Monday, June 29, 2015

Running and Nursing: We Made it to One Year!



Our 2015 Fleet Feet Huntsville Racing Team (I am bottom row, second from left)


After Cotton Row May 25, 2015

See my post here to read about Months One-Seven (how I trained for and ran a marathon and an ultramarathon while exclusively nursing).

I just recently made it to one year of nursing my little one--no formula to supplement the whole year!  Let me just say that if you can make it to 6 months, the rest seems pretty easy.  They start solid foods and the feedings start to spread out.  They're sleeping well, and you're getting rest too.  I continued to drink a lot of water, ate oatmeal daily, and pumped whenever I missed a feeding (except after my long races).  I also joined an on-line support group that gave lots of advice on how to increase your supply.  I tried lactation cookies (around month 9 or 10) that many on the site recommended.  I don't know if they helped, but it can't hurt!

Here's how we made it through the rest of her first year:


Month Eight (January 22-February 22): nursing 4-5 times a day (30-38 oz.)*, ran Mountain Mist 50K (left 15 oz. frozen milk, baby took 10 oz. and nursed when I finished race, I pumped when I got home but only got a couple of oz.), took it easy after MM, long run weekly of up to 13 miles

Month Nine (February 22-March 22): nursing 4-5 times a day (30-38 oz.)*, ran the Scottsboro Half (nursed afterwards during awards ceremony), baby eating baby food twice a day

Month Ten (March 22-April 22): nursing 4-5 times a day (20-32 oz.), ran McKay Hollow Madness without any trail runs since MM --cold day and my family did not come up to the finish line, baby was given pumped milk from frozen stash during missed feedings (around 6 oz. a feeding), I honestly can't remember if I pumped or not when I got home!?, that's the good thing about a freezer stash--you can allow your body time to recover and not pump if you don't feel like it!, baby eating baby food twice a day

Month Eleven (April 22-May 22): nursing 3-4 times a day (20-32 oz.), running 6 times a week, up to a 13 mile long run, normal runs around 4-6 miles, no races, baby eating baby food and table food 2-3 times a day, freezer supply almost expiring! Mostly milk from December-January is left (6 month shelf life in an ordinary freezer--not a deep freezer), began restocking the stash by pumping once a day (3 oz. a time) IF she skips a feeding (she's going down from 4 to 3 feedings most days now)

Month Twelve (May 22-June 22): nursing 3-4 times a day (20-32 oz.), ran the Cotton Row 5K, up to a 13 mile long run, baby eating baby food and table food 2-3 times a day, baby drank the milk pumped from Mountain Mist in January this month!, baby taking water from sippy cup, have finished creating a freezer stash of extra milk (about 60 oz. or so), can be on cows' milk now!

*Information on amount of milk found from Cornerstone Pediatrics Infant Feeding Schedule.

I am not done nursing and plan to continue a little longer.  I was worried about my supply at the 9 month doctor visit since my older daughter's weight percentile plummeted at her 9 month visit, but this baby was doing well--still at 40%.  At her one year visit she was at 50%.  Running and nursing is definitely doable with a little extra effort to plan your runs and races!

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