Baby Boot Camp motivates new moms

Guys can sympathize but will never know first-hand what it's like to constantly carry a little person around, not just before delivery, but after, too.

Talk to a new mom, and she can tell you about back strain, energy drain and weight gain.

Kristen Horler, a San Francisco personal trainer, decided to do something to help expectant and post-natal moms with those issues after she had her first child four years ago.

Her Baby Boot Camp has now spread across the country, with classes in 125 cities in 17 states.

Though the original idea was to give mothers a chance to shed pounds, tighten everything back up, and build strength for the years of nurturing ahead, Horler found, as thousands of participants have also, that the classes benefit the babies, too.

75-minute workouts

The moms bring them along to the 75-minute workouts that generally combine unique exercises in strength training, Pilates and fat-burning that are designed to be done with the baby.

"The babies love it," said Rebecca Moore, who conducts classes three times a week at the Sahuarita Baptist Church on Sahuarita Road, and at the Rancho Sahuarita lakefront in cooler weather.

Moore has been working with a group of new moms since April, keeping them focused on good eating habits while using simple bands, chairs and floor mats (strollers are used outside) to design a workout that encourages them to lift, rock and play with their babies as they firm up abs and behinds, and continue to burn off 15 or so of the approximately 30 pounds of extra weight gained in a typical pregnancy.

"They get the benefit of a personal trainer who keeps them going," said Moore, 32-year-old mother of Matthew and Mia and certified through the American Fitness Association.

Boot Camp instructors have to be certified, take the organization's special training, and most are moms themselves.

A former high school and Pima track athlete, Moore finished third in Rancho Sahuarita's annual 5K run.

Various fitness levels

She adapts her program to the variety of levels of fitness, since some are coming in as soon as the doctor clears them for it, usually after six weeks or so.

Since she went through it herself, she knows all about the seven or eight pounds of fat that Nature stores up for breast-feeding, and of course, where it gets stored.

Moore watches posture closely, too, since it's crucial to keeping mothers strong as they take care of the business of feeding, picking up, carrying, and pushing their babies here and there.

Abdominals especially lose strength during pregnancy and develop an extra layer of fat.

She finds that moms willing to work at it can lose pretty much all of it and get back to where they were after six months.

"It just depends on how dedicated she is," said Moore, who encourages them to also walk and swim on their own.

Fun for moms, kids

It's not all work, though, as keeping it fun and easy is a top priority, too.

Moms interact with and support other moms, and kids have contact with other kids.

Moore sets up a children's movie or some cartoons for brothers and sisters who come along, and babies are fascinated with each other, and they get lifted and cuddled and talked to during the exercises.

Dads and grandparents are welcome as well.

"I want to get stronger and have more energy," said Christine McGuire, mother of three, including Megan, who's 17 months. "I was always so tired."

Laurel Harris has to keep 9-month-old Grace from chewing on the resistance bands, but is happy to have lost five pounds in a couple of months.

Motivate each other

"We all are motivating each other," emphasized Dawn Bunnow, as she rocked 5-month-old Tyler on her knees during an abdominal exercise.

The program apparently has a great positive effect psychologically as well, since the stress relief and camaraderie help to battle the mild depression, sometimes more serious, that afflicts nearly 80 percent of women post-childbirth, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

The organization is said to be the fastest growing fitness program of its kind, already putting out a national newsletter called Fit Focus, which gives new moms tips on how to cope with issues unique to them.

Jennifer Lawrence is the area coordinator for Baby Boot Camp and can be reached at 520-955-2228 or jennifer@babybootcamp.com.

There's also lots of information at www.babybootcamp.com

mtouzeau@gvnews.com | 547-9747