Your weekend warrior days will be over if that is a decision that you make, buts iit doesn't have to be that way.

For a while the most basic training that you will doing will be figuring out how to survive on half the sleep that you used to get. Once you get past that, you get to figure out how to fit your training into your life with the new little one, its not real easy but it can be done. Just remember that even if you miss some racing this year there is always next year and the years after that. Don't forget triathlon is a lifetime sport you don't need to do it all next year.

Congratulations! Getting a treadmill can't hurt. I will say this. Most likely, the next 2-3 months are going to be brutal as the baby developes a sound sleeping schedule. Expect your sleep patterns to be interrupted. I say this from experience as I have two twin nephew's. Unless your wife intends to wake up in the middle of the night, change diapers and feed constantly, you are going to need to make adjustments. Also, jogging in the stroller is awesome. It is good to have. I know quite a few people who have been able to train with newborns. However, they are really only training recreationally as a baby and family top the list of priorities. But once your child get's past 12 month's things should get easier. Your time is going to be designated toward the most important things in your life. And this is for sure your baby and your family.

Best of luck!

Fran

First of all, congratulations on expecting your first! As for training, be prepared to limit your training for at least the first 2 months or until he/she begins sleeping through the night. You may have time to train, but will be subject to fewer hours of quality sleep which translates into fewer hours of quality training. Excellent timing by the way - offseason. My second came this past June with 3 races still on the calendar. I ended up dropping the last 2 because balancing a newborn and a 3.5 year old, not to mention my wife's sanity, became increasingly difficult. Also keep in mind that while you may think you can take your newborn out in a jogging stroller, your wife may have a different idea.

That said, once you pass the initial hurdle, you can pick up where you left off. Just expect to change the way you manage the rest of your time/activities. Having kids changes almost everything - many times the "in the moment" impression of the change is negative, but in the grand scheme you will be much happier for it. Triathlon will always be there. Enjoy your new baby, they grow/change fast.

On a side note, my 3.5 year old daughter loves everything tri. In fact, yesterday she picked out a new book called IronCat - the story of Garfield's winning the Mona Kona IronMan Triathlon. She really digs going to races and just finished her second TotTrot at a local 5k.

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jg

FINALLY a subject that I am an expert in! I have a wife, 2 little girls (22 mos & 2 mos), a bad commute, a career & a love for exercise and triathlon. Since having baby 1 and now baby 2 I have learned that my tri training comes in a distant 2nd to being a good dad.

My Schedule:

Wake up at 4:30am; 45 min am commute to gym near work; Swim or Spin class or meet other trigeeks for 7-10 mile run; Shower at gym & get to work before 8am; On a good week, fit in 1 or 2 lunch time swims; work to 5:30ish; 1 hour commute home; Take care/bond/play with kids so my wife can get back into her tri-training; pack clothes for tomorrows workouts - work; Do it all again.

Weekends I will spend 3+- hours on the bike on sat and 1 hour running - strategically placed when babies are napping.

It depends on your priorities, but I found that when I get home from work, I don't want to say goodbye again to go for a run. So, I sacrafice sleep and do all my workouts while the worls is sleeping. I have been able to keep racing as much as before babies and have even increased my training for the IM distance.

Years ago I remember Slowman created a USTS Oly distance race down in Oceanside that handicapped (correct word?) racers by the life activities they had. If you for example had 1 child you could take X minutes off your overall race time. The activities were I think, marriage, children, work, school, etc. Pro-women also started X minutes before the pro men and it was a race to see who finished first. This was a great concept (and precursor to the lifetime fitness tri). Spencer Smith blew away that race but I think that I would have won based on my life today.

... now, how to figure out how to fit grad school into the picture.

