Activity Restraints During Your C Section Recovery
After you've had a
Cesarean section, you may be wondering how much you can do and
how soon you can do it. Your doctor will give you some
information and general guidelines; the rest you do yourself.
These tips are for new moms or moms to be who aren't sure how
to plan the coming months—aerobics or just coffee with
friends? Hiking the Himalayas or watching the classic films
you've always wanted to see? Read on!
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1. Your activity level
will be very, very low for at least a month. You've not only
created another human being (you goddess, you!), you've also
had major surgery. Your body has been incised right down to
the uterus, and it's going to take weeks for the internal
and external sutures to heal. You will be told not to climb
stairs, not to lift your baby in and out of the car and not
to carry anything heavier than a coffee cup if you can help
it for the next six weeks. Your abdomen, being right in the
center of you, controls the way your back and bowels work,
and can be felt if you stretch your arms up over your head
right now. Ask your
doctor how soon after your C-section you can expect to start
taking walks, and find out what a reasonable amount of time is
for walking. |
2. During
pregnancy, you've probably used your growing belly to support
grocery bags, and to boost you from soft couches: now you have
the challenge of giving your abdomen a rest from its labor! When
lifting your child, keep your arms close to your body and try to
use your arm muscles instead of your abdominal muscles. Once
your incision is healed, you can reverse the process and start
using your abs more, but until then, it will help prevent adding
strain to the incision.
3. Walking is the easiest and lowest impact exercise you can do
outside of swimming, which may not be recommended until you've
totally healed. Once your doctor gives you the okay, start
strength training, which will help you build muscle and burn fat
while increasing your overall metabolism. But don't try to
hasten your recovery by doing too much too soon! And if you have
pain, stop whatever you're doing.
4. Exercise with your baby. With delivery comes transportation
issues. Push the stroller around the block, or look for a
jogging stroller if you're a runner. Look for a postpartum
exercise class that will help you get in shape and where you may
be able to bring your baby, too.
5. Exercise with other grownups. Once you've completely healed,
you can start aerobic exercises again to get your cardio fitness
up and burn fat. Making exercise a priority is good for you on
several levels: it gets you out of the house, lessening your
chances of the Mommy Blues after giving birth; it puts you in
touch with other adults for conversation and fun, and it boosts
your mental as well as your physical health.
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