Carving Out Time to Move in the 1st Year
Time to read: 3-4 mins
Once you're back on your feet and feel able to move around and leave the house a whole world opens up to you. Of course, you’re still somewhat restrained seeing as you are always accompanied by your baby, and their pram, baby bag, kitchen sink BUT at least you can get out of the house.
Everyone I’ve spoken to has been in agreement that walking with the baby in the first year is almost a daily occurrence and lots of my friends actually attribute their positive mental health to this practice, even keeping it up now that their children are in childcare.
A walk a day certainly provided some much needed structure, a change of scenery, a chance to escape slightly with a podcast or a phone call while the baby is safely in the pram or sling and also some light exercise to get our hearts pumping and stay active.
Something I craved during the first year with my baby was a chance to meditate as I just needed a moment’s peace and to recentre my thoughts. I found this nearly impossible as you could never get into a meditation at home with the baby because you always had to be keeping an eye or an ear out for what they were doing. With this in mind and in case others crave the same opportunity to shift their mindset or take a moment we’ve created a set of walking meditations, specifically designed to do on your walks with your baby. It will give you the chance to reframe and relax your nervous system while being out in nature and being with your baby (whether they are in the pram or the sling). And don’t worry, you won’t need to close your eyes or do anything weird. You can find them here.
Another thing which I did (a little begrudgingly) in the first year was mum and baby yoga. It was really just something to do every week and although I thought it was a bit feeble at the time (far too much time spent singing nursery rhymes to the babies for my liking) now I look back and can see it probably just gave me a little confidence to get back into moving my body into some basic yoga positions.
I tried some YouTube videos at home when I had the energy or space but I felt a little lost with knowing where my capabilities lie. I was so out of practice that ‘normal’ exercise videos felt too much and anything postpartum felt too gentle and like it wasn’t really doing anything. And so, in case others are feeling a little lost on their journey back to fitness like I was, MoveThru collaborated with Beth, a postpartum trainer to bring you a package of at-home workouts that can introduce you back into the world of fitness.
Unless you have childcare solutions or a gym that is baby friendly (like Beth’s) it can be tough to get a big workout in but a little hack I tried was to leave out my exercise mat (or use a playmat if you have one out) and just do 10 minutes throughout the day when I had chance. So, queue up a couple of different 5 - 10 minute workouts and then just do them throughout the day when the baby is napping, calm, or in between jobs. Most days it added up to around 30 minutes and was a good way to start rebuilding my strength in a way that was attainable and not pressurised.
It was also quite wonderful, if I got the chance with Greg getting back from work at a decent hour, to go for a 20 minute run in the evenings. With your music on and the wind in your face it was a nice solo moment to congratulate myself on another day and remind myself who the hell I was.
There’s lots of content out there which advises you to get up before your child so that you can get ready, meditate, and exercise. If you can do that and your baby is a great sleeper then congrats. This didn’t work for us as our boy was a semi-decent sleeper but I wasn’t about to get up an hour earlier than I needed to when sleep quality and duration was already so reduced. I’m telling you this to say there are other ways and don’t feel like you’re a failure or compare yourself to influencers if your workouts look messy, are at random times in the day or some days you just need to admit defeat and know it’s not going to happen for you. As long as you are finding some form of movement on a regular basis your mind and your body will thank you for it.
Greg’s response
Movement seems to be a central theme for all the post natal mums we speak too. I think Zoe adjusted really well to dropping the need to chase down PBs or big challenges physically and rather just concentrate on consistent and gradual steps to reconnecting with her body via moving. The walking meditations are fantastic and really provide all types of parents the mental space and reflection they need to decompress or recentre.
TAKEAWAYS:
Walking is the best medicine in those early months and the most attainable way to move your body. Take a look at our walking meditations here
Don’t feel pressure to work out for a certain amount of time, you can start small and add in throughout the day if you can / want to. Finding a good at-home solution is great for this. Try Beth’s workouts here