It's not over. I did IM MOO 03 with my first child turning 5 months old the day after. First be open an honest with yourself and your wife about time comitment for your training. My wife and I had an agreement that on the weekends, I would be done with my training and ready for parental/family duties by 11am. Second manage your expectations for your race results. I found myself that the longer I trained on the weekend, the more guilt I felt for not being with my son. Again it can be done, I had tremendous support from my family, and IM Moo 03 was one of the best days of my life.

My wife just gave birth to our first child four weeks ago and ... Zzzzzzzz .... I can tell you that the sleep deprivation thing definitely ... Zzzzzzzz .... Takes some getting used to.

Think of your training in terms of "windows." Wife feeding the baby? You have time for an hour run. Baby and wife sleeping? You get to ride for 2-3 hours.

Also: Sing for your supper. Fold clothes, cook dinner, clean the dried urine behind the toilet. Doing this will earn you a 3-4 hour brick workout.

One more thing: If the relatives are coming over, they should be there to help, which should mean you get to commence a normal life, which should mean you can resume some normal type of training schedule while they are there. Don't feel compelled to entertain them, make 'em punch in and get to work!

Congrats on the new arrival!

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No sidewindin bushwackin, hornswaglin, cracker croaker is gonna rouin me bishen cutter!

Congrats, I have 3 girls 5, 3 and 6 weeks old.

fwiw my advice is
1.) make sure your wife is on side Triathlon is a very selfish sport and she and your relationship will need to be nurtured if you are going to train. P.S. it's not that hard to find training time it's harder to find guilt free training time when you arent thinking "am I every going to get into shit if the baby wakes up befor i get back from my ride"

2.) I commute to work in the summer and do lunch hr workouts.

3.) my only workout times that conflict with potential family time is one swim per week with the local tri club and the weekend runs ( I try to do during nap time)\
4.) I got my wife interested in running and so now she is training for the 1/2 marathon (oh shit she's comming down stairs I'll be back in a second) ok coast is clear. It's a bit easier now that she is also training.
5.) Get a treadmill, we got one last year and it makes it much easier to slip in a short run when time permits and you cant leave the house b/c your parenting.
6.) make sure your season goals are realistic. I had to downgrade from 1/2 IM and marathon length races to OLY and 1/2 marathons this yr.
7.) enjoy your family triathlon will always be there the baby will only be a baby for a short time.

Yes, you can still get the training in. Here's my experience:

Our first child was born at end of April. My training log shows 0 hours of training for 2 to 3 weeks or so. But after the baby and you and the wife settle into a routine, you will slowly reclaim some training time. Hardest thing in first few weeks was dealing with the sleep deprivation. When I had any free time then, I just wanted to sleep, not go swim or bike or run.

Baby is now 6 months old. He sleeps through the night, and so do we. I get my swims in during lunches at work (3 sessions a week or so of 30 to 45 minutes). One sacrifice: I did plan to join masters program, but I havent been able to fit in the 6 a.m. swims because I'm the first one up with the little nipper, allowing my wife to sleep in more and earning me mucho brownie points. I get runs in early before work. They seem to be easiest to fit in; you just lace up and go when you got a spare hour or so.

Biking is the hardest because it's most time consuming. But my wife is great and allowed me, for instance, to get in 45 mile ride with local group on a Sunday morning at 9. Was back by noon, and rest of day was all about the baby and the wife (going to Target with her instead of watching football, but that's the price you'll pay).

My training log last week was almost 12 hours, and I too am entered in IM Moo 2004, where I hope my son will be there at the finish line.

Good luck and congrats.[reply]

Yes and No. Your career is far from over, but in my humble opinion it is a huge mistake to calendar an IM event for next year.

I have an almost 4 year old, a 7 month old and my wife is recently pregnant. Since my oldest son was born I've done about 10 sprints, 4 Olys. 3 half marathons and 1 half-IM and for what it's worth here is what I've learned:

1) Absolutely agree with one of the other posters that the only way to even begin to do this is to be an early morning guy and do as much training as possible when it's zero impact on your family. Doing so through the week will make your partner much more willing to suck it up during that 3 hour long ride Saturday morning.

