10 Frequently Asked Questions {Baby Edition II}

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Hi, I'm Tina!

I’m the owner of Carrots ‘N’ Cake as well as a Certified Nutrition Coach and Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner (FDN-P). I use macros and functional nutrition to help women find balance within their diets while achieving their body composition goals.

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Hello!

I’ve received a whole bunch of questions from you guys about various things related to my pregnancy and our little peanut, so I wanted to reply in a blog post to the most frequently asked ones. (If you missed the first edition of this series, you can find it here. I answer 10 more pregnancy/baby questions in it.) If you have any other questions, just let me know, and I will do my best to reply!

When did you start running with Quinn in the stroller?

With his doctor’s blessing (she actually said stroller bootcamp sounded “fun”), I started taking Quinn on runs and to bootcamps around 10 weeks old. He was in his car seat in the jogging stroller, so his head was supported. Obviously, I am not a doctor, so please talk to yours about what is best for you and your baby.

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I was wondering if you kept your heart rate at a certain range during pregnancy?

No, I didn’t pay attention to it. From what my doctor told me, a lot of the exercise/heart rate recommendations for pregnant women are out-of-date. I actually worked out pretty hard during my pregnancy. Of course, I didn’t do anything crazy, but I still challenged myself within reason. I had a very normal, straight-forward pregnancy, so, with regard to exercise, my doctor said: “If it feels uncomfortable, stop,” so that’s exactly what I did and it worked out great for me and Quinn. I actually exercised right up until the day he was born. Again, I am not a doctor, so be sure to talk to yours about what it right for you and your baby.

Do you have any advice for losing the last 5 pounds?

What worked for me was high-intensity workouts with heavy weight and (mostly) healthy eating. Here is a recap of how I lost the baby weight in about 4 months.

Did you gain weight when you stopped breastfeeding?

I think so? When I officially stopped breastfeeding (here’s why), I put on about 6-7 pounds. I remember when I did the Discover Your Fitness Age assessment at Canyon Ranch, I was surprised to see my weight, but, of course, the number on the scale isn’t the whole story.

Did you have protein powder when you were pregnant and if so which one did you use?

I didn’t use it a ton when I was pregnant, but when I did, I used SFH Recovery. But, of course, talk to your doctor before choosing a protein powder.

How old was Quinn when he started crawling and walking?

He didn’t crawl on his hands and knees until he was almost 10 months (he “army crawled” and “ninja rolled” for awhile), but he took his first steps shortly after that. He was full on walking (like all the time) before his first birthday. Now, he’s RUNNING, and I follow him around the house having mini heart attacks all day long.

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Do you have any books you would recommend for pregnancy and after?

Mal and I went to a baby education class and toured the hospital where I planned to deliver, but, honestly, we didn’t really read any books before Quinn was born. There was just so much information out there, Mal and I didn’t want to worry about every little thing that could possibly go wrong with our baby/pregnancy/labor (and we both knew I would have because I’m a total stress-case). We talked to my doctor and asked her lots of questions, but that was pretty much it. And after Quinn was born, we were lucky to have a wealth of baby knowledge around us. My mother-in-law was a pediatric nurse for 30+ years and Quinn’s doctor/nurses were absolutely amazing, so anytime we had a question or concern, we would contact one of them. Basically, our thinking was: Every kid is different, so let’s do what’s best for our kid based on what we know about him, the situation at hand, and the recommendations from experienced professionals who know him too. We also “researched” all sorts of baby stuff online. Some favorite websites: KellyMom, Lucie’s List, and Scary Mommy. I also really liked the Wonder Weeks app. The one book we did read, however, was Solve Your Child’s Sleep Problems, which was really helpful for us.

Did you do Baby Led Weaning with Quinn?

Yes and no. Here’s a quick summary how we fed Quinn at 9 months old. We did a mix of spoon-feeding and letting him feed himself. As he got older, we let him feed himself more and more and eventually gave him a spoon, which he does quite well with now””although, he still prefers his hands.

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I am so overwhelmed by choosing a stroller! At first I envisioned being able to use a jogger (I’m a runner) as an all in one but after seeing them in person realized they are a bit too big for everyday use. I’m mainly stuck between the benefit of ample storage versus rugged wheels for lots of walking.

I wish I knew about the Chicco Tre Jogging Stroller when we first had Quinn because it would have been the ONLY stroller we got. It’s basically 3 strollers in one: For newborns (the car seat clicks right in) + a jogging stroller (rugged wheels), but it isn’t as big as other joggers, so it’s also a regular, forward-facing stroller, so you could totally take it grocery shopping. It’s awesome. Be sure to watch the video on the Chicco website to see all the cool stuff it does. It is really helpful!

One of the midwives in a practice I see recently told me to lay off abdominal work except for that done in prenatal yoga. This is primarily to avoid diastasis recti. What are your thoughts?

Honestly, I’m not sure. I’ve heard so many different things. My doctor told me not to worry about it, but then I ended up with a small case of it. (I still have about a 1-finger gap, which isn’t a huge deal, but it’s weird!) Jessie Mundell actually has a great post about this on her website, so I will refer you guys there: Does Everyone Get Diastasis Recti in Pregnancy?

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