Postpartum return to the gym

Returning to the gym postpartum comes with a lot of excitement, anticipation, and often nerves. It’s something athletes often want to do sooner, rather than later. Why? We’ve built consistency over years and it has become part of our daily lives. Part of our identity. The gym is where we have found our community. It is the home of our closest friendships. Where we found our closest confidants. The people we share things with that otherwise are only shared with spouses and hairstylists. It is where we first spilled the little secret of our pregnancy beyond immediate family. The gym is the home of our people. The gym is where we feel like we belong.

Just like there was anticipation about bringing a new family member into the world, there is anticipation about life returning to normal (sans baby bump). Getting back that hour of the day that is just for us. Even though we want to just join in on class with our friends, maybe postpartum athletes need to spend a little time elsewhere.

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Adjusting training during pregnancy was easy. There was a physical reminder of “why”. There was the consideration of safety, not just for ourselves, but for the son or daughter we carried. Postpartum, we crave the active part of our life. Now, our body may seem foreign to us, and without a baby in our belly, the changes might even seem unjustified. Life has changed so much, and we itch for something to bring us back to who we are.

Training postpartum is the hard part. Every day the body changes. Every day we feel both farther and closer to who we were. Every day, we want more. But - jumping back into things? Maybe not the best idea. Remember, adjusting training during pregnancy wasn’t just about the safety of the baby. It was about risk vs. reward for mom too. Considerations of the core, pelvic health, and movement integrity. Read more here. Postpartum, we need to give as much time and intention to how we rehab and rebuild strength in our body as we did to how we modified training during pregnancy.

Pregnancy and labor take a toll on the body, particularly the core and pelvic floor. No matter how or where you labored or birthed, no matter how much or little you worked out during pregnancy, birth results in significant physiological changes in a relatively short period of time. If you are able, see a pelvic floor physical therapist to get an assessment of your core and pelvic floor as this is a great first step back to the gym. They can provide insight on how your pelvic floor is recovering, muscular readiness, diastasis assessment, and also give exercises, rehab plan, and continued care.

While pelvic floor PT is a great starting point, there’s still a gap between rehab & hitting a wod. Movements need to be reintroduced, strategies applied, strength built, and mechanics fine-tuned. Volume, weight, and intensity need to be gradually increased, all with the consideration of rest & recovery that may or may not be happening as much as we’d like.

At 3/6/8/12/whatever week postpartum athletes may not be experiencing any symptoms of core or pelvic floor injury, but the postpartum body is vulnerable. It is still healing from pregnancy and labor. Symptoms may not present themselves in everyday life, but that doesn’t mean they don’t or won’t occur. This also doesn’t mean symptoms should be feared. Be aware, not afraid. Symptoms to be aware of: pain, pressure, heaviness, leaking, coning/doming are the primary ones (hey - these are...the same ones we stayed aware of during pregnancy!) Other considerations: low back pain, hip pain, knee pain can all be symptoms of deficiencies in core strength.

A symptom occurring during a movement doesn’t mean something is “wrong”. It’s just your body giving feedback. Consider it constructive criticism. Let’s take that feedback, and adjust. Maybe stance needs to change, maybe breathwork does, maybe volume or load needs to be reduced, or maybe we need to scale back a little to build up strength, strategy, and capacity with alternative exercises.

Ultimately, the goal in early postpartum fitness is for your body to continue to heal while building a strong foundation as you work towards (and even incorporate) the activities you enjoy. This starts with building strength in your glutes and core while re-introducing foundational & functional movements such as squats, hinges, presses & carries. These are all movements that are done in everyday life. Starting with low to no weights, building proper movement patterns & mechanics, and then progressively building to more advanced variations and/or increased weights.

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So how do you start?

If you’re less than 6 weeks postpartum or haven’t yet been cleared - Brianna Battles has a great resource on "6 Exercises for the First 6 Weeks" which incorporates breathwork and connection with your core and pelvic floor to movement.

What’s next?

The basics (squat, hinges, press, and carries).

Four Moves to incorporate in postpartum rehab:

Kneeling Squats

KB Deadlifts

Floor Press

Goblet Carry

These are just starting points, and it’s not as much about the movements as it is how you do them. Context is king when it comes to postpartum training.

The goal is to reincorporate movements done in everyday life that are also progressions to the gym while building system awareness and strategy. How are you bracing? How are you breathing? Is this a strong position for you? How are movement mechanics? Are you symptomatic now? What about after the workout? How is recovery? How do you feel throughout the remainder of the day?

Postpartum recovery, rehab, and rebuilding take time (and patience).

Working with a qualified trainer or following a program designed for this chapter reduces guesswork, frustration, and amplifies progress.

It is not uncommon to see athletes to simply go back to the gym once they’re cleared. Swap this for that. Take it “easy”. Avoid situps, planks, running, etc. But when and how do those get added back in? What about mindset? When does intensity get added into the equation? What is done if/when symptoms occur? When do you stop modifying?

All these questions are why a structured program directed at this chapter of athleticism is of huge benefit to any athlete, ranging from the workout at home athlete to the competitor and everyone in between.

For a program individualized to you, “Back to the Box” is my 12-week program taking you from early postpartum core rehab and movement reintroduction all the way to those first few weeks joining back in on your gyms classes.

If you’re looking for a do-on-you-own program - Brianna Battles 8 week program is one of the best that is out there.

Not sure which program is best for you, or still on the fence about committing to one? Schedule a free discovery call with me and we can talk about your pregnancy, postpartum so far, and options to help you reach your goals.