From a distance, maternity leave can likely look like a wonderfully relaxing period to bond with your baby. And while getting to know your little bundle(s) of joy is the essence of leave, that bonding is coupled with sleepless nights, recovery from delivery, troubleshooting all aspects of newborn life, and a general fatigue that no finals study session will have ever prepared you for. So if you wake up with enough energy to even contemplate working out in the first 6 weeks postpartum, this article is for you. And if you wake up completely exhausted and are just trying to get through the day, skip ahead to the exercises. Gentle movement will help improve your outlook, and potentially give you just the little energy boost you need to make it though the day.

Prior to starting any return to exercise, it is important to recognize that your body has been significantly altered in function with the birth of your baby, and undergone a significant injury with birth regardless of method. A baby is essentially an abdominal placeholder that changes how your trunk muscles function for the duration of your belly growth. Your abdominals were stretched to the max, your ribs widened and elevated, your diaphragm was no longer sinking fully into your thorax, and your posture had to change to make all of this more tolerable. These are only a few of the changes that occur during pregnancy, and will reverse in the postpartum period. And then there are the many physical changes that are required for labor and delivery. The stretch of tissue in the vaginal canal alone typically results in, at the least, the presence of microtears in the tissue. And the ligaments of the sacroiliac joint stretch to allow the baby to pass though the pelvis. During labor the rhombus of Michaelis expands, with the lower lumbar vertebrae and sacrum becoming visible as they extend out of the low back to allow baby maximal space for rotation and descent during delivery (see the infographic below). Your body does not recover overnight from this!

The first six weeks postpartum are a sacred period to allow your body to reset itself, and depending on your pregnancy, labor, and delivery, you may need much longer than six weeks to consider anything more strenuous than walking. The initial six weeks post-birth is a time to experience getting used to your new little one(s), navigate breastfeeding, and pay attention to your own healing needs. It’s also a really challenging time to even consider finding a sports bra that will work with all the changes in milk supply. This may seem very conservative in terms of information, but it is the path of least harm to the body and is appropriate for most women postpartum.

Returning to high intensity sport too quickly can set you up for a sequelea of injury, including RED-S or relative energy deficiency in sport syndrome. This is something that would be especially hard to detect in the postpartum period because of the ‘normal’ weight loss from pregnancy. And menstruation for postpartum women who breastfeed is variable on whether it’s present or not. RED-S is classified as low caloric intake compared to expenditure, amenorrhea, and low bone density, as well as other criteria that negatively affect physiology. For breastfeeding women, low bone density is common due to the calcium needs of baby. Eating, sleeping, and self care are very rarely optimum in this period, especially the very early weeks, and deficits in these areas contribute to RED-S in the general athlete population. This is one of the last place you want to end up as a new mother.

But there are exercises that you can do to encourage gentle healing. Gentle motion will help the brain and muscles reconnect, as well as bring blood flow to the areas the exercises target. All of this will help the body’s structures return to their pre-baby function and locations. Below is a list of exercises to try to encourage gradual progress toward encouraging your body’s safe return to movement. These are gentle enough to be done within the first few days postpartum, as long as they feel comfortable during their performance as well as after. If you notice an increase in lochia (or postpartum bleeding) after doing these exercises, allow yourself rest for a few days and then try again. As an added benefit, they are also easily done on the floor next to your new baby!

These exercises will help your torso work to re-find normalcy, but it is imperative to your healing that you wait until clearance from your physician or provider before advancing to more challenging tasks. Remember, pregnancy and the postpartum period are just temporary. With time and patience your body will be able to do what it used to! I also highly recommend a consultation with a pelvic health physical therapist. A specialized professional will be able to tailor both these exercises and your return to activity to your personal experience and stage in healing. It is my belief that every new mom should have an assessment from a pelvic health PT to troubleshoot any areas of concern before they start! And school to the bottom of the handout to see my blip on kegels.

Congratulations, Mama! When you are ready to advance to more intensive exercise, read this posted article here.

Kegels. These bad boys are not on the handout for a very intentional reason: they can be challenging to do correctly, especially after the pelvic trauma (present even in a completely ‘normal’ birth) of vaginal childbirth. I’ll put the instructions here for you to try, but it is so important that if you feel you are not doing them correctly to get checked out. Completely avoiding kegels is safer than doing bad ones.

Instructions: On exhale, squeeze like you are trying to stop the flow of urine or stopping the passage of gas. Hold for the duration of the exhale and relax on the inhale. Coordination can be challenging after birth, so breathe regularly for a few breaths between each contraction. Research shows that many women do kegels incorrectly, so be sure to check yourself: with fingertips on the seam of your pants (leggings are easiest to feel through), feel near the anus. If your fingers are drawn up toward your torso you are doing well, but if you feel them being pushed down toward your feet as you kegel, this is incorrect and you need to stop immediately to avoid stressing the pelvic floor. If you feel no motion at all, rest completely and try again. If you have any discomfort at all with these, stop and see a pelvic health PT to confirm that you are doing them safely.

If you are still feeling soreness from labor and delivery, consider the following options for symptom relief:

3. Epsom Salts (helpful for sore muscles in a bath)

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Postpartum Exercise: The First Six Weeks