I’m officially the mother of three beautiful children, and I’m in my first week of mothering them alone without the help of Dad!
Aside from my wanting to nap during story time or use the Lego tower as a pillow…we are transitioning really well into a family of five. The labor this time was not as glorious as I had prayed for (more on that at a later date), so my body has needed more sleep and lots of great nutrition to recover. I am beyond thankful for the friends and family who stepped up and brought us dinners, cleaned out my fridge, made me fresh vegetable juices, played with my kids, and loved on baby Adelaide that first week. You helped my little family stay on our feet and get through that first week with ease. We truly felt blessed and are so thankful for the sacrifices you made to make sure we were taken care of.
So here I am week two, chomping at the bit to get back into my workout routine! And before you send messages telling me not to worry about the baby weight or to just enjoy that little one (I think she is looking forward to a break from being kissed a million times an hour) my desire for those long lost workouts is due to my love for movement, not my short shorts. After feeling my body slow down for almost ten months, being able to run as fast I can or push my limits in spin class again sounds like the most amazing thing in the world! But don’t worry. We’re starting off slowly!
This week’s focus has been all about nutrition. Throughout the pregnancy, I focused on getting the nutrition my body needed and loved and pretty much relaxed on the amount of carbohydrates I was taking in. Due to the fact that 90% of my diet was very healthy, I stayed active and I was growing a little human, if I felt like a extra piece of coconut bread or a second serving of yams at dinner, I was going to have it.
Prepping the pantry for post-baby, I focused on stocking up on healthy fats, lots of protein, vegetable juices, and healthy carbohydrates. Having a baby is like running the most intense marathon of your life or taking on an Iron Man. Your body is worn out and your organs need fueling…and goes on for days.
Post-baby, I do not live by the mentality of “I’m breast feeding so I can eat it.” Not only is this a slippery slope for creating bad habits, but eating this way also deprives your body of the nutrition it needs for a fabulous recovery.
Here are some of the benefits of these foods:
Fat – Improves healthy hormones for balancing mood, improves brain function, and helps to stabilize blood sugars (which can cause sugar cravings due to lack of sleep).
Protein – Helps repair muscle nutrition post-delivery.
Carbohydrates – Deliver fresh glucose into the body, allowing for muscle and organ repair. They also help our brain think clearly.
Vegetable juices – Supply the blood stream with loads of minerals and nutrition. This builds up our immune system, which helps to fight infection and disease and speeds up healing.
When it comes to getting back on the workout wagon post baby, don’t stress over the workouts that have to wait for your body to completely heal. Focus on building a foundation of nutrition that supplies the body with goodness and will have you feeling great as you walk into that first boot camp class. Nutrition is 80% of the work! So the next time you are on the fence about your meal planning for the week, remind yourself that if you aren’t thoughtful about it, you will be throwing 80% of your results to chance that week.
Whether you are a mom of a new baby or the girl trying to get her butt motivated for that new workout routine, you can do it!
In order to carry out a positive action, we must first develop a positive vision.
– Dalai Lama
Current favorite recovery juice cocktail:
This juice is packed with probiotics that will aid the gut in healthy digestion, which removes inflammation from the muscles, aiding in quicker recovery times.
1 cup purple cabbage
1 cup of spinach
2 stalks celery
4 large collard leaves
1 apple
You can juice these items or blend in a Vitamix with water.
Enjoy~~*
By Rachel Doell | Daily Routine Fitness
