Book Review:
WALKING THROUGH PREGNANCY and BEYOND
by Mark and Lisa Fenton
One week before my due date arrives, I confess I just want to sit down. I don't want to walk to the Metro station. I don't even want to walk into the kitchen for a bowl of ice cream.
Nonetheless, I find inspiration -- from my comfy couch -- in a new book by Mark and Lisa Fenton. In this latest offering, Walking Through Pregnancy and Beyond, Mark Fenton, a guy the Washington Post calls "
Plainly put, walking is wonderful for you. And, if you're wondering whether it can be a part of pregnancy and post-pregnancy life, the answer from the Fentons is a resounding yes. They urge women and families to make walking a part of their lifestyle -- something that you integrated into normal day-to-day activities -- and they promise lots of benefits.
With a regular walking program, research shows expectant mothers are less likely to gain a ton of weight, develop pregnancy-related illnesses like diabetes, or feel stressed-out. At the same time, walking can help mothers cope with labor and delivery, and it'll help them regain their post-pregnancy shape faster.
The book is divided into seven sections -- three dealing with exercise during the three trimesters of pregnancy and four dealing with the "postmesters" following birth. Each gives concrete advice, answers common questions, and provides real-life anecdotes from women that you'll appreciate -- like Boston-based Cathy, who struggles to get her swollen feet into her shoes.
(Advice to Cathy from Fentons: Minimize time spent sitting with feet hanging and get up frequently. Try ergonomic foot rests, drink more water, and get foot rubs from that nice husband -- which sounds great to me!)
Don't know how to take your heart rate or what to wear when the weather gets chilly? You'll learn in this book. Worrying that a Cesarean means months of sedentary sitting? (As you might guess, it doesn't have to.) Trying to figure out if you're walking fast enough; or, if your baby is old enough for a jogging stroller; or if you can combine walking and breast-feeding? Read for the answers.
(To the last one: Yes. Get a good sports bra and drink lots of water.)
At the same time, the Fentons provide exercise recommendations for three levels of walkers, based on pre-pregnancy fitness levels. In the later chapters, they help readers build a balanced program during post-birth months, depending on their new goals: Want to reduce stress? Lose weight? Or get really fit?
For me, in the third-trimester of pregnancy, Fenton's "low-key" program advises six walking days per week of about 20 minutes a day and a full stretch routine on two or three days. I'm heartened to read that plenty of short walks are just as good as one long one!
I'd just like to know -- do trips to the bathroom count?
- reviewed by Mary Ellen Flannery 10.28.04
Note: Ms. Flannery, wife of WALKArlington Urban Designer David Goodman, gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Lucy, on November 9, 2004. Photos
