Category Archives: health

Protected: 8 months today!

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Getting EVEN MORE Buggyfit

Borrowed from http://www.buggyfit.co.uk, check it out to find a local group

When I first wrote about Buggyfit I joked it was like Buggy Bootcamp. Well, either the instructor read my blog or I’m psychic because now it actually is.

I have signed up to the pre-Christmas, 6-week, twice weekly Buggy Bootcamp which comes complete with nutrition plan and supplementary exercises. Today was session 3 of 12 and I am quite chuffed I’m not dead yet. Far from it, in fact.

I’ve been going once a week since July and I am no longer the sweaty, frizzy, red one at the back – I’m the perspiring, curly, pink one quite near the front. So I thought I should step it up and lose those last few pounds before I pile them all back on over the festive season.

We were all weighed at the start. I was quite disappointed to see I was exactly the same weight as I was when I started Buggyfit four months ago, but as one of the other mums comforted me, we were fully clothed in winter gear. So that must count for a pound or two. The first session was three days after I returned from a ten day holiday in the Canaries so I expected it to be a bit of a kick in the proverbials. It was OK.

The second session, which I went to the following day, was a killer. Even the double-buggy mum overtaking me couldn’t shame me into running another step. Today I actually managed to do 20 press ups, 20 tricep dips, 20 shoulder pulls with the rubber band, run round the pond and then do it all over again – without collapsing! And that was after our hill runs and walking lunges…

As far as the nutrition plan is concerned, I’m pretty much following it. We were at a wedding at the weekend so I’ve written off two days but I’m back on it now. I had forgotten about the extra exercises until one of the mums reminded me today – so I’ll need to shoehorn some abdominal work, lunges and squats into my working mum’s diary somewhere.

My aim is to lose a pound a week. There. I’ve written it down so I have to stick to it. Six pounds in six weeks.

Wish me luck!

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Protected: Weaning: Going with his gut

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Protected: Teething pains

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Getting Buggyfit

They call it Buggyfit, but in my head right now it’s Buggy Boot Camp.

Borrowed from http://www.buggyfit.co.uk as I don't want you seeing me all sweaty!

I wasn’t surprised when four kids on bikes stopped and openly gaped at the fifteen mums doing press-ups by their buggies on the grass. To the non-parental eye we must be quite a sight. I took exception to their laughter, however, when we jogged over to the steepest steps in the world and started running up and down. One day they too will have excess flab round the belly button. At least we’re doing something about it.

I sometimes wonder why I’m doing it to myself – I’m exhausted as it is without training for the Olympics. But I always go back and here’s why:
• It’s cheap – at £34 for 8 sessions it is fantastic value
• It’s outside – not a stuffy gym or grimy town hall
• The other mums who go are lovely – we have a coffee (but no cake) afterwards and chat
• It eases my guilt – because I do like the odd chocolate bar to myself
It’s also very varied, there’s no time to dread the crunches before she parks up and tells you to spread ’em (the mats on the grass that is). Her wee boy (who’s nearly three) even cheers us on, shouting ‘YAY!’ just when you’re about to collapse out of ‘the plank’. So although I sometimes feel like I’m going to throw up and I often feel like a bit of an idiot at the back of the pack, I’ve realised that the endorphin rush afterwards sees me through the day. So I would recommend it.

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Protected: Finding strength

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Protected: Bottling it

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Osteopathy for newborns

My cousin, who was 17 days older than me, was an osteopath. When his sister’s baby was born he checked him over and wee Hayden went on to be an angelic baby who never suffered from colic. David died in a car crash in 2005, so it was kind of in his memory that I took the wee man to see an osteo today.

To the left, to the left

Although the wee man isn’t colicky, I was concerned that he was favouring his left side and rarely turned his head the other way. I was curious to see what osteopathy would involve, after my cousin’s success. Plus I’ve been following a really nice osteo on Twitter and thought he’d be just the man.

Daniel was very honest. He told me from the getgo that cranial osteopathy has no scientific research supporting it, just the good experiences of lots of parents and children. He told me about a woman who brought in her colicky baby without telling any of her family members, and when the grandmother took the child the next day, she noticed such a change that she asked if he’d been switched!

After asking me lots of questions about the birth, he told me to lay the wee man on the bed and rest his head in Daniel’s hands. After about ten seconds he said, “Yes there’s some hesitancy there.” He explained that the movement of the plates in the skull, down the spinal chord, was a bit like waves on the beach. The wee man’s waves were more like treacle, so Daniel was going to speed things up a little. I liked his analogy, although I’m not sure I fully understood it.

I kept a close eye on the wee man’s reactions and he was never for one second distressed. In fact, he was laughing for some of the key moments. It may sound a bit woolly as I describe it, but I’ve had a similar treatment from a physiotherapist after I had a back injury, so I know it works. Plus if you consider all the nerves in the back of your neck and head, it’s not too much of a stretch to believe that even very slight pressure in key areas should make a difference.

We were in the consulting room for half an hour and, while Daniel said I was welcome to come back, he wouldn’t necessarily recommend it. He said I should expect him to sleep a lot or not at all today and hopefully he’d demonstrate more of a willingness to turn to the other side.

Well, he hasn’t slept at all. He wouldn’t look at me when I called and sang to him from his right, but when I put him on his tummy he did lie with his head turned to the right. He complained about it, but he did it, I think for the first time.

I’ll observe him closely for the next few days and see if there are any dramatic changes. Even if there aren’t, sometimes it’s nice just to be reassured that your baby is happy and healthy.

If anyone else has tried osteopathy I’d be really interested to read your comments!

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Protected: First jag cuts deepest

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Code brown situation

“Do you remember becoming a bit obsessed with poo when I was born?” I texted my mother the other night.
“No because I’m squeamish” came the swift reply. So mum, I hope you’re not reading this, because I’m about to tell the story I wanted to tell you two nights ago.

As Grimsvotn was spewing volcanic ash into British airspace, Rod was experiencing another eruption on our living room floor. The wee man’s favourite trick is to do just enough to alert you to the fact his nappy needs changed then save his best efforts for the exact moment his bum is bare. I tried to warn Rod, but he was too gung ho. It became gunge-ho. He used a whole roll of kitchen towel, wipes, two nappies and a little bit of carpet cleaner.

The weirdest thing is that we were both delighted. The frequency of newborns’ bowel movements can be a real cause for concern. I know this because, on three separate occasions, I have discussed baby poo at length with a friend of mine who’s also just become a mum. When we were pregnant we discussed much cooler things. But she totally trumps me (sorry) and she is remaining nameless so I can relay her story.

The first time she changed her tot’s nappy when she got back from the hospital the baby projectile pooed all over the wall. That, and her husband’s face, made her laugh so hard she wet herself.

Now that’s some funny shit.

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