Nothing is healthier for a baby than breast milk. Even makers of formula, who profit from mothers not nursing their children, state firmly in their ads that breast milk is best. Why, then, would someone choose not to breastfeed?
Often, the reason for this is that the nursing mother encounters obstacles and has nowhere to turn. Breastfeeding, which is one of the most natural things a woman can do, can be hard. This is why it is important to find a good lactation consultant.
In Southern Missouri, lactation consultants can be hard to find. Even harder is finding traveling lactation consultants. My sister, Jill Kremer, offers breastfeeding help to mothers in Lebanon, Springfield, and the surrounding areas. I'm plugging her services because she is my sister, of course, but also because I know, as a mom, how hard it can be to find a lactation consultant in Missouri who travels to you.
When I was a new mom, I developed a yeast infection that caused extreme burning and pain every time I tried to nurse. My son developed the same condition and we passed it back and forth to each other for a month before we visited a lactation consultant who gave us the answers we needed. I've known many more moms who have given up on breastfeeding altogether because they don't have the help or support they want and need. We all know that breastfed babies are healthier, but women who have breastfed are healthier as well. This is why it is vital to get the support you deserve. If you are in Southern Missouri, breastfeeding help is close by and will come to you. Visit Jill's web site for more information about the services she offers.
Thursday, September 6, 2012
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Half-Marathon Training Update
I had every intention of writing out my training plans and training reports every week. Really, I did. As I said in yesterday's post, I have been too busy with real-life stuff to blog it up over here.
The half-marathon training isn't going as well as I would like it. Illness, injury, and other commitments has shortened my training, but hasn't stopped it in its tracks. I have high hopes of a PR, but the more I have learned about this half marathon, I realize that it is very hilly and difficult. I may not reach my goal of 2:30, but I at least plan on breaking my last time.
I am able to run on Tuesdays and Thursdays for longer periods of time. Getting in five or six miles is no problem. Weekends are harder and I'm not able to stick with the training schedule precisely, but I can generally get in what I need. This week is a renewed effort on my part, mostly because I realize the half is only six weeks away! Still, that's plenty of time and I'm still very excited about it.
My gym has started offering early morning classes as well. Today, I took my first Body Combat course. It was good. A lot of people I know do Combat and love it, are even obsessed with it. I enjoyed it but I didn't find it overly difficult, either to follow the routines or to get through it. It was funny because I was talking to a group of ladies about it yesterday and they suggested that I might make it through 15 minutes before I'd have to leave. I wasn't insulted, I believed them. But no, it was actually pretty easy. The hardest part was understanding the instructor through the headset mic. Still, I got a great workout and a heavy sweat first thing in the morning. I had to forego work, but it was worth it. I also think it will help greatly with my marathon training. Cross training is always a good thing.
The half-marathon training isn't going as well as I would like it. Illness, injury, and other commitments has shortened my training, but hasn't stopped it in its tracks. I have high hopes of a PR, but the more I have learned about this half marathon, I realize that it is very hilly and difficult. I may not reach my goal of 2:30, but I at least plan on breaking my last time.
I am able to run on Tuesdays and Thursdays for longer periods of time. Getting in five or six miles is no problem. Weekends are harder and I'm not able to stick with the training schedule precisely, but I can generally get in what I need. This week is a renewed effort on my part, mostly because I realize the half is only six weeks away! Still, that's plenty of time and I'm still very excited about it.
My gym has started offering early morning classes as well. Today, I took my first Body Combat course. It was good. A lot of people I know do Combat and love it, are even obsessed with it. I enjoyed it but I didn't find it overly difficult, either to follow the routines or to get through it. It was funny because I was talking to a group of ladies about it yesterday and they suggested that I might make it through 15 minutes before I'd have to leave. I wasn't insulted, I believed them. But no, it was actually pretty easy. The hardest part was understanding the instructor through the headset mic. Still, I got a great workout and a heavy sweat first thing in the morning. I had to forego work, but it was worth it. I also think it will help greatly with my marathon training. Cross training is always a good thing.
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
Update: A Month Later
This blog has been dead for almost a month. I miss writing on it and I think about it often, but time is the biggest issue. I've said it a few times, but it's gotten more and more difficult to keep up with the blog. The biggest culprit is the number of assignments I have. I am regularly getting requests for work, which is awesome, but leaves precious little free time for fun things. Like this blog.
What's Going On?
