How soon after giving birth did you start working out again?
hiba_84
Posts: 177 Member
I know this all goes back to what your care provider recommends, but on average, how long do you have to wait before you can start working out again?
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I waited 7 weeks with my two to get back to the gym, but I was going for long walks quite soon after giving birth, maybe 3 or 4 days. A 7 weeks I went straight back to 5 days a week at the gym.0
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I have been walking and going up stairs since I gave birth. Now at almost 7 weeks postpartum I started my circuit training workouts again. I was working out my entire pregnancy and I am so happy to be working out again, I cant wait to get my body back to where it was pre-pregnancy.0
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It took me a few weeks just to start walking around the block again after my son. I had been walking 3 times a day while pregnant with him to manage my gestational diabetes. Birth was really rough though and I had a 3rd degree tear, so the first two weeks it hurt to do anything: sit, stand, walk, etc. My daughter I had a 2nd degree tear and again that made me really sore for about 2 weeks. So I bet I could have started doing things slowly around 2-3 weeks, intense exercise has never been my thing though.0
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That's a relief, because someone told me you have to wait at least 3 months before you can re-engage in real activities!!I waited 7 weeks with my two to get back to the gym, but I was going for long walks quite soon after giving birth, maybe 3 or 4 days. A 7 weeks I went straight back to 5 days a week at the gym.0
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I can't wait to go back into the Curves circuit myself! I was doing that for 15 months, and I was very dedicated before getting pregnant and now I can't wait to go back!
I have been working out 3-5 times a week since I got pregnant and hoping this will help make it easier to go back once i deliver.I have been walking and going up stairs since I gave birth. Now at almost 7 weeks postpartum I started my circuit training workouts again. I was working out my entire pregnancy and I am so happy to be working out again, I cant wait to get my body back to where it was pre-pregnancy.0 -
I am sorry! Stitches and postpartum hemorrhoids made me live in torture for a couple of months after my son was born.
I am not into intense exercise either. I am a member at Curves and I love their workouts.It took me a few weeks just to start walking around the block again after my son. I had been walking 3 times a day while pregnant with him to manage my gestational diabetes. Birth was really rough though and I had a 3rd degree tear, so the first two weeks it hurt to do anything: sit, stand, walk, etc. My daughter I had a 2nd degree tear and again that made me really sore for about 2 weeks. So I bet I could have started doing things slowly around 2-3 weeks, intense exercise has never been my thing though.0 -
I started walking (with very short jogs) on the treadmill about 3 weeks pp with my second. I paid attention to my body and took it easy. And would go for no more than 20-30 minutes those first few weeks I started back. But I had been walking 3-4 miles on it regularly through the end of my pregnancy, so I was used to it. I started back up with videos around 6 weeks pp. Again, though, I didn't push myself hard enough to injure anything and would stop for a few days if I noticed an increase in pp flow, etc (which came back around 5 weeks, but was completely gone by the end of 6 weeks). By 8 weeks post partum, I felt completely recovered and was able to start really pushing myself with running.0
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That's a relief, because someone told me you have to wait at least 3 months before you can re-engage in real activities!!I waited 7 weeks with my two to get back to the gym, but I was going for long walks quite soon after giving birth, maybe 3 or 4 days. A 7 weeks I went straight back to 5 days a week at the gym.
It depends on your birth experience I guess. I've been lucky with my two and haven't even needed stitches. I was home 5 hours after having my daughter. Of course, I may not be so lucky with my third.....
I went back to personal training sessions after my two. I don't think I can afford it this time though so I'll just be sticking to classes and the gym.0 -
I had a C-section and was back at it pretty quickly (as in, C-section Wed...home Fri....shoveling a foot of snow Sunday). For me, it's more of a time/energy thing than physical ability.
I was walking for fitness almost immediately, doing kettlebells & using my spin bike within a couple weeks, and will probably start running today--the only reason I haven't done it sooner is our long, brutal Chicago winter this year. I felt ready to at least do interval runs when she was a couple weeks old. She's 14 weeks old now.0 -
I had a bad tear and what seemed like a million stitches with my first, so at about 3 weeks pp I was still only able to manage short, slow walks, otherwise I'd end up very sore in the nether regions. I also had light bleeding pretty much right up to my 6 week pp check up, which is when the doctor gave me the green light to resume normal activities. I was 2 months pp before I went back to the gym (partly due to Christmas/family visiting falling almost right after my 6 week appt), and I had to be careful with my strength training for a while because if I strained at all I could feel my tear pulling (it started high up in the birth canal, it was not just the outer area that tore), and my pelvis still felt out of whack. I don't think I felt 100% healed until about 4 months pp.
Listen to your body and do what feels right for you. Everybody heals differently!0 -
Wow that soon? I thought with c-section you need to wait 6 months or something!I had a C-section and was back at it pretty quickly (as in, C-section Wed...home Fri....shoveling a foot of snow Sunday). For me, it's more of a time/energy thing than physical ability.
I was walking for fitness almost immediately, doing kettlebells & using my spin bike within a couple weeks, and will probably start running today--the only reason I haven't done it sooner is our long, brutal Chicago winter this year. I felt ready to at least do interval runs when she was a couple weeks old. She's 14 weeks old now.0 -
Great advice. Thank you!