2) It's not so much that you can't train and be a dad it's that you may have to recognize that there will be certain blocks of time that need to be virtually abandoned and you are heading into one of those right now. There is no way to sugarcoat it; it ain't pretty with a newborn. They're patterns are so erratic and there is so much pressure on your spouse (especially if she's breastfeeding) that it's very tough to keep any kind of schedule even if you have the desire. Once he/she is through the first year and regularly sleeps in you'll have a golden age where you can do solid morning workouts before they even stir but I think you're wacked to try for an IM next year.

I've already written off all of next season because it's less stressful than committing to a race or schedule and not being able to train. You'll be amazed how quickly a year goes by and the sport is still there waiting for you.

3) Even once you're through the newborn phase, I think it's much more doable to limit yourself to Oly's and Sprints until they are a little bigger and you have more time. I know I can race well at those distances without ever doing longer than a 3 hour ride or a 2 hour run and I just can't imagine working all week and then setting out on Saturday for a 7 hour bike ride with a 3 hour run to follow on Sunday. Regardless of whether my wife supported it or not I wouldn't want to be away that much!

I hope this helps. It may feel like you're giving up a lot initially, but you really can make it work. By the time my oldest was 3, I could easily train for a 1/2 IM because he slept until 7:30 every morning and because he was so much easier to watch on the weekends that it wasn't a big deal if I left the house at 6 and came back at 10:00.

Plus no matter how badly you get spanked in a race you can always convince yourself that you'd be on the podium if there was a class for dad's with demanding day jobs.

Ten days ago I became father for the second time. Our 2nd son Simon sleeps much better than the first one (Joel, 22month). I can sleep nearly normal hours and it is no problem to get up early for a morning run or swim.
I try to do a lot of training in the morning or after lunch on weekends when the older sleeps and I don't take time away from my family.
This summer the long rides usually started before 6am on Saturday. Then I was back latest at 11am and could spend the rest of the day with my family.
A advantage is, that my wife comes from a 'runner' family. She is used to go to races. This summer Joel already 'cheered' for me at races.
A baby jogger is very good. My wife and me used it both a lot. But it is only useful for the first child (except twin baby jogger).

I did IM Switzerland this summer and will do QC Roth (former IM Europe) next July. I could fit my IM training quite good with our children and family life.

Felix

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http://www.weilenmann.ch.vu

How about you trigirls? Any tips on training pre- and post-birth for new moms?

Training and racing with a baby can be done, but I would not recommend doing an Ironman the year after your baby is born. Trust, me, it is not worth the stress and aggrevation to you and your wife. I ended up showing up at IMC 97 on one long bike ride of 6 hours. The next longest ride was 3 hours ( 6 am to 9 am ride) on and a long run of 21K. I was constantly trying to figure out how to cram in the training and keep sane at the same time and not feel guilty about not being with my family. I ended up going 10:51, but far off my expectations which clearly were unrealistic given my circumstances.

Once my son started sleeping through the nite (and this only happened at 10 months), my "zero impact plan" was to train on weekdays between 5:30 and 8:30 am. I'd either ride to the pool, swim and ride to work, ride to work and then do a 20K run, or hammer out a 90K ride and end my ride at the office. Then at the end of the day, I'd take 30 min and ride straight home. This is pretty good training if you can get your mornings to yourself, adding up to 10-15 hours before the weekend. Then I'd just take the weekends off and hang around the house and if lucky, cram a run in as others mentioned, when my son was sleeping. This training approach was perfect for olympic and half Ironman, but not quite adequate for Ironmans as the long rides and runs were missing.

