Swimming

Most women find swimming really enjoyable because of it being so low weight bearing so it actually feels nice to be in the water, there is less strain on your joints and major muscles. This allows you to move a lot easier and perform exercise to a good level, meaning it can be quite good for cardio. However, it doesn’t really address all the postural and muscular imbalances that are occurring and will continue to occur therefore once you get out of the water the aches and pain soon come back. Good for cardio and weight management but poor for strength and posture.

Weights

Weights are one of the most beneficial things to perform, they are a great way to help with weight management, address the postural and muscular imbalances that occur and even more so important  they help prepare you for all the postnatal lifting, feeding and carrying you are required to do at a time when you might have otherwise been at your weakest! Although most people don’t know what exercises are safe and effective to perform they really do have their benefits, the only thing they probably don’t do as well as swimming and running is their lack of maintaining cardiovascular fitness.

Running

As with swimming running can be great for cardio and weight management, but unlike swimming it can only be performed up until a point as the increasing size and weight of your bump means it can get quite uncomfortable and painful. This, coupled with the lack of stability at the hips due to the relaxin, can make running quite hard to stick to, like swimming it also doesn’t help with any of the strength aspects that are required.

Pregnancy Yoga & Pilates

Although they are slightly different we have grouped them together because of the way in which both train the core, something that is vitally important during and after pregnancy. Although you can’t perform sit ups or certain types of abdominal exercise during pregnancy it is still important to help maintain the strength of your core and both yoga and pilates are great ways to do this. However, they do fall short when comparing the maintenance of cardiovascular fitness, weight management, and the management of some muscular imbalances (more so of the lower body).

Walking

Walking is very similar to running and swimming in the sense that it helps to maintain your cardiovascular fitness and similarly its lack for the strengthening of the body to help alleviate and avoid upper and lower back pain, hip pain, rounding of the shoulders and so on.

Fitness4Mum Verdict:

Due to all the lifting, feeding and carrying a new mum has to do we feel that it becomes vitally important that exercise for pregnant women is focused around using weights to strengthen their whole body. You can still do so much too but there seems to be a lot of confusion about what you can and cannot do, it’s so much easier than you think. If you want advice as what exercises are safe and effective for you to perform feel free to contact us info@fitness4mum.com or visit www.fitness4mum.com.

How quickly can I start exercising again? 

The earliest that you are able to being exercising after giving birth would be 6 weeks, after your 6 week check, that is providing you are given the all-clear and the type of delivery you have. Women who have had a normal vaginal deliver tend to get clearance at 6 weeks, however those who have had to have a c-section or some form of episiotomy are usually allowed to start exercising about 12-13 weeks after.  Irrespective of the type of deliver you have had you should start retraining you pelvic floor as soon as you can after the delivery, it’s important to do short and long contractions, performing the shorter ones for 5 seconds and the longer ones for up to 30s.

 What exercise is going to be most beneficial for me?

Going back to our previous point, retraining your pelvic floor should not be understated, performing it will help reduce your risk of incontinence, something that you will be increasingly susceptible to the more you exercise. In addition to incontinence, if you fail to retrain your pelvic floor properly it will also increase your chances of developing a prolapse later in life, especially if you have successive pregnancies! Regarding your general postnatal fitness performing transverse abdominal work will not only help flatten and tone your stomach but improve your posture and the strength of your core too. Due to the changes your body has been through it more than likely that your glutes will have become weaker also it becomes important to exercise your them, performing clams, lunges or squats will not only help this but also help improve the stability of your  lumbo-pelvic-hip region. Due to all the lifting, feeding and carrying it also becomes important to strengthen your upper back, lower back and chest.

What exercise should I avoid?

Depending on whether or not your abdominals separated during your pregnancy it will determine the type of abdominal exercise you should perform when improving your overall postnatal fitness. If they have separated then avoid any rotatory movements or crunches, to help kneed the muscles back together perform exercised for your trans ab’s, such as a pelvic tilt on your back, or static contractions in a kneeling position, for example “abdominal hollowing” or a “one handed/legged reciprocal reach” (aka – superman). If you are unsure whether or not your abdominals have separated then there is a test that you can use, lay on your back with your legs at 45 degree angle, get someone to the place their fingers horizontally in the middle of your ab’s, about an inch above your navel. In this position you then want to crunch up so that only your chest comes off the floor, if they feel a squeezing on either side of their fingers then you shouldn’t have any separation, however if they can keep their fingers pressed down and don’t feel anything squeeze their fingers then you may have (always get a second opinion from a GP or midwife). Due to relaxin that is still in your body your ligaments and joints will still be relatively unstable and weak therefore it is important that you don’t perform any stretches or exercises past pre-pregnancy ranges, also don’t perform any ballistic movements or movements that involve a quick turn of direction.

