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Postpartum Exercise

A Certified Doula Discusses Exercise After Baby

By Kelly Camden, Certified Doula and Yoga Instructor

A week or two after birth, taking some short walks will be healthy. It's best to wait until bleeding has stopped before taking really long walks or doing heavy lifting. If you feel like getting out of the house, head to a park for a short walk and then sit for a while. If we overexert ourselves by doing too much physical activity, postpartum bleeding increases. This is a message from your body asking you to slow down. If this happens, make a point of resting more over the next few days.

This depends on how much weight was gained, your metabolism, physical activity and whether you are breastfeeding or not. (Breastfeeding uses almost one-third of our caloric intake.) Postpartum is not a time for dieting. Instead, by eating a variety of whole foods and drinking at least 3 liters of water per day, you can help your body to self-regulate. When we combine a healthy diet with a regular physical activity such as walking, wearing a baby, swimming, yoga or even cleaning the house, we feel ourselves releasing the weight of pregnancy.

During pregnancy, the abdominal muscles naturally separate, to make room for the growing baby. The muscles that run up an down the front abdomen are called the rectus abdominis. When the rectus abdominis separates, we need to work with the muscles on the sides of the abdomen, the oblique and the transverse muscles. These muscles help us to twist. They also hold the rectus abdominus in place. Doing sit-ups may strengthen the rectus muscles, but the separation won't go away.

Want to see more?

• Mom's Postpartum Health: Why New Moms Need Doctor Visits Too
• Fine Tuning: Carnie Wilson on Pregnancy, Weight Control and Postpartum
• Mommy Time: Making Postpartum Fitness a Priority
• Check out our Article Library.
• Talk about it!