Tuning up your stroller...

After class on Wednesday, our Luna Moms Club playgroup activity was a Stroller Tune-Up Clinic courtesy of the folks at the North Hills REI store. The kids were really well-behaved and we were all able to get our strollers tuned up and even catch a few educational pointers too.

I'd like to pass on some of what the Bike & Stroller Technicians shared with our group... Thanks, REI!

* Tire Pressure
Periodically check your tire pressure and re-inflate to keep things rolling smoothly! Tires should be inflated to the pressure recommended on the wheel (if there is one) as opposed to the pressure recommended on the tire.


* Water-Repellent Lube
Don't use the WD-40 in your garage to lube up those squeaks... grab a bottle of water-repellent lube from your local bike shop or hardware store instead. Spray a little on the squeaky parts and enjoy your quieter ride!


* Suspension
Some strollers, like the BOB jogger, have knobs on the side that you can use to adjust the suspension to more evenly distribute the weight of your growing child over the frame of the stroller.

Many bike trailers that convert into strollers, like the Chariot Cougar, also have adjustable suspension that you can adjust for the weight of the occupant. Additionally, if your bike trailer/stroller combo is a two-seater you can adjust it to ride more evenly if your riders are different weights or if you only have a single occupant. Check your stroller/trailer's manual for more specific instructions or pop into your local REI to get some tips!


* Spokes/Pin Tightening
You might notice that over time your front stroller wheel becomes a little wiggly or that your stroller pulls to one side or the other. If your stroller has spokes (like a bike wheel) you can have a bike mechanic tighten your spokes for you and that should help. On the BOB jogger (which does not have spokes) there is a knob on the front wheel that you can tighten (see photos on the left).

The folks at REI also showed us the basics of fixing a flat tire too... but if I ever have one of those I think I'll just take it to the guys at REI!

Placenta Brain and what YOU can do about enhancing your brainpower!

If you’ve ever spent any length of time around a pregnant woman, or been one yourself, you may be familiar with the term placenta brain. A common affliction (not an actual medical term, mind you), placenta brain is characterized by forgetfulness- temporarily being unable to recall your brother’s name, where you put your car keys, or how to get somewhere you’ve been many times before. Unfortunately it doesn’t seem to completely subside once you’ve delivered your baby (and therefore also the placenta). I’m sorry to report that you may suffer from a mild form of placenta brain, known after delivery as mommy brain, for the rest of your adult life- or at least until your children are adults themselves!

Aside from attempting the Sudoku puzzles in the paper and taking detailed notes whenever you make an appointment or meet someone new- is there anything we can do about it? Yes! Recent research has shown that exercise can do great things for toning up your mood, memory, and ability to learn!

In the August 2010 issue of U.S. News & World Report author, Deborah Kotz, identified these 5 things that exercise can do to enhance your brainpower in her article “Exercise Your Body- and Brain”:

1. Reverse the detrimental effects of stress by boosting levels of “soothing” neurotransmitters and reverse the signs of aging at the cellular level.

2. Lift depression! Exercise as effective as an antidepressant? We’re not going there. Please don’t stop taking your medications as a result of reading this post! But it does stimulate the growth of neurons in certain regions of the brain damaged during depression. How much exercise to feel the effects on depression? Burn 350 calories, 3X/week, through sustained, sweat-inducing activity.

3. Enhance learning! Exercise increases the level of brain chemicals that help make new brain cells and establish connections between cells to enhance learning and upgrades the capacity to learn by enhancing attention and concentration skills. It is best achieved by complicated activities such as playing tennis or taking dance class- or combination moves at Stroller Strides class!

4. Build self-esteem and improve body image as you see your fitness successes. This isn’t necessarily a change in your body shape but running a faster mile, lifting a heavier weight or using a more intense resistance band, or holding your plank longer, among others.

5. Leaves you with a feeling of euphoria known as a “runners high” and is best achieved through interval training such as sprint bursts while running, biking, or swimming

Exercise is the single best thing you can do for your brain in terms of mood, memory, and learning. Even 10 minutes of activity changes your brain.

-John Ratey, Harvard Medical School psychiatrist and author of the book Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain

Post-Pregnancy Challenge #10: Baby Blues

I've taken a 2 week hiatus from writing about "Post-Pregnancy Challenges" because I really wanted to do this topic justice and I just couldn't focus on it until now.

I don't have a deep personal story about postpartum depression- and for that I am SO thankful. What I can tell you is that after Monty was born I experienced what is commonly known as the "baby blues" and I'm not alone- it affects up to 80% of new moms within the first 3 weeks of having a baby. I cried for no reason, felt overwhelmed by new motherhood, and worried anxiously about every ounce gained and lost by my new baby, among other things. Sound familiar?