What will help me loose weight or flatten my stomach?

As we mentioned previously performing transverse abdominal exercise will help flatten and tone your stomach, but in addition to this breastfeeding is a great way to help you loose weight as manny of the fat stores have been specially for that reason. Its more than likely that your diet will have increased during pregnancy and now that you are post natal the focus should be on trying to bring your diet back down, making any other modifications necessary. Don’t just rely on one aspect such as your diet however, try combine diet and exercise, even if it is something as simple as getting outside and walking with the pram, combining diet and exercise will speed up your recovery, weight loss and mood no end!

Are there any classes that I can do?

Fitness4Mum provides some excellent classes to help get your improve your postnatal fitness, their expert team have put together a unique class that takes into consideration the varying needs of postnatal women. Every exercise has been specifically chosen based on a poll of women’s postnatal goals. The classes help improve muscle tone and strength, help lose weight and improve your mood, confidence and well-being, the fun classes are also a great way to meet other mum’s providing a safe environment in which they can let their hair down. The classes take place at various venues across North and West Yorkshire and are reasonably priced at an of £5 per class.

If you have any questions you want answering or anything you want advice don’t hesitate to contact us at info@fitness4mum.com.

The great thing about performing prenatal yoga is that you don’t need a mass of equipment or specialised clothing, whether you have the confidence and knowledge to perform it safely in your own home or attend a class you can do either by simply having a mat and wearing loose, comfortable clothing. It’s important that the clothing you do wear is breathable, or that you dress in layers allowing you to easily control your temperature. Due to some of the positions you will get in to, and depending on the size of your bump, it may be beneficial to take a pillow with to help support your bump.

Depending on the yogas teacher/centre you attend there will be a variety of different styles that you may choose from, it is best to talk to your instructor and let them advise you on which would be best as your experience, fitness level and other factors should be accounted for. You should definitely avoid Bikram Yoga and other styles that take a similar approach as these will be performed in a room heated to 40ºC!

There are a few things that you need to be aware of if you are wanting to practise prenatal yoga:

• You shouldnt practise yoga in your first trimester, you should start during your second trimester, after 14 weeks
• If you have conceived by IVF then don’t start practising until after 20 weeks
• If you haven’t practised yoga before then inform your instructor and take things slow

When can I start back up and is there anything I should watch out for?

After you have given birth you normally get clearance to exercise around 6-8 weeks or 12-13 weeks depending on the type of delivery you had. However, there a few things that you need to be aware of:

C-section scar tissue: scar tissue often heals quite tightly and can become quite sore which means the impact of running may aggravate it. Gently massaging your scar will help to reduce the chances of you experiencing pain however this is usually recommended after 6 weeks). Although it is common for scar tissue to pain slightly when you run if the pain worsens then go and see your GP.
Incontinence: the type of delivery you had will play a big role in whether you
experience incontinence, it is very common so don’t worry if you do and also
don’t be embarrassed. The important thing is that you are aware of it and
perform exercises to help it heal. From our experience the vast majority of
women who have performed the correct pelvic floor exercises often enough
regain full control of their pelvic floor. Running on hard ground may trigger
incontinence so where possible run on soft ground and try to cushion your step.
Prolapse: if you experienced a prolapse after giving birth then running will almost certainly be out of the question, however you can still perform cardio exercise through walking or swimming. If you do opt to go for a powerwalk try to cushion your step and don’t stomp your feet. Also, if possible perform pelvic
floor exercises as you go.

What can I do to strengthen my pelvic floor before I run and is there
any other areas of my body that I should strengthen?

There are certain exercises that would be hugely beneficial for you to perform both before you re-start running and once you are up and running (excuse the pun):

The pelvic floor revolution: It is really important that you start to retrain your
pelvic floor as early as possible. It is more than likely that your midwife will
have told you how to perform the standard pelvic floor exercises, both fast
and slow twitch (if they haven’t please get in touch and we will help you).
However, like in anything you do for you to continue to improve you need to
make things harder. Once you have grown accustomed to the “usual” fast and
slow twitch exercises try doing the same thing but using a ball and a band. Sit
upright and place the small inflatable ball in-between your knees and apply
constant pressure by squeezing your legs inwards and then perform your pelvic
floor exercises. Similarly, in an upright position tie an elasticated band (like a
theraband) around your thighs, push outwards, hold it and then perform your
pelvic floor exercises. We have great results with this! Please give it a try.

