Bouncing Back

Paige Marie is 7 weeks old already and wow, the road has been rough but (of course) wonderful. Our biggest challenge so far has been the breastfeeding and it has been quite difficult. After a couple of excruciating weeks, I finally visited a lactation consultant who told us that Paige has a tight frenulum (the skin connecting the tongue to the bottom of the mouth) which makes it impossible for her to fully extend her tongue and breastfeed properly ... hence the reason why she's been essentially "munching" on my nipples! Ouch! Can I say it again? Ouuuuuuuch! I've had mastitis and thrush twice each and poor little Paige has had her frenulum clipped twice! It seems that we are on the road toward improvement now but wow... what a rough (and painful) start! (P.S. Any mom's having trouble breastfeeding who still want to continue to try? Call a lactation consultant! They can help you out!)

Needless to say, the breastfeeding situation has been consuming my time but a couple of weeks ago, I had to get serious... Being the "go-getter" that I like to be, I agreed to present a workout session at one of the country's biggest fitness conventions (IDEA World) 10 weeks after having a baby - on how "Mama Got Her Abs Back". Frankly, my abs are the last thing I've been wanting to think about but I suppose the pressure has been good because it's teaching me how to get where I want to be as efficiently as I can!

Time is short (and precious!) when you have a newborn so the most effective way for me to workout is at home on the BOSU Ball. David has been good about helping me with Paige while I prepare my body for my session but the most I can realistically fit in is about 20 minutes every other day. (I also go our for long walks with Paige over the hills in the neighborhood almost every day. That definately helps the booty get back in shape!) I'm finding that I actually love it that I only have 20 minutes for my workout! Because my time is limited, I push myself harder and I know that my body responds well to that. And, I may be pushing harder but because the interval of time is short, I'm not exhausted afterward. In fact, I feel energized and refreshed! I'm finding that I need and look forward to these 20 minute workouts in order to meet the demands of caring for a newborn infant! And... I can see that I am getting my Abs back!

I hope to keep up with this schedule for the next couple of weeks so that I am in the best shape I can be for my session at IDEA. What excites me about it is that I feel I am a REAL LIFE example of a post-natal fitness plan that is Do-Able for most people who can find 20 minutes to do it. I can't wait to share my results with the group!