I am a new and first time mom of a 7 week old. I have been on Jenny for 1 week. I did OK last week. This week I am struggling with exercise and chocolate. Chocolate is my emotional food! I can't sleep when the baby sleeps and he is not sleeping through the night. I am drained and can't motivate myself this week to exercise. I was a runner before I got prego and need to lose 40 lbs.

You need to cut yourself a little slack. You are still adjusting to being a new mother (CONGRATS!). Just try to focus on one thing at a time for now, and since you are doing JC then food is a great place to start! I remember how hard it is with a newborn trying to get in regular meals and even "daily" showers! So begin with trying to stay on plan as best as you can... luckily there are several GREAT chocolate snacks and desserts so choose those when you need that bit of comfort.

The next thing to work on is getting in all your water. It can help with energy levels, and you may find that sometimes when you are "hungry" that you were in fact just thirsty.

Once you have gotten into a better routine with the little one, then start adding in the exersize. Start slow, perhaps just pushing the stroller around the block on nice days. If you really enjoy running, get a good jogging stroller and maybe join a "new mothers" exersize group if you have one in the area. We have a local rec center where they have stroller fitness classes (and even an indoor jogging track), and there are some baby & me yoga sorta things. My little one will be 2 next week and we do some fun activity classes called Tots in Tow, and baby & me swim.

Remember that it took 9 months to get into the shape you are in, and will probably take at least that long to get back into "shape", besides which that shape may have changed quite a bit.

Take care,
Angela

Hello and congrats on the new baby.

First and foremost---take care of yourself and the baby and worry about workouts later---really, you will have time. Think of all the natural excercise you can get now: when the baby is fussy, instead of sitting in the chair and rocking, how about standing and rocking back and forth? Depending on the weather, a short stroll around the block is good for Mom and baby.

As emerald noted, get in all your food, consistently, keep water up, keep taking vitamins (either your prenatal or a multivitamin), and rest when you can (I so remember, so I know its hard). AND, this is SOOOOO Important in my opinion: if you have support (a partner, parent, or anyone) else with you, make sure you get some YOU time. Doesn't matter if you sleep...doesn't matter if you just lay for a minute...take a breadth and minute for you...eventually, that can turn into some YOU excercise time if you want, but for now, just build in some YOU time ---its well deserved and needed.

The weight will come off..and the baby will sleep for more than 2 hours at a time! I know, we want all those things faster. Take care.

I am a stay at home mom to a 7 month old. I remember how tired I felt all the time after she was born. Unfortunately, when she was five weeks old I had to go back to work full time because my husband lost his job. I felt like a walking zombie, but I did what was necessary. The point that I am trying to make is just do something, whether a walk out with the stroller or sit-ups during commercial breaks. Every bit helps and will get you more motivated to do more. Start slow.

I eased into working out by going to Mommy & Me yoga classes at Destination Maternity. Check there website and see if there is a store in your area. The nice thing was that all of the moms were in the same boat as I was and the plus side was that I could bring my daughter and we were able to bond, while I exercised.

I relate to your energy problem - I work 12 hour days and have a 3 1/2 month old - my 1st weeks on the program I gained because I could not get my appetite aka stress in control. I am a almost 6 weeks in now and even though I havent lost a lot, I have maintained, and my appetite is leveling off. My counselor told me to bag the exercise and concentrate on the menu because I was beating myself up trying to do everything - and her advice helped. I hope to add exercise in soon!! good luck

Are you a first time Mom? I am. My LO is 1 year and it took me some time to get used to the sleep changes. Even when the baby started sleeping through the night, I was still so tired during the day keeping up with everything. I started doing easier, shorter workouts. I used Leslie's Sansone's stuff, www.walkathome.com and Powerfit, www.stephaniehuckabee.com Both have 20 minute work outs that are very effective, encouraging, and easy on your body.