Return to Exercise
Your baby has arrived. Congratulations!
While you need to care for your newborn, you’ll also need to care for yourself. It’ll take a little time for you to recover from pregnancy and childbirth so that you can return to normal activity, including exercise. Whether it be walking, swimming, running, weight training or yoga, general exercise is vital for your physical and mental health. You might be super-keen to get back to doing what you used to do. Or perhaps you’re considering something a bit different. Either way, expert advice and guidance at this time will give you the confidence to return to exercise safely.
When we consider exercise after pregnancy and childbirth, it’s essential to consider various factors such as your pelvic floor and abdominal muscles, issues like bladder leakage and prolapse, and activities like breastfeeding. Of course, you won’t have to focus on this forever, but it pays to do the right exercises at the right time.
Expert advice when you need it most.
Our experienced postgraduate-qualified pelvic health physiotherapists understand how vital return to exercise is after a baby, and we’re here to help. Keeping the factors we’ve discussed in mind, we’ll design a safe, graduated and enjoyable return to exercise program that suits your lifestyle and needs.
When returning to exercise after pregnancy, it’s essential to consider various factors such as your pelvic floor and abdominal muscles, issues like bladder leakage and prolapse, and activities like breastfeeding.
Considerations for your return to exercise
If you’ve just had a baby and are thinking about returning to exercise, you may be concerned about or experiencing some of the following:
- Urine leakage
- Urinary urgency
- Bowel urgency or difficulty controlling
- Vaginal dragging or heaviness
- Pelvic floor strength, even without symptoms
- Abdominal muscle strength
- Hormonal situation, e.g., breastfeeding
- Pelvic girdle or back pain
- Fitness level, e.g., balance, squat
- General body condition
Our Proven Pathway for Supporting Your Return to Exercise
Discover what matters
You’re assessed as a whole person
Our first step is to learn all about you – as a whole person. So we’ll gather information:
- QUESTIONNAIRE: You’ll complete a pelvic health questionnaire online before your first visit. This helps us understand your history, current health concerns and what matters to you.
- 1-on-1 CONSULTATION: Here, we’ll take the time to learn about you, your pregnancy recovery and return to exercise needs. We believe a holistic approach enables us to understand how your specific physical, emotional and lifestyle factors influence you.
- THOROUGH ASSESSMENT: This includes a pelvic floor and abdominal examination, back and pelvic joints and muscles, as well as a return to exercise checklist.
- CONNECTING THE DOTS: Now that we’ve discovered so much about you, we can make sense of all the considerations in your return to exercise plan. For example, this could mean understanding that even if you have no symptoms, the strength of your pelvic floor is critical for a safe return to exercise. And of course, after nine months of reduced activity, your balance and general strength will also need to be addressed.
- SET GOALS: We’ll help you set meaningful pelvic health goals, such as:
- Get back to jogging, it clears my head
- Be able to lift weights again
- Find an exercise I can do with my baby
Restore what matters
You’ll have a personalised pelvic health plan.
This is where the action happens. Together, we’ll choose the best research-proven treatment options for your lifestyle. You’ll learn about everything you need to consider so you can return to exercise safely and confidently.
You’ll have an individualised program based on your needs. This might include things like pelvic floor and abdominal muscle training, so you know how to activate your muscles when you need to, such as when lifting weights at the gym. We’ll use a return to exercise checklist to screen for any other areas that need to be addressed, such as balance and improved thigh and buttock muscle strength. We’ll also get you started on a general exercise program and guide your progress as you build capacity.
Not only that, we’ll give you really useful resources and tools to help you with your progress. You’ll be armed with all the things!
ABOUT YOUR APPOINTMENTS: Together, we’ll work out how often we should see each other. We’ll agree on what works best for you, your commitments and your finances.
Enjoy what matters
You’ll be living your best life.
The third and final step is about ensuring you achieve all the essential goals you set at the beginning of your journey. You might also find you can enjoy new possibilities that you hadn’t considered, such as taking on a different type of exercise or doing a ‘couch to 5km’. You’ll be equipped with the knowledge and skills to exercise safely and enjoyably – without having to return for appointments.
Sometimes, though, life’s little surprises might mean you need to return for a reboot. You may have a nasty virus. Or perhaps you’ve had another baby, so you'll have to change your exercise routine once more. Whatever the case, we’ll always be here to help you.
Read about Fiona 38 yrs, Sophie 34 yrs, Courtney 38 yrs
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Pelvic Health Matters
New name.
Same exceptional care.
Formerly known as Women’s & Men’s Health Physiotherapy, our new name reflects both what we believe in and what we do. We have an unwavering belief that pelvic health matters for everyone, at every stage of life.
Same phone number: 03 8823 8300
New email: physio@pelvichealth.com.au