Your glutes (bum): It is very common for runners in general to have
weak glutes, which in turn contributes to poor knee stability and strength.
This combination makes every stride less efficient and their running
performance less effective. If we combine this with the fact that a new mum
has an increased level relaxin it can make things an uphill struggle (again,
excuse the pun). Commonly mums have said to us that they don’t feel solid
when they take a step, almost like their knees are going to give way! There is
a very simple and effective way around this – lower body strength exercises.
Although your level of relaxin is pretty much unavoidable you can increase
the strength (and tone) of your quads and glutes by performing variations of
lunges and also squats.
Core Exercise: Your core is made up of your oblique’s, lower back and
layers of abdominals all of which provide the backbone to everything you
do. It therefore becomes important that you retrain it otherwise you will
be encouraging bad posture throughout your running. Improving your core
strength will also help to minimize the chances of you experiencing back
pain. Perform exercises that use your whole core, and use it in a movement
such a plank, and also perform core exercises that specifically target your
abdominals – both your deep abs’ (transverse) and your superficial, or six-
pack, abs (rectus). Variations of crunches and belly scoop help to target
both but don’t perform crunches if you have any separation of your abs’
experienced a prolapse or if you have had a C-section and you experience
pain.

What is the best way to build my running up and to get me back to
where I was?

It sounds cliché but starts slowly, go out for jog and build into intermittent
jogging periods. If that feels ok and your body responds well both during and
after then increase the frequency and intensity of the jogging intervals until the point where you are fully jogging again. At this point do the same but introduce intervals of faster running (three quarter pace), build this up over a number of weeks or months until the point where you feel you are where you want to be. The intermittent sprints are really important as they are the best way to improve your fitness and burn calories at the same time! It is also a really good idea to either time yourself and record the distance you got in a set time, or decide on a set distance and see how quickly you can run it.

Hopefully you should now feel confident enough to grab your running trainers from the back of the cupboard, lace them up and hit the road! One other thing – please make sure that your focus isn’t totally on running. With all the needs that are place on a new mum it is important that you perform strength exercise too! We will cover this topic more on our next article! In the meantime, good luck! Please feel free to contact us for any advice regarding anything to do with pre and postnatal exercise.

What is RPE?

The RPE scale (rating of perceived exertion) is used as a method of measuring the intensity of your exercise. The RPE scale runs from 0 -10 with the numbers used relating to phrases that describe how difficult you find an activity, for example 0 is nothing at all whereas 10 is very very hard. Below is an example of the scale:

• 0 – Nothing at all
• 0.5 – Just Noticeable
• 1 – Very light
• 2 – Light
• 3 – Moderate
• 4 – Somewhat hard
• 5 – Hard
• 6
• 7 – Very hard
• 8
• 9
• 10 – Very, very hard

What exercise intensity should I be working at during pregnancy?

During pregnancy you should try and maintain your exercise intensity between a 5-7, the fitter you were prior to pregnancy and the more exercise you have done during then the safer and more appropriate it is to stay closer to a 7. If you didn’t exercise prior to pregnancy then it would be better for you stay closer to a 5 and build it up slowly. When you are exercising this method is more appropriate to see if you can push yourself that little bit more, for example if you did 15 reps of a dumbbell squat using two 4kg dumbbells and found it relatively easy but wasn’t sure if you could push yourself think about this scale. If you are stayed active before pregnancy and have done so far during and you felt that the squat only pushed you to about a 5 out of 10 then it should be ok for you to either do more reps or increase the weight.

How will I know I am exercising at the right level?

The important thing to remember when using this method is to not push yourself too hard for too long. Using the example of the squat, if you increased the weight and it pushed you for a couple of sets thats fine, but try not to then go through your whole routine remaining at a 7 out of 10. For example if you were running on the treadmill, you should run at a speed which feels like a 7 for 60-90s then bring it back down to a 5 for 2 minutes, then go back up and so on. To make sure you are exercising at the right level you should always be able to hold a conversation when exercising, making sure you are breathing properly,  staying properly hydrated and not getting too hot.

If you want anymore advice, or to ask us a question visit www.fitness4mum.com

How do I know if I have any separation?

