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Fit & Healthy Pregnancy

How to Stay Strong and in Shape for You and Your Baby

Contributions by Rachel Kramer
Published by VeloPress
Distributed by Simon & Schuster

About The Book

Exercise during pregnancy isn’t just safe, it’s healthy for you and your baby. Fit & Healthy Pregnancy will help new mothers experience an easier, healthier pregnancy and a faster return to fitness after delivery.

Fit & Healthy Pregnancy dispels generations of old wives’ tales about exercise and pregnancy so active women can stay strong and in shape. This book from running coach Dr. Kristina Pinto and triathlete Rachel Kramer, MD goes beyond labor and delivery through the "fourth trimester,” helping new mothers return to fitness after they’ve had their babies.

Fit & Healthy Pregnancy reviews up-to-date research to show that exercise during pregnancy isn’t just safe, it’s ideal for health and wellness. Pinto and Kramer guide moms-to-be through each trimester, showing how their bodies, nutrition needs, and workouts will change. The authors cover the months following delivery, when women adapt to a new lifestyle that balances family, fitness, self, and perhaps a return to work. They offer smart guidance and tips on breastfeeding, sleep training, nutrition and hydration, weight loss, and how to transition back into workouts and training.

Fit & Healthy Pregnancy includes
  • Trimester guides to body changes, nutrition, and emotional health
  • Guidance on exercise, rest, body temperature, injury prevention
  • Guidelines and suggested workouts for running, swimming, and cycling
  • Strength and flexibility exercises to reduce discomfort and chance of injury
  • Tips on exercise gear for each trimester
  • Symptoms of common pregnancy conditions and when to see a doctor
  • Three chapters of expert guidance on returning to fitness after delivery

About The Author

Dr. Kristina Pinto received her Ed.D. in human development from the Harvard Graduate School of Education in 2005. A specialist in women's health and psychology, she has been a distance runner since 1998, completing 10 marathons and a 90km run in the Australian outback. Dr. Pinto is now a running coach with her business Mile Mannered Running as well as a fitness author who has published in Runners World and Women's Running. She wrote the featured blog Marathon Mama for Competitor Magazine and has published her research in many journals. Profiled in the Boston Globe for her writing and coaching, she currently writes the blog Mother Running Rampant. Dr. Pinto is mom to son Henry, who bikes next to her while she trains on their country roads north of Boston.

Product Details

  • Publisher: VeloPress (June 4, 2013)
  • Length: 328 pages
  • ISBN13: 9781937716363

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Raves and Reviews

“As a youth star herself, Melody provides a great and inspiring perspective that all youth athletes can learn from. I enjoyed the book and her story. Thanks for sharing your journey!”

– Jordan Hasay, professional American runner

Girls Running is a very timely book for young women and girls who want to make running a healthy, fun, and meaningful part of their lives. The book provides a great balance of information regarding training, nutrition, mindfulness, and both physical and mental exercises for young and engaging minds.”

– Joan Benoit Samuelson, first women’s Olympic marathon champion

Girls Running gives young athletes a perspective into how to achieve long-term success and happiness by covering a wide range of topics such as how to fuel properly, have a positive body image, be a team player, and have a growth mindset.”

– Karissa Schweizer, American middle- and long-distance runner

Girls Running is the perfect guide for young female runners at any level to learn how to make the most of the running journey. From nutrition, to the mental side of competition, to celebrating all the female body can do, this book is a resource all young athletes should have.”

– Courtney Frerichs, Olympic steeplechaser

“It didn’t take long into reading Girls Running to realize how much I wish I had been introduced to this book as a young athlete, and how so many aspects resonate with me now as a professional athlete. It’s all-encompassing with the information it provides on both the physical and mental realm of running, while also providing moments for reflection to process the information on a personal level. A fantastically informative and relatable read no matter what part of your journey as a runner (or triathlete) you are on.”

– Katie Zaferes, 2016 Olympian, world champion, and professional triathlete

“I wish I had this amazing book when I was younger, but the next best thing is getting to read it now. Girls Running deftly weaves together stories and lessons for female athletes, simultaneously lifting me up and lighting my fire. The book empowers me as a coach, athlete, and human.”

– Megan Roche, MD, pro runner, and coach

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