Postnatal Running
The three questions all Mums need to ask themselves before they start running.
Running is AMAZING for you:
It gets you out of the house
Easy to manage with your family life
You don’t need equipment
Provides you with that excellent post-run feeling
It’s a wonderful opportunity to clear your head
Whether you have recently had a baby OR had a baby years ago, it’s essential to ask your body if it is adequately prepared to run?
Running is a high impact activity, and pregnancy and childbirth naturally weaken and stress your body.
Think about if you had injured your knee. You would allow physiological healing time, complete your rehab and wait to be given the thumbs up before returning to a sport or activity. So, shouldn’t it be the same after pregnancy and childbirth?
It’s time to ask yourself these three questions
1. Have you consulted with a Women’s Health Physiotherapist post-baby?
All women should have a postnatal consultation to assess and manage the changes from pregnancy and childbirth. Do you leak urine, suffer faecal incontinence, feel heaviness in your vagina, have lower back or pelvic pain or have a bulging tummy? Running is not advisable until these issues are resolved.
2. Have you tested yourself?
You don’t automatically wake up on the morning 12 weeks postnatal ready to run. It’s not a “1 one size fits all” scenario. Make sure you can comfortably walk for 30 minutes first and jog on the spot for a minute without any symptoms. Try to complete 20 repetitions of single-leg bridges and single-leg calf raises. If you are struggling to get through a few repetitions, it may be a good indication that you need to build some strength first.
3. Have you made a graded return to running plan and started a low impact strength program? (if ready).
Start with walking or running intervals. I recommend the couch to 5k running app (“C25K” from the app store).
All runners should be completing a strength program - evidence shows it can reduce the incidence of running injuries.
We hope this offers some clarity around the steps to take before returning to running.
For further advice, information or a live real-time ultrasound assessment of your pelvic floor muscle function contact us on 08 9221 8458 at Spine & Sports Centre to book an appointment with me, Lydia Barlow, for a women’s health assessment.
Goom, T., Donnelly, G., & Brockwell, E. (2019). Returning to running postnatal - guidelines for medical, health and fitness professionals managing this population [Ebook] (1st ed., pp. 7-29). Retrieved from https://www.running-physio.com/postnatal-guide/