There is a test called the two finger test and is best administered by either a midwife or GP, it requires you to lay on the your back with your knees bent at a 45° angle, the person will then place two fingers horizontally in the mid-section of your abdominal wall, a few inches up from you belly button. You will then crunch up slightly until they feel your ab’s pinch either side of their fingers, the amount of separation you have, if any, will be determined by how many fingers they can fit between your ab’s. It may be that you don’t have any separation, if you do you need to know what exercise to perform to help knead your abdominals back together.

What is the best exercise to perform the knead your abdominals back together?

If you do have separation then it is important that you don’t perform any crunches or rotatory movements as this will just pull on it and cause it to worsen. Instead you need to be performing static exercises that work your transverse abdominals like pelvis bridges, superman, abdominal hollowing on all 4′s and pelvic tilts on a stability ball. It is hard to avoid separation during pregnancy but it is still important to maintain the strength of your core as we discussed in the article “how to maintain your core strength during pregnancy”.

Is there anything I should avoid?

Try and limit or even avoid lifting and carrying whilst you have separation, I know that you will have anew born baby but you can limit the amount time spent carrying and how you carry otherwise it will get worse and may be past healing through exercise. If you do the exercises frequently then it should fairly quickly.

I have put some links to some videos that may help you to perform some exercises, if you want any more advice don’t hesitate to contact us at info@fitness4mum.com or why not try one our postnatal specific classes.

Video Links:

Pelvis Bridge – http://www.youtube.com/user/fitness4mum#p/u/2/WR9F-f3BMmw

Superman – http://www.youtube.com/user/fitness4mum#p/u/0/xM9zuKLYXlc

Why do I get upper back pain?

As you are aware during your pregnancy your pelvis tilts increasingly to the front ans the weight and size of your bump increases, not only can this contribute to your lower back arching, the added weight can also encourage bad posture in your upper back, typically causing your shoulder to round. This isn’t helped by the fact that if you choose to breastfeed once you have given birth, the position in which you feed then also encourages your shoulders to round, other everyday activities such as carrying a car seat or your baby, lifting and pushing a pram (if it’s not at the right height) also have a very similar effect. When your shoulders round it stretches the majority of the muscles in your upper back causing them to become weak, this together with reduced core strength is a massive factor in why you will experience upper back pain.

How do I manage, or eliminate upper back pain?

If you are feeding something that will definitely cause your upper back to round will be tightness in your chest, it therefore becomes important for you to stretch the upper, middle and lower parts of your chest. Even if you aren’t feeding this may still be a contributing factor so do stretch your chest, perform 3 sets of 30s at each level and do this at least 5 times a week. It is also important for you to strengthen your upper back, variations of rows would achieve this, and finally you must take into account your everyday activities. Try not to carry a car seat too frequently, instead use a sling, if you do carry a car seat then make sure you switch the side at which you hold it otherwise one side of your body will get strong and the other weak, also make sure the handles of your pram at set at the right level so that you are not hunching over to reach them.

What exercises are best to strengthen my upper back?

Variations of rowing exercises will be very effective, for example the bent over row, upright row and vertical row. We have a YouTube channel where most of the exercises I have outlined can be found, just search Fitness4Mum, although they are being performed by a prenatal woman they are still applicable postnatally however it would be a good idea for you to increase the reps and decrease the rest, for example perform 3 sets of 15 reps with 30s rest between sets.

Why do I get back pain?

Although we cannot say for certain what causes your back pain we can outline various factors that will definately contribute to it and if trained help make it better. Throughout your pregnancy your pelvis will continue to tilt as the size and weight of your bump increases, this in turn causes your abdominals and glutes to stretch meaning they no longer provide adequate support for your back. In fact your back then becomes responsible for taking most of the day to day strain, resulting in back pain. After you have given birth, although your pelvis tilts back somewhat your glutes and ab’s remain stretched to some degree meaning there is less support for your back so the back pain therefore persists.

How do I get rid of back pain?

During your pregnancy there isn’t a great deal you can do, depending on the weight and size of your bump you almost certainly can’t eliminate it but you can try and manage. It helps to try and be aware of the position of your pelvis when you’re standing, sitting, walking or even performing exercise, if you feel as though it is tilting a lot to the front (if it is you will like your bum is sticking out) then try and correct it by tucking your tailbone back underneath yourself. Also performing abdominal and glute exercises like lunges, squats, pelvis bridges and abdominal hollowing will help to train the muscles that contribute to providing support for your back. Postnatally it becomes imperative that your postnatal exercise regime contains exercises that will retrain both your glutes and abdominals, you should aim to perform 3 sets of 15 reps with 30s rest when doing any such exercises. Also, it’s important that when trying to get back your postnatal fitness that you are again aware of the position of your pelvis and you consciously try and bring it into a neutral position as often as possible, eventually it will then come back to its normal position.

