fell off the wagon

jhard728

My wife and I were blessed with a beautiful and healthy baby boy in March. on the surface everything is great and life is better than ever. I was doing a good job of maintaining a 30 lb. weight loss from two years ago as well as exercising and eating right.

I knew things were getting bad because I have gotten away from cooking fresh and healthy meals at night for dinner and exercising. I used to work out at night and now I can't wait to get to bed at the end of the day. My son wakes through the night a few times and although my wife is up much more than I am I feel exhausted (combination of poor diet, little exercise and lack of sleep).

I am looking for any advice for keeping fitness, diet and exercise a priority and achievable when life gets in the way and it feels like you can't get a second to yourself let alone cook and get a workout in.

Thanks in advance

jgwilhelmsen

I have had four babies, and those first few months are always tough! What has worked for me is to focus on feeding yourself healthy and nutritious food and walking with the baby for exercise. I use to walk during the day to help get me out of the house and get some fresh air, and to calm down the baby. Once they were old enough and sleeping through the night, I started back to the gym.

Feeding yourself and getting plenty of rest is key. Go for walks whenever possible. Make a soup to have for lunches.

Best wishes & enjoy that baby. The days are long but the years are short.

oceangirl99

I walk during my coffee breaks at work. Luckily I have the flexibility to do that. That means a 30 minute walk/day.
I have three kids and remember those days of waking up at night and being exhausted by bed time... but I pushed through it. I used to put my kids to bed and go out for a run. Being cozy in bed with them, reading books, and then heading out into the dark and sometimes snow or rain. I trained for a marathon after my kids went to bed (literally) and ran until midnight sometimes. Sounds crazy BUT I pushed and it got easier.... because I got to the point where I NEEDED the exercise and because I was getting the exercise I had more energy. I guess my advice is just push through being tired.
Food on the other hand has been more of a problem for me (and it is said weight gain/loss is 85% food). Fortunately I love salad. I mean really love it. I make a big salad once a day and eat it for dinner and for lunch. When you do cook make extra so you can eat it for a couple of meals. Oh and use a crock pot. My kids are in hockey and I have hardly any time between getting home from work and getting the kids out the door so I have a chicken roasted (using my delayed start on my oven) and salad that was made ahead for those crazy nights. We get a healthy meal and it takes minimal time.

vivmom2014

Oh, the new baby days. So wonderful, but so exhausting. Congratulations on your new addition!

Give yourself a little space here. Your priorities have changed, and you need some time to adjust. Crock pot meals are a lifesaver. Weekend cooking can be a godsend. Decide on a few simple meals that you enjoy and concentrate on those. Maybe invest in some protein bars for something quick to grab. Take advantage of ready-cut vegetables and bagged salads. Drink lots of water.

You will get back to your exercise and fitness routines soon enough. There's no rush. Logging your food and aiming for your calorie goals are what matter now.

crazyjerseygirl

Congratulations!

Sometimes when you fall off the wagon the best thing you can do is cling to the side of that sucker and ride it through!

Remember that actions speak louder than words and your son seeing you exercise and eat well will be worth the effort. For now, concentrate on getting enough sleep and try reintroducing the good habits a little bit at a time! By the time he's old enough to eat dinner with you, you'll have some good stuff he could eat!

tellicampi

I have a three month old at home. When i get home from work, I typically spend that time with my son. Once my wife and i put him to bed, we work on preparing a quick meal. Exercising at the end of the day is the last thing i want to do.

I find the best time to exercise for me is before i have to go to work

Liftng4Lis

Congratulations. Great recognizing, now get back on it. Try grabbing a workout in the mornings?

Orphia

Going for walks with your child in the stroller will amuse and/or settle him and do you lots of good including probably help you sleep.

Try not to feel overwhelmed by it all, and best wishes.

victoria_1024

It's hard. It has taken me 4 babies to realize that I couldn't let my excuses keep me from taking care of myself. I had my 4th baby in January (4 kids under 6!!) and I've taken off 77 lbs since then. With 4 kids, it is pretty rare that I get to sleep through the night so being tired is a constant way of life! But exercise makes me more energetic and happier. I feel guilty when my house is a mess and I choose exercising over cleaning. I often choose exercise over other responsibilities but I figure the mess will always be there. I don't always have time to eat healthy, but I count every calorie so if we end up eating McDonalds or something, I just try to pick a low calorie meal. Log everything and be accountable! If you have a bad food day, just jump back into the next day. You can do it!

Christine_72

Orphia wrote: »

Going for walks with your child in the stroller will amuse and/or settle him and do you lots of good including probably help you sleep.

