Car-free, love to run and minimalist. Need stroller advice please

[Anonymous]

I think 23:47 covered it.

Newborn-6 months or so if pretty hard to do any jogging, so you may need a car seat snap in stroller for that. After the baby has enough head control, you can get the jogging stroller.

Look for stuff 2nd hand, that way if it's not right and you need to get rid of it you didn't spend $800 on it.

My kids HATED baby carriers, so that has colored my perception too. Lots of crying when I tried to wear them.

[Anonymous]

I lived in the city with kid#1 and made do with a soft structured carrier and just one stroller at a time.

For the first 4 months, we used a hand me down snap n go that could take the car seat. This was great because baby would nap in it while I could go out to lunches, etc during maternity leave.
Later, we switched to the City Mini GT which I liked for its tough tires and one handed fold. In fact it is so tough it even lasted me through kid 2. The only thing I didn't like about it was the storage basket, but it wasn't a deal breaker.
For metro use we mostly used a soft structured carrier. Some people get one for newborns and switch to another later on, but we opted for the Boba 4g which could work with infants and toddlers. It works as a back carrier once baby is too heavy for the front. I didn't have a ginormous baby so this was around a year of age.
When kid was 2+ we used the City Mini GT for the metro as well. Its one handed fold made it easy to pick it up in one hand and hold toddler with the other hand if the elevators were out.
My kid is now 8 so there may be better products out there that serve the purpose.

I recommend carving time to exercise separate from baby. It will obviate the need for a huge jogging stroller and you will appreciate the break.

[Anonymous]

I also agree you aren't going to get everything you want in one stroller. A good jogging stroller is not a good errand stroller. I would recommend you buy a stroller that you can either click a bucket seat into or that has a full recline that you can use right away and worry about a jogging stroller later. there is a robust secondary market for strollers, so you can easily buy/sell a used stroller without feeling bad about storage and waste.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you not have a car seat? I don’t think they let you leave the hospital without one.

Hospital will REQUIRE car seat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think 23:47 covered it.

Newborn-6 months or so if pretty hard to do any jogging, so you may need a car seat snap in stroller for that. After the baby has enough head control, you can get the jogging stroller.

Look for stuff 2nd hand, that way if it's not right and you need to get rid of it you didn't spend $800 on it.

My kids HATED baby carriers, so that has colored my perception too. Lots of crying when I tried to wear them.

Yes, I also thought I would do a lot of baby carrying and did not enjoy it at all. The baby cried and I felt hot and uncomfortable. Also the stroller is good for carrying the bottles, snacks, clothes, diapers, and wipes that you find yourself wanting to have just in case.

[Anonymous]

Thule Urban Glide has both a bassinet attachment and a car seat adapter so you can use it from day one and then graduate to your baby sitting in it around 6 months? It folds up pretty compactly for a jogger!

[Anonymous]

On our running Thule, this infant sling worked well.

https://www.backcountry.com/thule-chariot-infant-sling?CMP_SKU=CTC002A&MER=0406&skid=CTC002A-ONECOL-CHACROLIT&mr:trackingCode=61BEDEF0-E2FD-E611-80FE-005056944E17&mr:referralID=NA&mr:device=c&mr:adType=plaonline&CMP_ID=PLA_GOc001&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=PLA&k_clickid=_k_CjwKCAjwjtOTBhAvEiwASG4bCGhXkszMGr4B7uHZRZ_X1Is9YLI3PIkTRgovImK-lWTD0Qt_wq7y9xoCZGoQAvD_BwE_k_&utm_id=go_cmp-213419197_adg-13362838357_ad-92885921197_pla-300686743846_dev-c_ext-_prd-CTC002A-ONECOL-CHACROLIT&gclid=CjwKCAjwjtOTBhAvEiwASG4bCGhXkszMGr4B7uHZRZ_X1Is9YLI3PIkTRgovImK-lWTD0Qt_wq7y9xoCZGoQAvD_BwE

[Anonymous]

I’m a minimalist I got the uppababy vista for dc and I have no car. I go running alone because who wants a baby along to interrupt my run or who wants a baby at all during alone time. I’m a second time mom so I know my sh.

[Anonymous]

Some babies do not love the jogging stroller experience. Some parents don't love baby interrupting their run. You may very well get lucky but I'd be focusing now on an infant car seat and base combination and borrow a jogging stroller before committing the money and space to a jogger.

