How to Return to Exercise After Birth

Prioritizing Fitness with a Newborn: How and Where Does it Fit In?

In the last few weeks, we’ve talked more generally about fitness during and after pregnancy, and then about safe strength training for pregnancy and postpartum. This is the final article of the series, and we wanted to focus on why and how to prioritize fitness when you have a newborn. It’s not easy, but it can be done and might even be fun!

Why Is It Hard to Exercise After Giving Birth?

I will be the first to acknowledge the difficulty of prioritizing exercise when you have children, and it might be even more challenging when you have a newborn. It can feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day. It might feel like you always have something more urgent that you have to do first. It might feel like you never have two free hands to get things done because you’re always carrying or tending to your baby. And it can feel intimidating depending on the state of your body. You might have pain, feel very weak, or things might just feel really weird. You might not have great control over your bladder or have trouble controlling gas.

I will overshare a little about my own experience here, because I want you all to know that you’re not the only one struggling! I loved yoga before I had kids and continued to do yoga through my first pregnancy, then with my first baby, then again during my second pregnancy. After my second baby was born, I experienced pelvic organ prolapse. There was a time when I knew I could not control my gas if I tried some of the standard yoga poses in class. So I didn’t go to yoga. And I also didn’t do any other kind of exercise. I DID find pelvic floor physical therapy and got the help I needed for the prolapse. But by that time, I was out of my exercise habit, and I was also too afraid to try a group class…just in case. So I didn’t do anything for a long time.

I don’t want that to happen for you. Even if you can’t do what you did before, there is SOMETHING that you can do.

Why Postpartum Exercise Is Important

Even when you’re sleep deprived and recovering from many months of pregnancy and birth, some amount of exercise can actually make you feel better. You might think that you don’t have enough energy as it is and that exercise will drain you even more. But that’s not what usually happens. Some light to moderate exercise might actually give you more energy. That really does sound counterintuitive, but it’s true! There are these and many other benefits of exercise:

• When you exercise, there are changes in your body at a cellular level that actually increase your body’s energy stores.
• Also, by moving your body, you are moving your blood, and increasing oxygen circulation, allowing your body to function better.
• Exercise can give you a boost of feel-good hormones which make you feel happier and more energized.
• Some amount of exercise has also been shown to have a positive effect on sleep. When you sleep better, you’ll feel better and have more energy.Giving yourself the gift of self-care in the form of exercise can increase your feeling of accomplishment. You can feel better that you did a little something FOR YOU today.
• Exercise contributes to overall health and longevity. You can live longer and feel better while you’re doing it!
• You can set a good example for your child as they grow up. They can see you prioritizing and even enjoying movement.
• You can have more strength and endurance to keep up with your growing child!

How to Set Realistic Fitness Goals

You might want to exercise so you can feel good, look good, have good health, or to maintain your fitness for enjoyment or even for professional reasons. It’s important to understand your goals so that you can set manageable expectations for yourself. If your goal is to get back into professional weight lifting so you can pay your bills, your routine might look a lot different from that of someone who just wants to feel better doing their regular daily stuff.

Regardless of your goals, Stacey recommends that you start with reconnecting with and activating your core by using some conscious breathing techniques. It’s also important to pay attention to what’s happening in your pelvic floor. Whatever you do to introduce exercise back into your routine, make sure that you recognize when you’re having pelvic heaviness and modify what you’re doing if you notice it.

Tips for Resuming Exercise After Birth

You might feel very ready to get back to your old fitness routine, or you may be dreading any kind of exercise at all! However you feel about it, it’s important to recognize that it might not be easy to find the time or energy when you have a newborn. In the first few weeks especially, newborns are very attached to you physically, and it can be hard to find time away from them. It can also be hard to find the energy and motivation to introduce exercise back into your daily life. It’s important to get plenty of rest during the first few weeks postpartum, but once you’re through the initial recovery, you might be able to slowly introduce some movement into your day.

Here are some tips:

• Build physical activity into your daily routines with your baby. For example, each time you feed your baby, let that be your cue to do some physical therapy or some breathing or core engagement techniques. This might be just a few minutes, but those minutes add up when you consider that you’ll be feeding your newborn 8-12 times a day! As you progress, maybe you pair some movements with diaper changes. You don’t have to carve out 30 minutes of uninterrupted time for exercise. At first especially, it can be very productive to get those few minutes in when you can.
• Another tip is to USE your baby! A baby makes a great weight when you’re building in some exercise. You may be able to do some squats at first, but then feel ready to increase the challenge. So squat while holding your baby weight!
• Tummy Time for your baby can be a great opportunity to work in some healthy movement for yourself. Very often, new babies don’t like being put down on the floor on their tummies even though it benefits them. They might accept this position better if they’re placed on your belly or chest. You can work in some deep belly breathing while your baby is having Tummy Time on YOUR tummy! Watch your baby move up and down as you practice deep diaphragmatic breathing.
• Stacey likes to recommend dancing for a lot of different reasons. Whatever your fitness level, you can dance. You might start slow and then work your way up. Babies usually love to be danced around, so this is another great way to include your baby into your workout. As a bonus, it’s usually soothing for a fussy baby!
• Walking is excellent exercise. You can incorporate your baby while pushing a stroller or have your baby in a carrier for some extra weight. Babies usually like this kind of movement and it’s a great way to get a nap in for your baby WHILE you’re getting a little exercise and fresh air.
• There are a lot of fitness classes for parents with new babies. It might be a stroller fitness class or postnatal yoga, or even Stacey’s femSTRONG Fridays at the gym! It can be very motivating to exercise in a group setting, especially when it’s with people who are going through a similar experience. It’s a great way to get in some movement WHILE socializing and attending to your mental health.
• Can you build in some time each day for yourself? I like to recommend building it into your daily routine just like a meal. If you have a partner or family member who can commit to caring for your baby at the same time everyday, you can use that window to do some physical training or whatever else you might need to do for self-care. Maybe your partner can take the baby for 30 minutes before work in the morning or after work in the evening. Schedule it!
• Remember that the work of parenting can be a very physical thing. If you’re pacing the floor in the middle of the night with a fussy baby, or chasing a rowdy toddler, you are exercising. If you don’t then feel like doing another workout later that day, it’s ok! Give yourself some grace and space to recognize that you ARE doing a lot of work already.

However and whenever you decide to introduce exercise into your life, it’s a good thing, as long as you’re prioritizing your recovery and healing. I also want to recognize that if you struggle with it, you’re not the only one. So many people find it challenging to have a fitness routine. That might be because your life is very busy and stressful, and you can’t seem to find a moment for yourself. It might be because you hate exercise and would rather do anything else! Either way, I want to remind you that you’re worth the effort. It’s almost guaranteed that finding healthy movements to do each day will make you feel stronger and happier. That’s a great foundation for the rest of your life in all of your roles, including parent.