Having a baby in and of itself is an intensive sport. It makes sense that if you can handle all that pushing (or even if you endure an emergency c-section), you are a superwoman capable of handling any wall. But the reality of it is, we’re all different, our postpartum experiences are going to be different as well.
Just like any other sport, it’s important to get back into climbing as soon as you are physically able to. However, your doctor must be the one to tell you your body is ready for more rigorous exercise than those daily strolls you take with your stroller or baby carrier to get out of the house and breathe some fresh air.
In the case of a c-section, you may have to sit it out longer. If you don’t allow your body proper time to heal, it can cause damage in the form of diastasis recti, where your ab tissues tear, and you’ll have to do exercises to mend that before you can go fully vertical again.
I know you want to get back up on the wall, but pushing it too soon is the fastest way to put yourself back out of commission. Instead, listen to your body, get some approved forms of exercise in, and don’t forget to enjoy that precious baby you just spent 9 months creating!
Tips for Getting Back into Climbing Postpartum
It’s really important to get clearance from your doctor after giving birth to avoid any injuries that could set you back further. Once you have that postpartum checkup and all is well, here are some tips for getting back on top again.
– Climb Often
While it’s advisable you take it slow when you get back into climbing postpartum; it’s also important to do what you can as often as possible. Not just on the wall either. Keep up your body’s plasma supply by doing a little exercise daily, whether it’s HIIT, a quick run, or hitting the weights. Then test the waters with some indoor climbing first.
I recommend going with indoor climbing gyms first simply because 1) you’re a new mom 2) you won’t want to be far from your little one for long 3) it’s easier to keep to the pace. This is not the time to work on crushing your last personal best. This is more for your body to ease back into the sport and allow you the chance to get short bursts of it in before heading back to be with your sweet tiny human.
How you feel has a lot to do with it too. If you feel like you’re straining yourself, take a step back. You’ll get back to your former glory but remember, it took your body 9 months to make that baby, and now it’s going to take time for it to ready just after delivery; more on that later.
– Strengthen Your Core
I’m telling you this out of pure love: it doesn’t matter how fit you are before or during your pregnancy. You could still find yourself with that separation of your ab muscles during pregnancy. Don’t assume it won’t happen to you. There’s an easy way to know; how, you ask? If you lay on your back and feel a gap between each side of your abs in line with your belly button, that’s your clue.
Don’t push yourself into normal ab exercises to fix it though, as that would only make it worse. Sahrmann exercises are fantastic for helping retrain the area. As you do them, take special precautions when you do climb by keeping it slow, low, and easy. You shouldn’t be hopping right back on those steep bits, where you’ll just overextend yourself anyway. Focus on rebuilding your core and slowly building back up to where you were in your climbing before pregnancy.
– Hit Those Pelvic Floor Exercises
In addition to strengthening your core, I absolutely advise you to never forget to do your pelvic floor exercises. If you religiously did them while pregnant, great! Keep it up! If not, get with it, sister! Because doing those will help restore your pelvic floor faster.
You might be wondering exactly how this helps you in relation to your climbs. The answer is this: even the most experienced of us know the pitch and thrill of jumping (or even falling) from the top of the wall. Since it’s been a while from the last time you were able to engage in the rush, your body might respond in a more fear-stricken way, one that will inevitably make you run to change your pants as soon as you get down on horizontal territory.
The great thing about pelvic floor and Kegels is that you can do them while you’re doing just about anything. Do them while you’re shopping for groceries. Do them while nursing, do them in the shower, as you lay down to sleep, and especially do them while you’re in different climbing positions. It will really help as will deep squats. The more you do these, the quicker you’ll regain control and won’t have any embarrassing incontinence stories to dish on until you’re an old lady.
– Ask for Help
This is something ALL new moms need to know. Whether an avid climber or not, every new mom in the world needs to know it’s ok to ask for help. It’s exhausting being a new mom. No matter how physically fit and healthy you were before and during your pregnancy, those postpartum days can tear you apart.
There’s the lack of sleep, the stress of not knowing what you’re doing despite having read hundreds of books on the subject of babies, and the wacky schedules that babies tend to keep during those first few months will all wear on you. Working full-time or just being home with your little angel is a tough job.
You might be tough, but asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness. In fact, it will make you a better mom. As much as you love holding that precious little thing in your arms, you have to nurture yourself. Ask your parents or your in-laws to help if they live close by. Or ask friends and neighbors or others you trust. Don’t wait for someone to offer their help to you. If they do, great! Take them up on it. If not, ask.
You can even take your baby along on the climb, just not up there on the rock or gym wall. For this, you’ll need a devoted helper to watch over the baby while you do your thing. You can certainly take your baby to the gym with greater ease, but to focus on what you’re doing, asking for help from a loved one is the best thing you can do.
