I love having child care in my gym!

At my gym, I can bring my kids in to the daycare for two hours while I enjoy working out.  It's a fabulous little deal that assures that not only do I get a workout, I can take an un-interrupted shower as well!  For those who are not moms, you may not understand what a glorious thing this has become!  It's something I took advantage of in my pre-mom state of mind.  Now, I make sure to finish up my workout in enough time to enjoy the nice shower afterward.
I highly recommend ensuring a gym membership with child care if you are a mommy or are planning to be.  Not just any gym will do.  Check out the child care area to see how much fun the kids are having.  Does the staff seem to be engaged with the kids?  Are the babies separated from the bigger kids?  I visited a gym (I will not name names, but it's a big one) and watched as a new walker babe of about a year was knocked down hard.  All of the kids were just roaming the entire space.  Then I watched the embarrassed child care attendant pick the baby up and almost scold her as if it were her fault for getting knocked over!  The staff in my gym are top notch.  Most have been there for several years and know each of us by name.  How do they do that?  There are sections for each age group.  Infants start in the the infant room.  Once they begin to crawl, they move on to crawlers.  Once they begin to walk, they move on to the next room.  There are six rooms for the kids to graduate until eventually at age 11, they become too old for child care.  I feel good knowing my kids have a safe and fun place to play with their peers while I make sure to get my time for sanity.
Another option at my gym is Run Club.  Three days each week, I can attend run club where we venture outside for a 4-8 mile jog, speed and agility work, or timed runs.  If you don't have a gym in your area that offers such a thing, start it up if child care options are available!  Who wants to run on the mundane treadmill where your run is only half as effective as the real deal outdoors?!  Train with friends for a big race or just get some lovely vitamin D while getting in your workout.  Follow it up with some nice stretching and a relaxing shower.  You have yourself two hours of pure bliss!
Gotto go to the gym now!!

Biking with kids

I have found it fairly easy to get my workouts in during the week, but weekends are tough!  My husband and kids want all of my time.  I love being with them, but find it harder to get a jog in or head to the gym where I work all during the week.  Solving that problem is actually fairly easy!  I should have thought of this before!  The doctors say not to bike while pregnant, but I am not convinced that it is so dangerous when going on a casual stroll with my kids.  We rode along the Willamette river from the south waterfront area along the trails to downtown Portland.  While I would not recommend downtown Portland, I do highly recommend the trail along the Willamette.  We parked by Fultan pub (a pre-pregnancy stomping ground).  It's just under 3 miles to get to River Place where there is a row of restaurants and shops.  We had sandwiches at a little cafe and sat outside to eat.  Then, we biked into town for an ice cream treat at Ben & Jerry's.  The seating at Ben & Jerry's was terrible and the constant flow of bums slowly walking by with cigarettes in hand were definitely a nuisance!  I would skip the downtown portion of the trip and stick with the nice path along the Willamette.  All in all, we had a great time and I am looking forward to more casual bike rides for a little exercise with my family.

It's really happening, better take the right vitamins!!

10 week appointment with the doctor and I got to see my little munchkin wiggling all around.  What an amazing sight to see!  At first, it didn't seem quite real until I saw this image.  I talked to my doctor about the vitamins I was and wasn't taking.  I asked if I really need to take a prenatal or if I can just continue to take my multi that I already have.  Of course, she suggested that a plain multi may have too much vitamin A and not enough folic acid.  I went to my local Whole Foods and found these fabulous little pills.  One is a prenatal where the serving is 3 per day.  Not too bad, but definitely a lot for me.  I also found a vegetarian DHA to get the Omega 3's that I need.  I worried about the fishy after taste in the standard DHA pills that are made from mackerel or sardines.  I took both today in between lunch and dinner with no side effects of a sick stomach.  Wonderful!  

Sauvie's Island Half Marathon

4th of July celebration kicked off great with a half marathon on Sauvie's Island followed by delicious strawberry shortcake!  Being pregnant, I had an out.  I could have done a run/walk.  I could have run much slower, but pushing myself has always been a part of me.  I am a competitive person.  My dad and his girlfriend joined me in the fun.  I ran with my dad for the first 7 miles at an 8:04 pace, but had to drop back a little after that.  I watch my heart rate to make sure I am not too short of breath, making sure I can keep an even breath pace.  

