Fathers - Running with a Baby

Try skipping a meal here and there and going for a run instead.

Haha, I love that smart people read Letsrun. Thanks Frank.

If possible, run after he goes to bed. You can try running during lunch a couple of times a week if your schedule allows. At that old, he should be good to go in a running stroller, so if the timing works out, take him with you when he wakes up in the morning.

Two words.....

Tread Mill

Stop worrying about getting sick from lack of sleep.

My daughter is also 7 months, and I'm in the same boat. I went from running 40-60 miles a week before she was born to about 12 a week now ( 6 miler on Saturday & Sunday). It's hard to get away in the evening for a run during the week due to the tight routine of feeding, playing, and then bath and bed.

As it's starting to cool down a bit in my neck of the woods, I was going to start doing 3-4 miles with my daughter at night in the stroller. That being said, my favorite part of any day is that 30-60 minutes at night when you get to play with them before their bed time...hard to trade that for a run at night.

Early morning, lunch runs, and piling on the weekend mileage. Or work it out with your wife that you watch the kid a few evenings during the week so she can get out. Then you get to get in an evening workout a couple of days a week if you're not a morning person. I had a newborn in 2014 and was still able to get in 90+mpw no problem.

I have a 5 month-old. Here are my experiences thus far:

1) If your child is asleep at 7:30, can't you be in bed by 9:00-10:00? If so, you could wake up at 5:00 AM with 7-8 hours of sleep. Out the door by 5:30 for 4-5 miles. A quick shower and you're ready by 6:30 when your child wakes up. This has been my routine since my child started sleeping through the night.

2) If you haven't already done so, invest in a nice jogging stroller. Your child is probably at the point (or close) where he has enough neck control to start running with him. You could get a few additional miles on the weekend by taking him.

3) In summary, remember all of those people who would say "Your life is about to change..."? Well, it's happened. Priorities change, man. My days of PRing are long behind me but I wouldn't change it for the world. My running is now a lot more brief and recreational, but it's nowhere near the priority it once was.

solid advice here. You can still likely run well, but since its not your top priority anymore, odds are your best running days are behind you. Just do what you can and be happy with that. Also, don't worry too much about not spending every waking minute with him like you want to. The break will do you good over the long term. Its very easy to forget about yourself when you have a kid, but its also very important to take time for yourself.

The stroller is huge. My kids really like sleeping in it and if I give them some food they are cool with a half hour run even if it's not nap time. I don't dare run with them on the street in the dark though, so this time of year is tough.

Bobby Sands wrote:

Not a stroller question

My son is 7 months old. Truthfully I haven't run consistently since he was born. He's a very good sleeper, 7:30 p.m. to 6 a.m. normally.

How did you manage to continue your running? When I get home from work, I want to spend as much time as possible with him while he's awake, and I think if I ran late or got up early, I'd be setting myself for getting sick from lack of sleep.

Thanks for sharing your experiences.

My baby has sleeps about the same (9 month old). I'm running almost 80 mpw now and I haven't had to sacrifice family time.

1) I'm up at 4:30 am every week day. I put in an hour and go to work.

2) A couple times a week I take my baby on a 30-40 min run after work. It gives my wife a break and the baby loves it.

3) Weekends are 14+ mile days. I finish my morning run before or just after the baby is awake, then I take her along with me if I have to tack on a 2nd run.

4) Since the baby is in bed before 8 pm I make sure I'm down by 9. That's 7.5 hrs a night and is enough for me.

It might not work for everyone, but I've found that if I'm efficient I can get a lot of miles in including a couple workouts a week, and I'm able to spend quality time with my family in the evenings.

Talk to your wife.

Tell her you want to run and ask her when is the best time.

Then run during that time.

Your son sleeps 10.5 hours. You can run 1.5, sleep 8 and have an hour left over for making more babies.

My kid is 15 months. I can do what I want from 5:30-6:30 a.m. and during my lunch hour. Thankfully my workplace gives us a nice locker room and access to the hotel gym across the street, so most of my runs are 30-40 minutes on the treadmill at lunch. I also dusted off my indoor bike trainer and use that fairly often -- I can watch the baby monitor while biking, so I can get in a workout if the kid is asleep and my wife is away.

Despite what your wife might think, you really aren't obligated to start babysitting the second you walk in the door... Go for your run and take the kid when you can.

Get up early and go run before everyone else is up. And make sure your kid nurses instead of bottle feeding. That is key.

just do your run wrote:

Despite what your wife might think, you really aren't obligated to start babysitting the second you walk in the door... Go for your run and take the kid when you can.

This is true except it's called parenting, not babysitting.

just do your run wrote:

Despite what your wife might think, you really aren't obligated to start babysitting the second you walk in the door... Go for your run and take the kid when you can.

exactly, you're supposed to be a goddamn man not a glorified wet nurse.

I used to know some ex- bike racing dudes who had kids and they were pathetic, like they'll never ride more than hour again until the kid is 5 or 6. (This somewhat before latest cycling boom with better kid carriers etc but same idea.)

This is not a new problem. The solution is a papoose.

"When I get home from work, I want to spend as much time as possible with him while he's awake"Translation, the wife throws the kid in my arms and I can't do squat. Dude, I get it, I'm a dad also.

Bobby Sands wrote:

Not a stroller question

My son is 7 months old. Truthfully I haven't run consistently since he was born. He's a very good sleeper, 7:30 p.m. to 6 a.m. normally.

How did you manage to continue your running? When I get home from work, I want to spend as much time as possible with him while he's awake, and I think if I ran late or got up early, I'd be setting myself for getting sick from lack of sleep.

Thanks for sharing your experiences.