Rain or shine, moms and babies are pounding the pavement for fitness and fun as part of the new Stroller Strides of Redmond program.

Stroller Strides classes are now offered in more than 800 locations nationwide, including Redmond Town Center. Members meet at the children’s play area near Gene Juarez Salon & Spa, Monday-Thursday and Saturday from 9:30-10:30 a.m. Dads and older siblings are invited to join in at the Saturday sessions.

Missti Forbes, who opened the Stroller Strides of Redmond franchise in September, described the program as “a great combination of getting fit after the baby, while enjoying the support of other moms experiencing the newness, joys and challenges of motherhood.”

During the 60-minute classes, participants get a total body workout to improve cardiovascular endurance, strength and flexibility.

“What we do is interactive with our babies and with our environment,” Forbes stated. They alternate power-walking while pushing the strollers with stops at benches for stretching and toning exercises using resistant tubing. From time to time, they’ll sing a song or engage in some other activity for the little ones’ entertainment.

“Having a group of parents who are going through the same amazing and exhausting experience of living with a baby is so important,” said Forbes, who was accompanied by her 23-month-old son, Darius, during an interview with the Redmond Reporter. “If you have a great support system, everything else, including fitness, is so much easier.”

She first learned about Stroller Strides when the Alderwood franchise opened, participated there for about a year and a half, and then decided to open her own. Her older child is now seven years old and doing this allows her to savor her younger child’s precious moments of babyhood, she said.

We asked Forbes if cold, wet, winter weather might discourage the Redmond group from leaving their homes. She said Redmond Town Center has offered them an indoor space for days when the weather is nasty, “but we’ll try to be outdoors as much as possible.”

New Stroller Strides members pay a one-time $75 registration fee, which includes the resistant bands and a t-shirt. After that, membership is $60 per month for unlimited classes.

For more information, call 1-888-368-5108, e-mail misstiforbes@strollerstrides.net or visit www.strollerstrides.com.

Mary Stevens Decker can be reached at mdecker@redmond-reporter.com or at (425) 867-0353, ext. 5052.