High Maintenance Mom

The government released exercise suggestions along with their new food pyramid. Although some of their suggestions, such as mow the lawn with a push mower, are probably not part of our already full days but other suggestions, such as push the baby in a stroller, are more likely. When we accept that most of us are no longer participating the in same sports we did in high school, we can take comfort in the fact that we are still getting exercise just by being a parent...

While having children might reduce your previous workouts for a period of time, you are most likely not leading a sedentary life. Taking your kids on walks and going to the park can vary in activity level. Sometimes I'm active on our walks; I jog and jump around or play on the play structures (we play chase on the play structures and I can feel it later). Other times I'm dragging myself around the block or to the nearest bench (still more exercise than sitting at my desk and don't get me started on trying to watch more than one child who doesn't listen). Before I had kids, I had a image of a happy parent throwing a giggling child in the air and catching them on a beautiful sunny day. I've been surprised by how my strength it takes to do the bouncing, swinging, dancing, playing airplane, and throwing my child in the air.

I originally signed my kids up for mommy or daddy and me classes such as soccer or gymnastics to try to wear them out so they would nap. I didn't realize that it would also be a mini workout for me as I tried to help and talk with the other parents. In high school, exercise was the one to three hours of organized sports or training. I didn't think of housework as exercise but then I also wasn't trying to pick up after kids, a spouse, and pet. It's amazing how much time we all spend cleaning.

And now that I'm trying to reintroduce a state of calm in my life, I try to see the parking spot away from the store entrance as a chance for exercise instead of the huge inconvenience that I know that it is. When we look from the outside at our lives with kids we can see that changing diapers, feeding (when was the last time you got to sit for an entire meal with your kids), giving baths, getting your kids to the car, and basically existing with kids is exercise. Shopping is also exercise.