Almost three years ago one of my best friends, Cat, gave birth to her beautiful twins. It was a tough pregnancy with complications after the birth too so you could have forgiven her for not having exercise at the forefront of her mind. However, while looking for a reason to get out of the house with the twins (we’ve all been there) and an opportunity to have some time to herself, Cat discovered running. I wouldn’t say it’s a passion, as she is adamant she hates it (especially after completing the London marathon last weekend), but she has been incredibly committed and is bloody good at it!
I wanted to share Cat’s story because she started in the same place that I did – a few walks, progressing to a short run – and three years later, she ran the London marathon in just over 5 hours. It just goes to show what you can achieve if you put your mind to it. I’m not saying I’ll be following in her footsteps – but I guess I could if I wanted to!
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Allow me to introduce you to Marathon Mum…
How and when did you begin exercising after having the twins?
I put on nearly 5 stone while pregnant with my twins, suffered with hyperemesis gravidarum (severe vomiting) for the majority of pregnancy, had a c-section birth and then further complications so it took a while before I was up for any sort of exercise. I started walking with the twins, gradually building up distance.
When the twins were about 3 months old I heard about a new class starting called ‘mummy fit’ where you could take your babies. A group of mums that I had met through other baby related classes and I started going twice a week. There was a social hour after the class that was probably my main attraction in the early days!
What were you main aims from exercising?
Losing the baby weight, getting out of the house and seeing my new friends. From early on my husband was adamant that I found something that was ‘for me’ and in the days of no sleep and endless feeding/changing rotas, he kept up with insisting that I took time for myself. Short of spending all my spare time in the pub, exercise seemed a positive addition to my schedule. Nowadays it definitely helps after a day with two tantruming two year olds!
When did you get into running?
The girl that ran mummy fit is a personal trainer and offered a great deal if you also did personal training sessions with her so I signed up. After about six months of twice weekly PT sessions and loosely following her food plan I had reached a plateau and needed to mix things up. Needing a challenge, I signed up to a half marathon.
How did you build up from where you started to where you are now?
When I was on maternity leave I walked for hours with the double pram and dog, gradually increasing the distance. This was mainly to get out of the house as I never coped particularly well with the thought of being in the house all day with nothing to do. I signed up for every class going and filled the gaps with walking. Then the Christmas after I had the twins I got a Fitbit so then the walking became about getting my steps in!
When I returned to work four days a week after six months, time was at a premium so I did quick runs after bedtime to get my steps in. The first few times I couldn’t even run a kilometre without walking but gradually I increased distance. I like to have something I am training for so I did a 10k mud run when the twins were 10 months and then my first half marathon when they were 15 months old. The first one I did, I run/walked and completed in 2 hours 21 minutes. By this point, I had realised that running changes my body shape like no other exercise so, being addicted to eating (and drinking) whatever I want, I stuck with it. I have now done three half marathons and the latest I did in 1 hour 57 minutes.
How do you fit exercise into your busy schedule?
I have set days for PT and, barring work related issues, I go without fail. Other than that I train for events and have a training plan which I stick to as best I can. But I have a busy job, a chaotic home life and a large group of friends so I need to be flexible. I will get up at 5am to run before my husband goes to work or could still be pounding the streets at 10pm. It’s not ideal but I have a goal and it’s important that I put the hard work in so I can enjoy the day – on this occasion the London marathon.
The other reason it is important for me to keep to my plan is that I am naturally very lazy and if I gave myself an excuse I would snuggle down on the sofa with a glass of wine and a large bowl of hula hoops and never get up. Once I started to see improvements in my fitness and body shape, I got the bug and had to keep momentum!
What advice would you give to me/others mums looking to shape up after birth?
My PT sessions are super hard but I have a training partner (we met at baby classes after having our babies two days apart) and going to PT is also a bit of a social catch up. It’s important to remember that nobody finds time you have to make time and that is made easier with a supportive partner and network of help.
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I can certainly identify with Cat (and her husband’s) desire to find something for her to focus on – and exercise was probably a wise choice over wine! The thing she says that resonates with me the most is that you have make time and the support of a great family really does help with that.
Thank you Cat for sharing your story with us and a huge well done on your marathon success, I am very proud of you!
This is my 25th blog entry. To follow my journey from the beginning, please click here. You can also follow and like my facebook page for all the latest updates.
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