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Just like you can train your body for a marathon, you can train your body for giving birth. The most important conditioning you can do is in your pelvic floor and your hips. Strengthening these areas will help you push baby out quicker and lead to a speedier recovery. To strengthen your pelvic floor, try doing kegels every day. Imagine you’re drawing your pelvic floor up like an elevator and hold at the top for about 10 seconds, then slowly control the decent as you release the pelvic floor muscles....

When you’re expecting a baby, it’s natural to focus on the major and minor growth milestones along the way—after all, each one brings you closer to meeting your new little one in person. But with an intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) diagnosis, baby’s rate of growth within the uterus is slower than normal—and naturally, this can be disconcerting. While there are risks associated with IUGR, doctors are able to identify it early, and employ a host of strategies to carefully monitor baby throughout your pregnancy and during delivery....

You probably already know that being overweight carries some risks to your pregnancy. So you want someone who’s aware of and knows how to manage those risks, but you also don’t want a doctor who focuses so much on your weight and forgets about everything else. You don’t need lectures about how you should have lost weight before you got pregnant. You just want positive advice about what you should do now....

If your baby could text you from the womb with just one request, it would likely be, “Please don’t evict me!” We all know that at roughly 40 weeks old, babies aren’t developmentally ready to thrive in the outside world without a lot of hands-on help. In fact, humans are born with the least-developed brains of any primate—researchers estimate that an additional nine to 12 months in utero would be required to bring humans up to neurological and cognitive speed with our monkey cousins....

Sure, you’ve heard the benefits of breastfeeding. But have you ever thought about how what you eat while breastfeeding can affect baby? Certain nutrient-packed foods can help keep your body and your milk supply nice and healthy, while other foods can lower your milk production and impact baby’s digestive system. We’re here to help you get to the bottom of all your breastfeeding diet concerns, from the best foods to eat while breastfeeding to the best vitamins to supplement your meals, plus which foods to avoid or limit while breastfeeding and why....

I was not prepared for this. The isolation. The uncertainty. The anxiety. The guilt. The self-doubt. The stakes are so incredibly high, and I was not prepared. It only took about 48 hours for the world to turn upside down. “They cancelled the rest of the NBA season,” I whispered to my husband, who was getting our son ready for bed. I watched enough news to know that the COVID-19 situation was getting bad, but cancelling the NBA was a real tipping point....

When it comes to toddler poop, consistency counts much more than frequency. Some toddlers poop once a day, and that’s fine. Others poop every three days or so, while still others poop three or more times per day. Instead of focusing on the number, take a look at the consistency. You want to see “a reasonable amount that’s reasonably soft and does not cause bleeding,” says Michael Lee, MD, a pediatrician at Children’s Medical Center in Dallas....

Since twins can be delivered vaginally more than half the time, this is often the preferred method of delivery for many women. However, it is possible that a problem may occur with the second baby after the first baby is born, so in an emergency, a “mixed delivery” may result — where one baby is born vaginally and another is born via c-section. Luckily though, this is pretty rare — only happening to about 3 to 4 percent of twin births in total — and is usually the result of an uncommon problem (for example, the placenta tearing away from the wall of the uterus prematurely)....

Not that we’re into deceit and trickery or anything, but… of course! [ ] Start complaining. “I’m so fat” … “There’s just no time to work out anymore “… You get the idea. [ ] Try to curb the cravings. While pickles with peanut butter may sound sumptuous to you, a. it’ll raise some eyebrows, and b. it’s really kind of gross. No offense. [ ] Put a lime in whatever you order (try clear beverages or watered down cranberry juice) and it’ll look just like a cocktail....

’Tis the season to be thoughtful, loving, caring….many things…though not extravagant. When it comes to gift giving for parents, siblings, and the like, you have just brought into the world the most priceless gift of all — your baby. Spend a Saturday snapping photos of your tiny bundle, printing them at home, and popping them into (inexpensive) picture frames. That’s a gift no grandparent can resist. If you typically buy gifts for your friends, get together and decide that this is the year you’ll spend time together, not money....

Bad grades? Failed relationships? A new study suggests blaming your parents might not be misplaced. In a long-term study that followed 243 children from low-income Minnesota families until age 32, researchers keyed into how mothers interacted with their children ages three and under. As the years went by, researchers asked the kids’ teachers about their academic performance and social skills. Once those kids became adults, researchers asked them about their own education and relationships....

I’m a single mom, and it took me a solid three years to go on a date after my son was born. It’s funny how, when you’re a mom, dating isn’t just about you — it’s about your child. Whether each man I date knows it or not, I’m testing him from day one. Does he like kids? Will he be more into his BMW than me? Are his boys his priority?...

The saying “the days are long and years are short” couldn’t feel truer today. In the era of COVID-19 quarantines and social distancing, hours and days are like a big, brown lump of Play-Doh, no longer separated by distinct colors. While some kids are basking in the extra family time (the silver lining on a cloud for some parents), others are facing thunderstorm-like challenges that manifest in behavioral changes and outbursts....

Yes. Most moms notice at least a little difference between the milk supply and size in left breast versus right breast. (You know how one of your feet is a little longer, and your hands have slightly different ring sizes? Same thing.) If this isn’t causing you any problems, then don’t worry about it. You don’t need to do anything. But if you feel that one breast is noticeably smaller, you may feel the need to increase your supply on the lower producing (i....

How will you know when it’s time to grab your hospital bag and get to the delivery room? It can be unnerving trying to determine if it’s the main event or just a false alarm (hello again, Braxton Hicks). And while it’s not always crystal clear, the good news is that your body usually gives you some pretty solid clues. Ready to get a leg up on what early labor feels like?...

We’ve caught a glimpse of The Bachelorette’s Ashley Hebert and J.P. Rosenbaum’s nursery before, but our friends at Project Nursery are sharing a full look into the travel-themed space. Thanks to designer Vanessa Antonelli of NessaLee Baby, the couple was able to seamlessly add rustic touches to a modern space, which baby Fordham will no doubt love as he grows. “When I first met with Ashley, I asked her to show me things she likes in terms of other spaces, furniture and decor....

Fatherly is a publication for modern fathers looking to make the best of a good situation. The American Association of Pediatricians (AAP) suggest women should breastfeed for at least the first 6 months of their baby’s life. But it’s not like it’s as easy as all that. After all, breastfeeding in public is challenging (what with the judgmental people and a lack of privacy). And if she doesn’t breastfeed, she’s supposedly putting the baby at risk....

You spent nine+ months preparing for baby’s arrival, including stocking up on essential baby items, picking a baby name, creating a nursery and so much more. Thanks to all the planning, by the time your due date rolls around you probably feel prepared to bring your little one home. But are you ready for what happens to your body after childbirth? Because let’s be honest: If you gave birth vaginally, your vagina, perineum and rectum are going to need some serious TLC during your postpartum recovery....

Whether you’re planning a pregnancy or currently expecting, you’ll want to brush up on which vaccines are recommended for moms-to-be, and which you should get well before you get pregnant to maximize your protection. “It’s important for pregnant women to be up to date on the recommended vaccines,” says Sara Twogood, MD, an ob-gyn at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. “The safety of these vaccines is well supported in the literature and the benefits are well established....

Named for its creator, Dr. Landrum Shettles, the Shettles Method attempts to stack the odds for having a boy or a girl. Here’s how it works: There are basically two types of sperm, those that carry the X chromosomes and those with the Y. A mother’s egg is always an X. If an X-carrying sperm fertilizes your egg first, you’ll have a girl. If the Y is the winner, you’ll have a boy....