9 1/2 m...no years....Post Natal

Written by: Dianne Edmonds Posted on 01 Apr 2013 0

Ok, I will admit it. I am 9 ½ years post natal! I have been going to make a ‘come back’ since my second child, my son, was 6 weeks old, but it still hasn’t happened.

How can this happen? After my first child, my daughter, was born and I was back taking postnatal classes but when it was time for the abdominal exercises in the floor section I did then, I’d always get up and check everyone else’s abdominal brace. Then I’d go back on the floor to demonstrate the next routine, and I’d never quite get to my own in the specific and progressive way I would have planned for someone else. I had done a heap of work, continually using my pregnancy abdominal bracing throughout my entire pregnancy, as I was working on maternity ward, taking exercise and antenatal classes and seeing clients, so I was talking about it all day almost every day. It was great and I reaped the benefits, but not quite postnatally, missing just a few key focus points to deepen and strengthen inside.

My second pregnancy was different, and I wasn’t quite as focused on my wellbeing. I also had trained others to take my classes, and so I wasn’t taking as many regular pregnancy and postnatal fitness routines. I think then the reduced stretches, the continual demands of raising a toddler and running a business, may have started to take it’s toll, and some of the adrenal fatigue may also have started. I felt a low grade nausea at times, and there was a trip or two or three or four, to get some hot chips, which seemed to be the only way to alleviate the feeling of nausea at the time. The crazy thing is some of these stopovers to buy chips were on the way back from running an evening exercise class using the gym exercise class room.

So I put on more weight in my second pregnancy, the juggle and struggle of balancing the demands of two children was more challenging, and I still filled some of my time with significant volunteer commitments and numerous emails and teleconferences. I had great staff working part time to keep our service going, and that worked well, but I never quite got to that part of me that needed the attention this second time around.

I am going to move this on to now, stopping short of explaining any more, and say now it is time to get serious for me and taking care of my body, but I would also like to turn this around to benefit you as my reader, someone interested in pregnancy and postnatal core and pelvic floor fitness. I have always thought I would like to make the most of this ‘not having done things right’ time, and I am now going to “just do it”! And on the way, I’ll develop those things inside of my head that have been waiting for a time ‘to be born’.

So step 1. 0 – 3 weeks postnatal. And aiming for the perfect 10.  10 seconds, 10 times for holding my abdominals and pelvic floor, with each contraction being as good as the previous one. This will be worked towards in each position – sitting, standing and side lying, to build a strong foundation for the next steps! I have seen and treated many women who have had to go back to this step, and rebuild, when their foundations started to crumble – showing up as back pain, pelvic joint pain or pelvic floor problems. What if we build up postnatally from the ground up? Would our exercise routine look different?

Studio-Session-Dianne-080.jpgI used to be able to demonstrate a double leg roll from side to side with my legs off the floor, knowing that when I lifted my legs my back wouldn’t arch and my pelvic floor would hold. There was evenness in the balance between the inner core and the outer muscles in the abdominal wall, each doing their job well and maintaining good control throughout an exercise.

Studio-Session-Dianne-125.jpgNow, because I haven’t stopped to spend the time and pay attention to it, even a single leg lift I feel isn’t done with the same level of quality as “I used to do”. Now I have read inspiring stories about athletes who have made comebacks, after a break! One of my favourites because I love swimming is by Susie O’Neill that I read many years ago. So I may just shake the dust off of that and take it out of the bookcase, and begin to read it again to inspire me on my own “come back journey”, and to learn along the way with you.

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