Safely return to exercise after having a baby
Returning to exercise after birth can be really tricky. There are so many conflicting views; pressures from left, right and centre, not to mention the perceived guilt of spending time on you!
I’m Caroline Bragg, Head PT at &Breathe. I’m going to share with you how we work with the “5 Fs of Postnatal Fitness” (we love alliteration), an approach which ensures you safely return to fitness post-birth.
Get in touch with us with any questions! hello@andbreathewellbeing.com
FOUNDATION FIRST
When it comes to postnatal exercise, there is no set timeline or “one-size fits all” approach. So many factors will affect your recovery, for example your pregnancy, your fitness levels, whether you are hyper-mobile, your birth, your movement patterns and more…the list is endless!
So, how do we go about this? You probably just want to move and feel more like the pre-baby you, and that’s what we want too! I get this, but first we need to understand what’s going on internally before we get the outside moving.
We highly recommend going to see a women’s health physio post-birth. They will be able to feel (yep, internally!) what’s happening with your pelvic floor and therefore give our team a structured information base to work from. There is no point prescribing kegels if really what you need is to learn to release your pelvic floor! To begin, it’s about working from the inside out, which means breathing and posture.
Breathing
Pregnancy affects your breathing patterns, so reconnecting with breathing and working our inner core unit is important. Think of breathing work like your foundation. DON’T PANIC! This is not forever! You’re not going to be lying on a mat just breathing for the rest of your days. You’re going to be able to run, jump, and skip again, but there is no rush. Once we’ve got the foundations cracked it will become second nature and you won’t have to consciously think about it.
Posture
We then move on to posture, which is the infrastructure of your body. There is no perfect posture, but there are definitely key parts that help our body to work to the best of its ability.
So, with our breathing, core and posture all coming together we can then start to layer on the fun stuff! It’s a bit like a house…you wouldn’t be choosing your wallpaper and door knobs before knowing the foundations are strong enough to hold the house up. If we skip this part we tend to end up with injuries, niggles, and set backs, which in turn leaves us frustrated and leads us back to...the foundations.
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FORM
You may have had great form pre-pregnancy, but that was over 10 months ago before your body went through some pretty awesome changes to adapt for your growing baby. A lot of the exercises will have to be re-trained, but remember: your body has great muscle memory, so it’ll come back with a bit of time and coaching. Which leads me onto getting a Personal Trainer (PT) who specialises in pre- and post-natal exercise. Even if it’s just for a few sessions to set you up, they should look at your alignment, teach you some moves that you will be able to use in your new role as a mum, and pick up on any habits that could be derailing your recovery.
“You may have had great form pre-pregnancy, but that was over 10 months ago, before your body went through some pretty awesome changes.”
FUNCTION
Motherhood is physical! Getting off the floor…getting back down…putting baby in the cot…getting them out of the cot…running as fast as lightning when they start to crawl to stop them pulling a table on top of themselves!!! IT’S FULL ON PHYSICAL! So we really should be training for the way in which we are moving in our lives…deadlifts, squats, lifting, speed and agility, to name a few...all aspects of training which are functional to what you are doing every day, to make you better at them.
FUN
Exercise should be FUN! It should make you feel good, so find something you enjoy. If you didn’t enjoy running before maybe now isn’t the time to force yourself into doing it. If you really loved dancing in a nightclub until the early hours pre-baby, then find a fitness or dance class with banging music and let loose! Even 10 minutes of raving in your kitchen counts towards your 150 minutes a week of recommended activity. One thing I would stress is that strength training is super important, so if the idea of going to lift weights is your idea of hell then maybe find a class, like body pump or kettlebells, even reformer pilates (weighted springs), to get in at least two strength sessions a week. Another tip to make things FUN is to go with a friend. Not only does this stop you from bailing, but it also gives you time before or after to catch up. Win/Win!
FLEXIBLE
By flexible I don’t mean a super-bendy yoga pose. I mean how it fits into your new life, with a baby. Your 7am spin class before hitting the office may not now work with your schedule, so being flexible on what your ‘workout’ looks like today is something to consider carefully.
You may need to split it up throughout the day, so, 20 minutes during the morning nap and then 20 minutes when your partner comes home. This is still 40 minutes a day, plus walking to a park or play date…you actually probably get more exercise this way than when you used to attend your 45 minute spin class after sitting at your desk from 9 to 5.
It’s about reframing your approach to exercise. This can also help if you miss a session: it’s OK to try again the next day. If you’re on mat leave, then there are lots of fitness classes which are great for meeting like-minded mums, and I often advise ladies to tag team with their partners at the weekend or in evening for a class whilst your other half can have the baby/kids.
&Breathe is the award-winning family wellbeing company. Join one of our postnatal, family or menopause fitness retreats in France, the UK, Morocco or Portugal.