#47: 8 secrets to successful postnatal fitness routine for tired mums
Before I had a baby I had an idea of what my new life will look like. I thought we will have a relaxing and blissful hypnobirthing experience and my recovery will be fast. I hoped I’ll be able to train like before in no time and that my baby belly will be gone in four months. I also thought Freya will sleep through the night.
None of that happened.
I had a long and traumatic birth that ended with a c-section and birth trauma. Freya didn’t sleep (for two years), I didn’t have energy to train like I could before pregnancy. I still haven’t lost my mummy tummy. Instead, I went through periods of absolute exhaustion.
We don’t have any family here. In the first year Dave worked long days and I had to be on top of everything else. I tried to do some long intense workouts but that only increased my fatigue. I was lost and frustrated. But I knew I had to find a way to be able to exercise again.
Exercising is super important for our energy and health when it is be adjusted to your current lifestyle, recovery and energy.
To get great benefits from exercising you don’t have to run for miles, plank for hours or do thousands of squats. No particular workout is better than the other. We need all different types of movement and routines. You don’t have to stick to the one you like the least just because some experts say it is the best one.
Eight years ago, when I switched my career to fitness, I did what I loved the most. I focused on high energy, high impact classes.
I found yoga or Pilates extremely boring.
I had limited time and I wouldn’t “waste” my time just lying on the floor. This approach resulted in overtraining, injuries, fatigue and hormonal imbalances.
I have learned the hard way that our body always needs balance.
It is the same for anyone who only likes doing yoga or Pilates. Trust me, you need balance for health.
A balanced exercise routine is even more important for mums, who juggle work and home, while not getting enough rest at night.
Even thought exercise may be the last thing on your to do list, finding time to do so will give you incredible benefits, especially if you’re dealing with mild or even full blown fatigue.
In his book “Adrenal Fatigue, the 21st Century Stress Syndrome” James L. Wilson list these benefits of exercise:
Expulsion of volatile gases out of the body that become harmful if they build up by rapid breathing
Keeping plaque from building up in the arteries through increased blood flow
Liver stimulation through increased blood flow (so it performs over 3000 functions more efficiently)
Cell function improvement
Normalising levels of cortisol, insulin, blood glucose, growth hormone, thyroid and other hormones
Delivering more oxygen to your brain
Decreasing depression, improving mood.
These health benefits are incredible. As a mum it is important for me to stay healthy so I can enjoy a long and happy life with my little one. I am also hoping that despite being 41 and having made so many health mistakes in the past, I can get pregnant again. Surprisingly getting pregnant these days is not as easy at it was 50 years ago. Not for all women at least. Fertility is a great physical and mental health indicator. Our lifestyle plays a huge role in that.
Exercise is extremely important, especially if you’re tired and dealing with fatigue.
It is the last thing on our mind, but it has to get some attention if not priority. Here is what helped me get back to regular exercising after having a baby and keep my energy high:
Start with postnatal abdominal fix
In the first weeks postnatal we should not worry about exercising. It is a time of healing and adjusting to our new reality. We’re tired but we’re so in love and this is what helps us survive this challenging period.
My midwife told me to start doing gentle abdominal bracing exercises about 10 days after c-section. I did these exercises in bed, before sleeping. I started with just about 4 reps. I simply could not do more, I was just too exhausted. But I did it almost every night for a few weeks. Few weeks later I was able to do more abdominal fix exercises and close my two had wide abdominal gap.
PS. Always ask your health practitioner for clearance to exercise. Some practitioners will advise you to wait for minimum 6 weeks before even starting abdominal bracing. When my midwife told me I should start fixing my abs, I was surprised, as at that point I didn’t think about exercising at all. I did it but I did it very slowly and gently at first.
Remember to always listen to your body even if that means starting a couple of weeks after getting clearance to exercise from your doctor.
2. Start slowly with short workouts
When Freya was 6 months old I tried to do a 60 min weight training every second day. I felt like I needed to do it, trying to ignore the fact that I wasn’t getting any sleep at night. I crashed and burned within less than two weeks. I had to take a step back and make sure that my training time and intensity are adjusted to my recovery time.
I cannot predict if Freya will sleep at night, so I keep my workouts short. I train 5-10 minutes daily. Often, I just grab my dumbbells and do one or two exercises when I’m cold (or run when we’re playing outside with Freya).
I teach jumping and spinning classes once a week and that is always a great reminder that each intense activity needs adequate rest. I had too many post-workout broken nights, feeling like a zombie the next day. It is my work and I love it, but I know that once a week is more than I can do at this point and that’s ok. I wouldn’t do it if it wasn’t my work.
3. Train in sync with your menstrual cycle
There is no one best training that fits everyone but there is one strategy that may help you unlock your female power: syncing our workouts with our menstrual cycle.
When I started doing that and I felt better immediately. Both mentally and physically.
