Getting back into fitness can be the absolute last thing on your mind after having a baby, and rightly so! The combination of the sleepless nights and time spent feeding (whether that’s breastfeeding, or making up endless bottles) in addition to the changes in your body and emotions postpartum generally take up all your energy. But there may come a day a couple of months down the line when you might feel like you have the bandwidth to spend time on exercise for yourself, and in that case it is important to go about it the right way. Whether you’re doing yoga, or wanting hit the gym again, there are do’s and don’ts based on the changes taking place in your body through pregnancy and childbirth, and I’m here to guide you along your way!
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DO work on your pelvic floor. You can do this at home from a few weeks postpartum, and it’s really important to strengthen these muscles again before attempting any high impact exercise.
DO a type of exercise that you love and feel motivated by. Your time is limited when you have a baby, so make every second enjoyable if you can. Whether it’s yoga, swimming, weights or spinning, find your happy place and get your sweat on!
DO cardio, even if it’s not high impact. You can still raise your heartrate and sweat without putting pressure on your pelvic floor, you just need to find the right moves!
DO find a class to be motivated by the group and to make new friends. There are loads of fitness classes where you can bring your baby, and they can be a great support system as well as keeping you accountable in your fitness journey.
DO work on your abdominals in a safe way. Crunches and planks are a no no postpartum as the deep core muscles (Transverse Abdominis) will have separated during pregnancy. Diastasis Recti is very common, and often the stomach muscles join again without too much work - but there are some great exercises that you can do at home to work on them, so make time for these and build up the core work slowly.
DON’T rush to ‘bounce back’ (whatever that silly phrase means!) Take your time and be patient with your body. It has done something truly amazing carrying and birthing your baby, so respect the journey you’ve been on and allow yourself time and gratitude when strengthening your muscles and getting back to fitness.
DON’T ignore aches and pains - your body may be sending you a message. Post baby, you are activating lots of different muscles, for example through the constant holding, feeding and pushing the pram all day. Notice when your back, shoulders, pelvis, wrists may be aching and allow yourself to rest (even get a massage if you can!)
A good post-natal class or trainer can be a great guidance when getting back into fitness after birth. MAMAWELL boot camps provide support and expertise or personal training sessions help with more targeted goals. Contact us for more information: www.mamawell.org
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