When I was a brand-new mom, it seemed I heard more unsolicited advice than during any other time in my life.<\/p>\n Although most of it was well-intended, a lot of–particularly new-mom exercise—advice I’ve been offered is pure, saccharine crap.<\/p>\n We’ve all heard them—those suggestions that truly have no substance, and nothing tangible that we can actually implement as helpful tools within our changing lives, as parents with little kids.<\/p>\n While sharing guidance and strategies that have experientially worked for us is\u00a0<\/em>helpful, idealistic, not-genuinely practical advice just adds to our feelings of mother-guilt–that somehow we’ve failed, and it ( falsely) seems like everyone else is performing this all-important role of mother with much more ease and effectiveness.<\/p>\n It’s tips like these that need to go away:<\/strong><\/p>\n 1. Chasing our kids is exercise.<\/strong><\/p>\n No. No, it’s not.<\/p>\n I absolutely fall into the category of “exhausted mother with two kids under the age of five,” and this is exactly why I do<\/em> exercise—so that I can <\/em>keep up with them.<\/p>\n 2. Use random household things for weights.<\/strong><\/p>\n “Grab a soup can!” No. Wrong. Invest a few dollars and purchase actual dumbbells. Women need to stop pretending that we can and should only lift a few pounds.<\/p>\n (Do we really need to continually dispel this myth that women shouldn’t lift heavy weights? If so, it’s been done.)<\/p>\n 3. On mommy-and-me classes.<\/strong><\/p>\n Now, mommy-and-me classes are awesome for connecting with our children—I’m not arguing that.<\/p>\n Additionally, studios and gyms that offer childcare are great ways for parents to get out of the house and have a real workout.<\/p>\n This all said, working out at home is the easiest, most practical solution—especially for those\u00a0with babies and younger kids. There’s never an excuse to miss an in-the-living-room workout, and my daughters have fun breaking out their own little yoga mats and trying to do some exercises along with me.<\/p>\n![\"IMG_9771\"](\"http:\/\/jenniferswhite.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/IMG_9771.jpg\")
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