Do you really have to wait 6 weeks?

[shellnc]

I've heard a lot about waiting 6 weeks to workout postpartum. Do you really need to? If you continued to lift weights and do cardio until the very end, can you not start back a little lighter than where you left off right before delivery say 2 or 3 weeks after having the baby?

Just curious!! My dh will be home with me for my 12 weeks of leave, so he will be helping me lots (he's going to be a stay at home dad for the first year and take a few prerequisite classes for for a career change.) So, I'm hoping to actually be free some (tired too I'm sure, but hopefully motivated!) so I can workout.

shellnc

 

[eclair]

I started a very light workout after 2 weeks, but before then, I was walking around the block a couple times a day. I think you need to ask your doctor, but I just listened to my body. Also, keep an eye on the lochia flow. If it's flowing too heavily, you're doing too much.

 

[MelissaPC]

I haven't been here in a while, my 4 month old keeps me pretty busy! But I had the same concerns you do after I gave birth.
I agree with everything above; ask your doctor about what you can do after delivery. I am NO expert I can just tell you what I did.
I personally started some light walking a week or so after delivery. I guess my workouts gradually got more intense as the weeks went by. I'm now almost back to my old intensity level, almost! But don't push yourself! I made the mistake of trying to run again at 4 weeks postpartum (I had stopped running in my fourth month of pregnancy). I think I lasted about 10 minutes before I decided It was time to go home!
But don't worry and be patient. Remember that labor and delivery is a pretty intense experience for your body, and you need time to recover. Also, in those first few weeks you're going to be sleep deprived, so get rest when you can. And be easy on yourself, giving birth is an amazing experience. It's given me a much deeper appreciation of what my body can do!
Your husband will be home for 12 weeks! That's great! Be sure to take some time for yourself every now and then!
Good luck and enjoy!
Melissa

 

[LovingLife]

I had to giggle a bit when I read your post, because from the question, I first thought you were asking if you really had to wait 6 weeks to resume with -- to which I'd say my dh cheats on this more and more each time (we have 5 so far). But for the workouts, you can do something light, but start really light like walking, low impact cardio just to get your body used to holding itself together again. And like others have said, your flow will let you know if you're overdoing it.

 

[Tammyspq]

Hey shellnc! I too thought you were talking about sex Still, I'm waiting to have my first but picked up this information from a fitness conference presenter back in April...

Consider ease/difficulty of labor
Activity level during pregnancy
State of mind
Attachment to baby

Before starting strenuous work:
Bleeding must have ceased or be very minimal - 15-min. mile test: walk at that pace for 1 mile; if bleeding, not ready
Episiotomy must be healed, stitches removed
Nursing established

For C-section patients:
Doctor approval
Often experience less stress incontinence

Hope this helps! I plan to try it myself! Good luck - jeni

 

[shellnc]

Well I'm glad I got your attention!! I never thought about the sex correlation - but I see it now! Ha-ha!

Thanks for the responses so far!

shellnc

 

[Titus2woman]

I always feel really GREAT after delivering, but my midwife always encourages me to REST six weeks, stay off the stairs a while even, no matter what~especially if you plan on having more children. (Supposed to be important for much later rather than right then.) I've heard that it can actually take your body a year to fully recover, so six weeks isn't so bad to recoop. Just my experience, however frustrating! (((((HUGS))))) sandi

 

[tchersue]

Even the 2002 ACOG guidelines...

... are pretty liberal on postpartum exercise...

Although the 2002 ACOG guidelines (which draw on a bunch of studies to tell us what we should & shoudn't do) admit that there hasn't been a lot of research studies on this topic, they indicate that some women can go back to exercise almost immediately. My own experience with myself (one vaginal birth, one c-section) and with others that I've taught tells me that this is definitely a time to listen to what your body tells you. If exercise energizes you and isn't painful in any way, it is probably better for you to get moving sooner than later. On the other hand, if it causes you to feel exhausted, hurts your episiotomy/tear/c-section incision, causes you to have increased/bright red bleeding, then you are better off waiting.

I worked out up to 36 hours before I gave birth with #1... had a 9 lbs. 2 oz. baby, and was back to walking 4 days later, low impact & resistance workouts 3 1/2 days later, and jogging/high impact by around 6 weeks.

With #2, I worked out up until 2 1/2 weeks before I gave birth. I gave birth to a 9 lbs. 6 oz. baby via c-section (baby was in distress), and wanted desperately to get back to working out right away... but quickly realized that the doctor's post-c-section advice that I wait until 6 wks. postpartum was for a good reason. I found that I couldn't do much prior to 6 weeks... Even extended walking caused a pull in my abdomen area... the internal stitches take about 6 weeks to heal. At 6 weeks to the day, I suddenly felt GREAT when I worked out...

Hope this helps...
Susan
Healthy Moms Certified Perinatal Fitness Instructor