31
Oct 2019
Postpartum Athleticism
Postpartum Athleticism
By: Sarah Cavalear
It has taken nine long months to grow the little human that now takes up most of the hours in your day. As you tend to the needs of this new tiny human whom you know nothing about, you may find yourself wondering when you’ll start to feel like yourself again. It’s not easy to look into a mirror and not recognize the shell of a body that looks back at you. But before you just jump right back into your “diet and fitness” routine there are some things that you should consider.
The recommended “wait time” to returning to your normal workout routine is 6-8 weeks; while we are all anxious to get back into a routine, it’s not always in our best interest. Something to take into consideration is the type of pregnancy and birth that you had; you may need a little bit more time than the 6-8 weeks. Trying to rush the healing progress will only set you further back. You have to think risk vs reward. During pregnancy your joints loosen in order to create space for the growing babe, this makes pregnant, postpartum and breastfeeding moms more susceptible to certain injuries. Start with the foundations; teach your body how to move normal again.
One of the first things that your OB will check for is diastisis recti, or a separation of your left and right rectus through the lines alba. Diastisis is a normal part of pregnancy and it’s not something that you can prevent. If you end up having a separation of more than 2cm it is recommended that you see a pelvic floor specialist to help. By learning how to properly brace your core and connect your pelvic floor in a way that doesn’t make your intra abdominal pressure too high, you can rehab your core and build onto the foundations you have already created. Brianna Battles is a specialist in training pregnant and postpartum athletes, she has endless amounts of information regarding public floor health, diastasis care, training programs and success stories. She states “With adjusted movement, breath/pressure, positional and tension strategies, we have more control than we think we do of our center. Trust in rehab, adjusted athletic strategies and the education surrounding pregnancy and postpartum changes, training and symptoms. A coach and PT should absolutely be part of your team just as much as your doctor, midwife, lactation consultant and childbirth educator are part of your team.” Protecting your pelvic floor is more than just doing your kegals. A lot of women believe that their pelvic floor is weak and needs strengthening. In some cases, the pelvic floor could be tight because of the trauma; doing kegals could just make matters worse. Check out Brianna’s website and educate yourself on how your body works and get checked by a pelvic floor specialist; a local specialist being infinite potential. There could be more going on than we know, it’s best to leave it to the professionals.
Another thing that shouldn’t be rushed is a strict diet. Your body just went through extreme change and trauma. While no two bodies, pregnancies or births are completely the same, we all need to fuel our bodies for function. The first few weeks, your body needs nutrients to recover. Nutrient dense foods, proteins, lean meats, fruits and veggies will all lead you in the direction of weight loss and a healthier recovery. If you decide to breastfeed, the need for food is even greater. As a breastfeeding mom, you can’t let your calories dip below 1800-2200. While in most modern day diets it is recommended to cut carbohydrates and fats to lose weight, if you’re breastfeeding they need to be almost doubled to maintain supply; you end up having to split about 1000 calories (in some cases more) between carbohydrates and fats. Kristina Rattet of fitforwardmom.com has a huge Facebook support group and endless information on her websites of healthy ways to lose weight while breastfeeding. She shares how you can calculate your own macros for breastfeeding, different meals and snacks and moms share and connect through their stories. Breastfeeding won’t help you lose weight, that’s unfortunately a myth, and it won’t make you hold on to a bunch of weight either. At the end of the day, breastfeeding or not, it’s all about what and how much you’re actually eating. Calories in versus calories out.
There are a few other general signs and symptoms to keep your eye out for, if any of the following happen make sure you find a pelvic floor specialist to assist you;
– Leaking urine
– Feeling you have to pee during high impact exercise
– Pelvic or vaginal pain or pressure
– Hip, lower back, or tailbone discomfort
– Coning of abdomen
– Breath holding during lifts
– Pulling, aching, sharp or dull pain in the abdomen
-Fatigue, dizziness, increased heart rate (unable to hold conversation)
– Hip, back, foot, etc aches or pains
Some of these are obvious, but most of them seem to be normal. A lot of athletes push through these types of aches and pains all the time. Postpartum moms are even more motivated to get their bodies “back” and feel normal. But these are symptoms of something greater than one of the perks of becoming a mother, ignoring them could just stop you from progressing somewhere down the road. Listen to that little voice of reason, no workout, lift or movement is ever worth risking your overall well-being.
Don’t look at this next chapter of your life as a set back, as annoying as it may be at times. Try to look at this period as a time to build yourself, rebuild your foundation in a way that, once upon a time, we didn’t know how. We live during a time where peeing after pregnancy isn’t normal, there is a fix and it doesn’t have to be hard. Educate yourself, be the best version of yourself physically and mentally.
Resources:
http://www.briannabattles.com/
– Diastasis and altheticism
– Diastasis knowledge
– 5 common mistake during pregnancy and postpartum
https://www.fitforwardmom.com/
-Breastfeeding macros
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