If you’re in this section then you may have recently given birth or have little people under your feet. Life was VERY busy back when I had my babies (there is only 3 years between my three monkeys!), I know how tricky it can be to think about anything else but being mum. Our own health & wellness certainly goes on the back burner, sometimes it’s just about survival and getting through the day.
Babies can be very demanding, I know how tiring it can be as a new mum BUT when you feel ready and able to put yourself first for a bit (even for just half an hour!) I’ll be right here to help you! You’ll start to feel like “you”again, have more energy, start to feel good about your body & have more confidence once again.
The mum juggle is real, we’ve all felt it, it’s not going to be easy but I promise you it will be worth it. Fitting in some exercise and eating nourishing healthy foods will make you a way better mum, so even though it seems like there are not enough hours in the day, on the days that you can manage it, try and fit in a workout & cook a healthy meal, you’ll feel way better for it!
Have a read of the content in this section before you start to exercise, there are a few important things to consider before you do. Please note that the information in this section are just recommendations, every woman, every pregnancy and every birth are very different. Remember to have medical clearance from a doctor or midwife before starting any exercise programme. If you have any queries, don’t hesitate to get in touch!
Sarah X
Getting Your Body Back…?
I hear comments like this ALL the time..… “I can’t wait to get my body back”, or “I can’t wait to get back into my pre pregnancy jeans”, or “I can’t wait to feel skinny again”.
The truth is, even if you do lose weight, it’s highly likely your body shape will have completely changed post birth. That’s ok! It’s very normal and to be expected. Your body has done the most amazing thing: carried and birthed another human being!
Chances are you’ll now have bigger/heavier boobs from breast feeding (or once you stop breast feeding, flat little pancake boobs that seem to sag down just a bit more than they used to). Hips that seem wider, saggy skin on your tummy and stretch marks. Things that we think OH MY GOD initially about. But do you know what, they’re now part of you and they tell an epic story. Accept your new body, learn to love it, and rock it girlfriend! Just be kind to yourself.
And when you’re feeling ready, I’ll be here to help you to feel your best again. Strong Woman will teach you how to fuel your body with healthy nutritious foods. How to exercise to feel good, to lose some weight (if that is your goal), and to feel strong mentally and physically.
You got this!
Breast Feeding & Exercise
If you’re breast feeding…
If you’re a breast feeding mama, exercise can sometimes affect your milk supply. Make sure you’re drinking loads of water and are eating enough nutritious snacks so you’re not ever hungry.
Good healthy snack options like fruit, carrot sticks & hummus, bliss balls, boiled eggs, a smoothie or a healthy cookie are all good to have on hand! And don’t be afraid of eating carbs, I know how hungry you get when you are breast feeding—load up a big wholemeal grainy bread sandwhich with salad & chicken, or make a Nourish Bowl with kumara and brown rice so you aren’t hungry and you can keep that milk supply up! And if you are feeling like exercising is affecting your milk supply, please contact a lactation consultant for expert advice.
Also ladies, exercising with milk filled boobs can be crazy! You’ll need to have those breast pads in there and have those boobs strapped down with a good quality sports bra. Expect sweating aswell as milk leaking haha charming! Plus breast feeding hormones can affect how your body works and moves. I think the key note here is just be kind to yourself and don’t expect too much while you’re in this stage, it’ll all happen in good time! If just getting out of the house for a short walk to clear your head is all you can manage for a few months, then that is awesome and way better than just sitting on the couch! You got this!
Pelvic floor, incontinence and prolapse
Peeing your pants when exercising..…this is a topic that isn’t talked about enough in my opinion, it effects 1 in 3 New Zealand women yet many suffer in silence. It is also a topic I know a lot about, having suffered incontinence from weak pelvic floor muscles myself after having my babies. The pelvic floor is a web of muscles, ligaments and tissues that stretch across your pelvic bones, they have the very important job of supporting your pelvic organs which include your uterus, vagina, bladder and bowels. All of these muscles stretch during pregnancy, whether you’ve had a vaginal delivery or a caesarean, the pelvic floor has still been put under extra stress while carrying a baby. When your pelvic floor is weakened or damaged, you may leak wee (stress incontinence), wind or sometimes even poo.
In severe cases, if the pelvic floor is badly weakened (usually after several pregnancies or birthing big babies) your pelvic organs can slip down, it feels heavy or like a dragging feeling in your vagina, this is called a prolapse. Having a prolapse usually goes hand in hand with urinary incontinence. There are different levels of severity of a prolapse, and different kinds of prolapse. If you are at all concerned I strongly suggest you contact a women’s health physio - there are exercises you can do and steps you can take to improve and support those muscles. You do not need to put up with incontinence, it is not normal and you need to seek help if this is you (this happened to me after birthing my third child, I now live with a stage 2 prolapse - but there are ways you can significantly strengthen your pelvic floor muscles to improve a prolapse so you can still exercise).
Please don’t suffer in silence, just because you’ve had a baby does not mean you now have to wear a big bulky pad in your knickers just to be able to exercise for fear of weeing yourself —I am speaking to any woman of any age here, incontinence can be very real for many women years after having a baby. But it can be improved to make life easier and more manageable if you know how.
Anyone reading this who is worried or if you think this may be happening to you, please get in touch and I will help guide you.
Diastasis recti
This is defined as a gap roughly 3cm or greater between the rectus abdominis (or the six pack muscles) in the tummy.
When a woman carries a baby, our muscles have to move and stretch apart to fit the baby in. Post birth, generally within 6 to 12 weeks our muscles go back together. Sometimes if they don’t go back together, ladies can have a larger than normal gap in those muscles, this is a diastasis or abdominal separation.
How do you know if you have a diastasis? Often your tummy looks bulging or cone shaped when you strain, it can also form a bit of a triangular shaped ridge down the middle (kind of like the shape of a Toblerone chocolate bar). If you think you have a diastasis, there are certain exercises you should not be doing, they can cause more harm than good eg loads of situps or full planks can put extra strain on that region, also core exercises where your legs are off the ground too eg leg lowers, they can add pressure into that area that could cause further damage if you do have a significant gap.
If you think this is you, please get in touch and I will help guide you (this also happened to me, my poor body got a hammering after having my babies! I had abdominal surgery in 2019, to rectify a severe case of diastasis recti & an umbilical hernia. I know what to look out for and know how to help, so please get in touch if you need to). Again, I strongly recommend contacting a women’s health physio to get checked out. They are experts and will be able to help & support you if you think you have a diastasis. Doing incorrect exercises could cause you more damage in the long run, so with this it’s better to be safe than sorry!
Check out the video we have made, on how to check yourself for diastasis recti, in the CHATS WITH SARAH section of the website.
Returning to exercise safely
Firstly, make sure you have been cleared to exercise by your midwife or surgeon. Having a baby is a traumatic event for your body and you need to have given it enough time to heal before you start any extra physical activity.
PLEASE start off with the post natal workouts, then move on to the beginner workouts. You will find a drop down menu in the workout section on the left, to find these all easily.
Even if you have been active throughout your pregnancy, especially while breast feeding and when you are tired, everything is now just a bit looser post birth and you can open yourself up to injury if you go too hard too soon. Low impact workouts, beginner workouts, walking or swimming are all great for the first few months after having a baby. If you start off too hard and fast you could do more damage in the long run, adding extra unnecessary strain to your already weakened abdominal muscles and the pelvic floor. Nobody wants an injury while you have a new baby to care for too. Slow and steady wins the race mama!
Remember, good things take time! You got this and I am 100% here to support you on your journey to becoming a healthier, fitter, stronger mama! Any questions just shout.