What Your Doctor Won't Tell You About Running After Baby

Anyone who has ever been a runner knows:  a runner NEEDS to run.  And a running mom REALLY needs to run.  For her sanity and the safety of everyone else in her house. 

But what does a post-partum woman do when all she wants to do is run and her Doctor cleared her at her 6-week follow up that everything was “healed”?

I remember that day.  All I wanted to do was run.  I was feeling gross in my body and I needed to get outside and burn some of my crazy.  And nothing did that the way running did.  So after my 6-week follow-up, I did what any good runner did…I ran.  Deep down inside my body didn’t feel right to run.  The Physical Therapist in me said “healed does not equal functional.”  But the crazy-mom-runner inside of me HAD to run!  All I will do is a conservative walk-run for a mile, I told myself.  How bad could it be?

It was bad.  I was soaked in urine.  I felt like something was going to fall out of my body.  I fought it for a while.  I took breaks from running and did other activity.  Then I would “test” it intermittently, thinking it would just go away.  That I would just heal.  While the body is a good healer, there is a point where it needs to be directed to the specific movements to heal properly for function, for performance.  If I didn’t want to run, I probably would have never noticed I had a problem.  But, like I said, a runner NEEDS to run.  And so I got help from other Physical Therapists (because as much as we try, we really can’t fix ourselves).  I learned.  I trained.  Properly and efficiently to work the right muscles in a way that got me back to running!

Here is what I learned:

• Every woman needs Physical Therapy after having a baby. The Pelvic Floor is so complicated and because we can’t physically see it, it is really difficult to heal.
• Kegels are NOT enough. How many women have heard this from their Doctor?  If you want to enjoy life through your body, it is CRUCIAL to train those muscles in a way that allows them to work during activity!
• The body is forever changed after having a baby. Training a woman to understand how to make adjustments from these changes allows her to be successful for life.  This includes teaching a woman running form and breathing strategies to allow her to be successful.
• Running CAN be enjoyable again after having a baby. And a woman can actually return stronger and faster IF she gets the right training.

I remember my first half marathon I did post-partum without ANY leaking.  I remember that feeling crossing that finish line feeling strong, confident and proud that I trained my body safely that I COULD run again.  For my health, my sanity and my ability to be a better mom.

About the Author:  Tracy Hill has been a Doctor of Physical Therapy since 2006.  She is a 6-time marathon runner.  And a mom of two boys.  She has treated thousands of high level runners and moms ranging from recreational running to competitive to allow them to get back to running safely and strong.  She has a heart to break the stigma of post-partum struggles and shares her own story in hopes of other women healing.  To learn more about the 10-Week Transformative Program and how Tracy went through her own journey to run strong again, click here.