Men and women’s bodies are different. Women have unique biochemical needs. Our hormones work differently. Therefore, we need a different approach to exercise as well. Yet the fitness industry doesn’t talk about the gender bias. Women need different fitness protocols than men to get results, stay consistent, be healthy and have this infectious energy. You can have it all, even when you don’t get enough sleep.
Menstrual phase is the time to slow down. Walking and stretching may be just enough. Follicular phase is the time to gradually increase the energy of the workouts and have a lot of fun. You may just want to go dancing or jumping during this phase. Ovulation is the time when we have the most energy and just want to crush the workout (only when we get some night sleep of course) while during luteal phase we’re slowly decreasing the energy of our workouts as our energy decreases in preparation for another menstruation.
When we follow our body’s cycle, we don’t need to motivate ourselves.
When you’re in your menstrual cycle your body doesn’t have the energy for high intensity workouts so don’t force it. It isn’t because you’re lazy, it is your internal fitness coach telling you what’s best for your that day. Following our menstrual cycle gives us also this great opportunity to balance our workouts and do it all without doing too much each day. We can stretch more when we have low internal energy, and we can go for a sprint when this energy is the highest. It is brilliant and freeing.
4. Stretch and walk after a bad night
No matter what phase of menstrual cycle you are at, when you don’t get a good night sleep you won’t have the energy to do much. So, don’t. Forcing yourself to do a high intensity workout will only increase your already high stress hormones. High stress hormones result in our body holding on to our belly fat. It doesn’t only make you more stressed but also fatter. Stretch and walk instead. Have fun with your little one. That will be enough for the day.
5. If you watch telly in the evening, do stretches and self-massage at the same time
I hardly ever sit on our sofa to watch telly. Even if I’m not exercising, I lay down on the exercise mat with the roller under my neck. It became such a habit that I cannot really sleep if I don’t do it.
Mums often slouch while nursing. I did. Back extension exercises (like sphinx or cobra stretch or back extension on the roller) will help rebalance our back and chest muscles reducing the risk of back or neck pain. It is a great habit to build. Your back will be extremely grateful for that. Telly time can be the best time to do it.
6. Build a lasting habit before increasing workout length
When you’re starting you may need to set up a reminder to get on the floor and a timer to stick to 5 minutes. If you’re like me, once you’re on the floor exercising you may try to push it and train longer. Firstly, doing so may make it difficult to train consistently. If you’re very busy finding more than 5-10 min each day may be challenging. Secondly this may lead to overtraining if you’re already dealing with fatigue. No matter what, you should always feel good after the workout. If you feel worse and have less energy, you did too much.
Therefore, I always advise to start with the easiest possible option. If you’re super busy 5 minutes will be challenging already. Start with that but exercise every day. After you build a lasting habit and you get a better night sleep, you can easily start increasing your workout time.
7. Focus only on one day at a time
For tired and busy mums, trying to add exercising to our routine can feel overwhelming. It is easy to give up before we even start. Focusing on one day at a time takes the pressure off. It is easier to figure out when you will find 5 min to exercise today rather than plan it for the next 30 days. It would be great to have a fixed morning routine but let’s be honest. Mornings with a baby or a toddler or both, are just so chaotic. Not one day is the same. On top of that we don’t get a good night sleep every night and it is impossible to plan that in either. Focusing on just one day will help you overcome all the hurdles and mental blocks and find 5 minutes to move.
Remember that when you consciously invest a SMALL amount of time into what you love every day the cumulative effect of those days will naturally lead you to where you want to be. In this case it will help you build a lasting habit, helping you stay healthier and happier.
8. Don’t do high intensity workouts after 4 pm
This is an important one for everyone, especially anyone who doesn’t get enough, or good quality sleep. Gentle back or abdominals exercises, walking, stretching or self-massage are fine, but jumping, hiit, interval running or heavy weightlifting may just increase your stress hormones making it difficult to sleep later.
In theory keeping your workouts under 20 min should not increase your stress levels. If you have no other option but do your 5 min workouts in the evening then pay attention to your sleep quality afterwards. Do you struggle to fall asleep? Do you feel tired after you wake up even though you slept through the night? If you do, try to exercise before 4 pm.
For mums, who don’t always get a full night sleep, sleep quality is extremely important. Don’t jeopardise it by too intense workouts. Without enough sleep your health and life quality are at risk. That have to be prioritised, even if that means skipping your run during your ovulatory phase.
Exercise is an incredibly enjoyable and healthy behaviour.
It doesn’t have to be taken to unenjoyable extremes even if weight loss is the goal . The biggest challenge is to fall in love with it and the way it makes you feel. It isn’t about forcing yourself to do more and more and go faster and faster or heavier and heavier. It is about being playful and childish. Kids love to move. They do it because it is fun. It can be fun for mums as well if you just take it easy, stay playful and listen to your body.
If you need more help building this new habit, syncing your workouts with your menstrual cycle and only have energy to exercise 5-min a day join my FB group “5-min workouts for tired mums”. I post a new video every single day. We would love to have you there.
With love,
Karo