Here I go again, the only threads I reply to lately are these kind!

So I'm not pg anymore, my baby is 4 months old now, and my first race is a really short sprint tri on May 10, so he'll be about 5 1/2 months then.

You're not crazy, I felt the exact same way. I asked my dr. at my first post-partum appointment when I could run again and he said 6 weeks - I about died. That seemed like FOREVER, I was so eager to get going. I did wait the 6 weeks, though, he told me all about how things stretched and need time to go back to normal or some really nasty things could happen when I'm much older, etc. So I listened. I was able to start walking about a week after, but I don't know about enough miles for a half marathon? If you can wait to sign up for it I would do that at least, see how you're feeling and what you're doing and all that kind of thing... Plus you will have the lack of sleep and just general figuring it all out to deal with.

Congratulations on your baby!

I will second the advice on waiting 6 weeks after giving birth (or whatever your doc recommends) to start running again. After my second kid was born, I decided I wanted to get right back into shape. About 3-4 weeks after giving birth, I went out for an easy run. My foot started to hurt, but it felt so good to be active again, I didn't really care. Plus, I'd just given birth -- the pain in my foot was nothing compared to that! Needless to say, I ran myself right into a stress fracture, which put me off my feet for months. There's a lot of recovery the body has to do before you'll be ready to stress it again. Patience pays.

As for a late Oct. half, I guess it all depends on when you actually deliver and how you feel. If it's a race that doesn't fill up, I'd probably wait until after the baby is born to sign up.

Good question! I am due August 12th with #2 and am already planning/thinking about what races I want to do. Keeps me motivated and happy during my workouts now.

I most likely won't plan anything concrete until after August, but last time around I did some 5K's about 2-3 months PP/half marathon 5 months PP/half IM 12 months PP. All felt fine and I didn't feel like I was rushing anything.

First of all, congrats for the baby! I'M pregnant too, and instead of planning summer races, I'm planning buying a new house. Same stress! And yes, I think about 2009 season (I'm due at the beginning of October). And even if about 95% won't approve my choice, I'll probably sign up for IMLP this summer. I will be on a maternity leave for a year, don't plan to do breast feeding, and my bf is working from home, so I guess I'll be able to put the training in. Obviously, it won't probably be the race of my life, but I like to do IMs. The best feeling I have ever had. The 2 minutes of glory, the IM day and the journey to get there really worths it. Maybe I'll change my mind when I'll have my baby in my arms, but since we have to sign up a year in advance... so yes, I'm already planning 2009. I realized that I need to have goals to be motivated. Good luck!

Congratulations on the pregnancy!! All I can say is motherhood is more amazing than you can possibly imagine.
I just had a baby girl in October and I am planning for my first olympic tri in June since having her. Finding time for training has been a lot harder than I thought. Running has been fine since I have the Bob Revolution. You can attach the carseat to the stroller and run. Most other runners you have to wait until babies are 6mo to run with them in it since they don't have head support. (Even though I am in medicine and my husband is a Physician I still brought the whole stroller + carseat to my pediatrician to have them look at it and they gave me the OK to put the baby in it and run when she was only 6 weeks). My gym has daycare so swimming has not been a problem either....I have had a problem biking. Most of my biking will have to be done on the trainer. My husband and I can only bike outside when we have a babysitter. I am a little worried about how well I do in the bike...but I guess I am just glad to be back in it. Spending time with my baby has become more important than how I do in a race.
Good luck!!! I have never loved anything so much as being a mother!!! You will be able to get your body back and compete, just be patient and flexible with your training times.
PS...not to hijack the thread but has anyone else been in the same situation? Meaning most of your training for the bike has been done on the trainer? If so did you feel prepared? I am a little worried since North Carolina is VERY hilly.

My wife did Timberman 70.3 12 weeks after.

Thanks for all of the great replies! I know it's so hard to know when I'll be ready for high impact activity and what kind of time I'll have to train. Maybe I'll look at a 5K in October or maybe a nice Turkey Trot :)

I too think I'll be spending a lot of time on the bike trainer. I think by the time I'm ready to get back on a bike I won't have much time outdoors before winter and I'll probably have minimal road time in May-June before my first sprint in '09. Long winters here in NH!

This question is very timely for me because I am going crazy with no races this summer. I am due Sept. 8th of 2008. Here's what I'm planning for 2009:

Disney marathon Jan. 10th (grandparents outside Orlando)
Boston marathon (I already have a qualifying time, not banking on qualifying at disney) (this one may not happen because I have a hard time training in the Jan., Feb., Mar. weather in Chicago)
Disney 70.3 (again, grandparents outside Orlando)
Rockman
Racine
Steelhead
Chicago Triathlon

I may be totally kidding myself about what I can do with a baby, but right now this plan is what's keeping me sane

I'm no longer pregnant, as I had my daughter in very late December. So she just turned 3 months.

