Jogging through this world...now with a stroller

So I haven’t really been running in a while…or blogging, some have noticed. I have, however, made time to make and eat a batch of cookies every weekend. Good thing I have my priorities straight.I’ve been justifying this procrastination by telling myself that it is pointless to buy a jogging stroller until my infant could sit up in it. Yes, there are car seat adapters, but they are like $50 and not the point. Luckily for my cookie-loving thighs, I found a deal I couldn’t pass up on a used jogging stroller, which has a feature in which your child to lie down or sit in a half-reclining position.There is conflicting information on what age kiddos should be before riding in jogging strollers sans car seats, so check with your pediatrician. The going wisdom is to wait until they can hold up their heads and take it slow and smooth. I did not come across this information until writing this blog (aka, AFTER running with my little one), so I think I just found my excuse to put things off for another month, as Aubrey is just now holding up her head.Anyways, yesterday was fifty and sunny and I was blissfully unaware of safety regulations (I’m a terrible mom…I know, I know), so I found my long-tucked-away running clothes and went for a jog. For the record, baby’s head was stable, I chose a well paved trail, and only ran two miles.  Of course, like all things you dread and delay for no good reason, the run wasn’t bad. Neither was indulging in my favorite post workout activity: getting on run in the usa (my favorite website ever!), and searching for half marathons in cool destinations. While eating cookies.Reasons why jogging strollers are great:

• You can bring all kinds of stuff with you while running: Water bottle, car keys, phone with a run-tracker app, camera, and…oh yeah! A baby.
• A smooth ride: Make that a DRASTICALLY smoother ride. I worry about shaken baby syndrome while WALKING Aubrey in her regular stroller. In the jogging stroller she promptly fell asleep and things seemed exceptionally stable.
• Fitting in: If you, like me, live in the Denver suburbs, practically everyone out running is a mom with a jogging stroller. I’m almost part of the club. Now all I need is a dog. And expensive running clothes. And a husband with a beard.
• If your kid starts crying, you have a good excuse to stop running. I was hoping that Aubrey would start fussing as I was heading up the steep hill halfway through that arduous two mile run. But noooo, she kept sleeping. I guess there are some drawbacks to having the world’s most perfect child.

Reasons why jogging strollers are not great:

• They are freaking expensive. I recommend finding a used one. There should be several popping up on Craigslist in the next few months as all the people who bought New Year’s resolution workout stuff give up on their fitness goals. My stroller was a steal at $40. At least I thought it was a steal until I saw the $30 garage sale sticker on it that the lady I bought it from apparently forgot to remove. Oh well.

• Storage: Due to the tri-tire design, jogging strollers can fold up in half, but not flat. This means that the stroller doesn’t fit in the trunk of my car. It has to hang out in the backseat, next to my daughter’s car seat, which makes me nervous. There is also no place in my house for the ginormous contraption, so I have to store it outside. I’ll let you know how it weathers in a few months…unless someone steals it first.

• Tethers are necessary – you don’t want that stroller to go flying if you trip or accidently let go of the handle. This can happen more easily when you are running than when you’re walking.

Happy running! If you are without child and want a running buddy who will carry your water-bottle, look me up if you are in Denver. We’ll go on a non-crying, non-bumpy two mile run in the Mile High ‘burbs. For the record, I have a seven-year old Baby Trend stroller. If you are cooler than me, you might want to go with the BOB Revolution or Joovy Zoom.