– Plan Out Your Climbs
It’s always easier to go through with something when someone’s counting on you, isn’t it? If you’ve made plans with your friends to hit the crag or even just the indoor climbing gym, there’s much less chance you’ll blow it off.
Make those plans and go! Better yet, engage the grandparents in taking the baby for the afternoon so you can truly enjoy that refreshing time to yourself to build back your climbing strength and preserve your sanity. You’ll be a better mom for it. You need to have this time to yourself with your friends so you can blow off steam. You’re still the same strong woman that loved climbing before. You still love the same music and the same food too, right? Nothing has changed except that you’re now a mom.
Make plans for your climbs, and you will see what a stronger character that builds for you as a mom!
– Eat healthy
I know this probably seems obvious, but eating right and drinking plenty of water is critical for your health, for your baby’s health if you’re breastfeeding, and for your success when you start getting back to climbing. It really makes all the difference in how you’ll feel.
Believe me, you’re going to feel like a zombie the first few weeks due to a lack of sleep, but with proper balance between nutrition, activity, and rest, you’ll start feeling more human. Plus, it will help you rebuild the strength as you climb little by little, bringing you back to your peak performance.
Bring the Right Gear for Your Baby
So, your baby isn’t going up on the wall or belaying, but that doesn’t mean you can’t bring your little one along. Whether at the climbing wall or the crag, make sure you keep your baby out of the fall zone and that you have a reliable person to keep an eye on him or her so you can climb with undivided focus.
To make things easier with your baby along for the climb, here are some suggestions for equipment you’ll want to bring:
– Baby Car Seat
Your car seat may very well suffice in the beginning when your baby is just a wee thing, and it’s not so cumbersome to carry in and out of the climbing gym. Out on the crag though, it gets heavy with all the other gear you’ve got to bring too, so it’s not the best match, but for short climbs on the wall while you’re getting back into it, letting your baby sleep in the portable baby car seat while you do a quick climb at the gym is perfect.
IMPORTANT: Don’t leave your baby in the car while climbing, as it can get quite hot, which can be fatal. So, just take your baby with you.
– Pop-up bassinet
Once you get a little back in tune with climbing and you want to hit the crag, a pop-up bassinet is absolutely the way to go. It’s lighter than the car seat and much smaller too, making it easy to take anywhere.
– Baby chair with attached toys
This option is ideal for babies that can sit up. You can keep them entertained in these seats, especially the ones that vibrate. They typically have a row of attached, baby-safe toys that offer amusement. Some models even play music. Check them out!
– Portable crib
When your baby starts hitting that crawling phase, he might not be satisfied with simply sitting there, swatting at some measly toys. A portable crib is really lightweight and generally comes in a carrying case you can swing over your shoulder, making it easy to take to the crag. This gives your kid a safe place to play and room to move about without being able to escape into the fall zone.
– Breast pump
If you are nursing, there is absolutely no way you can spend the day climbing without a breast pump firmly locked into your gear. This goes for those days when you’ve decided to have someone watch your angel and head up the vertical horizon baby-free. Without a baby to come down to though, you’ll have swollen, engorged breast. The pain from milk-filled breast is unlike any other. Do yourself a huge favor and bring that pump so you can bring home the milk for your baby and climb pain-free.
Some Final Tips for Climbing Postpartum
Just because you’re a mom doesn’t mean you can’t climb anymore. Get out there and do what you love, but don’t forget to:
– Take it easy and let go of your expectations!
Seriously, please don’t get all crazy with the hormones and push yourself too hard. Listen to your body. It may tell you to stop when you wish you could keep going or you may find that it can keep going when you’d planned on working in a break. Part of climbing is getting in touch with that freedom and power from within. That comes even when we’re taking it easy on lower, simpler routes. Embrace it!
– Enjoy yourself!
Maybe you started climbing initially like I did because you wanted to challenge yourself to something new, never realizing the love you’d have for it. But the reason you kept coming back, like me, was that you enjoyed it. That’s STILL what climbing should be about for you.
Don’t make it a competition right now, even if you’re competing with your own personal best. Just get up there on the wall or crag and enjoy that feeling that compelled you to keep climbing in the first place.
Conclusion
Climbing postpartum is definitely possible once you’ve recovered after giving birth. It’s different for every woman,. You’ll meet some hardcore gals that popped one out without epidurals and went right back to the crag two weeks afterward. I don’t recommend that though. Most doctors will advise you to wait for 3 to 4 weeks postpartum for rigorous exercise (6 weeks for c-sections) though will usually encourage you to do something light, like walking.
Once your body is ready, you can get out there and do what you love. Pushing it is never the answer. Go slow and build back up. You’ll be back in no time when you take it easy but if you rush it, you’ll just set yourself back further.
And who says you can’t teach Junior a love of climbing early on? Bring them to the climbing gym or out on the wall. As long as you have the proper baby equipment and a responsible grownup to watch them while you get your climbing fix, there’s nothing wrong with showing them more to love in the world.
