Life with Reed and My Training
Three months seems to be have been a "breakthrough" month, for many reasons. First breakthrough: Reed has made a big jump in maturing. He is more settled, he can be much more independent, he definitely cries less (although he never has been a big crier, just fussy evenings, where all he wanted was the boob, for like 4-5hours straight!), and his cries have distinct meaning that I can decipher, like "I'm hungry, I'm tired, I'm over-stimulated, I'm bored, I need a change of scenery, I just need you, I want your attention, I want you to talk to me..." etc. I really don't think there is a "I want my diaper changed" cry yet, he seems just as happy in a dirty diaper as in a clean one... and most importantly he started going to bed around 8-830pm with a proper baby-bedtime-routine, which consists of a bath, a change, some talking/singing, a snuggle and a nurse however he does nap less, if at all, during the day.
I have been following one guideline in all my daily planning, in order not to feel like a selfish mom: Everybody gets a turn. My main goal in life is to be a good mom to Reed and Pearl, so the everybody gets a turn motto means that we have to do something for each member of the family every day. For Colin and I that usually means some form of exercise (how exciting are we), for Pearl that`s a walk or run or trip to the dog park, and for Reed it`s some form of outing or change of scenery where he is awake taking in the world, or visiting with friends and family. I find myself doing all the typical mom maternity-leave stuff, like trips to the mall to join the army of stroller-walkers, doing laps during crumby weather, mom-dates with other moms I`ve met in town, and then there`s the playgroups and programs at the parent-link center and playing in the baby pool, not to mention the endless walks in the trails (however these don`t count very often because he always falls asleep).
My training has been fantastic. I keep thinking this is the closest I'll ever get to "living the dream" - professional triathlete. Without a fulltime job, I really don't see any reason why I shouldn't be fast! Baby or no! This is also possibly the last time I will get to concentrate on triathlon, when I start back working, there is no way I could be a good mom, a good teacher and a good triathlete, so I may just run. However, I have to preface all this with the acknowledgement of a couple key factors that make it very possible for me to "train". Number one, my husband is a firefighter, he works 2 dayshifts, 2 nightshifts, then has 4 days off. So really there are only 2 days out of 8 where I have Reed on my own. That said however, I am able to swim, bike and run with him, you just have to be creative, flexible and be determined to get some exercise in! Number two, I have 4 grandparents around to help. Number three, Reed is a good nighttime sleeper, so I can feel rested the next day to want to exercise.
Swimming
Swimming was the first sport I was able to get back into the groove. It of course takes the longest amount of time, an hour of swimming, takes 1.5hrs, with getting to the pool, changing, showering. I am able to get in the water about 2-3 times a week. I always bring Reed, I take him in the baby pool first and play with him, he gets tired, I change him, nurse him and he falls asleep in his carseat. I can then swim, either with him sleeping at the end of my lane, or Colin takes him home, or the nice pool staff like to take him at the front desk...!! How nice is that!!??
Breakthrough 2 - I am able to hold 1:25 for 100m, it's not as easy as I would like, but there's lots of time yet. The good thing is that, although I don't seem to have my top speed back, I do seem to have some good endurance, there doesn't seem to be much of a difference between what I can hold for 400m repeats and 100m repeats. Maybe it's the pregnancy training effect...
Biking
I have had some good gains - breakthrough 3. I started out back at the very bottom. It has been almost 2 years since I've trained the bike, so I'm not sure what I expected, but the wattage doesn't lie! My power was classed as 'new rider', but since then I've made great gains. I get on the bike trainer 3x week, I do straight up quality work for an hour. No drills, no one-leg crap, no useless easy spinning, I get on and I work. (I read a study that showed the best riders don`t have the best `symmetrical` stroke, they just have the best pedal mashing, ie, pushing down, using those powerhouse quads to do the work.) I do 20min tempo repeats, or 5minute V02max repeats, or time trials for testing. I like the keep-it-simple-strategy! I have to be ready to jump on and go. When Colin is away, and Reed naps, sometimes in the morning for about 40min, I put him in his bouncy chair in front of my bike, and when he wakes up, we chat for the remainder of my workout. He is a pretty happy baby, we are lucky! My last TT test, I made a big jump, and can now call myself an 'intermediate' rider. My goal is to be in the jersey rider category, so I'm about half way there, I have one more month of hard trainer riding before I get outside. Although even when the weather is nice I will continue riding inside on my trainer at least once a week, it gives the best bang for your buck, and with a baby that's what you're looking for!
Running
Lately I've had glimpses of my old self - breakthrough 4! I have been able to run about 4-5x week ever since the paths have cleared up and I can take the running stroller out. I have been semi following Lydiard method, just doing 10 weeks of easy build running. Building to 2hours (although I may top out at 1:45), however I am not going anywhere near the volume he prescribes! When I run with Reed and Pearl I am probably doing 6min per km, so it`s just about time on my feet, and extra volume, also just because I enjoy it, and so does Reed and of course Pearl loves it! I do like to run with just Pearl, then I can go a little faster and then I do my long run on my own, which funnily enough seems to be when I can go the fastest. This is my last week of strictly easy running, next I start adding some hills for about 6weeks, also alternating long run and long tempo on the weekend, then finally some speedier intervals in May and June. However, I will be happy enough to stick to just plain easy running if my pesky leg-issues come creeping back when I start back to harder efforts. In triathlon, I find I don`t particularly need top speed, I`m not going to be running a 37min off the bike, but in order to run around 40min all I need is some longer tempo runs, and strong biking legs, not so much fast km repeats, which tend to give me niggles in the same old problem areas.
Breakthrough 5 - I`m back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I still could use to lose 5ish more lbs to be ideal racing weight, but I`m happy. I`ve also heard that while breastfeeding the body naturally wants to hold to an extra 5lbs, makes sense. I`ll go with that. Actually I had stagnated for a while then I gave up nuts and nut butter and a week later dropped 3lbs, that and the fact that I workout 1-2 times a day...!
Finally a couple notes on breastfeeding while training....
- Drink like crazy! I`ve never been great on hydrating, but not so now when I have do it for Reed.
- Don`t let anyone talk to you about schedules or how not to let babies nurse for soothing. If the baby wants the boob, give it to them! I spent a while stressing that he was feeding too often, and listening to people tell me ``He can`t possibly be hungry.`` Your baby isn`t playing controlling games with you, they don`t have `wants`, they`re too young, they only have needs and your job is to meet their needs.
- It`s supply and demand. After lots of running, I may in fact be a little low on volume, so you have to let them suck lots to get supply up. Babies know how much they need, let them dictate. I`ve read about lots of moms who think they are drying up when they start back training, (I thought this as soon as my runs went over an hour) but if you just let the babies take charge, it comes good again, it may take a day or two. Pumping often also helps.
- Pump every morning, to keep supply up, to keep a bottle on hand for others to be able to feed, or just to stockpile for the future.
Happy training!
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