When I got back into Ironman racing in 99, I just added an early morning long run on Sat (6 am to 9 am) and an early morning long ride on Sunday (5:30 am to 10:30 am). This left me available to be with the family for the remainder of the day, just as others have suggested. I think the key is to ensure that you are available for your family when they need you so you may have to trash workouts here and there. Oh yeah, you will now have to train in any weather regardless of how bad it is. If you skip your window of opportunity to train due to weather, consider it to be blown. Your wife has likely planned the rest of her day, and there is likely no other window of opportunity for your missed training :-).

Whatever you do, don't try and train with people who are not on the time constraint of being a working parent triathlete. You'll need to train with a mission. No hanging around the pub or cafe after runs or rides. You better head straight home. Also try to minimize time in a car. Replace driving to work with riding if possible. Run and bike straight from home, ride to the pool etc etc. And yes, do buy a treadmill, some weights and a trainer. They'll be helpful in cramming in short workouts when you still need to be in the house.

My son is now 7 and things are a lot easier. Now when I come back from long runs or rides he wants to go for 5-10K mountain bike rides and on some days when I am adequately cooked, he'll even put the boots to me :-)

One word: breastfeeding. Wife does all the nighttime feeding (and changing), sleeping in another bedroom with our 4month old. I get to sleep through the night. The reasoning is that since she has to get up, why should I? That way, I'm more rested in the morning, and I can take care of getting our 5 year old ready for school while the wife gets a little more rest.

The baby jogger will have to wait a few months until the baby can hold his/her head up easily.

Your main job right now is to have enough energy to support your wife, whose only job is to take care of the newborn.

Ken Lehner

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"Go yell at an M&M"

Reading these posts makes me glad that I didn't start tri until my kids were teenagers. Just remember your kids and wife are a much bigger priority than tri,or anything else for that matter. Personally, I'd concentrate on sprints/Olys for the next few years. IM's will still be there when the kids are a little older.

I am impressed how all of these people do it to. My approach was the opposite - in 1997 the year my son was born I decided that that would be it for racing and training at the level I was at. He was born in July and a month later I did IMC - my last race. I have not raced a triathlon since then. No regrets and no worries.

I still stay fit and healthy and one day I might make a "come back", but other priorities have taken over. If I go 4, 5 days even a whole week with no "training" it's no big deal. I will savour the next bike or run that much more.

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Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

It really depends on what you do. also depending on the ones around you it could be easier or harder. For some background: I have three children 4 years old, 2.5 years old, and 1year old. Our oldest was a twin and we lost his sister at birth. He had cholic for 6 months, not sleeping for more than 2hrs during that time. None of our kids sleep as much as other parents seem to say their children sleep. The wife is not a big supporter of my training, and thus I have not had a ride longer than 40 miles in three years. I do not do any workouts on weekends (unless it is a race), and my job when I get home from work and on weekends is childcare since my wife has that job all the rest of the time. We dont live near relatives, so there is no help there, and live in a sparcely populated area, so there are limited resources for child help/entertainment. The winter lasts 6+ months of the year, and it gets real COLD. Also on a post-doc salary, money sucks, and therefore we can not afford much help even if it was available (ie. sitters).

Now with all that said, I have been able to PR the last couple years on EXTREMELY limited training. I have been able to complete two IM races in the past three years (not great times, but for the training, it was OK). What has happened is that I have learned to train better, and make the most of what I have, ESPECIALLY my three wonderful blessings that we have here with us. If you think that you can keep things the same as before children you either have a lot of help (spouse, family, etc.), lots of cash, or are a sucky father. Thats just the way it is, but you will find out it is OK.

As for finding ways of incooperating children into workouts, these are the things that I have learned in the past four years:

-Joggers are great, but not all kids like them. bring lots of snacks, drinks, toys, and dont plan on going for more than 20min to start, and with most kids you will not be able to go longer than 1hr. (two of my three will not stand for more than 40min tops). These can be used as a real training tool. We have a single, double and triple jogger which can be taken on roads or good trails and dirt roads.