While I was pregnant I was planning out my whole summer racing schedule. My husband, who's also a triathlete, was very supportive, as I had to sit out & just cheer for him last season while pregnant.

Luckily, I didn't actually sign up for any of those races because I have seriously scaled back my plans. There are several things getting in the way:

1-breastfeeding: I'm exclusively breast feeding and so you only get a very small window between feedings. This makes training difficult. Although by summer she'll be eating some food I'm having a hard time trying to figure out how it will work. I'm picturing an Olympic distance race taking me 3 hours + time before in transition & getting to the start. Depending on the logistics of the race it could 4+ hours before I'd be able to feed again. And I can't imagine doing the run portion of a triathlon when I desperately need to breastfeed.

2-not enough time or energy: It's more challenging than I expected to find the opportunity to train. I need to fit it in between feedings and then also when I have childcare around (husband) and when I'm not trying to catch up on a million other things.

3-I want to enjoy every moment of this first year. The appeal of a long bike ride has greatly diminished. I figure I can do that another summer but will only have this first summer when she's a little baby.

So, right now I'm scaling back to thinking about a 5 or 10k running race and maybe a sprint or 2 in very late summer. It probably will depend a lot on whether you breast feed and also how easily you can hand off the baby to someone to get in your training.

I think you'll be able to walk a half marathon in late October because walking is something you can do your whole pregnancy and right after birth with the baby in a stroller.

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Suffering on the the bike is always more fun than suffering on the run.

It seems like there are a few of us who just had babies, too, you in December, njtrigirl in October, and me in November. That's pretty cool!

I just wanted to add that I had an awesome swim workout this morning and things are seeming so much better after my bad run on Saturday and all... So I wanted to say that while it's definitely harder to get it all (or any) of it in right now, it feels SO much better when I can get it in and I feel like I can do it all, though maybe on a smaller scale, and I can't wait for my baby to see me at my first race, even if it is the shortest sprint ever.

It's hard when you want to have the same body you did pre-pregnancy, and do all the fun stuff you used to do then, too, and it's weird to get used to focusing on someone else for a change. At least it was for me, I'll admit it. But I feel like I'm getting it all in balance now and it's much better than it ever was before. I'm sure when I was pg I didn't want to hear that from anyone, I wanted to do what I wanted, and do it NOW, but it does change and in my perspective, it changes for the better. So to the OP, just be patient, I know it's hard, but it will pay off. It finally is for me!

Oops, sorry, I made a mistake - it was nctrigirl, not nj! Sorry nj if I freaked you out at all! ha ha...

I'm due in late August and my stretch goal is a 1/2 marathon in April. I won't beat myself up if I only end up doing the 5k. My first was born in October and I did the 5k at this same local race in Late April. I wanted to do the 1/2 but just hadn't gotten the training in. I did a sprint tri that June and a couple more that summer.

Things that prevented me from doing more earlier:
1) It was winter so I didn't feel pressured
2) Lack of sleep=lack of training
3) Nursing does take time though I really never think it stopped me from doing a training run or swim
4) As a PP mentioned I can't imagine trying to go 4-5 hours and then run while still nursing a really young baby. My breasts would be so so full!

I did most of my training the first year with the jog stroller and the second year with the jog stroller or burley.

I remember those days.

I had all these great plans. My daughter was born....and when I started running again (too soon) I felt like my insides were going to fall out. I should have waited the requisite six weeks. Doctors do occasionally know something.

Then I had my second child....and I was much more patient. I came back stronger and healthier.

Ladies- do not plan for marathons, half IM's or anything long in nature the first year after giving birth. Especially if you want to be fast. It isn't going to happen. Sure....you hear all about these elite athletes who have done it. But were they as fast as when they were not mothers (initially)? And I bet if they could do it over again they WOULDN'T.

Be patient. You will get faster and stronger once you are DONE having kids.

If you have had your first and having another? You just will never seem to get to where you want to be in your racing between pregnancies. Why? I think it has to be because you know in the back of your mind that you're going to have another one and our body won't let you (or your mind).

No matter - if you desire to be fast and strong after having kids - you will be (and faster) - just be patient.

Because there will be times in your training as you get older you almost wish you had the excuse that you were pregnant so you could take a break (versus an injury).

Almost 50....and stronger than ever!

