Fit and fat?

Mami wants to know, can you be fit (in good shape) and be fat?

She's been thinking a lot about this lately. As some of you know, she has been training for the London marathon and this Sunday is the big day.

Some people are surprised to know she is training because they expect her to be lean and thin. Not gordita, or curvy like she is now. One person even said "I expected you to have lost loads of weight".

Ohhhhhhhh! Not the thing to say to mami. She did handle it well though and laughed it off saying "I'm sure I can out run you any day".

But I know she was very upset. I know that she had high hopes of finally losing a few pounds and getting back in shape when she agreed to be sponsored by Nestle to run the marathon.

She and papi have been training, but I'm sad to report, mami hasn't lost any weight and had to buy jeans a bigger size up. I should know, I was with her and it wasn't a pleasant moment.

So why does this happen? I mean she feels healthy overall. She can run for a long time - just last week she did 4 hours! We walk everywhere and she is constantly on the move.

Do you think it's how you are built? Because I've got the biggest tummy I know but I can out run all of my really skinny friends on the playground.

Papi suggested she needed to do "high intensity" work outs because the body gets smart and running doesn't do it anymore.

"Unbelievable!" She yelled out. "I just can't win!"

So now mami is thinking about what to do next. After the marathon she needs to venture into a few fitness regime that works in order to drop those pounds.

But the question still is, can you be fat and fit?

Tell us what you think! In the meantime I will make sure mami stays active.

Mami runs. Part two

My mami is running. And not just after me!

Let me explain. First she is going to run a 5k (or 3.2 miles) in Hyde Park in September and then a half marathon (13 miles) in October.

If memory serves me right, I have seen her run before...but that was back in my baby days. I’m a big boy now!

The excuses

“Shouldn’t you be training for the Royal Parks Half Marathon?” daddy asked mami as she was a about to eat another chocolate reindeer she had in the fridge.

“Arrrrg, yes! I know, but I can’t run now, I’m tired!”

“Well, you have to start soon, otherwise it will be painful”

“Ok! OK! I’ll start this week, I’m just not motivated” and ate the chocolate.

The miracle

Then on Sunday, it happened. Mami went for a run. And not just her, but daddy and I too! I cheered her on from the buggy and held her water bottle. When she needed some I would hand it over to her.

The challenge

What pushed mami out the door? A very nice lady from Arthritis Research UK had contacted mami and me that week and said she had seen my blog. She asked if mami would run the Adidas Women’s 5K Challenge on their behalf to let other people know more about juvenile ar-thri-tis.

I really don’t know what that means, and it was really difficult to spell (I cut and paste it!). But after listening mami talk to daddy, I can tell you a little more about it.

Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis or JIA is a group of illnesses that share similar symptoms. Idiopathic arthritis is arthritis with no known cause and, just as in adult arthritis; it causes inflammation, pain and swelling in the joints. Ouch!

It is very sad because 1 in 1,000 children in the UK hurt from this and can begin at any age and is more common in girls. But the good news is that JIA doesn't turn into the adult kind of arthritis. There is more information, but I didn’t understand it all.

I will try to blog about her training each week and let you know more information on juvenile arthritis as I learn more along the way.

Mummy to 5K

Oh, and its not just mami running! She was able to get some of my blogging friends out and running too! They started the “Mummy to 5K” hash tag on twitter and Rachael @karamina made a pretty badge for everyone to put on their blogs. I put one up for mami. See it on the side?

Each day other mamas are joining in on the challenge. So far, I see that: @cafebebe @karamina @kahanka @climbingtikes @jennypaulin @ngowers and mami @verybusymama are all set to run! If you want to join in, just click on the Adidas Women’s 5K Challenge Link and register and leave your link below!

And daddy (who is a runner too) says don’t forget to get a good pair of trainers – otherwise it will hurt!

Happy running!

Bye bye!

Run mami run

“I need to workout!” I hear her tell daddy, followed by “but I’m soooo tired!” and plopping down on the sofa.

“Definitely tomorrow, promise” she says. And daddy just smiles and says “okay then”.


But I know that is not going to happen.


I know for a fact that mami isn’t always happy with how she looks. I've seen her squirming around when trying to button her jeans, only to quickly take them off and look sad.

Even though she has always been fairly active, she gained 50 lbs when I was in her tummy! But don’t blame me - I weighed a mere 5 lbs pounds when I came out and the rest was because of high blood pressure, those “yummy biscuits” she likes and daddy’s Sunday lunches.


It took her a good while to get back to exercising because she was spending all of her time with me (I admit, I was even more demanding before) and I believe was still in a bit of pain.

When I was around 5 months, we began going to Parent and Pram at the park. It’s an exercise class where all the tots come with their mummies. It was a huge effort for her, and while she jumped around sweating and out of breath, I sat comfy in the buggy (see pic) watching her make funny faces. That was exactly one year ago. Fast forward to today, and mami has lost all of the extra weight she put on.

Despite really struggling to find the time and energy to exercise, mami does really try. But it’s never easy - no no!

On Wednesday after lunch instead of going to the park as usual, we went downstairs to the garage. Smiling at me, she sat me in a new buggy I had never seen before. She seemed really cheerful as she strapped me in. The seat was a bit bigger than my usual buggy and when she starting pushing me it was extra bouncy!

Suddenly mami said “hold on Little M” and before I could turn to look back at her, we had picked up speed and we were running down the road...weeeeeeee!

I threw my hands in the air, the wind hitting my face and sang out “ah ah, eh eh eh” as I bounced up and down with every fast step she took.  I couldn’t believe it – it was so much fun and I got to spend time with mami. We continued down to the river taking short breaks every once in a while (mami was tired, but she would always start up again). I could hear her breathing hard, but she still managed to sing to me and point out the boats and birds along the way.

This new buggy is made especially for running. It has bicycle wheels and it may look massive, but it is very light and easy to push. On that same day, mami registered for the 10km Boutique Run in Battersea Park for women only. I guess a lot of mummies get together to run and enjoy some much needed time away from us while exercising and indulging in a bit of pampering.

She says she “will always be just a little bit fat” (a lady named Bridget Jones said that and mami says it applies to her) and that sometimes she just can’t help herself and eats delicious chocolate biscuits with her tea. She even eats some of my food when she thinks I’m not looking. But I can’t blame her because I love food too! I can’t image having to contain myself when there is something yummy to eat.

Either way I love her just the same. I know it’s hard for all mummies to find time to exercise, but mami recommends it for staying happy and healthy!

She also likes:

Chiswick Bootcamp

Zumba

What do you like to do to keep fit?

P.S. If you want to register for the Boutique Run email us for a discount code!