6FIT as a New Mom! (A post from Spokeswoman Melissa)

One of my favorite things about DanceFIT is how mom-friendly it is. When I became pregnant, Gina met with me to review modifications to keep workouts safe and now that the baby is here, I’ve been able to take advantage of the Baby Bounce Back package and participate in the weekly Mommy and Me playgroups. There are also special events and pop-ups like baby wearing BalletFIT classes and infant massage that I’m hoping to participate in, in the future. I also may have teared up a bit thinking about my daughter one day taking ballet classes at DanceFIT after reading this blog post posted a few weeks ago.

So there are many ways DanceFIT is mom-friendly, but I wasn’t quite sure how I’d make 6FIT work with a new baby. I really pushed myself in past 6FIT challenges. How would that look as a new mom? After my daughter arrived, I was sleep deprived, started making poor food choices and exercising wasn’t even a thought in my mind. When Gina announced 6FIT would be taking place again, in some ways, I knew it would be the perfect way to get back to making better choices, but I just wasn’t sure how I would make it work with a baby. I’m still not entirely sure I’ll do as well as I have in past challenges, but I started thinking of how many other moms in past challenges have inspired me and started thinking of ways to incorporate my daughter and make things work in a new way.  

Here are some of the things I’ve found helpful in past challenges (mom or not) and some of the things I think may help make things a bit easier this time around….
 

- Water is one of the key parts of 6FIT. Last challenge, I bought some glass water bottles (1) to better track my water intake throughout the day and I’ll be using them again for this challenge. I plan to fill up 4 16 oz bottles to make sure I'm getting at least the recommended 64 oz. It will make tracking easier as I can just look to see if I've finished them all up by the end of the day or how much more I need to drink to make sure I'm getting enough.

- Shopping and having the right ingredients at home (5) is a key part of 6FIT. It’s the time of year when our local farmer’s market is starting to get lots of great fruits and vegetables. I’m looking forward to Saturdays to get lots of great ingredients to make new recipes this 6FIT! I've also decided splurging on pre-cut fruits and veggies may be worth saving my sanity when I don't have time to cut and prep at home.

- Meal prep has been a favorite part of 6FIT. Most of my prepping this time will be in between naps which are still very unpredictable - hence the pre-cut fruits and veggies. Having things prepped and ready to go in containers (3) will make it easier to make healthy choices throughout the day and when preparing meals.

- Usually my workout clothes are from Marshalls, TJ Maxx or the occasional Lululemon (7), but this go-around workout clothes are still from the maternity stores. I’m hoping that will change by the end of the month. 

- For the 14 minute workouts, I love putting together upbeat playlists (5).

- Typically I work out in the Natick studio, but I love the flexibility of virtual for days I can’t get to the studio. I bought toning balls (2) and a yoga starter set (9) to help participate in some of my favorite virtual classes. I'm used to having these in the studio, so I picked some up to have at home. I’ll also be using a dock-a-tot (4 ) when I’m working out at home with my daughter, so I can still interact with her during the workouts. Having the virtual classes and the ability to work out at home with her is so key for making this 6FIT successful for me. I’m also planning to get my cardio in with her by taking long walks. I’m sure her stroller (4) will put lots of miles on it this June!

- And the most important of all is having support! Having the support of teammates and other participants is really the most motivating part of 6FIT. In the past it was my teammates and even members of other teams who helped motivate me throughout the challenges. Sometimes it would be asking one another to take a class together or sharing a struggle that week to know we aren't going through it alone. I've found that the more open you I am to sharing the experience - struggles, successes, cheering others on, taking classes together, etc, the more I get out of it.

- What’s worked well for you in prior 6FITs? Any tips for new moms?