A common question I get from clients and my social media community is how soon after birth can you exercise?

I know there is so much information out there, and it can be overwhelming since so much of it is conflicting. So let’s dig into the details on when you can exercise after birth.

First, I think it is important to recognize that there is no hard line in the sand. There is no light switch that we hit and you are just good to go. Healing postpartum is fluid. It is a slow progression of tissue healing, movement reintegration, and activity progression.

What is exercise? Exercise is defined as physical activity that enhances or maintains fitness and overall health.

Moving your body to promote tissue healing after having a baby is a form of exercise. We often think that you can’t “exercise” until you are cleared at 6 weeks postpartum, but this is a very black and white way of looking at things. I argue that we can exercise much earlier than that. Do we want to go out for a run at 4 weeks postpartum? No, that would not be an appropriate form of exercise. But you most certainly can work on foundational core and hip exercises, gentle spine and hip mobility, and walking earlier than 6 weeks.

Here are some things to consider when thinking about when to return to exercise after giving birth

1. what kind of birth did you have - was it traumatic? Did you experience extensive perineal trauma or tearing? Did you have a cesarean delivery?

2. did you experience postpartum hemorrhage?

3. do you have signs or symptoms of elevated blood pressure postpartum that may indicate preeclampsia?

If you have experienced any of the above, your return to exercise after birth may be a little bit slower. You may benefit from professional/individualized guidance.

If you did not have any significant complications during birth or postpartum, you may benefit from earlier movement. Here are a few ways you can “exercise” and move your body after birth

• gentle mobility and stretching - think about exercises like cat/cow, childs pose, pigeon, hip flexor stretching

• foot strengthening exercises like toe yoga, marble pick ups, calf raises

• gentle core and pelvic floor exercises like kegels, bridges, clamshells, and bird dogs

• gradual walking progression

With your gradual return to exercise after birth, you should not experience any increase in symptoms such as pain, incontinence, or increased bleeding/lochia - these are signs that you are doing too much!

I think it is important to recognize that exercise intensity is very scalable. You don’t always need to exercise “hard” to get the benefits you need. Early movement postpartum can promote healing, allow you to care for your newborn (and other kids if you have them) with a little more ease, and set you up for success if you have to return to a physically demanding job.

How soon after birth you can return to exercise is highly variable, but arguably, most people can return to some form of movement/exercise before the “6 week you are all cleared” timeline.