6 Tips for a Successful Return to Running Postpartum
It can be extremely challenging to know when your body is ready to return to running postpartum. You may feel ready within days of giving birth (at least mentally!), but truly being physically ready can be the difference between a major injury and longevity in this sport. And that’s the confusing part! The 6 week clearance you get from your OB offers little guidance as to what exercises are safe and how to get started after such a traumatic event. This can leave many birthing parents unsure about returning to running and without the knowledge of how to properly do so.
In 2019, Tom Goom, a well known running physio from the UK, and his colleagues put together guidelines for returning to running postpartum. One of the most significant guidelines from this work is the recommendation to wait 12 weeks to run. That seems like a long time for someone to wait, especially as we may be itching to get back to the things that help us feel good mentally and physically after baby arrives. Pregnancy and childbirth are extremely taxing on the body, causing major internal injury and muscle imbalances and weaknesses, so it’s important to allow appropriate time to heal and rebuild so that you can run long term.
It’s also important to know that you may need or want to wait longer than 12 weeks. For general orthopedic injuries, it takes 12-16 weeks for tissue to heal, so this 12 week recommendation makes sense, but it can take up to a year to correct limited range of motion, pelvic floor dysfunction, or muscle weakness, so give yourself grace and be prepared to work on the little things so that you can make your return to running successful in the postpartum phase!
As you figure out this next phase of your running journey, I’ve compiled several tips to guide you through a safe return to running postpartum that can apply whether you get started at 6 weeks, 12 weeks, or 6 months postpartum (hint* seek professional help when you can!):
1. Rest and Recover
You can not do too little in those first several weeks after birth, but you can do too much. That was the best advice I ever got for how to approach the first several weeks of the postpartum phase. Prioritizing rest and recovery after giving birth is as important as it is after a marathon - but birth is more traumatic on your body. While you will start to feel more like yourself every day, there is still a lot of internal healing happening so giving your body the proper rest (or as much as you can with the sleep deprivation!) is crucial.
2. Visit a Pelvic Floor Physical Therapist
It doesn’t matter how you delivered, seeing a pelvic floor PT can be extremely beneficial and I’d actually recommend seeing one during pregnancy. Creating that relationship in advance of labor and delivery can help you hit the ground running postpartum. During pregnancy, pelvic floor PTs can help you figure out the best birthing position for your body, how to strengthen your pelvic floor in the early months, and how to relax your pelvic floor to minimize tearing.
After months of excessive weight bearing down on your pelvic floor and organs, those muscles need to be strengthened again before they can support the impact of running. We often hear that we need to do our kegels to strengthen our pelvic floor, but a pelvic floor physical therapist can help you know HOW to do kegels to work on YOUR specific weaknesses. Aside from helping you with kegels, a pelvic floor PT will do an internal exam to assess prolapse, work on scar tissue that may be causing pain, teach you how to properly massage your perineum or c-section scar, assess your alignment, assist with incontinence issues, and help you with diastasis recti. They can also let you know when your body is ready for running, jumping, and other high impact activities.
This can be hard to prioritize with a little one at home. Know that seeing a pelvic floor PT at any point in your postpartum journey can be beneficial. If you can’t get to one in those first few months, it would be a good idea to visit one in the future if you are having any pain or incontinence.
3. Strength > Running
Your hips, glutes, core, and pelvic floor have been extremely weakened through childbirth and improper movement patterns may continue to be enforced after birth if you are picking up and moving your baby, a car seat, etc. incorrectly. This can cause compensations and imbalances when you return to running that can lead to injuries. Prioritizing strength over running for a period of time will help these major muscle groups gain strength and allow you to work on specific weaknesses. Use the exercises provided by your pelvic floor PT or a pre/postnatal coach or program to ease back into strength and prioritize it even when you bring back running.
*We love the Expecting and Empowered Postpartum program for an at home guide because it’s developed by a Pelvic Floor PT! The Code SUGARRUNS saves you $10 off any of their guides!
4. Start With a Walk and THEN a Run/Walk
Walking is the starting point to get back to running, so work your way up to a 30 minute walk (or longer!) during those first 6-12 weeks.
Whether you were running 60 miles/week or 10 miles/week prior to or during pregnancy, I’d encourage everyone to start with a run/walk when they are ready to introduce running. This will reduce the musculoskeletal impact of running and thus injury, improve aerobic endurance, and reduce fatigue. It also fives you an opportunity to assess your body, how it’s responding to the running, and any aches or pains. Gradually reduce or remove the walk breaks as you increase the running time and your body adapts.
5. Avoid Back to Back Running Days (at first)
The impact from running can be extremely demanding as your body builds up both strength and endurance. It’s good to take a break from running every other day just to allow your body time to recover and adjust to the demands. As with walk breaks, it also allows time to assess how your body is feeling and recovering as you build back up.
6. Take Your Time
It can be easy to fall into the comparison trap with your pre pregnancy self or with other postpartum people who may be progressing more quickly in their recovery. Your body feels strange and brand new after giving birth and it may be hard to hold back as you just want to feel like your old self again. This is all NORMAL, but remember to give yourself and your body the grace it deserves after birthing a baby. After all, you’re now dealing with less sleep and more demand of keeping another human alive! All of those things factor into recovery. Rushing the healing process to get to where you want to be will likely leave you sidelined and injured rather than reaching those goals you want to hit. There is no hard and fast rule for the recovery timeline, so give yourself grace!