-The bike trailer is ok for 1 kid, not so good for 2 if they are very active. Expect to stop to pay attention to kids. Dont expect to use it as a real training tool, BUT it FORCES you to smooth out your pedal stroke, especially on uphills. If your kid(s) stand it, it could make a good training tool.

-Kelty baby backpacks are great. Good to be able to get out and hike, XC ski, snowshoe. Cant be used for running, but can still get in a strength workout if you do some good hills.

-Polk...our kids did not like it, but we got one to use for no cost, so no loss. Some kids do; but I dont see that it could be a real training tool.

-Baby bike seat, For our kids this worked better. I would not try to do any serious training with this as it throws your balance off to some degree; I would hate to do something stupid and hurt my child just for a workout. Not bad for doing some strength workouts.

With all that said, you should make sure that you enjoy your time with your little one(s). I will agree with everyone here that you need to put them first. In the end they may even push you be an even better athlete without you realizing it. I often race with my kids in the joggers, and ran a 10K a month ago with my three kids in a triple jogger of 35:30; so remember, it can be done even if you have what seems like no time without becoming a rotten dad.

Stephen J

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I believe my local reality has been violated.
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Happiness = Results / (Expectations)^2

Looks like the other posts covered just about everything.

We just had girl #3 two months ago. Girl 1 is 6 and Girl 2 is almost 4. Once the baby is two months start with the babyjogger. When using the jogger do not hold onto the handle but rather push the jogger ahead of you and run normally after it. This way you can just about run at your normal pace. Early on the baby will usualy sleep right thru these runs.

I commute to work on my bike but now have to bus it home since it is dark. I ride in the dark in the AM since traffic is lighter. My commute is 20 miles each way. It could be shorter but I take the long way. My runs and swims are at lunch time. I take long lunches 2-3 times per week and eat at my desk on non-workout days to make it up.

One thing I dont think was covered.

Once your wife is up and about make weekend lunch/brunch dates 30-50 miles from home. Get up early and head out on the bike. They get up 1-2 hours later and meet you for brunch at the cafe a few towns away.

I live in the SF Bay Area and we meet up in Half Moon Bay almost every other weekend. I ride down there then ride the hills till the predetermined meeting time. This has worked like a charm as long as you are willing to start your rides near sunrise.

Willy in Pacifica

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Willy in Pacifica

I have a 5 1/2 year old son and was training for a marathon when he was born. I was supposed to finish the marathon about 2 weeks before he was due, but he was a 2 month preemie, so there went that plan. I will echo a few things here - that sleep thing can not be over-rated. It is like training in a mental fog when you go out after the interupted sleep. My wife and I had a deal: the baby creis, I got him and handed off to her and went back to sleep. She breast fed him and when he was done, she woke me up. I took him back, changed him and put him down and then went back to sleep. Overall keep the loss of sleep down - but its those interuptions that are the killer. I never realized how I need uninterupted sleep more than I do many hours of sleep. More than once, I realized at 3 in the morning that my scheduled work-out for later was not going to happen. But it can be done - you just have to realize those first few months are not going to be "quality" work out months. You may even surprise yourself....once you look at that face resting against your chest or in your arms, the importance of a workout fades a bit.

As he grew, I went back into triathlons. I found that early morning (and I mean early morning) work-outs allowed me to get in the necessary time and still spend the time with the family later in the day. Also, my lunch hours are all work-outs with lunch being taken at my desk afterwards. That is still my routine. It really hasn't changed - except that I no longer have the opportunity to work-out during naps as he doesn't take them anymore. I think that you will be able to adjust your schedule and do the Ironman, if you really want to do it and realize that you will probably not end up with a podium spot or Kona slot (unless you are one of those geneticly-gifted freaks of whom I am very jealous).

But....I could be wrong. My wife is 5 months pregnant with twins and I am slotted to do IM Canada next year. So I will be looking forward to your posts in the next few months to see how things go.

Good luck a nd congrats.