Try not to feel overwhelmed by it all, and best wishes.

Yep true. Can I ask why your baby is still waking up in the night at 9mths old?

brb2008

christinev297 wrote: »

Orphia wrote: »

Going for walks with your child in the stroller will amuse and/or settle him and do you lots of good including probably help you sleep.

Try not to feel overwhelmed by it all, and best wishes.

Yep true. Can I ask why your baby is still waking up in the night at 9mths old?

Because all babies are different and some take their time! Not every baby does the wonderful sleeping through the night by 6mos thing.

I was a nanny for an infant from 3mos-11mos and I tell you what that babe must have hated to sleep! Short naps no matter what and always woke every 3-4 hrs over night, until I moved on. They had every book written about baby sleep.

When I worked for that family I was constantly exhausted, and I wasnt even there at night. Just not having hardly any time with her sleeping to take a break, so I got my "relaxation" in by walking. She was in a ergo baby carrier and I'd walk for an hour or so a day. Some days she was fussier than others and didn't like being in one spot that long, so we'd break it up. You'll get there and make it work eventually.

Just remember he's changing and growing every day. Just when you think you know his schedule and get into a groove (say he starts always waking at 7, meaning a workout for you at 6.... then a week later he's going to be wide awake at 4:30 for a little while. Always expect the curve!

mikebooker1

jhard728 wrote: »

My wife and I were blessed with a beautiful and healthy baby boy in March. on the surface everything is great and life is better than ever. I was doing a good job of maintaining a 30 lb. weight loss from two years ago as well as exercising and eating right.

I knew things were getting bad because I have gotten away from cooking fresh and healthy meals at night for dinner and exercising. I used to work out at night and now I can't wait to get to bed at the end of the day. My son wakes through the night a few times and although my wife is up much more than I am I feel exhausted (combination of poor diet, little exercise and lack of sleep).

I am looking for any advice for keeping fitness, diet and exercise a priority and achievable when life gets in the way and it feels like you can't get a second to yourself let alone cook and get a workout in.

Thanks in advance

As I type this I have a newborn sleeping on my chest and it's 4:45 AM so I definitely understand your plight. I don't get up nearly as much as my wife but I do all that I can.

My advice is you may have to alter your workout to fitness activities. For example I used to think the only way to workout was at gym. That's just not practical for me anymore. Now I do house chores while focusing on strengthening my core. I also bought an elliptical to sneak in 20 minutes here and there. I also park further away from my office front door. I count laps around my living room while I hold my daughter as falls asleep. Basically any way I can think to burn a calorie I do it.

In terms of eating I tend to be a stress eater. To avoid this I eat on a schedule with breakfast lunch and dinner. I allow myself a snack in between but I try to keep it under 150 calories. Also I've started to drink hot unsweetened tea. It's soothing and by the time I finished a cup the urge to eat is gone.

jhard728

Thanks everyone for the advice. It has been and awesome year and I am truly blessed but just got so caught up in everything that is going on around me that I forgot to make time for myself. I started making chicken, salads and veggies ahead of time about two weeks ago and that has been helping. will definitely try the crockpot thing and keep making time to meal prep. I get to the gym when I can and unfortunately my basement gym is being drywalled right now (diy) and is unusable for a couple more weeks. Walking outdoors is a challenge in Wisconsin in December with a baby. I do get the dog out for short walks after the baby goes to bed and I am sure it helps but not really enough distance to make any substantial exercise out of it.

Thanks so much everyone!

jhard728

Christine_72 wrote: »

Orphia wrote: »

Going for walks with your child in the stroller will amuse and/or settle him and do you lots of good including probably help you sleep.

Try not to feel overwhelmed by it all, and best wishes.

Yep true. Can I ask why your baby is still waking up in the night at 9mths old?

Christine, he was sleeping through the night wonderfully but he had to have a surgery and he had a catheter in for 10 days along with stitches and pain meds it just seemed to throw him off. he is getting better sleep by the night but still a challenge.

missblondi2u

Congrats on your little one!

I endorse the walking with the baby suggestion since you can get exercise and bonding time all at once. If it's too cold to get outside with the baby, maybe go to the mall or even a Walmart/Target. You can get some exercise and do a little shopping while your wife gets some sleep

For meals, my husband does a lot of cooking on the weekend so we have meals in the fridge/freezer ready to go. Examples--he grills off a few pounds of chicken and puts it in tupperware for use in salads/wraps/sandwiches, he makes pots of soup to freeze in ziploc bags for defrosting later, he makes a huge pot of marinara that he freezes for quick spaghetti meals, he preps most of our veggies by washing and cutting them for ease later, etc.