I've got a new running buddy! Well, two actually: Dashiell and (the) BOB. I've been looking forward to taking Dash on runs with me since we got our BOB and last week I decided to try it out. The BOB instructions say to wait until a baby is six months old to transition them from their carseat, which can sit on top of the stroller, into the stroller seat. Since Dash has such great head and neck control and is a pretty long baby we tried out the regular stroller seat earlier. We've taken him on a few walks and saw that he looked very secure and his head doesn't jostle. So I felt fine taking him on a run, especially since I would only be running on smooth sidewalks.

Last Thursday I loaded Dashiell up and we went on a ~20 minute run around the neighborhood. He seemed to really enjoy it! Dash loves looking around at the trees and houses and I'm so glad that the mornings are cooling off enough that he can be outdoors more. He didn't make a peep the whole time and he also enjoyed scratching the fabric on the stroller, he loves to scratch with his little fingers lately.

I started out my run with the front wheel of the BOB locked in the forward position. This is supposed to make the jogger easier to run with so that it doesn't veer off at a weird angle. Unfortunately, the sidewalks in our neighborhood have gentle curves in them so I can't run in a straight line and kept having to either pick up the front wheel slightly to adjust or maintain near constant pressure with one arm. Towards the end of the run I unlocked the front wheel and found I liked that better.

After our Thursday jog we went for two more on Friday and Saturday! For those runs I left the front wheel unlocked and pushed the stroller with one hand while running slightly out to the side. This let me swing one arm and made my stride feel more natural. We jogged to a nearby park and I stopped to do some lunges, (weak) push ups, and crunches. Dash was all smiles as he watched me do my exercises.

It's really fun having Dash along with me and it adds some novelty to my runs, which is a very good thing right now. I'm even feeling a renewed motivation to hit the pavement now that I have a buddy to bring with me. By no means am I back to a consistent running routine but I'm meeting my goal of at least one run per week in September and I'm getting hints of enjoyment from my runs. I hope by the end of the month I'll be enjoying 3 mile runs again and working to increase my distance with Dash along for the ride.