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Debi Bernardes

Owner, UCANDOIT Coaching Group, LLC

I don't "get" you pregnant women? You are about, so they say do the most important thing in your life???? At least that's what I always hear people say? And all you can think about is when you can race again? Who takes care of the kid while you are out training or racing? Some babysitter? Is that who is raising the future society? I think you should take at least 4 to 5 years off so you can focus on your kid. And producing a good person, instead of just producing.

I hope you are joking timberdick. First of all I never said all I can think about is when I can race again, we pregnant women have way more to think about in a given day then you could ever wrap your narrow-minded brain around. Second of all, I have a wonderful husband who is not from the dark ages and is actually interested in caring for and raising a child as much as I am, so there will be no babysitters watching my child while I am training, he will be. We plan to raise a well-rounded person and teach him about the importance of being healthy, exercising, and living a fun and interesting life with lots of experiences and interests.

I agree with bokchoy - we do have HUSBANDS, who want to be daddies to their children. I'm not going this alone, or things would be drastically different. In addition to that, I am still a person, I've just added a new role, one that I don't take lightly, mind you. I think it's important to be in good shape to take care of my son and to set a good example for him as he grows up. I'm not talking IM here, or even halfs, but a few sprints are good for my mental state as well as my body.

My husband really enjoys mtn. biking. Do you think it's still ok for him to pursue that, or should he take a good 5 years off to focus on his children? Just curious where you stand on the dad's role in all this...

well, you two ladies are lucky to have husbands. It's a novelty these days. And I guess I'm narrowed minded because I worry about the state of children when I heard the out of control drop out rate, or nine year olds planned on killed their teacher? I've seen kids at races waiting and waiting for their parents to finish their races: bored to tears. Good luck with your kids, races, and husbands.

I waited a whole day to respond to this remark. First of all, "lucky to have husbands"?? You are narrowed minded, no guessing about it. Every time there is a thread about having kids, you come up with some bizarre response. You make single moms sound like a plague. My kids love to come my races and cheer for me!! I don't know why you would be dissing these Moms-to-be, especially on the Womens forum. Wake up, the glass is half full!

you single mommy's are so touchy.

I totally agree with you. I also had a discussion with my boyfriend (no we are not married... but been together for 10 years) this week about training after we will have our first child that is due in October. The day I asked him what he thought if I would register for IMLP he told me he had already thought about it, and he totally agrees. It makes me away from insanity to train. I'll be on a maternity leave for 1 year, and don't plan to do breast feeding for different personal reasons... Why can't I train 10-15hrs per week? Would this mean that I should not come back to work because I will miss 10-15hrs per week with my baby? I defintly wouldn't do this with a full time job, but I won't be working for a year! My hubby is working from home, and there is a lot of training that I can do in the morning, on the trainer, or with the baby jogger. And I guess that my baby will love the baby jogger, and do some cross country skiing during winter.

Obviously, it won't be the race of my life, and I have to be prepared to be a little bite under trained for that race. But don't they say on all of these forums that it's better to be 10% undertrained than 10% overtrained?

I was finishing up my masters degree and was taking my last two classes when I had my daughter. I figured that I would be home on maternity leave and would have plenty of time to study, etc. ha ha ha ha. My daughter was possessed and never slept. My ongoing joke was that I kept looking for the 666 on her somewhere. I couldn't even leave the room for a minute without her squawking at me. She didn't want anybody but mom. I did finish my two classes and managed to workout for 1-2 hours every day (no race planned, just trying to stay sane). I was tired and sleep deprived, but I lived and so did my daughter. :-)

I think as long as you realize that you may have to adjust your expectations and your training remains a fun thing and not a source of frustration, it's all good. It took me awhile to realize that sometimes my plans were just not going to happen. Every baby is different and every mom is different. Right now, you don't know how you are going to feel after your baby is born. It is awesome that you get to take a year off!!

Very nice! I was thinking about doing something similar, but didn't know if I was crazy. Did she feel OK during the race? Did she train in those 12 weeks?

Congrats too! I'm preggers with my first and due mid-July. I am so excited about the baby, but dying to get back into racing. I cheered my hubby on yesterday at an Olympic race, and I was so sad that I wasn't racing...but I know I'm "racing" a much bigger and harder race (haha). I know for sure that I'm running the San Antonio marathon in November, so I have a good 4 months to train for that. And I REALLY want to do the Longhorn 70.3 in October, but worry that is too close to the birth. Not sure if I can train in 3 months, or should.

But I'm like you...get my racing calendar filled so I can cross that finish line with my baby in my arms! How incredible will that be?!!

She didn't train much the first few weeks and didn't bike for around 6 weeks. She felt fine during the race. She was 30 minutes slower than she was the year before but speed wasn't her goal.