Exercise after cesaerian

[Harpersmum]

Hi

I have had a c-section. My DS is 8 weeks old and prior to getting pregnant i was running around 20 miles a week and doing about 500 sit ups/ab crunches per week.

Due to severe morning sickness I havent done any exercise other than walking since i was 14 weeks pregnant.

I have asked the doctor when i can resume the running/abdominal exercises but the advice was very vague....'take it easy and wait a while'.

Can anyone give me some advice when i can resume this exercise, particularly the ab and stomach exercises? I've read in some books that it can be as long as 6 months before you take on strenuous exercise after a c-section but i think this seems rather a long time.

Grateful for any advice as i'm longing to feel fit again and also shed the flab.

BTW I'm also breastfeeding, dont know if this makes a difference.

I was at the gym 12 weeks after both my cs's (emergency and a planned one). But I had exercised until a week before both births so I didn't lose any fitness. Same after a hysterectomy last year, back after 12 weeks. My GP was fine with it.

In fact, I was doing yoga sun salutations 6 weeks after my first cs, I put it down to deranged cabin fever .

But I had healed well from all the ops with no complications and took it very very easy at the gym, think 'old lady' level of exercise.

And don't run on a treadmill with bf boobs unless they are well and truly strapped down. I felt fine in my body but my boobs were bigger than I was used to and had to stop running after a minute as my usual sports bra wasn't up to the job. Wore two of them on subsequent visits as I felt like Dolly parton.

I went back to military circuits after my third CS, when DD3 was seven months.

It's important you listen to your body and take it easy at first. I found it easy to pull muscles, ankles and knees weak, lower back sore for a while. Build up slowly do you don't get injured.

Am still BF and doing military circuits three times a week. Get a good bra!

I went back to the gym 3 months after an emcs with DS1 - I had been going to the gym but at a much lighter level upto being about 7 months pg so had had 5 months off - I went to my usual high-energy aerobics classes but didn't do the jumping bits - it didn't take me long to build back up again and I think I was doing stomach exercises aswell.

With an elcs after DS2 I was back at the gym when he was about 6 weeks old. Again, I had exercised upto about 7 months but had kept to a reasonably high intensity all the way through my pg. Again, went back to classes but kept it low impact for a couple of weeks and then gradually added a bit more jumping each class. I reckon it took me about 3 months to be up to full speed. Again, I did the stomach exercises from day 1 but kept it at the lowest version I could.

I couldn't do a single sit-up
post CS

I now manage about 30 but it's a struggle.

Thanks, I think i will keep up with the power walking with the pram and leave the sit ups and running until 3 months.

Thanks also for the tips about the well fitting sports bra. I was pretty big before hand so now I need to go on the hunt for something that can contain my new mammoth sized breasts