Working off the Baby Fat

Drop and give me 20 pacifiers! New moms bond and get back in shape at these classes.

Pregnancy is hard, but so is post-pregnancy.

For most mothers, it’s a long road back to pre-pregnancy shape. Enter Baby Boot Camp. Don’t worry, it’s not about turning children into sergeants at tender ages. Baby Boot Camp is a set of classes for Mom to help her stay in shape physically and emotionally.

Instructor Erin deNeeve Baum draws on her skills as a physical therapist and athletic trainer to lead the way to mommy fitness. Unlike other gym programs, Baby Boot Camp incorporates strollers into the routines, letting Mom exercise without having to hire a sitter.

“We move,” Baum says. “We hit the mall. We power walk or jog. And then we’ll do some strength-training exercises. That way the baby stays happy, because the baby keeps moving.”

The classes target mothers with children from 3 months to 4 years old, but older kids can tag along as well. The kids can play with each other or eat snacks on the side. Sometimes they even join in.

photo: Scott Kubo

“One of the women in my classes has a 6-year-old who will come along, and he’ll do exercises with us,” says Baum, whose own 3-year-old will do lunges with her class. The classes also address the emotional muscles of motherhood. When new mother Valerie Rue moved to Honolulu from Florida, she found herself thousands of miles away from friends and family. When her husband, Charlie, found an online article about the classes, Rue gave them a try and broke out of her home-world.

Two years later, Rue says the friendships she made through Baby Boot Camp have gone beyond workouts. In addition to the classes, Rue and the other moms take the kids on excursions to such places as the zoo or aquarium. Other nights they leave the kids with their dads and treat themselves to “Mom’s Night Out.”

Classes meet once a week at four locations. Call 754-6169 for more information.