One thing that can help any runner is focusing on evening out their breath.  Yogis talk about the breath as if that is the most important part of the practice.  I think they are on to something.  When the nerves are high and the race officially starts, the breath goes in and out at a rapid pace from all of the excitement in the air.  My head is swirling with thoughts.  How will my pace be?  Will I be able to finish without stopping to walk?  All of a sudden, I see the first mile marker sign and think, that wasn't too bad!  12 more of those and I am at the finish line.  We round the bend and run along the Willamette river inlet.  It's so peaceful out on the river.  Memories of water skiing with my dad come flashing into my head.  I get a little smile on my face as my dad is running next to me, talking about this story or that.  This is fun!  Relax and enjoy!  We joke about how we want to get our money's worth on this race and not run too fast.  He says the same about golf.  More strokes you have, more you are getting your money's worth.  I like it.  That's when I realize, this is about enjoying my time out here on the island.  I pass by a herd of cattle, some horses, and tons of farms.  It's pure and I am enjoying every second of it now.  It's why I sign up for these races.  Being pregnant doesn't have to keep me or anyone else from doing a race.  It may have slowed me down from my normal pace a bit, but I still enjoyed my time out there.  

After we completed the race, we didn't hesitate to head right over to the strawberry shortcake tent where we wolfed it all down!  The island is known for the farms and the fresh Oregon berries.  We followed it all up with a swim in my dad's pool.  Loosened our legs to the point where my legs feel fabulous today!  I couldn't have asked for a better way to start my 4th of July celebration.  I love to exercise and feel alive with energy.... and to have a little strawberry shortcake now and then!  

Short getaways change up the workout routine in a great way

My husband and I were able to have a night out without our kids in downtown Portland.  I worried a little that we would get bored with our usual pint or two of beer fun.  We had a blast!  Started at The Nines where we enjoyed the rooftop bar called Departure.  The server spoke highly of the tapas they offered.  We ordered and shared kale and radish salad with ginger slices, brussel sprouts, avocado salad, shrimp and scallops.  Each tapa came out with a beautiful presentation.  The kale salad trumped any salad I have ever made.  I topped it all off with a virgin mojito garnished with fresh mint.  Delicious!  The next morning, we woke up to the shining sun and jogged around the river, across the magnificent and unique Portland bridges.  We wrapped it up by doing some light weight lifting in the gym at The Nines where we stayed overnight.  In typical Nines fashion, the water in their gym was infused with strawberries and apples.  The BEST water I have ever tasted!  I highly recommend this hotel and everything they have to offer.  Overall a very delightful evening and morning.  Typically, on vacation, the workout may have been missed, but not this time!  I felt so much better having done the workout versus not doing the workout.  We felt great and ready to take on the day!

My

Keep up with workouts on vacation

Traveling across coasts is never easy with two kids (and one on the way), but I know that I will feel better if workouts are still part of my routine. Day one consisted of travel and more travel which means sitting and more sitting. I felt terrible! Day two, I woke up and went for a short jog just to get out of my funk! Went to the pool where I did 3 sets of forward, reverse, and side lunges and single leg dead lifts.  I followed that with 3 sets of 20 push-ups and tricep dips. I jumped in the pool to cool off and felt so much more accomplished! Later that evening, my husband and I went for a 4.5 mile jog.  It's amazing how good exercise makes me feel! 

Day 3, I jogged for 4 miles and followed up with some swimming. Today is day 4 and it's hotter than hot!! Waiting for the sun to go down before I jog but planning a nice and cool pool workout! I encourage you to find time for workouts on vacation for peace of mind. I know it helps me tremendously!!

Getting your fitness on while pregnant...

I'm a personal trainer and now am pregnant with child #3.  I'm no Kara Goucher, but I plan to stay fit by running and lifting weights throughout my pregnancy.  I'm at the 7 week mark, so follow along with  me!  Running the Sauvie's Island half marathon on July 4th.  Excited to run around the island and enjoy some fresh and local strawberry shortcake after the race. http://www.foottraffic.us/flat/

If you want to join me in my challenge to stay fit while pregnant or just follow along, email stephanifalcone@ymail.com, tweet @stephanifalcone, or comment.  Thank you for joining me on my journey!