So now that you've thought about exercising more, and maybe even mustered up the energy to get out of your warm bed in the morning, what exactly should you do?! There are no wrong answers here, but a right answer for each individual. This was my biggest struggle after pregnancy, and here is a glimpse of my journey:
I stumbled across CrossFit in 2008, mainly because my sister had joined a local gym that had recently converted to this style of exercise. I was slow and weak, but quickly adapted to this lifestyle. I developed some good friendships along the way, and discovered how strong one short gal can get! Not long after our wedding in May 2009, I hurt my left shoulder - my fault of course. Despite what I preach to my patients, I pushed through the pain and didn't listen to my body. One MRI and cortisone injection later, I still found myself modifying my workouts to avoid the pain.
Fast forward several months and it's true, you never forget the day your life changes significantly - March 22, 2010 - workout of the day (or WOD) included heavy deadlifts and double unders. I was on my final round of heavy deadlifts. I grasped the bar, lifted my head and started to pull. In an instant, my core gave out and I felt and heard a loud pop in my low back. The pain was immediate. I dropped the bar, fell to the floor, and called out for my husband. I treated it as a muscle strain, but 2 days later my left big toe was numb, and 1 week later, I could not move my left foot. My MRI showed a large piece of my disc sitting on one of my nerve roots, and I subsequently underwent a lumbar discectomy (removal of that damaged piece) on May 6, 2010. 6 weeks of no bending, twisting or lifting, followed by 2 months of physical therapy felt like an eternity for someone who was used to exercising 4-5x/week! My body was weak, my muscles atrophied, and my confidence blown.
I later found out we were pregnant 5 months later in August. As you can imagine, not fully recovered from my back surgery, this was rough on my low back as I continued to gain weight. It also complicated my return to exercise, really limiting what my changing body and back could handle. After delivering Olivia on April 17, 2011, I was anxious to return to exercise. I tried running, but my left leg would go numb. I tried CrossFit Mom workouts in our garage, but my core was so weak, that I could barely get through the movements. I tried Olympic Lifiting, but the pounding and overhead weight made my low back ache and my leg numb!! I was sad, really sad. I was even more sad because my daughter was almost 6 months old and I was still hiding under bigger scrubs at work, refusing to buy bigger clothes. SOMETHING HAD TO CHANGE.
When I say "invest in yourself wisely", I'm referring to the fact that what your body was able to handle before pregnancy, may not be the case afterwards, especially if you have had injuries or surgery. So don't be discouraged if you were a maniac at P90x, but can barely get through that first DVD now, or if you smoked a Fran workout, but can't do a pull up to save your life today. Find what fits you NOW, because with a new life in our hands, we can not afford to be injured.
I invested in an elliptical for our garage, and now work with a personal trainer 2x/week - back to basics, isolating muscle groups to protect my previous injuries and build lean muscle to shed my post preggo pounds. Since the start of my fitness transformation, I have lost 20 pounds, and 3 dress sizes, and you know what...my back doesn't hurt, and my leg is not numb.
Being fit and fab is not only for yourself, but sets a good example for your little ones. So, invest wisely.
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