Alan

One thing a friend suggested is to cut back on the gadgets but use that money to pay for stuff around the house. i.e. lawn care - costs about $20 a week but gives me an extra 1 - 1 1/2 hours on the weekend, house cleaning - $60 every two weeks, that gives her some more time too but for us saves about 1 hour a week on average. Maybe you won't be able to buy those new wheels but you have freed up time for you to train.

I haven't tried it yet, my wife just had our first last week and he is two months premie so I am staying with him a lot. But his wife and my are old friends and tend to think alike. THis allows him to fit his training in when he would normally be doing chores and also doesn't take away from family time.

First, let me echo what everyone said about lack of sleep. Last year I signed up to do IMMOO ’03. My wife was 5 months pregnant with our first child and after much discussion I figured I could get enough training in to do the race. Man was I naïve! Our son was born 3 weeks early on January 6th and the sleep deprivation started. For 3 months we both operated on 2 hour blocks of sleep at a time, not including a few nights when he had colic and screamed almost not stop for 6 hours. Try getting up to go for a run at 5:30 a.m. when you’ve been up at 1:30 and 3:00 and 4:30. You quickly understand that your body needs more sleep than you’ve ever realized. In early April the lightning bolt of truth hit me – an Ironman was definitely out of the question for this year. At about the same time I decided to pull the plug on my training, he started sleeping more. Also at the same time he became more than just an eating, sleeping, pooping machine and started becoming a real human with laughs and giggles and funny faces just for me. I didn’t want to spend anymore time away from him than was necessary.



All this being said, it does get much easier. He’s now 10 months old and although he’s still not sleeping through the night he does sleep in bigger chunks of time and the length of his being awake in the middle of the night is usually 10 or 15 minutes. The interruption of sleep is still tough on me, but not as hard as no sleep at all. He’s also much more portable and 2-3 days a week twice a day he’s in the gym’s day care – once with my wife in the mornings so she can get her workout in and once with me in the evening. Taking him to the gym is easy because he loves it and gets a big smile on his face when we ask him if he wants to go to the gym.



My advice is to do whatever you can around the house whenever you can - wash bottles, change dirty diapers, dress and feed the little one, do laundry, make dinner when you can. I’ve been getting up with my son at night since he was about 4 months old. I’m a light sleeper anyway and I usually hear him first. I also try to get up with him in the mornings to give him a bottle or put him in the highchair with a handful of Cheerios. I also take him into the bathroom with me while I shower so he can play his favorite game of throwing his bath toys into the shower so dad can fetch them. On the weekends, I get up with him and we go on little adventures to the grocery store or to the coffee shop so that mom can sleep in as long as she likes. I do all this because it’s my way of contributing to my family in ways other than bringing home a paycheck. It also allows my wife to get some extra sleep, it allows me to spend some more time with him and I’d be lying if I didn’t say it also (I think) gives me a few brownie points along the way that I may need to cash in later.



Right now I’m run or lift a couple days a week at lunchtime and swim in the evenings. My wife and I also try to work out together (or at least be in the same room at the gym) on Saturday mornings so we can spend a little extra time together. I have a baby jogger but I’ve only used it twice because my son doesn’t seem to be real fond of being confined for any length of time. I’m going to have to start doing my weekend workouts, especially my riding, in the early mornings because I’m signed up for IMUSA. The real kicker, though, or maybe it’s irony is that just when I started to plan my training program for next year we found out that my wife is pregnant with our second child and she’s due the first week in June – just about the time when I should start my taper. My plan is to train consistently from now until June and then coast into Lake Placid. We’re fortunate in that my parents are close by and I plan on using them to watch our son when needed so I can do a few extra long rides or runs, or take my wife out to dinner as my way of thanking her for putting up with IM training or cleaning up around the house. I’m also planning on cashing in a few of those brownie points along the way too. I think the most important things to remember in all of this, though, is that you’re a father first and a triathlete second, and that your plan should be flexible to accommodate your family and their needs. No one can tell you the feelings you’ll have the first time you hold your new child in your arms, or the first time he or she looks at you and smiles. No one can tell you how difficult or how gratifying being a parent can be. Soon enough, though you’ll understand what all those parents have been telling you. As a friend of mine once said to me before I had children, “It’s the best job in the world. The pay sucks but the benefits are the greatest. Good luck and with some planning you’ll make it to the starting line.