The gardening project is all but defunct. The brutal summer made daily, sometimes twice daily, watering a necessity. After our trip to Florida, during which I obviously could not be as conscientious about organic pest removal, the squash plants were decimated by squash bugs. I finally yanked them all and planted broccoli, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts in their place. A week of extreme sickness during the first week of the school year meant that I did not tend to the garden as I should have. In one week, while temperatures were still extreme, the little plants all died. All of them. Now, I have okra plants still growing and a very small number of carrots are popping up. Everything else, even the kale that looked so good as it was sprouting, has died. The fall garden is a non-garden, so I'm planning on turning over all of the soil and anxiously awaiting next spring. Still, I may try to put out more seeds in the meantime. Time is the number one concern.
I am having a little more difficulty eating an entirely clean diet, but only a very little. Clean eating has become such a way of life that I automatically reach for healthier foods. However, there are many days that I need a quick meal instead of a healthy one. On those days, I have a pre-packaged, frozen dinner ready. I'm trying to have less of those so that I force myself to make something clean and healthy, but I've since found that if it's not fast, it just doesn't happen. Several days last week, I barely ate at all. As I age, that is having an opposite effect on my body. I actually put on weight when I'm eating very little. I don't know how that is possible!
Exercise is going as well as possible. Now that my husband is back at work, I can only get to the gym two or three days per week. It's hard, but it's working. I'm concerned about the 1/2 marathon in October, but I'm still confident that it will go well.
I also built a web site for my sister who is a lactation consultant in Southern Missouri. Breastfeeding is the healthiest choice for babies and their mothers. In Southern Missouri, lactation consultants are pretty hard to find. My sister, Jill, is a traveling lactation consultant. This means that she will provide breastfeeding help in Lebanon, Missouri, she'll travel to Springfield, MO for breastfeeding classes, or she'll go throughout that part of the state. When I was nursing #1, I would have loved to have a lactation consultant come to my home, so I think it's really a great thing that she is doing. Check out her website at https://sites.google.com/site/missourilactationconsultant/. Let me know what you think or if you have any suggestions about the site itself.
Also, the election is consuming me. Don't be surprised if you find a few political posts here. Though this isn't a political blog, I'm all over this election. No stone left unturned in my quest for the best possible choice for our nation's president.
I'll try to update more often, but I make no promises. These days, time is not on my side.
What's Going On?
The gardening project is all but defunct. The brutal summer made daily, sometimes twice daily, watering a necessity. After our trip to Florida, during which I obviously could not be as conscientious about organic pest removal, the squash plants were decimated by squash bugs. I finally yanked them all and planted broccoli, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts in their place. A week of extreme sickness during the first week of the school year meant that I did not tend to the garden as I should have. In one week, while temperatures were still extreme, the little plants all died. All of them. Now, I have okra plants still growing and a very small number of carrots are popping up. Everything else, even the kale that looked so good as it was sprouting, has died. The fall garden is a non-garden, so I'm planning on turning over all of the soil and anxiously awaiting next spring. Still, I may try to put out more seeds in the meantime. Time is the number one concern.
I am having a little more difficulty eating an entirely clean diet, but only a very little. Clean eating has become such a way of life that I automatically reach for healthier foods. However, there are many days that I need a quick meal instead of a healthy one. On those days, I have a pre-packaged, frozen dinner ready. I'm trying to have less of those so that I force myself to make something clean and healthy, but I've since found that if it's not fast, it just doesn't happen. Several days last week, I barely ate at all. As I age, that is having an opposite effect on my body. I actually put on weight when I'm eating very little. I don't know how that is possible!
Exercise is going as well as possible. Now that my husband is back at work, I can only get to the gym two or three days per week. It's hard, but it's working. I'm concerned about the 1/2 marathon in October, but I'm still confident that it will go well.
I also built a web site for my sister who is a lactation consultant in Southern Missouri. Breastfeeding is the healthiest choice for babies and their mothers. In Southern Missouri, lactation consultants are pretty hard to find. My sister, Jill, is a traveling lactation consultant. This means that she will provide breastfeeding help in Lebanon, Missouri, she'll travel to Springfield, MO for breastfeeding classes, or she'll go throughout that part of the state. When I was nursing #1, I would have loved to have a lactation consultant come to my home, so I think it's really a great thing that she is doing. Check out her website at https://sites.google.com/site/missourilactationconsultant/. Let me know what you think or if you have any suggestions about the site itself.
Also, the election is consuming me. Don't be surprised if you find a few political posts here. Though this isn't a political blog, I'm all over this election. No stone left unturned in my quest for the best possible choice for our nation's president.
I'll try to update more often, but I make no promises. These days, time is not on my side.
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