I find it funny and ironic that most of our pregnancy we are thinking and preparing for one thing.....labor. We dream of holding our baby for the first time, we decorate the nursery, we do reading on pregnancy risks, labor, and delivery. But we actually do very little preparing for the demands of motherhood. We need to be training as if we are training for competition or a sport. So, here I am, your trainer, ready to whip you in shape for beyond L&D.

First Exercise....The bounce

Babies LOVE to bounce. That is how I spent weeks calming the beast named COLIC with my two children. I spent hours bouncing on a stability ball. Exercise: inflate a stability ball. Place it in the middle of the nursery. Sit on the ball. Use your glutes and hamstrings to lift you up off of the ball about 8 inches. Return to neutral. Repeat for an hour. Do this exercise three times a day. You know you have mad skills and you are ready for motherhood when you can continue to do this while asleep.

Second Exercise....The carry

If you are planning on using an infant carry car seat instead of a convertible car seat, you are going to need to train your arm. Sure, you can use a stroller most of the time, but there will be times where you are carrying that car seat for a relatively far distance. Exercise: Purchase three sacs of potatoes. Carry and swing them in your hand while walking down the street. Repeat, but in your other hand, have a bag stuffed to the gills with baby supplies. You know you have mad skills when you can do both and open a car door with your foot.

Third Exercise....The blind reach and drive

At some point your infant/child will drop something in the car then SCREAM at the top of his/her lungs. Master the blind reach and drive. Exercise: Practice in an empty parking lot for safety reasons. Have a friend throw something in the back seat, not tell you where it is and begin to whine. Then, while driving, reach to the seat behind you and feel around until you find the item and return it to your friend. Maintain your speed and drive in a straight line. You know you have mad skills when you can do this while turning a corner. (Note....this exercise is not actually recommended)

Fourth Exercise....The swipe and switch

After the first few months, babies discover they can move. Alot. Changing diapers becomes an Olympic event. Exercise: Attempt to put a diaper on your pet. Do this while your significant other is playing with a pet toy above your pets head. If you don't have a pet, borrow one. You know you have mad skills when you can do this and dodge a water gun at the same time.

These are just a few exercises to help you prepare for motherhood. Practice these daily and you will be in tip top shape and will be on your way to being a "Supermom"