Q5: do you have any advice for parents looking to exercise again after having a baby?
Jen says: I found it really helpful to keep running through early pregnancy, and then walking a lot after about 6-7 months. It was much harder to do with my second one, already having a toddler in tow, and I definitely noticed I lost a lot more fitness that time around. As long as you’re healthy and your pregnancy is complication-free it’s a great thing to keep exercising as long as you feel comfortable. Post birth,start gently and build up slowly. Even if you’re an experienced runner it’s important to allow your body to heal and get used to running again. I started with a two-mile loop around our local lanes, taking regular walking breaks at first, and built up from there. Doing loops meant I could easily pop home if I wasn’t feeling great or was required for milk duties!
The buggy has been fantastic for letting us both train together, and taking the kids out too. We’re lucky enough to live near a towpath so have buggy-friendly running almost from our doorstep. Timing’s important, especially with younger kids, and it always works best to put them in the buggy when they’ve had a good run around themselves and are ready for a nap. We’re getting better at in-flight entertainment too, including I-Spy, singing, plenty of snacks and audiobooks. When we go on longer runs we also make sure we run to a café or a park so they (and we) can have a break at half way.
Q6: How can people follow you?!
We’d love to connect with some more buggy runners, so follow us and we’ll follow you back. Facebook: jenandsimbenson. Instagram/Twitter: @jenandsim
For more info about our books go to wildrunning.net or jenandsimbenson.co.uk