clothes for good. It’s caused a few tears. I naively thought I would be ready the 3rd time around for the closure, but it’s not happening as easily as I expected. All good things DO come to and end – and it’s OK to grieve them.

How excited I would be about THE FUTURE!

To complicate my sadness, I am also really excited about the things to come! Family vacations, races, home improvements — oh my! Sometimes when you are in baby madness you forget that there is LIFE after having babies. Not that you can’t DO these things when you have small children, but as I’ve learned – they are infinitely easier as the kids get bigger! I am truly excited for the adventures to come. You know, once I get a little more sleep.

What family vacation should be plan first?? I really want to take my kids to Europe when they are older, but I’m thinking Hawaii in a few years. Am I crazy?

Postpartum Running – Months 1 and 2

August 28, 2013 by Michelle 19 Comments

Hey, remember how this used to be a blog about running? Well, it’s SLOWLY making a comeback. It’s kind of at creeper’s pace right now – but I assure you in the next month or two it’s really going to pick up again. I DO have races planned (and even ones I’ve paid for!).

So how did the first 2 months go?

I know I’ve used these gifs before, but it pretty much sums it up.

Running has been HARD. The first month back I struggled with hip flexor issues. While my brain and legs were ready to run, my hips were all…

Yeah, they definitely had other ideas.

I did a lot of research and remedied my sore hips with hamstring, abductor, and hip exercises. Here’s a list of the exercises I did. I usually integrated them into my workouts. I actually still do most of them throughout the week at least once – I figure it doesn’t hurt.

Those aren’t nipples, but they kind of look like them don’t they?

I also added A LOT of spinning to my workouts. In my postpartum haze I kind of forgot how I built up my endurance for running after having Livie — yep lots of indoor cycle. It really works those glutes! I’m not gonna lie – the thought of getting back on a bike seat after having a 9+lb baby LITERALLY rushing out of your hoo-ha wasn’t exactly appealing, but it hasn’t been bad at all. Those are details I’m sure EVERYONE wanted to know, right?

For the first month, at least after the first glorious week back, I was pretty limited in my running. It just hurt too much. So, I started from scratch. I ran ran/walk 2 miles, then 3, then 4. During the second month I focused on running without walking and again – started with 2 and added on – slowly. I also took a week off when I visited family in MA, although it was PERFECT running weather. Still kicking myself on that one.

Last Sunday, 2 months after being cleared to run, I ran a whopping 6 miles for my “long” run with Paula, who was also returning from her own little recovery.

6 miles done with this girl. I have no idea how I once ran a marathon.

We look so cute and matchy — and that was totally unplanned.

And you know what? It was freaking hard. And humbling. And it hurt like I just ran 18 miles. We’re talking about 6 miles here people. SIX.

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Please remind me how I ran a marathon again? And why I REALLY REALLY want to do it again?

Yes, it was hot and humid (story of my life) and we were both tired and forgot to eat — but honestly, we went into it thinking “Yay! The easiest 6 miles ever.” Like I said, humbling.

I’m pretty sure these last two months have knocked some common sense into me. Before I had Evan I was all – YA BABY I’M TOTALLY GOING TO PR THIS BITCH! And now I’m all.. Dude. I’m slow.

It kind of feels like this. I feel that turtle’s pain.

It’s a harsh reality that I’ve chosen to accept. Yes, I’m slowly gaining back my endurance and the speed will come with it, but I guess I was expecting my body to bounce back quicker. I’ve actually STOPPED logging my workouts in Daily Mile because they kind of depress me. It was much more impressive when I had a tiny human living inside of me. In fact, I was FASTER when I had tiny human living inside of me.

I’m not posting this to be a Debby downer though or to fish for compliments/support. Despite the pity party above, I’m generally pretty happy about where am with running. I’m running far enough so I know I will definitely finish the 5-miler race in October (and I’m still hopeful for a PR!) and I will hit a high enough number to run half marathons in November/December/January (so far I have 4 on my list). They may not be fast, but I am -slightly- faster than I was when I FIRST started running and I guess that’s something.

And hey – I DID run under a 10:00 pace tonight. Just think of how much faster when it gets cooler. In 4 months. <–I wish I were joking about this.

Progress. All of my miles were under 10 minutes.

