I'm a planner. I like structure and routine and I like to know exactly how I'll be spending each day (can you say Type-A?!). I'm the type who spends hours over-analyzing my running schedule week-by-week each time a new training cycle starts. So, naturally, to prepare for my postpartum comeback I mapped out my plan for the entire year of 2017...when my due date was February 26th. This included my cross training plan day by day for 365 days with weights, spin, yoga and return to running that concluded with the grand finale of a full marathon in the fall. Just reading that now, years later, makes my head spin. I neglected to even begin to consider just how difficult those first few months would be, how exhausted I would be returning to work full time, or the possibility of my body and mind just not being ready to handle that amount of activity. I could have handled an overly-detailed workout plan in the past, but adding motherhood to the mix required me to take a step back and realize that I could only do so much in a day. It was extremely tough for a "I need to check everything off my to-do list or I can't go to bed" person like me to accept that I needed to re-evaluate my goals and focus on the mentality of 'Start Where You Are' instead of trying to force myself to be where I wanted to be.

"I never realized what an important part running would play in my overall mental health."

Being a mom is hard. Being a mom who works outside of the home is hard. Being a stay-at-home mom is hard. It's exhausting to give all of yourself to your children and it's equally as tough to feel the guilt when you take time away from your family to do anything for yourself. When I started running several years ago at the beginning of my health and fitness journey I'll admit it was because I wanted to lose weight. I never realized what an important part running would play in my overall mental health. The mornings I laced up before sunrise to meet friends before returning home to my still sleeping baby gave me the chance to clear my mind and prepare for what the day would bring- like those fun mornings where cutting a banana into pieces results in a 10 minute, full-on breakdown (because bananas don't taste the same when they're broken in half, obviously). The best advice I received postpartum was that you can't pour from an empty cup. In order to give the best of yourself to others, you have to take the time to recharge your mental batteries.

Raise your hand if you know what your pelvic floor does and why it's important {raises hand proudly}. Now, raise your hand if you know what diastasis recti is and how to check for it {raises both hands proudly}. Had you asked me this question 2+ years ago I would have given you a blank stare, even after having lots of physically active postpartum mama friends (however, active or not, neither of these conditions discriminate). After attempting to train too aggressively for a half marathon post-baby I quickly learned the importance of both from a physical therapist who helped educate me on exercises to help strengthen my pelvic floor, close my 2" diastasis gap and regain confidence during high impact activity (re: no more peeing my pants doing jumping jacks..there, I said it). Not only did I have a greater appreciation for what my body had allowed me to create, but I learned how to listen to my body and advocate for myself when something just didn't seem right.