Physical advantages
Many brand-new mothers have experienced that recovery after delivery is improved by exercise.
Firstly, exercising improves your general fitness level, which has often decreased in the period of rest right after delivery, partly because of the delivery itself and because of the sleepless nights after. So, exercising gives you more energy!
In addition, exercising facilitates the loss of pregnancy weight. Women who exercise retain less weight.
Exercise and breastfeeding are a healthy combination. Exercise improves circulation, which in its turn improves breastmilk production. So, you don't have to be afraid of decreased breastmilk production if you start exercising. If you're feeling good, your production will be more likely to increase rather than decrease. Exercising also doesn't have any influence on the quality of your breastmilk.
Women who exercise generally have a stronger pelvic floor than women who don't exercise. Besides this, women who specifically train their pelvic floor have less pelvic floor related problems, like urine incontinence, and see a quicker recovery of the pelvic floor after delivery. These advantages of the pelvic floor aren't only visible on the short term, the advantages are still visible one year after delivery.
Next to pelvic floor related problems, another common complaint women experience after delivery is a diastasis or the space that has appeared between your rectus abdominal muscles. This will partly recover spontaneously, but a diastasis that is still present on year after delivery won't recover by itself. Responsibly training the core is very important for the recovery process. If you pay attention to this during exercise, recovery will go faster and more easily.