Best exercises to get rid of back pain?

During pregnancy performing lunges, squats, pelvis bridges and abdominal hollowing are all great exercises, although you want to exercise similar areas in your postnatal fitness like we said you can do this to a greater extent and also now work your rectus abdominals – these are the ones going down the front that directly get stretched during pregnancy. Start slow and build it up gradually, static crunches, planks, dynamic crunches are all great ways to get the feeling and strength back into your abdominals.

Why should I do weights when I’m pregnant?

Weight gain is a common concern for pregnant women, with this in mind performing weights would be the way forward, it helps to keep you toned, maintain your strength, leave you feeling great and also helps to maintain your metabolism. Apart from the aesthetic factors, postnatally you are going to be required to do a lot of lifting, feeding, carrying and pushing at a time when you may arguably be at your weakest therefore it’s of massive importance to maintain your strength during pregnancy to not only speed up your postnatal recovery but also improve your strength for the tasks that await you almost as soon as you have given birth. Just because your are pregnant it doesn’t mean that you can’t improve your whole body strength, you will just have to monitor the intensity you are working at more closely.

What would be the best exercises to do?

If you think of all the lifting, feeding, carrying and pushing you will be doing, whilst also thinking about how the stability and strength of your pelvis changes it becomes important to perform squats or lunges, bicep curls, tricep extensions, upper back exercises such as a bent over row or upright row and a deadlift. We have example of each of the exercises on our youtube account at Fitness4Mum.

How many reps & set should I do?

On the videos the reps and sets are stated however these may correspond to particular trimesters, for example:

• 1^st Trimester – 2 sets of 15-20 reps, 60s rest between sets
• 2^nd Trimester – 2 sets of 10-15 reps, 60s rest between sets
• 3^rd Trimester – 2 sets of 8-10 reps, 60s rest between sets

However, depending on your fitness level you may want to increase this, for example to 3 sets of 15 with 45s rest between sets, the women in our classes prefer this approach but in doing so we stress the importance of monitoring your intensity. On a scale of 1-10 you should never exceed between a 5-7, if you don’t consider yourself to be that fit or didn’t exercise prior to pregnancy then edge closer to a 5, if you exercised frequently prior to pregnancy and have beeb doing during your pregnancy then its ok to perform exercise closer to a 7. It’s solely up to you to judge it however, everyone is different. Just make sure you breathe properly, stay hydrated and wear light, breathable clothing. Read out “exercise intensities” article for more info.

For more information and articles visit www.fitness4mum.com

When can I exercise again?

Whether your goal is getting into your favourite pair of jeans, retraining your
pelvic floor or strengthening your body for the tasks that lay ahead, many women are eager to get back into regular exercise after giving birth. But don’t rush!

A woman who has had a normal vaginal delivery tends to get medical clearance
after 6 weeks. However, women who have a c-section or have more complicated deliveries may have to wait anything up to 12 weeks. The best advice is, don’t exercise until you’ve been given clearance by your GP. What’s the point of exercise? I’m exhausted!

It’s a great way to meet other mums and babies, some of whom may even
become gym buddies. Exercise will leave you feeling great, less tired and more
able to carry out your day to day activities. As soon as you gives birth you’re
thrown into a constant cycle of lifting, feeding, carrying and pushing.. It’s really important to strengthen and stretch your muscles, reducing your risk of injury and painful long term postural and muscular imbalances, such as back pain. This is really important in women who’ve had successive births, or are wanting a second child. They need to retrain their pelvic floor and strengthen their body from the first pregnancy before putting their body through it again

Being a mum is a full time job. I don’t have the time to exercise….
That’s no longer an excuse! Fitness4mum is dedicated to increasing your access to pre and post natal exercise. Don’t worry about childcare costs – We’re hosting stroller classes, home based personal training sessions and have a selection of downloadable training programmes to use at a time that suits you. We’re also hosting exercise classes for mums at exclusive venues across North and West Yorkshire. But however you decide to return to fitness our message is, get your trainers on and get out there! You’ll reap the benefits.

www.fitness4mum.com.

info@fitness4mum.com