Your Post-Baby Body : Part 2

Lean Mommy: Bond with Your Baby and Get Fit with the Stroller Strides Program
by Lisa Druxman

(Page 2 of 3)

Post-pregnancy challenge #4: Uncontrolled Peeing or Leaking

When you were pregnant, the added weight and internal shifting of your organs magnified the pressure on your bladder, resulting in an increased urge to pee. If you had a vaginal delivery, you may have suffered trauma to the pelvic floor muscles, which can contribute to further incontinence. Either way you can end up with a permanently weakened bladder mechanism and pelvic floor muscles. You might experience just occasional leakage when you exert yourself (such as picking up the stroller, sneezing, or coughing). Or you may be silently suffering with a constant urge to urinate (even when there is nothing there), or a loss of control (you don't make it to the toilet in time). It's imperative to take corrective measures now because whether you experience incontinence later in life is associated with the level and length of time you experience incontinence after each birth.

What you can do about it: Muscle fibers in the pelvic floor have an amazing recuperative ability. But you need to give them the proper stimulus. Most women can return to normal by performing pelvic floor exercises, as shown in the Lean Mommy plan. See pages 62-65.

Post-pregnancy challenge #5: Separated Ab Muscles

After your second trimester you may have noticed a gap at the midsection of your belly. This condition, known as diastasis recti, is a separation of connective tissue in your outermost abdominal muscle, the rectus abdominis. Because your ab muscles split and widen, the muscles provide less stability. There are varying degrees of separation and the problem can persist or even worsen if you're not careful.

What you can do about it: You'll need to learn how to do corrective exercises to help the muscle fibers rejoin. The Lean Mommy plan helps you identify if you have this condition and shows ab exercises that will help. See pages 57-58.

Post-pregnancy challenge #6: Scrunched Shoulders

I call it "the hunchback of motherhood": muscles that raise the shoulders tighten while muscles that hold them down weaken. Many mommy motions encourage this shoulder slump: bearing the weight of milk- heavy breasts, nursing baby, holding baby close, and carrying diaper bags, car seats, and strollers. If the back muscle that runs from your neck to your shoulders and upper back, the trapezius, spasms from being continually tight, you may feel neck strain or pain that can extend through your shoulders, back, and even arms.

What you can do about it: Practice holding yourself in an upright posture, strengthening the back muscles while stretching the chest muscles. Learning to recognize-and stop yourself-when you slump is key. So, instead of bending over to breastfeed, you should bring baby up to your breast. The Lean Mommy plan includes exercises to help you hold yourself erect and to train the back muscles. See pages 116-117, for example.

Post-pregnancy challenge #7: Discomfort or Pain in Your Wrists

Before pregnancy, you might have been accustomed to holding a heavy purse or lugging a gym bag. Suddenly, you are hoisting an extra ten, twenty, or even thirty pounds on an hourly basis as you carry your child and all the stuff that goes with him! Your back and shoulders are not the only body parts to bear the brunt of this added weight. Your wrists can become strained, too. You could be prone to carpal tunnel syndrome, a condition caused by excess pressure on a nerve in the wrist caused by edema, or swelling. Bending at your wrist can exacerbate this problem. You may experience numbness, tingling, or pain in your fingers, thumb, and hand when you push the stroller or hold baby. Carpal tunnel syndrome can appear during pregnancy or in the postnatal period.

What you can do about it: Resting your wrists and maintaining proper wrist alignment when you pick things up or push your stroller can alleviate the problem. When you are pain- free, wrist flexion and wrist extension strengthening moves, along with stretches to the hand and fingers, can prevent further aggravation. Some breastfeeding moms notice that their pain recedes after weaning. Lean Mommy focuses on these and other subtle actions that can put pressure on a body that's already been taxed from pregnancy. See page 65.

Post-pregnancy challenge #8: No Time to Eat Right or Take Care of Yourself

Eating can become a physical-and emotional-struggle for a new mom. From a practical perspective, you are so focused on taking care of baby and the rest of your family that your own mealtimes can be rushed or forgotten altogether. If you skip meals, you may be so famished that you head straight for the easiest thing to eat-fast food or a bag of cookies! At the same time, your awareness of your excess flab can trigger pangs of guilt: Should I be eating this? When it comes to fitting in workouts or time to relax, the same mental battles arise where you pit your welfare against that of your baby or family: I need to exercise, but I can't leave baby. Usually, you accept the sacrifice and tough it out. But putting self- care on hold completely can seriously impair a new mom's quality of life.

What you can do about it: It's a fact that you now have less time than before. That's not going to change. But what you can change are your choices. You can choose foods that are nourishing and fast and easy to prepare. When you pack up baby wipes, you can throw in almonds and walnuts for yourself. When you mash up banana for your child, you can slice an extra piece for yourself and mix it with yogurt and oatmeal flakes. Or you can plan ahead what you're going to eat when eating out, so that you're less likely to succumb to the most fattening and least nutritious item on the menu. And maybe you don't have time to work out. But you do have time to do what it takes to be a good mom. And when baby is crying his eyes out, you can entertain him or her by strapping him into his front- pack carrier and then doing a series of lower body toners like squats and lunges while you talk or sing him into a more joyful mood. (And voil?! there's your workout squeezed into your day.) Or you can give baby his dose of sunshine by joining other moms for a stroller walk around the park-an impromptu playgroup for the kids, and a much needed adult timeout for you. This way, mothering turns into me-time.

© Lisa Druxman, 2007

About the Author

Lisa Druxman, a certified personal trainer and fitness professional, knows one of the challenges new moms face: How do I get back into shape after giving birth? After Lisa gave birth to her first child, she developed exercises that she could do with her baby, using power walks, the stroller, and exercise tubing.