I figure I will chime in. We just had our first child Aug 14, 2003. What a wonderful little boy. I have found that parents who have children who are over 18 mos old have selective memory about the pure pain of lack of sleep and the uncertainty of a new life. Here is my take:

I am a Sub 5 1/2 IM .. not blazing but not bad either. I plan to do one next year. If I am under 5:45 then I will feel lucky. Going from 8.5 hrs a night to 4-5 hrs the first 4-7 weeks is insaine. It kinda messes with your mind. It is worth it. He is now in a bit of a pattern and we are getting 6-7 hours. Yeah!!! After week 3 I got back into it slowly. I am biking 1 - 1.25 hrs on the trainer Tues/Thur and 2-3 hrs on Sat. The rest are 40-1 hr runs at lunch with a 1-1.5 hr run on sun or sat. No swims until feb or so. I know I will not be able to stay consistant. I have been able to take 1 day off each week and 2 days off every other week. The trick is you can get some workouts in but when you kick up even a little intensity then you really feel the lack of sleep. Since you have committed it MOO be ready for the lack of sleep issue. I find that as my volume creeps up and intensity goes up just a smidge bam... it hits you. Be ready. I wanted to do MOO for 2004 but am bagging 2004 with 1 1/2 IM and 2 Olys. I will concentrate on the bike and use the money saved for a new road bike. Remember tris will be there for a lifetime. Good luck with IMMOO. You have pleanty of time for things to get settled down before it starts to get crunch time. Dont worry if you miss aworkout or 3. I missed last night but will get back 30 min of the 1 hr ride today. Just have some flex in your decisions. Congrats!!!!

This is a post from a pregnant trigirl with a 4year old, a full time job, and a husband who is deployed with the National guard who desperately wants to do a 1/2 ironman in August and the Boston marathon in April (10wks after my due date). The baby is due at the beginning of February. How do I find time to train? That's a hard one and will be even more difficult when the baby is born since I'll be the one who has to get up in the middle of the night and breastfeed. By then,though, my husband should be back and maybe I'll be able to sneak out after feeding the baby for short periods of time. (I've already gotten Boston approved by my doc who is also a runner). Right now, I push my 4 yr old in the jog stroller (before I was pregnant I pushed her as far as 16 miles with no complaints from her). If I ever get a chance to run without the jog stroller, it feels like I could run forever...well, maybe if I wasn't pregnant. In the summer, I would also bring my 4 yr old out to the track with me. She would play with the other kids in the sand pits and on the pole vault mats and run a few laps around the track. I could see her the whole time since I was just going in circles and she enjoyed playing and running with me. I also signed my 4yr old up for swim lessons at the YMCA. While she is in swim lessons for 45min, I am in the lap pool right next to the rec pool getting in as many laps as I can. It's great. She can see me swimming, I can see her swimming, and we're both getting our exercise and I don't feel guilty about leaving her with a babysitter after she's been at daycare all day. After lessons, we stick around for rec swim and play around together. I also pull my 4yr old in the bike trailer. I try and make it fun for her too by pulling her to a park about 10 miles away, letting her out to play and to feed the ducks for 30-45min and then riding home again. Now, all these things won't work when the baby is born and I'll have to think of even more creative solutions. My point is, I think it can be done and I think it's good for your kids to see you exercising and living a healthy lifestyle. Just don't put your training above your kids. My 4yr old loves to run and has already done several tot trots including a 1k run when she was 3yrs old.