When is safe to start exercising?

[CrazyAlien06]

hi, not sure this is in the correct thread but anyway,

Just wondered when it is considered safe to start exercising? I gave birth 6 days ago and want to plan to get back in shape. I have already lost my bump and am only left with a podge that I need to get rid of.

I am walking daily with LO and it's so enjoyable:)
I'm wanting advice on when i can do abdominal exercises /go to exercise classes?
If anyone has any links for me to check out that would be fab

Six days?!?

I plan on waiting a few more years just to be on the safe side...

Yup six days! Always been in shape and exercising makes me feel loads better. Seem to live in an area with naff all on in terms of things like buggy fit so need to find my own stuff to do ...fun fun

Seriously? 6 days?! Slow down. I could barely walk for the first two weeks. I think generally 6 weeks is the standard advice but it depends how you feel. My local hospital ran a post natal exercise class, ask your health visitor if there's any near you. Also if you type post natal exercise into you tube it'll bring up some good videos to follow. but it's important to take things slowly and allow time to recover from the birth.

Yes 6 days, i had a dream labour (3.5 hrs) and am feeling 100% already. I was active all the way through my pregnancy and so want to continue.
I'll ask the mw next time baby gets seen then.

I started dog walking 3 days after giving birth to DD, but I think that is very different from exercise class - I agree with others and think the advice is 6 weeks.

You need to be careful working the abdominal area because it needs to sort itself out first.

Pushy Mothers may not have a class where you are but I think their website explains the issues. Something to do with allowing the abdominal muscles to repair/get back to where they were.

I was doing yoga and tai chi at 3 weeks, proper abs work I left until 6 weeks.

Walking, pulling your tummy in so your belly button goes to your spine when lying down and when standing and doing the plank are all fine before then.

At 6 days I think walking with LO and doing your pelvic floor exercises are enough. Wait until you've had your 6 week check up and enjoy these first few weeks with your new baby.

Hi, I got back into exercise fast (running 5 weeks after caesarean). Most of the advice about this is very conservative and your midwife will be too. I would say see how you feel, take it very easy at first, and hold off on the abs exercises for longer (I didn't do any till post 12 weeks or so).

Be careful with abs work - as a previous poster said, it all needs to knit back together before you start working it hard. That said, you can concentrate on a strong core, pulling your tummy in towards your spine, whilst pushing the buggy etc.

Most post-natal classes recommend waiting until after your 6 week check. That said, there is also an element of knowing your own body. I would try and see if you can find anything that is specifically for post-natal fitness if you go early....at least the person running the class should specialise in that area, so that they can ensure you don't do any damage.

I was out doing brisk walking about 5 days after both my elec CSs. I included hills.

At 4 weeks I was out running with the buggy, but only doing a couple of miles.

In terms of relaxed ligaments, running on level ground was fine. However, while I was still BFing, skiing was a nightmare!

If this is your first baby, there is definitely an element of trying to prove to the world how quickly you can get back to normal. do eat nutritious food and do be honest with yourself about how tired you are.

I found fitness in the first couple of months was easy to maintain as babies sleep a lot in this period. Once they got to 4 months and neeed more attention, but still wake frequently during the night, I found I was quite tired and less inclined to get out running.

I was also back running 5 weeks after both mine (both ELCS) - agree midwives do tend to err on the side of caution. If you feel fine, exercised before and know your body I would start when you feel ready (gently) and build from there.

I was told by a PT who specialises in training pregnant/post-natal women to wait at least 4 weeks after a non-complicated birth, even though I was quite fit before I conceived and remained quite active throughout the pregnancy.

There is no point in pushing yourself too hard :) oh and congrats on the baby! :)

Just thought I'd throw my story in: after totally easy, non complicated natural birth for DC1 I felt great & all lochia had subsided after a couple of days, so 3 weeks after I thought I'd try a basic ballet class just to start stretching and toning a little bit (just some tendus and pliés, nothing fancy), and it reactivated the bleeding which hung around for a further 2 months! I'm going to wait a cautious 6 weeks before trying anything after DC2.

Also, this is kind of random, but I was not able to wear high-heeled shoes for 4 months after birth of DC1, because my ligaments were so wobbly.