Fit4MOM - Babes & Boot Camp + Cardio & Carriages
It’s not often you need to borrow a baby (or two) to a take a class, but that is exactly what I did to try Fit4Mom. This fun and engaging group is all about exercising with your little ones. The model is remarkable and I wish I knew about it when my kids were little (if it was even around then).
I heard about Fit-4-Mom through my friend Megan Gertz, a child life specialist at Loyola, who helped us through some of our hardest times when Kennedy was diagnosed with leukemia. She is also an instructor for the amazing class I took in Bartlett. I cannot say enough wonderful things about Megan. She has dedicated her career to caring for ill children and their parents and now reserves her weekends for supporting fitness for post-natal moms and their children. Megan is one of the most selfless people I know.
Not only did Megan invite me to the class, she also let me borrow her two kids. There was one catch; I had to share them with Brittany – a nurse that used to take care of Kennedy in-patient who is now pregnant, exploring the class; my pleasure. The pair-up was perfect as a lot of the mommies who have been attending the group for a while had already made in-class friends. In-fact, it’s like all the mommies were bonded together with the common thread of babies and boot camp. Ingenious!
Some of the activities included running and lunging with the strollers and lining up the kids in a circle and side-squat-shuffling around them. Megan also set up a competition for the moms, dividing them in two groups and having them run across the room for different challenges, all while blowing bubbles to keep the little guys and gals entertained.
Fit4Mom was an intense and effective workout that I didn’t expect; I thought I would be spending a lot of the class trying to keep my borrowed kids pacified but Megan’s kids lasted through 90% without a peep. The hour went surprisingly smooth; none of the kids were fidgety until the last 10 minutes.
What I really liked: New moms and moms of little ones find it frustrating to recapture their pre-maternity figure while balancing child-care. Fit4Mom offers a win-win solution. The children are amused watching their mom shuffle, jump and squat while singing songs. Mom is happy she gets a workout in without giving up valuable time with her kid(s).
After class, some moms stayed around and socialized, I returned my borrowed children and took my sweaty self home.
Kudos to this great organization! For more information about Fit4Mom in Bartlett and Barrington, visit https://fit4mom-bartlett-barrington.frontdeskhq.com/offerings
Your first class is free, baby not included.