Listen to your body and do what feels right for you. Everybody heals differently!0 -
When I went to have my stiches removed (about a week after surgery) he told me I could do what I wanted, just listen to my body and stop if I felt pain. I knew I had to have a C-section a few weeks before it happened so I talked to several women who'd had them, and nearly all were back at it in a few weeks. My ob/surgeon did tell me that if it's an emergency C-section it's generally a different (vertical instead of horizontal) cut and it often has a much longer recovery time. As much as I feel I missed the natural labor process, I LOVED my recovery enough that it kinda makes up for it.Wow that soon? I thought with c-section you need to wait 6 months or something!I had a C-section and was back at it pretty quickly (as in, C-section Wed...home Fri....shoveling a foot of snow Sunday). For me, it's more of a time/energy thing than physical ability.
I was walking for fitness almost immediately, doing kettlebells & using my spin bike within a couple weeks, and will probably start running today--the only reason I haven't done it sooner is our long, brutal Chicago winter this year. I felt ready to at least do interval runs when she was a couple weeks old. She's 14 weeks old now.0 -
4 wks after thankfully I'd lost 20 pounds so far by doing nothing the next 10 pounds was a little harder but was gone within 12 wks then gained it all back with 2 nd bub maybe a little more cos I started off heavier this time
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I'd suggest taking it easy for 2-3 weeks.
I didn't have too bad of a tear, but I did have one. I was out and about, going to the store, running errands, just acting like my usual self within a few days. This was NOT a good idea! I tore my stitches, it was immensely painful, and I also started having problems with bleeding too much. If I'd just taken it easy for a few weeks I would have been fine. Instead between my stupid stitches and problems with bleeding, then having an abscess I was out of commission for more than two months.
So all in all just chill. Wait a week or two and go for a short walk with the stroller, do some light stretching, see how far you can sread your legs without feeling any tugging (seriously) and see how you feel before embarking anything else.0 -
Definitely depends on your birth experience. With #1, I was in amazing shape and working our daily. I was back weigh lifting and dancing 3 days after she was born (I was in college as a dance minor). With my 2nd, 3rd, and 4th kids I was back to walking and low impact aerobics in 4-6 weeks. With my 5th, I didn't get back to doing much beside walking for a couple of months. With 6, 7 and 8 I was able to workout between 6 and 8 weeks after birth. Those were all hospital births, no c-sections, no drugs (except birth #1). With my last one I was doing yoga the day after the birth, walking with baby in the sling within 3 days, started the 30 Day Shred at 5 weeks PP. This last one was a home/water birth and very easy on me.
LISTEN to your body! Don't over do things and hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!0 -
It wildly depends on how the birth goes. With my first I bled a lot after his birth it was a long time before I felt human again! With my second, although not doing "workouts" I was back to everything within a week or two. With my 3-5, after a few weeks I felt great. With my twins 6&7, I had both a vaginal birth and a c-section and then I had complications from the surgery. It was close to 5-6 months before I was ready to do anything out of the norm. A normal birth doesn't take a huge amount of time to recover from. However, don't push too hard while your body is still trying to readjust and heal. You are taking care of you and a little one. There shouldn't be any pressure to be perfect. You just created a human and an extra organ (the placenta). You just gave birth to a human and lost an extra organ. All of your inner organs were squished for many months and are trying to get back to their normal spot. If you start doing something and feel pain then stop! Now is not the time to push hard. Best wishes!0
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I worked out during pregnancy and after. I exercised for 2hrs a day (cardio) at time, but if I needed days off, I took them. I even lifted light weights sometimes (no more than maybe 10 lbs). Avoid strenuous weight lifting and strength training, but working out in general is OKAY whenever... After pregnancy I just waited till the bleeding stopped and I got the okay from my doctor. For me, that was about three or four weeks. Good luck!0
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as soon as a i feel comfortable i will start walking and slowly work into more intense workouts. Every delivery is different. My first i had alot of stitches my second very little. Who knows what kind of delivery it will be like with my third0
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Oh I am sorry you had to go through all of this.
I had stitches with my first too and sitting alone was hard enough so I totally understand what you mean about the tugging feeling. Now that you mentioned it, it all came back to me, lol.I'd suggest taking it easy for 2-3 weeks.
I didn't have too bad of a tear, but I did have one. I was out and about, going to the store, running errands, just acting like my usual self within a few days. This was NOT a good idea! I tore my stitches, it was immensely painful, and I also started having problems with bleeding too much. If I'd just taken it easy for a few weeks I would have been fine. Instead between my stupid stitches and problems with bleeding, then having an abscess I was out of commission for more than two months.
So all in all just chill. Wait a week or two and go for a short walk with the stroller, do some light stretching, see how far you can sread your legs without feeling any tugging (seriously) and see how you feel before embarking anything else.0 -
This is very inspiring, Thank you!It wildly depends on how the birth goes. With my first I bled a lot after his birth it was a long time before I felt human again! With my second, although not doing "workouts" I was back to everything within a week or two. With my 3-5, after a few weeks I felt great. With my twins 6&7, I had both a vaginal birth and a c-section and then I had complications from the surgery. It was close to 5-6 months before I was ready to do anything out of the norm. A normal birth doesn't take a huge amount of time to recover from. However, don't push too hard while your body is still trying to readjust and heal. You are taking care of you and a little one. There shouldn't be any pressure to be perfect. You just created a human and an extra organ (the placenta). You just gave birth to a human and lost an extra organ. All of your inner organs were squished for many months and are trying to get back to their normal spot. If you start doing something and feel pain then stop! Now is not the time to push hard. Best wishes!0
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As others have said, it will depend on your birth experience and you should always listen to your body. With my second, I started doing incline walking on the treadmill at 12 days postpartum and jogging at 4 weeks postpartum. I waited until six weeks and my check-up to start any heavy strength training.0
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@mycrazy8plus - BTW I love your pic!0