Up to 20% of new moms experience more severe symptoms (than those associated with the baby blues) of depression, anxiety, and worry. And an even smaller percentage may experience an even more serious mood disorder that includes obsessive, panicked behavior and possibly even psychosis. If this is what you're feeling then please get help. If you've entertained thoughts of hurting yourself or your baby- please get help NOW! Call your OB's office and tell them you need to be seen as soon as possible for postpartum depression. If you need even more urgent help call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room.

Unsure if you need to seek help? If your symptoms interfere with your daily activities, disrupting your ability to sleep or eat, or if you are feeling hopeless or helpless then it is time to contact your doctor.
**Please also note the following resources at the end of this post.

More severe forms of postpartum depression require medication and therapy. But what can you do if you got a case of the relatively mild and very common baby blues? Here are some tips from Stroller Strides Founder, Lisa Druxman:

1. Chronic sleep deprivation and sheer exhaustion don't help- so nap when your baby naps and ask a family member or friend to take over the childcare for a few hours so you can get some uninterrupted rest.

2. Exercise! It has natural mood-boosting effects!

3. Get out of the house and socialize with other moms and babies. Find a moms group near you and get involved- try a Luna Moms Club playgroup, MOPS, or search for moms groups on Meetup.com. Even better when you can get your socializing and your exercising in at the same time at a Stroller Strides class!

4. Make nutritious food choices- fruits, veggies, and lean proteins!

Resources:
*Your doctor's office, call 911, or go to your nearest emergency room
*In Raleigh: contact the Moms Supporting Moms group
*Elsewhere in the US: use the website at Postpartum Support International to search for a contact near you

If you have a story to share about your experience with this topic please feel free to comment- your experience may provide the glimmer of hope another reader desperately needs today!

Luna Moms Club Tip of the Week:

Educational Tip of the Week:

Fact: Plastic baby bottles are often made with polycarbonate plastic that can leach Bisphenol-A. This chemical disrupts proper hormone functioning, alters genes and disrupts normal physical and behavioral development.

Action: Use bottles made of glass or polypropylene plastic. Two companies who make these safer baby bottles are ThinkBaby and Born Free.

Staying Fit on Vacation

Here's my little guy on the beach in Ocean City, NJ- he LOVES the beach!

I've been so blessed this summer with a couple of wonderful family beach vacations. One week in Holden Beach, NC with my husband's family, one week in Ocean City, NJ with my family and various weekends with more of my husband's family in Carolina Beach, NC. While it is a treat to be at the beach it is not easy to fit in my workout when I am away from our daily routine!

A few weeks ago I drafted this blog post for WRAL's Go Ask Mom blog and it has been such great accountability for me. I can't go on vacation and not workout after writing about staying fit on vacation! Plus- I knew I had my Stroller Strides ladies to come home to... I couldn't come back out of shape!


So please read my latest blog post... at this address:

http://www.wral.com/lifestyles/goaskmom/blogpost/8020727/

And leave me a comment if you want to share about the exercise you got while on vacation!

Luna Moms Club Tip of the Week:

Fact: According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, indoor air quality is one of the top five environmental health concerns. Given that people spend about 90 percent of their time indoors, it's important to do what you can to reduce indoor air pollution.

Action: One of the simplest things you can do is open a window. Even if it's chilly outside (we should be so lucky!), you should open a window for just five minutes a day to significantly decrease the concentrations of indoor air pollutants in your home. Most home heating and cooling systems, including forced air heating systems, do not mechanically bring fresh air into the house. Open a window and start breathing cleaner air.

And play outside more!

Post-Pregnancy Challenge #9: Tired All The Time

I have a confession to make. For the first 6 months or so of Monty's life I saw bugs that weren't really there. Do we have bugs in our 70+ year old house? Oh yeah, we do but these were imaginary bugs that I can only attribute to being sleep deprived! I can't express how much better I felt when he dropped his night-time feedings and starting sleeping from 6:30pm to 7am!

Exhaustion can make us moms feel like grumpy, loopy, clumsy, forgetful, crazy people- with bugs crawling up our peripheral vision! Though if our husbands called us out on it we would probably just start sobbing- don't they see how hard we're working?

So what can we do about it? Unless you plan on handing over your mothering duties and hiding under the covers for a month (which I don't recommend) there's not much you can do about replenishing the lost sleep. Since we can't catch up- how do we get through this time?

Here are some things I DO recommend to combat post-pregnancy sleep deprivation:
*Accept offers of help from family and friends. Babysitting, vacuuming, meals- whatever it is- say yes!
*Eat whole grains, fruit, veggies and lean proteins and drink plenty of water especially if you are breastfeeding.
*Exercise- you'll find you have more energy after doing so!
*"Lean Mommy" (by Lisa Druxman) recommends Mommy Meditations- taking a quiet moment to practice your deep breathing, visualize your energy, and mentally let go of your stress. And if you fall asleep and end up taking a nap- that is great too!

If you're looking for advice on how to teach your baby to sleep through the night or nap on a predictable schedule, I recommend "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Marc Weissbluth. It worked for Monty and I hope it helps you too... but there are plenty of other sleep books out there that our friends have used with great success as well.