So to sum it up, months 1 and 2 kinda sucked, but the beginning always sucks. There’s definitely something that keeps me coming back. Whether it’s the challenge, the endorphins, or just plain stupidity I may never know, but in the end it’s because I love it. Have I mentioned that I love running? Because I really do.

And by the way… HE?

Cat nap.

Is totally worth it.

E and Me {3 Months Postpartum}

August 25, 2013 by Michelle 35 Comments

I’m soooo late writing this post, but Evan is 3 months old!

This last month was full of a lot of changes for Evan and I. Mostly because I went back to work and the days of “sleeping in” are over. He goes to daycare 3 days a week, is home with Dan for one day, and me for one day. So far, he’s taken this change like a champ.

Not surprised, he has taken to most things like a champ.

Weight/Height – Totally guessing here, but I’d say he probably hit about 17-18lbs at 3 months and between 25-26 inches in length. He’s a big guy.

Working on a 3-month update (late). Love how this picture captures his always moving arms.

He also NEVER stops moving when he’s awake.

At 3 months he…

Sleep/Naps – He goes to bed around 8:30, wakes up once around 2:30, and then is typically up for the day around 7:30. This started around the time I went to back to work and while it’s not the case EVERY night, it’s what happens MOST nights. As for naps… well we’re still working on that. He’s a catnapper and will sleep for an hour every 1.5-2 hours all day long. He is STARTING to consolidate daytime sleep, but he’s definitely not there yet. He still sleeps swaddled in the Rock n Play Sleeper in our room at night… and while he’s home during the day. He will also still sleep on me. *love*

Eats – He’s definitely had some kind of growth spurt the last few weeks. He eats longer BUT he also go longer between feedings. He used to eat every 1-2 hours and now he’s every 2-4 during the day. He’s still exclusively breastfed and will be until about 6 months – when I introduce solids (unless he shows interest earlier – so far he’s content with mama’s milk).

Milestones – Blowing bubbles, giggling/laughing, finding his hands, shoving his hands into his mouth, rolling over to his side (thankfully NOT all the way -yet) and grabbing at his toys

Likes – Himself (in the mirror), most people, ceiling fans, his bath, his car seat, his play mat, swaddling (he smiles at me the entire time I am swaddling him – it’s bizarre), mama’s milk, Fridays, his chicken

Dislikes – Getting out of the bath, being woken up

Yep, Evan continues to be our easy, roll-with-the-punches, little (big) guy. He is full of smiles and is really just a joyful baby. He loves the attention, but I can also put him down and he is content “playing” by himself. He has his fussy times, but they are pretty rare. In fact, E’s daycare provider said he was “80% easier than Livie.” And I thought SHE was an easy baby!

As for me… Here come the postpartum pictures…

Compared to last month, I’m a little smaller all over. I’m still feeling soft and smushy in the belly area – but I feel stronger in my arms, shoulders, and legs.

I think the biggest change I can see in the comparison pictures is in my back. Of course, it doesn’t help that I’m wearing different shorts.

Here are months 1 and 2…

Emotionally: Oh boy, I have been a mess…as you all know. Thankfully things have calmed down and things are starting to feel more routine and normal. Month 3 was definitely my hardest month. I think the lack of sleep and the feeling like I had to get it all done, all the time got the best of me. Lesson learned.

Physically: I weighed in at a Dr’s appointment a few weeks ago and I’m now down a few pounds. I now weigh less than pre-pregnancy. I can tell in my pants as they are all a little too big (but of course NONE of my shirts/dresses fit!). I expect to lose a few more pounds in the next 9 months, but don’t worry I will gain it all back when I stop pumping :). Thanks to my wonderful hormones, I have started losing my hair (I already have a few bald spots) and have been bruising VERY easily. I need to be better about taking my prenatal vitamins – I’m SURE that it has something something to do with it.

Fitness/Running: I have to admit, working out has gotten harder now that I’ve returned to work. I am still trying to squeeze some workouts in at least 2-3 times a week though. I plan on doing a whole post on running, but it’s going slow. I have managed to hit 5 miles, but at this point I have no idea how I’m going to run a half marathon again, let alone a FAST half marathon.

So to sum it up… Evan is cute, I was (am?) stressed…but in the end, it’s all good and we’re figuring out what works for us. One thing is CERTAIN: I love this little guy and cannot imagine him NOT being a part of our family. He is one sweet little dude.

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