excercise after delivery of child

Exercise after delivery is very important for ladies who want to live a happy healthy life.

its benefits are

• relieving minor aches and pains that occur after having a baby
• strengthening back and abdominal muscles needed to lift and carry the baby
• preparing the new mother for other physical activities she enjoys

One of the biggest questions on all new moms’ minds (other than those pertaining to parenting issues!), of course, is how long will it take to return to nonpregnant fitness levels. It depends on many factors, including how much weight you gained, your diet before, during and after pregnancy, your exercise program and intensity, care available postpartum (i.e. the first six weeks following birth), and whether or not you are breast-feeding. “The six-week recovery myth is just that – a big, fat fiction that has done easily as much damage to women’s self-esteem as airbrushed photographs of models and the invention of Lycra” (Graves, 1999). Give yourself a full six months to a year to regain all your abdominal tone and reach nonpregnancy fitness levels. While there will certainly be a few lucky women who seem to shed all the weight very quickly, having high expectations that you, yourself, will be one of them only adds unnecessary stress and pressure. If you are breastfeeding, count on holding onto roughly five extra pounds to be sure you have adequate fat stores for producing milk; once you wean your baby you will find it easier to shed those last pounds.

The steps are:

• Talk to your provider about an appropriate exercise plan for you. A plan may be based on the type of delivery you had, whether you are anemic or overweight, or how accustomed you are to exercising.
• Avoid competitive exercise or overexertion until the body has had time to return to normal. It usually takes at least 6 weeks.
• Learn safe and proper exercising techniques from a certified exercise instructor.
• Begin slowly and easily. Be sure to have adequate warm up and cool down sessions.
• Keep exercises low-impact. For example, keep one foot on the floor during aerobics, or march rather than hop.
• Exercise gently. Avoid jerky, bouncy movements. Do not work out on a hard surface like concrete.
• Avoid rapid changes in direction since balance may still be affected.
• Wear an athletic bra for support and schedule exercise sessions immediately after breastfeeding when the breasts are not as large.
• Include strength exercises for the abdomen, back, and legs. Do not extend the joints or stretch to a point that causes pain.
• Do modified sit-ups to strengthen the abdominal muscles. Never do straight-legged sit-ups. Modified sit-ups are done with the knees bent, feet flat on the floor, and gradual tightening of the abdominal muscles while raising only the shoulders off the floor, rather than sitting up all the way.