[Anonymous]

BTDT, I ended up with 3 strollers.
At first I started with the MacLaren XT. A good rugged all around workhorse of a stroller.
Then I happened to walk by a thrift store that had a jog stroller for $30. It was great for running, and the tires were excellent in the snow.
When baby #2 came along, I needed a light foldable stroller for bus and subways since I was dragging two kids around so I inherited a lightweight umbrella stroller.

All 3 of them got plenty of use.

So guess which one the youngest kid liked most?
When we were getting ready to go out, he always stood by the umbrella stroller and held onto one of its legs looking at me with meaning. The umbrella stroller meant we were going on a transit adventure someplace and he figured that out early on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m LOLing because you sound like me as a FTM and we ended up with 3 strollers, also living in the city.

First - Your baby can’t be in a running stroller until they have good head control. I think at least 6 months old, maybe older. So there’s no point in getting that now, you need a more appropriate newborn stroller at first.

Second, a jogging stroller is not going to fit in narrow aisles of stores in the city. My City Mini barely fit. And good luck lugging that thing on metro when the elevators are out and you’re trying to ride the Woodley Park stop with a 45 lb stroller in one hand and a diaper bag and baby in the other while you try not to fall off. It’s awful. Get a jogging stroller later when baby is older and use it just for that - jogging. Don’t make it your stroller for day care, shops, doctor, etc. It is too big and will be a nuisance.

Third - you are going to be healing postpartum. Don’t plan on baby wearing immediately, or plan on extended walking as your transportation in the early postpartum period. You may have a C section incision, bad tears,, organ prolapse, diastasis, etc. You may not find it comfortable right away and likely will need to rest and recover and rehabilitate your core before you are going to want to put a ton of load on your core and pelvic floor. I also know a lot of moms don’t ever get back to running because after kids they have incontinence, prolapse, back pain, diastasis, core weakness, it doesn’t feel good anymore, it is uncomfortable with boobs full of milk, your joints are loose from all the relaxin, etc. That’s a possibility and outcome to just be aware of. A lot depends on your delivery, baby, body, etc. and you can stack the deck in your favor with pelvic floor PT but your body is gonna change, and You’re also gonna be exhausted and your life will be very different than before. You might not even want to run. I had zero drive to run until I weaned my first baby when she was two because all the hormones made me tired.

Finally - There’s a reason most people use a car seat as a stroller that snaps into a base for newborns and that is because your infant won’t be sitting upright or have good head control for quite a while. So if you aren’t getting a car seat, look into a bassinet style that can convert to upright like the Uppababy.

This. I have a Thule Urban Glide 2 sitting in my basement — I ran 7 days a week until the day I delivered and thought I’d be out with my daughter. Have never touched the jogging stroller. “Uncomplicated” vaginal birth and my pelvic floor is shredded. Doesn’t matter how much you love to run; it’s a coin toss as to whether you will be able to do it at the same level again, let alone with the weird biomechanics of a jogging stroller. I wish someone had told me this prior to giving birth. I had done so well throughout pregnancy that I thought there was no way I wouldn’t be up and running at 3 months post delivery. Nope. I haven’t touched a baby carrier either. My baby is pretty big, and I knew from the beginning that my pelvic floor and core could no longer handle that stress, and I’ve prioritized trying to heal vs straining it. (Obviously a personal choice; baby wearing is super important to other people, so I get it.)

In terms of the stroller question — Babyzen yoyo is a great city stroller and is light, which is great for women with core and pelvic floor issues, too. We bought one used and really like it. You can always get an urban glide used 3-4 months after your baby is born if you had a good birth/recovery. For a carrier, I’d get the infantino that is $30 or so on Amazon — my husband really likes it, as do others we know, and it’s not that big of an investment.

. If you want any ideas of good running friendly pelvic floor PTs and core rehab programs, let me know. I feel like I’ve seen everyone in the city in an effort to get back to running and happy to share so you are more prepared than I was in case you do end up with an injury from delivery.

[Anonymous]

Guava Roam!

[Anonymous]

If you don’t have a doona yet. Recommend doona and a jogging stroller (but can wait 6 months).

[Anonymous]

Similar to you, OP. If I could do it again I would do a doona.

[Anonymous]

Also PSA that jogging with a stroller is bad for your pelvic floor, sorry. Running in general isn't great for it, but if you run postpartum, do it without the stroller. Use jogging stroller for vigorous walks/hikes instead. I loved babywearing but it is also somewhat stressful for the pelvic floor.